Individual vs. Group Therapy: Which Is Right for You?
If you are considering therapy, you may assume individual sessions are the default. Individual therapy can offer valuable privacy, focus, and depth. Group therapy offers something different: the opportunity to understand yourself through real-time relationships with other people.
Neither format is universally better. Choosing individual vs. group therapy depends on what you want to explore, how you tend to relate, and what kind of support feels useful right now.
What individual therapy offers
Individual therapy provides a one-on-one relationship with a therapist. Sessions can focus closely on your history, emotions, symptoms, relationships, and goals. The pace and attention are shaped around your needs.
Individual therapy may be a good fit if you:
Want a private space to explore personal experiences
Are beginning therapy and want focused support
Are navigating anxiety, grief, identity questions, or a transition
Want to understand long-standing patterns in depth
Need scheduling flexibility or prefer telehealth
Feel more able to speak openly one-on-one
A strong therapeutic relationship can help you notice patterns, experience emotions safely, and develop greater freedom in how you respond.
What group therapy offers
Group therapy brings several people together with one or more therapists. In a relational process group, members talk about what is happening both in their lives and between group members in the present moment.
This creates an opportunity you cannot fully reproduce in individual therapy. You can notice how you take up space, respond to closeness, manage disagreement, interpret feedback, or protect yourself from being known.
Group therapy may be helpful if you:
Feel lonely even when you are around people
Repeat difficult patterns in friendships or romantic relationships
Worry about judgment or rejection
Tend to people-please, withdraw, perform, or caretake
Want to practice honest communication and boundaries
Understand your patterns intellectually but want a new relational experience
Many people imagine group therapy as being forced to disclose private details in front of strangers. A well-facilitated group develops trust over time. Members choose what to share, and the therapist helps create a thoughtful, respectful environment.
Can you do both?
Yes. Individual and group therapy can complement each other. Individual sessions provide space to explore personal history and experiences in detail. Group offers a living setting where relationship patterns can become visible and change can be practiced.
Whether combining formats makes sense depends on your needs, capacity, schedule, and clinical situation. A consultation can help clarify the options.
Questions to consider
Ask yourself:
Do I primarily want private reflection or relational practice?
Do my concerns show up most strongly in relationships?
Am I curious about how other people experience me?
Would hearing others’ experiences reduce my sense of isolation?
What format feels challenging in a way that might be meaningful—not overwhelming?
Feeling nervous about group does not automatically mean it is the wrong choice. Sometimes the anxiety points directly toward the kind of growth group can support.
Finding therapy in Brentwood, TN
The best starting point is a conversation about what brings you to therapy and what you hope will change. Emily LaRose Therapy offers individual therapy, relational group therapy in Brentwood, and secure telehealth therapy for clients across Tennessee. Reach out to schedule a free consultation and explore which format may be the right fit for you.
This article is part of our guide to starting therapy in Brentwood, TN.
About the author. Emily LaRose, A/LPC-MHSP, NCC, is a therapist in Brentwood, Tennessee. She holds a Tennessee license as a Professional Counselor, Mental Health Service Provider (temporary license) and an M.A. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Trevecca Nazarene University. She offers individual and relational group therapy in Brentwood and secure telehealth across Tennessee. Read more about Emily.
