If you’ve ever thought, “Something’s wrong with me”, welcome to the club most of us didn’t sign up for, but somehow joined anyway.
We’ve heard that phrase in the office more times than we can count. It’s usually said softly, with a hint of shame, like naming a secret. And every time, I want to offer the same reminder: You are not a project. You are a person.
At Columbus Counseling Group, we don’t work from a “let’s fix it” mindset. Instead, we try to understand the full context of what someone’s been through, what they care about, what they’re still figuring out. Because when we focus only on what feels broken, we miss everything that’s still whole.
People First. Always.
A diagnosis can be helpful. It gives us language, structure, and sometimes a roadmap. But it’s not the whole story. Imagine trying to understand a novel by reading one paragraph. That’s what it feels like to define someone solely by a diagnosis.
Studies have backed this up like the one in The Lancet Psychiatry that found mental health outcomes improve when care includes social context and life functioning, not just symptoms. No surprise there. People don’t exist in silos. Life is messy and nuanced, and healing often starts by simply being seen in that complexity.
We’ve worked with people navigating everything from chronic overwhelm to identity shifts to family stress that feels like it should come with a user manual. And each time, the work deepens when we stop trying to “correct” someone and start getting curious about their story.
Some clients benefit from tools like a borderline personality disorder test to better understand their emotional patterns and needs.
For others, therapy becomes a space for self-discovery and reflection — a form of personal growth counseling that helps them reconnect with their values, strengths, and long-term goals.
Progress Isn’t a Straight Line
There’s a cultural urge to treat mental health like a checklist. Feeling better? Great. Done. Not feeling better? Must be failing.
Except, that’s not how it works. Healing has its own rhythm, and it rarely respects our timelines. Research from the American Psychological Association confirms that change is rarely linear and sometimes, the bravest thing someone does in therapy is come back after a rough week and say, “Okay, I’m still here.”
In DBT, we often say that people are doing the best they can and they can learn new skills. That’s not a contradiction, it’s compassion with structure. One foot in acceptance, one foot in growth.
We’re Not Just Clinicians. We’re Humans Who Happen to Be Good at This.
One of the things we love most about our team at Columbus Counseling Group is how real everyone is. We’re skilled, yes — but we’re also people who show up with authenticity, humor, and humility. We don’t pretend to have all the answers.
We’ve sat with clients who were told they were “too much” for years, only to realize they were carrying more than anyone knew. We’ve seen how powerful it is when someone finally feels safe enough to put their story on the table and say, “This is what I’ve been holding.” That’s when the real work begins — not to fix, but to understand and rebuild.
There’s No One Right Way to Heal
Every person’s therapy journey looks different. Some folks thrive with DBT skills and structure. Others need space to explore grief, identity, or how to set boundaries without feeling like the villain. Some clients are navigating trauma. Some are processing what it means to feel deeply in a world that doesn’t always make room for that.
There’s no single “healing formula.” And if there were, we’d probably question it anyway.
What we do offer is a space where you can be fully yourself — where your strengths are seen, your challenges are met with care, and your story is honored, not edited. At Columbus Counseling Group, that’s the kind of support we strive to provide every day.
