I have started and stopped therapy a zillion times before. People would always tell me "go to therapy". It's kind of insulting, honestly, as if it was some magic cure all way to dismiss me.

What I've found is that therapy doesn't help if you don't have a specific enough problem to work on!! So people would always tell me "go to therapy" and I couldn't figure out wtf I was supposed to work on there so the therapists didn't focus on anything helpful either.

BUT I feel like I've just finally discovered a specific thing I want to work on after years and years of this back and forth BS. So I researched a therapist that is said to use a specific therapy modality to treat my specific problem. We'll see how it goes with her.

ALSO...it has been frustrating to me, but I've found that most therapists I've come across are just simply "talk therapists". There is no real goal other than giving you validation and some general advice and vague concepts and techniques. This can be great for people...but for me it just hasn't been helpful enough. It just doesn't give me solid enough direction. But maybe a talk therapist is what you need...who knows?

I realize these don't answer your questions directly, but I figured I'd share what I learned to hope if might help you. Best of luck.