Local counseling services offer a wide range of help for any situation or issue that you can think of. While only a small percentage of Americans are in some form of therapy, roughly less than 5%, those numbers are staggering considering the population we live in. Local counseling services may employ varying types of services. Group therapy is one of those ways. Local counseling services, after some initial evaluation, will often group you with other individuals suffering similar issues. This type of therapy has proved effective for the treatment of drug addictions, eating disorders, and grief counseling to name a few. The advantage of group therapy is being able to connect with other individuals in your same situation. The sessions are always monitored by a trained professional in a way that directs discussion towards the desired milestones. Those wishing more personal attention from their counselor will want to seek different methods. Another form of help offered by local counseling services is individual therapy. A large percentage of those seeking help will choose this method. Counselors will schedule a specific time period, lasting anywhere from 30 minutes to two hours, to sit down with patients and work through issues one on one. Not only does this offer very direct personal attention with a trained professional, but will allow you the privacy to discuss anything you wish. Patients of local counseling services enjoy some strictly mandated confidentiality. The professional may not discuss what you talk about in your sessions with anyone. Most modern counselors will employ a humanistic or real life approach, to therapy. Psychoanalysis is still used as well. One may want to discuss counseling methods prior to starting any sessions.