When to Meet a Counselor?

I have often been told by my clients that the journey from #Ineedsupport to actually setting up an appointment with a counsellor is a long, arduous one.? While the first stage is acknowledgement?of the requirement?of help, the steps that follow could be hard to surmount. Between #whatifpeoplefindout or #Icanmanageonmyown, people find themselves?uncertain about reaching out for counselling support. The #taboo associated with mental health is so great that a lot of people?would much rather suffer than be whispered about or called the many derogatory words that we often tend to use so casually about people who seek mental health support.

Again, in the course of our lives, most of us hit a rough patch or go through rough times at some point. A lot of the times, we manage our lives and get ourselves back on track. So, when do we decide that reaching out to a counsellor might help make a difference?

?Here are some aspects to consider when you might want to reach out:

1. You have trouble regulating your emotions. Your mood is impacting productivity and you don't enjoy the things you used to anymore. Consistently feeling sad/ angry or just 'off' is part of your regular life.
2. You are adopting unusual/ unhealthy coping mechanisms – it could be too much or too little of anything – food, exercise, sleep, work, etc.
3. You want to improve your awareness, enabling better relationships with yourself and others.
4. You are going through a transitional event in your life - the loss of a loved one, the change in status of a relationship, a new job, the birth of a child.

To be clear, a counselor is not the solution that will magically remove what you are going through or obstacles in your emotional health. Rather it is a place where you will have someone professionally qualified to #listen, bring #awareness about aspects of your life into in an objective manner, and create a #safespace where you know you can discuss everything that stops you from leading an enriching life.

The quality of life is extremely important and we owe it to ourselves to live the best life we can.

#mentalhealthmatters #breakthetaboo #selfcare