How to Know When You Should Get Mental Health Counseling
Have you ever had a bad mental health day and wondered if you should seek out a mental health counselor to find help? It can be a bit tricky to know when you (or a loved one) may benefit from meeting with a mental health counselor. Unfortunately, there has been a sort of stigma in the past against mental health counseling. However, everyone has pain and trauma in their life, so everyone could benefit from meeting with a mental health counselor to sort through those feelings and build a life worth living. Here are a few examples of when you might want to get mental health counseling.
Your Emotions and Stress are Out of Control
Do you feel constantly overstimulated by small annoyances or experiences? Does the smallest stressor send you over the brink and into an anxiety attack? Are your daily routines such as eating, sleeping, and exercising being affected by your high levels of stress? Are you constantly exhausted by your emotions? If you relate to any of these experiences, your emotions and stress are likely at an all-time high for one reason or another. Everyone has days where they feel very stressed or emotional, but if you feel that way repeatedly and constantly, it can become difficult to function. In these circumstances, a mental health counselor can help you to examine your emotions and stressors to better understand what you can do to manage them.
You Struggle with Substance Abuse
For some people, a sign that they are struggling with their mental and emotional health will be that they start to have issues with substance use. This could include anything like drug usage, lots of smoking, heavy alcohol drinking, etc. Even if you don’t drink or smoke, you might see a similar sign in other ways. For example, your eating might be out of control. You might be binging food uncontrollably. These can be signs that there are deeper issues to potentially examine and address. Mental health counseling can help you to meaningfully cope with these struggles.
You Are In an Abusive Relationship
Unfortunately, another common circumstance that can lead people to need mental health counseling is being in an abusive relationship. Abusive relationships can be dangerous in many ways and don’t only include sexual or physical abuse. Mental and emotional abuse and manipulation can be just as damaging as other types of abuse. Often, when you’re a victim of such abuse, you might not even realize it. However, if you find yourself feeling drained or trapped emotionally, that is a sign that you might be in an emotionally abusive relationship. Mental health counseling can help you to work through those issues on your end and discover if you’ll be able to improve your relationship or if you should leave it altogether.
Remember, these are just a few examples of circumstances when mental health counseling could be beneficial for you. By no means is this an all-inclusive list. However, some of these examples could help you to recognize other circumstances in your life that might lead you to need mental health counseling to find better ways to cope and ultimate healing. Remember that a mental health counselor can help you with that goal.
So, if you’re seeking mental health counseling, click here today to see what services are offered by Peak Psychological Services.