Cultural Competency: Much More Than a Buzzword

Finding a therapist can be hard. There are many people trained to provide psychotherapy. These licensures are designated with letters such as: LPCC, LCSW, LPP, LPA, etc. While all of these licensures indicate at least a master's level training in mental health, there are even more letters to sort through when we talk about therapy modalities clinicians may use. While this alphabet soup can be challenging to navigate, most modalities are fairly comparable. In fact, research states the greatest indicator for successful client outcomes is not the licensure nor modality but the relationship that clients have with the therapist.

But what if you and your counselor just don't click? Therapists are like shoes-we are not one size so fits all. Not only do we want to look for a properly trained clinician using an evidence based practice, but we also want to look for a therapist that is culturally competent, someone who either understands from experience or who is willing to learn. Whether you are in the law enforcement or the military world; a clinician's understanding of your unique challenges, not pathologizing traits that are crucial to survival in your world, and understanding the hidden impacts of your work can be critical to obtaining the outcome you are looking for. Cultural competency it’s not just a buzzword it’s the difference between a session where you feel comfortable and one that leaves you feeling misunderstood.

What does cultural competency look like? In the therapy world, cultural competency means a clinician is trained and committed to understanding the unique experiences, values, stressors, and communication styles of the communities they serve.

But for military and first responder culture, that definition needs to go deeper. Cultural competency isn’t about knowing the acronyms. It’s about understanding:

• Why you minimize pain by default

• What “staying mission-ready” actually costs you

• How you’ve been trained to feel, or not feel

• Why talking to civilians often feels like more work

• The real reason you don’t sleep, but still don’t call it anxiety

A culturally competent therapist recognizes the behavioral patterns that come from training, trauma exposure, or years of hypervigilance. They speak the language of your world without making you explain every detail. For example, we know military families tend to face deployments. Being culturally competent is understanding that a deployment means so much more for a family than a separation. It may be that the spouse left behind has to alter their career due to lack of support. It also means the spouse left behind may be the soul childcare provider, therefore, they deprioritize their own medical care because who really wants to take an 18-month-old or a 4-year-old little boy to their OBGYN appointment? 

It also made mean they neglect their self-care, who really wants to take an 8-year-old to the hair salon while they get a cut color for a few hours? 

But maybe that wasn't somebody's experience. Maybe you have a military spouse who has stayed in their career, had the childcare and support to be able to navigate certain challenges. That is why clinicians have to understand potential implications and challenges while also leading with curiosity. Nobody's experience is the exact same.

Why It Matters: Therapy Without It Can Backfire

Without cultural competency, therapy can actually harm clients. You may end up feeling:

• Misunderstood (“Why do you use such dark humor?”)

• Judged (“How does that not bother you?”)

• Dismissed (“You just need to go on a date once a week.")

• Or worst of all, leaving a session feeling like you broke the clinician

When clinicians aren’t trained in the culture of service, they can mislabel grief, moral injury, survival skills, or protective silence as pathology rather than strategy. That can shut down the therapeutic process before it ever begins.

Cultural competency isn’t a luxury in therapy. It’s the baseline needed for optimal results.

So, when you're looking for a therapist:

-Properly Trained

-Evidence Based Practice

-Culturally Competent

These 3 keys can be crucial for your success.

Ready to learn more about culturally competent care for LEO and military families? Contact Project ReFORGED or explore our upcoming trainings and resources designed for those who serve and those who love them.