If you have followed the instructions for Steps 1, 2, and 3, you should have identified a potentially promising therapy, or group of therapies, in relation both to your goals or problems and to your own estimation of certain important traits of your personality or character. The therapy or approaches to therapy you have identified now need to be tested, first, in your imagination as you read the chapters of this book, which will give you an idea of what each major approach to therapy is like, and then, if you decide to proceed, in reality, when you have located a suitable therapist (see Chapter 17). The need for this testing is a matter of simple realism: you now have a sense of direction, or perhaps several alternative directions, to consider. The approach to self-diagnosis described in this chapter is intended to be useful, but it is not infallible; much depends on the accuracy of your problem diagnosis, the appropriateness of the goals you have set, and your self-understanding. Much also will depend on the therapist you locate and how well you are able to work together. The recommended therapies listed by letter codes for Steps 1 and 2 reflect evaluations from several sources: (1) Therapists themselves claim that certain approaches favored by them have been shown to be useful for treating certain problems, for realizing certain goals, and for clients with certain personal qualities. (2) Various studies also have attempted to demonstrate for what and sometimes for whom many of the major therapies are most successful (see Chapter 20). (3) Primarily in the _ordering_ of letter codes in connection with the specific {88} goals, problems, and personal qualities listed in Steps 1 and 2, I have relied on my own experience and judgment. Letter codes _listed first_ designate therapies that, in general, are commonly regarded by therapists and psychologists as most useful. At times, when general consensus appeared to be lacking, I have used my own evaluation. The intention in this chapter is to make explicit a simple and reasonable process of choosing a therapy. Many therapies are not mentioned in connection with specific goals, problems, or personality traits. To be sure, some of the therapies that are not mentioned _can_ be useful to certain individuals who have a given goal, problem, or trait. But the objective of this book is to improve the _general reliability_ of a person's self-diagnosis and self-understanding. The book is a _guide_, not a bible. COMBINING APPROACHES