How do you decide if therapy would be helpful for you? When
is it time to get help?
At Ganey Counseling and Consultation we encourage people to
be proactive in taking care of themselves. So, if you are asking the question
"do I need therapy?" it may be time.
There are many reasons people seek out a counselor. Perhaps
a better question than "do I need therapy?" may be "How can I
work towards growth and how can I best take care of my well being?" Taking
care of ourselves covers a lot of different areas as you may have seen in the post Being Healthy. We take a holistic view on health which means
looking at our physical, emotional, mental, social and spiritual health. Therapy
can support you in working towards balancing all these areas.
There are clear signals therapy may be necessary in
your own emotional and mental health. Having a mental health crisis or having
been diagnosed with a mental health disorder is a clear sign. Mental Health
concerns are serious and need special attention. In these situations reaching
out for therapeutic help is like going to the ER in an emergency. It is more
urgent. If you have recently been struggling with your mental health a
counselor can guide you, give you information on how to stay safe, and how to
best move forward.
Another sign is relational or emotional troubles. Maybe you
are not in the midst of crisis, but are experiencing significant struggles. Examples
would be behaviors or emotions that seem out of control or unlike you.
Difficulties with a spouse or a child. Other times therapy may be helpful is after
experiencing significant trauma such as a rape, natural disasters, or violence.
When you find yourself stuck and unable to move past a problem, experience, or
situation, therapy can help. When a close family member is diagnosis with
significant medical problems or mental health issues you can find support
through seeing someone who is knowledgeable about these problems and they act
as your guide. In these situations going to therapy is like going to the doctor
when you notice symptoms of illness.
Other times therapy may not be "necessary" but may
be helpful would be after an expected death of a loved one or during difficult
life transitions. Often at GCC we see clients who live successful and
fulfilling lives, at some point they became aware something was "not quiet right". Others
come in because they realized pieces in their past continue to impact them
today. They want to experience healing and are unsure how to get there. These
are examples of individuals being pro-active in their growth as they reach out
for emotional care even though they are not in crisis. Self Care is like eating a regular, healthy, and nutritional diet. Adding
therapy in these situations is like bringing on a nutritionist to help support
you in understanding more about your own individual health needs.
This is not to say everyone should be in therapy and
everyone should always be in therapy. It is to say you may benefit from therapy
even though you have not been "diagnosed" or be experiencing
significant struggles. "Life is a journey taken one step at a time"*
and our next steps are not always clear.
If you are wondering if therapy may be helpful to you, set up
a meeting with a local counselor and ask your questions. You can decide together
how to move forward and hopefully they will be able to help you find clarity to
your concerns.
Ask yourself new questions:
"What does it mean to be healthy in all areas of my
life?"
and
"How do I get there?"
**Quote by Dr. Kevin Ganey
