Why I Don’t Believe in the Therapy “Quick Fix” and How It Fails High-Achieving Women
Written by Maggie Dickens, LPC-S | Online Anxiety Therapy for High-Achieving Women in Texas and Florida https://catharticcounseling.com | 4 minute read
The Lie of the “Quick Fix” in a TikTok World
You are a high-achiever, meaning you are conditioned to seek the most efficient, high-performance solution. This drive makes the promises of a therapy quick-fix: claims of a one-session cures trauma or solving an issue in “as little as one session,” incredibly appealing. The core problem is that this trend is a systemic response to a shortened attention span, prioritizing a “shiny” marketing claim over the truth that you deserve the time and space to truly heal. When the miracle fails, the blame falls on you, leading to intense shame.
The Problem With “Accelerated Resolution” and promises of a quick-fix
The therapy quick-fix philosophy gets boiled down, gets trendy, and the marketing sounds so good…until it isn’t. Modalities with names like Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) perfectly capture the cultural pressure: not just healing, but accelerated healing, prioritizing resolution so you can immediately get back to work. We are living in a society where The Therapy Quick Fix is the shiniest, loudest thing that gets the press time.
The expectation is that you reduce your complex, dynamic human being to a single symptom that needs fixing.
The Clinical Problem: The Power of the Tool vs. The Complexity of the Human
As a systems-based humanistic therapist, I struggle with this. We are worth the time to really heal. Your brain is complex and amazing.
My extensive experience with powerful tools like Clinical Hypnosis and Ego-State Parts Work has shown me that rapid breakthroughs are possible:
I had a client in Pinecrest, Florida that, due to anxiety and dissociation related to attachment trauma, bit her nails until bloody…almost every day. One session with Hypnosis gave her three months of no biting while we worked on the deeper levels of trauma. That’s freaking incredible.
But I struggle with the promises that one session can cure nail-biting. The tool (Hypnosis) is powerful, but the skill is not magic. The true work is the ongoing relational systems therapy that helps you:
- Integrate the initial relief into your real, complex life.
- Understand why the symptom was there in the first place.
- Sustain the change when the inevitable stresses of life return.
You Are Not Broken: Healing the Little Adult Part
When the quick fix fails, the “little adult” part of you: the part that is already hyper-independent and believes they must perform to be worthy, feels intense shame. That part tells you, “You’re too complicated to be fixed.”
My approach reframes this failure:
- You Are Worth the Time: Healing trauma, anxiety, and the Eldest Daughter Syndrome (more on that here) conditioning is a systemic process that requires context, not just technique.
- The Solution is Relational: The goal is understanding yourself and the system around you, not just symptom removal.
The Political Anxiety: Connecting to the Feminist Lens
The philosophy that you must be “cured” and returned to optimal productivity is rooted in the Patriarchal/Capitalist idea of efficiency at all costs. This is why your anxiety is often pathologized when, in reality, your reaction is a logical response to a messy, anxious world.
My Feminist Therapy approach (you can read more about that here) reframes this failure: Stop seeking a cure for your complexity. Your life is relational and dynamic. We are not just going to breathe and be fine that things are a dumpster fire. We will acknowledge reality and still work on your shit because you matter too.
This system is why I wrote another piece on The DSM Problem: Why Your Therapist Isn’t Diagnosing You.
Stop Seeking the Cure for Your Complexity
The greatest fix is deep, shame-free understanding, built over time in a safe relationship. We can achieve amazing breakthroughs—but we refuse to let the trendy nature of the industry rush the process you deserve. Stop seeking the cure for your complexity and start giving yourself the time and space to heal.
FAQ Section
A: While modalities like Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART), and Clinical Hypnosis are powerful and often lead to rapid breakthroughs, the claim of a guaranteed “one-session cure” is misleading. Trauma is often complex and relational. These tools are most effective when used within a comprehensive, shame-free, and systemic approach that focuses on sustained healing, not just quick resolution.
A: Clinical Hypnosis is one of the most effective tools for accessing and soothing the emotional parts of your system, leading to rapid felt change.
You can learn more about how we integrate Hypnosis and Parts Work into our online anxiety therapy here: Explore how we integrate Hypnosis and Parts Work into our online anxiety therapy in TX/FL.
Ready to stop seeking the fix and start healing the root? Book a consultation for Relational Systems Therapy in Texas and Florida
