Therapy, Coaching or a Support Group: Which Kind of Help Fits

In crisis or thinking about suicide? Call or text 988 now (in Colorado it reaches the 988 Colorado Mental Health Line). If you are in immediate danger, call 911.

Four kinds of help that can look alike

Maybe you want to feel less stuck, handle stress better or stop repeating the same patterns. You search for help and find therapists, life coaches, support groups and skills classes. They can sound similar, and they are not.

The differences come down to three questions. Who runs it, and what training does the law require of them? What is it designed to do? And what protections do you have if something goes wrong? This guide walks through each option with those questions in mind.

Licensed therapy: what Colorado law covers

Colorado's Mental Health Practice Act defines psychotherapy as treatment, diagnosis, testing, assessment or counseling in a professional relationship to help people ease behavioral and mental health disorders, understand their motivations, resolve emotional or relationship conflicts, or change behaviors that get in the way of daily life (C.R.S. 12-245-202).

That work is regulated. A licensed or registered therapist must give you a written disclosure statement at the first contact. They may not share what you tell them without your consent, apart from specific legal exceptions. And you can file a complaint with the state board if something goes wrong. The disclosure statement guide covers your rights in detail.

Therapy can fit when symptoms affect your sleep, work, school or relationships, when you have been through trauma, or when you want help with a mental health condition. There are several kinds of licensed therapists; the psychologist vs psychiatrist vs therapist guide explains them. Most therapists cannot prescribe medication.

Life coaching in Colorado

Colorado does not license life coaches as mental health professionals. The Mental Health Practice Act does not apply to a professional coach, including a life, executive, personal or business coach, who has coach-specific training and serves clients only as a coach. That exemption holds only as long as the coach does not practice psychotherapy, counseling or the other licensed professions (C.R.S. 12-245-217).

Because the act does not apply, its client protections do not either. A coach is not required to give you the state disclosure statement, the act's confidentiality rule does not cover them, and the mental health boards step in only if a coach crosses into practicing psychotherapy. A coach also may not use protected titles such as LPC or psychologist, or imply that they are licensed (C.R.S. 12-245-218).

Coaching can fit when you feel generally well and want structure for a goal, such as a career change, a habit or a performance target. It is not built to diagnose or treat depression, anxiety, trauma or other conditions. If a coach starts doing that, the work has moved into territory Colorado reserves for licensed and registered professionals.

Peer support groups

SAMHSA describes peer support workers as people who have been successful in their own recovery and who help others in similar situations. Their work includes sharing resources, building skills and community, running recovery groups, mentoring and setting goals. SAMHSA says peer support can extend the reach of treatment beyond the clinic into everyday life.

SAMHSA also notes that talking with people who are dealing with similar issues can help a lot, and that many groups meet in person and online, including groups for family members. Well-known national programs include NAMI, Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous and SMART Recovery.

Peer groups are not therapy. The leaders are usually not clinicians, and there is no treatment plan. The Mental Health Practice Act's rule that group members must keep what they hear private applies to therapy run under a licensed professional's supervision, so privacy in a peer group depends on the group's own agreements. For local options and how to choose, see support groups in Denver.

Clinician-led skills groups

A skills group sits between therapy and a peer group. It is led by a trained clinician, it follows a curriculum, and it feels more like a class than an open discussion. Behavioral Tech, a DBT training organization, says DBT skills training is often taught in weekly groups, the full curriculum runs for 24 weeks, and leaders assign homework so members practice the skills in daily life.

The four DBT skill areas are mindfulness, distress tolerance, interpersonal effectiveness and emotion regulation. In standard DBT, Behavioral Tech says, weekly individual therapy runs at the same time as skills training, because individual sessions help you apply the skills to your own situation.

Because a licensed professional runs it, the act's group confidentiality rule applies: other members may not share what they learn about you without your consent. For what a typical session looks like, read group therapy in Denver. Mountainside runs an adult DBT skills group and a teen multi-family DBT skills group; details are on the DBT groups page.

Combining them, and when none of these is enough

These options are not rivals, and many people use more than one at a time. If you do, let each person know what else you are doing, so their suggestions do not pull you in opposite directions. Some common combinations:

• Individual therapy for a mental health concern, plus a peer group for connection between sessions.
• A skills group to learn coping tools, plus individual therapy to apply them to your own life.
• A coach for a career goal, plus a therapist for anxiety or low mood.
• A family support group for you, while your teen or partner is in therapy.

When none of these is enough, and where to start

If you are thinking about suicide or feel unsafe, a group or coach is not the right first step. Call or text 988, or call 911 if you are in immediate danger. If weekly sessions are not enough to keep you steady, read about choosing a level of care.

If you think licensed therapy may fit, Mountainside offers individual, couple and family sessions, described on its services page. A free therapy consultation is a low-pressure way to talk through which option makes sense for you, and you can check any therapist's license before you book.

Frequently asked questions