Therapy is a powerful aid for all walks of life, regardless of age. With a lot of focus on helping our youth navigate the stresses of growing up, a lot of content online is dedicated to inspiring them to feel more confident in their therapy sessions. 

The thing is, we adults need therapy as well. I myself didn’t go to my first therapy session until I was 28. I would consider myself a “kid” at that time, talking with my therapist about a lot of stuff that doesn’t come up in my therapy sessions now at 38.

Use these therapy topics for adults as a loose guideline for your next therapy session. I say loosely because there is no wrong topic to discuss with your therapist, so if something has been on your brain for a while, please do lead with that.

Therapy topics for adults

Anxiety and stress management

Depression

Relationship issues

Parenting challenges

Coping with being single

Drugs and alcohol use

Dealing with long-term struggles

Career and professional growth

Dealing with an ever-changing world

Therapy Topics For Adults
1. Anxiety and stress management

The feelings of anxiety and stress will be a part of all our lives until we pass. You probably associate what induces these feelings to be different from what a teenager may have going on in their day. 

Anxiety and stress management topics

Starting a family

Longterm relationship breakup 

Long distance relationship 

Being fired from your job

Getting a pay cut

Affording to live in a recession 

Coming out to family

Being in a polyamorous relationship

2. Depression 

With the world realizing more that mental health struggles are more common than we once thought, there has been a positive growth of acceptance of a single person’s struggles. But saying that, it hasn’t made it easier for those single individuals (you and I) to admit we are verbally struggling with those around us. 

Depression topics

Telling those you love

Telling your work

Coping skills

New skills to overcome depression

3. Relationship issues

You might not be dealing with high school crushes anymore, but that doesn’t mean that a broken heart and loneliness don’t hurt as much as they did in your teens. There are a lot of different situations that you could be in, from a growing family to ever single and afraid you may never find the right one. 

Relationship issues topics

Forever single

A long-term relationship that you don’t know how to end

An unhealthy relationship

Unhappiness in a marriage 

Open relationship without trust 

Uncertain about where you are or where you are going to end up

4. Parenting challenges

No matter how much advice your family and friends give you, no guidebook will prepare you for parenting. There is a wide range of emotions that you will go through at this time, and non of them are wrong.

Parenting challenges topics

Uncertainty 

Fearful of failing

Parent-child relationship 

Feeling supported

Jealousy 

5. Coping with being single

There are those of us who marry in our twenties, and there are those of us who find ourselves traveling the world solo at 40. Your story may not be precisely that, but the feeling of not going down the path that society has put around us as we get older can feel right, but also lonely at times. 

Coping with being single topics

Past relationships

Types of relationships you engage in

One night stands 

Desire to be single or partnered 

Polyamory

Monogamy

6. Drugs and alcohol use

You are grown-up, and the world is opening up its narrow views on what is right and wrong when it comes to drugs that were once deemed illegal. There are many safe ways to have a relationship with both drugs and alcohol, while at the same time, there is a point in life where sobriety is an option that can feel right. Do you feel happy with your interaction with drugs and alcohol?

Drugs and alcohol topics 

Are you in control, or are they

Do you use drugs or alcohol the same as you did as a teen

Do you need drugs or alcohol to engage with others

Do you need drugs or alcohol to relax

Do you abuse the use of drugs and alcohol 

7. Dealing with long-term struggles

As we get older, there are things in our life that we come to submit to. Giving into something that once was bugging us years ago and not addressing the issues, and now it has become of our daily life. And we accept it, not even contemplating that it can be addressed if we start to overcome it. 

Dealing with long-term struggles topics

Body aches and pains

Self-confidence 

Fear of failing

Low sex drive

8. Career and professional growth

Unlike your parents, the stability of a lifelong job that treats you well is most likely not an option for you or the majority of the population anymore. We all bounce around from job to job every few years. This can be a great stress, but it also can be a powerful opportunity to find your true path to happiness and professional windfall.

Career and professional growth topics

Entrepreneurship 

Asking for a raise 

Leaving a job for another 

Finding a path to more income 

Starting a side hustle with confidence 

9. Dealing with an ever-changing world

No matter your age, what era you live in, or your situation at this exact moment of reading this. Life is hard!

You do not have to face it alone. The best thing you can invest in is a weekly or bi-weekly therapy session to voice your thoughts whirring inside your head. 

Therapy does help, and you will personally grow as the therapy sessions rack up over time.

Explore our favorite online therapy apps
BetterHelp
BetterHelp is an online counseling platform connecting individuals with licensed therapists for convenient and confidential mental health support.

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Calmerry
An online therapy platform offering access to professional therapists for personalized and confidential mental health services from the comfort of home.

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Online-Therapy.com
Evidence-based therapy support through interactive worksheets, live sessions, and messaging with professionals.

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FAQ

You can discuss anything you want in therapy. There are no topics off-limits. Your therapist is there to help you, not judge you.

You most likely have many things to talk about in therapy in your head right now; however, when you are not used to speaking about them to another person, it can be hard to know where to start.

The best way to discuss difficult topics in therapy is to treat them like a bandaid and let it out immediately. Tell your therapist a few words or a broad idea of the topic; then, they will work with you on bringing out the rest. 

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