From the author: You can find the original of this article on the website. There, on the Contacts page, you can not only make an appointment, but also voice a topic on which you would like to see an article on this resource. The best and most interesting proposals will be selected for writing articles. Thus, you can order articles on any issues that interest you. Over the years of my practice, I have more than once encountered the unpleasant truth of life: the average person would prefer to suffer in silence, turn all his girlfriends into a vest, it is pointless and useless to sit on various forums for years, periodically go to mediums or astrologers instead of seeking qualified psychological help. And if he does, he is often dissatisfied with the result and forever refuses further psychological and psychotherapeutic communication. Why does this happen? The popularity of mediums and fortune tellers, grinding bones for husbands and mothers-in-law alone with girlfriends, reading articles with recipes for happiness - can be explained very simply. The activity described above allows a person to create the appearance of steps towards change in the absence of any. It cannot be said that a person is really satisfied with everything, no. Experiences of the meaninglessness of existence, lack of color in life, reduced self-esteem, low level of quality of life - all this makes a person sincerely suffer. But these torments are bearable, they are familiar to him. He has become one with them and is practically unable to imagine another life. Moreover, he is sure that he cannot cope with another life. Often in his entire life he never had to take responsibility; everything was decided by circumstances or the strong will of other participants in the interaction. However, there is another way. You can take advantage of the chance to control your own destiny by seeking professional psychological help. The main thing is to choose the right person with whom you will begin the path to change. There are a number of criteria that you can focus on when searching. Firstly, this is undoubtedly a higher specialized education, that is, having a diploma in the field of Psychology or Psychotherapy. I note that according to the law of the Russian Federation “On Psychological Assistance to the Population,” only diploma holders with a higher psychological education have the right to practice. Certificates of completion of training in any schools or training centers do not give the right to conduct psychological activities and cannot be a guarantor of high-quality psychological assistance. Secondly, a real specialist is constantly improving. Therefore, additional diplomas or certificates are welcome. That is, if your specialist, having graduated from a university with a degree in psychology, also learned coaching, art therapy, sand therapy or NLP programming, that’s good. Knowledge and ability to use various psychological tools has a positive effect on the dynamics of psychological interaction. Thirdly, a good psychologist does not hesitate to participate in respected professional communities in Russia and the world. In order to become a member of such a society, one must meet a number of professional criteria. For the client, this means that the quality of his specialist has already been verified. Fourthly, a competent specialist does not try to extract quick money from you by promising a solution to all problems. He does not blame the family, the country, politicians and the world conspiracy with you, and first of all he warns that he is only following you, but you will have to solve your internal difficulties yourself. However, if over the course of many years of work you do not see any changes, this is a reason to try to understand whether you are moving in the right direction or whether it is worth changing a specialist. There are no clear terms for therapy, but the specialist should try to define them. Fifthly, the psychologist is not your friend, so boundaries are always respected in therapy. A specialist must monitor this. This also concerns compliance with ethical standards. Sixth, psychologists.