When many people think about therapy, they imagine a process of fixing symptoms—reducing anxiety, easing depression, or managing stress. While these are important outcomes, the deeper purpose of therapy is much more profound: it is about tending to the soul.

About twenty-five years ago, Consumer Reports did something unusual. Instead of asking academics or clinicians about the effectiveness of therapy, they went directly to over 4,000 people who had actually sought therapy for stress or emotional struggles. The results surprised the research world: therapy takes time.

In our culture of quick fixes and instant solutions, therapy is often misunderstood. Many assume that insight alone—or worse, a series of “tips and tricks”—can undo the complex web of attachment wounds that shape how we relate to ourselves and others.