When should you seek mental health treatment?
When should you seek mental health treatment?
When is an evaluation or treatment needed?
- Marked changes in personality, eating or sleeping patterns.
- An inability to cope with problems or daily activities.
- Feeling of disconnection or withdrawal from normal activities.
- Unusual or “magical” thinking.
- Excessive anxiety.
- Prolonged sadness, depression or apathy.
How can a therapist help?
Talk therapy can help you
- understand your mental health condition;
- define and reach wellness goals;
- overcome fears or insecurities;
- cope with stress;
- make sense of past traumatic experiences;
- separate your true personality from the moods caused by your condition;
- identify triggers that may worsen your symptoms;
How do you know if your therapist is a bad therapist?
Some signs of a bad therapist are easy to spot. If your therapist insults or shames you, it’s time to find someone new. Others are more difficult. The therapist might encourage you to blame others or become overly defensive about a criticism.
Should you ask for a diagnosis before seeing a therapist?
Sometimes rushing to diagnose someone can result in a false diagnosis or overdiagnosis. It can be dehumanizing, too. A therapist should treat you as a person first, then your mental health issues. Unless you ask for a diagnosis immediately, it shouldn’t be the first part of your therapeutic experience.
Should I tell my therapist when I’m angry or disappointed?
That doesn’t mean it’s easy to do this, however. Especially because it feels weird to be angry at someone who’s entire job is about, well, helping you. But when I finally started telling my therapist when I felt angry or disappointed in him, it deepened our relationship and trust in one another.
Do you have to convince your therapist to do the right thing?
You don’t have to convince them that you’re a stand-up person who always does the right thing. You hired your therapist to help you address some things about yourself and your relationships: When you’re in their office, let them do their job. “Try to see them as an employee to some extent,” Brittle said.