As a person-centred trainee psychotherapist, I’m often asked whether I diagnose clients with mental illnesses. The simple answer is no. That’s not part of my training. This can come as a surprise. People often ask, “But isn’t understanding what’s wrong with me an important part of getting better?” My answer is usually yes and no. It’s more complicated than that.

While I don’t diagnose, my training includes deep exploration of diagnostic frameworks like the DSM-5 and ICD-11. We learn how these systems were developed, the cultural and historical context they sit within, and the biases they reflect. We talk about the ways diagnosis can be both helpful and harmful, depending on how it’s used. This understanding helps me support clients who have received a psychiatric diagnosis or who are seeking one, with sensitivity and curiosity.

For some people, a diagnosis can bring immense relief. It gives a name to something they’ve been struggling with for years and can help them find treatments that work, such as specific forms of therapy or medication. A diagnosis might help someone stop blaming themselves for how they feel or behave, and that shift in perspective can be empowering.

But diagnosis isn’t always a comfortable fit. Some people find that once they’re labelled, it’s hard to see themselves outside of that label. It might feel like a fixed identity rather than a tool. Others worry that a diagnosis could limit how professionals see them, or even limit how they see themselves. For some, it can feel like a loss of agency. A sense that something is “wrong” with them that only experts can fix.

In person-centred therapy, I’m less concerned with what a diagnosis says about someone and more interested in what it means to them. I want to understand how it feels to live with that label, how it shapes their choices and their sense of self, and whether it brings comfort, confusion, clarity or constraint. My role is not to judge or confirm a diagnosis, but to hold space for a person’s experience and help them explore it on their own terms.

You don’t need a diagnosis to begin therapy. You just need a willingness to explore your inner world. Whether you arrive with a set of symptoms, a formal diagnosis, or a vague sense that something’s not quite right, the work we do is the same: building self-awareness, deepening self-acceptance, and reconnecting with your own sense of direction.

Diagnosis can be part of your story, but it doesn’t have to be the whole story. In therapy, you get to decide what matters most.