7 Benefits of Mental Health Counseling
/If you’re reading this, you’ve probably at least considered therapy. Maybe a friend or family member has gone to counseling and recommended it. Maybe you’ve even tried it. Or perhaps the last two years simply wore you down and you need to talk to somebody about it. If that’s you, then you’re not alone, by the way – since the start of the pandemic, 14% of adults in the U.S. have sought counseling, including about 20% of individuals 18 to 44 years old. And with the increase in telehealth opportunities, counseling services are more accessible than ever.
No matter what brought you to this page, don’t let the fear of the unknown or a previous bad experience stop you from pursuing the changes that you know you need to make. Keep reading to learn some of the benefits of therapy and how you can get the most out of your time there. While everyone’s experience is different, there are a number of common ways in which counseling tends to improve wellbeing. And let’s be honest, we could all use a little extra support right now. Going to counseling is a proven practice that helps millions of Americans each year; why shouldn’t you be one of them?
Cope With My Stress
On some level, stress is simply an unavoidable part of life, and it’s not all bad – small amounts of stress can cause us to use caution and think twice, or motivate us to accomplish a task. However, we also know that too much stress or chronic, long-lasting stress can have devastating effects mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and even physically. High levels of stress can also leave us exhausted or irritable, making us less available to loved ones and putting strain on relationships.
The opportunity to talk with a therapist about the stressful things in life, put strategies into place for avoiding some of those stresses, and develop more effective coping skills to deal with the ones that can’t be avoided can provide the peace and freedom we need to function in a healthier way. None of us like how we feel or who we are when we’re overly stressed; meeting with a counselor is one way that many people keep stress at manageable levels and feel more equipped to handle what tomorrow brings.
Improve My Relationships
What if you could be more in tune with how you are feeling, better at expressing what you need from your loved ones, and able to set healthy boundaries in relationships. Counseling can be a great place to explore the relational patterns in your life and gain insight around how to interact in healthier ways with your friends, co-workers, family members, and spouse/partner. Therapy is, first and foremost, for you and your own personal growth, but it can have a profound impact on the systems that you are a part of as well. The positive changes you make can trickle down through your relationships, or they might highlight some relationships which need to change or that you no longer want to invest in.
Your counselor can’t make those choices for you, but they can help provide the space and clarity you need to choose what’s right for you. Going to counseling also presents a third-party mediator who can give an objective view of the problem and help you see other perspectives you might have been missing.
Strengthen My Communication Skills
Related to improving relationships, a counselor can help you learn to communicate with others in more authentic and effective ways. While you’ll still experience conflict, hurt feelings, and misunderstandings in your relationships at times, you’ll have a space to learn and practice different ways of interacting and communicating so that you can navigate those situations in a healthier way.
Increase My Self-Esteem
How we think and feel about ourselves plays an important role in our lives. Negative self-talk is one of the easiest ways to sabotage personal growth and success. Part of the problem with low self-esteem is that it is often inaccurate, but that doesn’t stop if from discouraging us and artificially limiting our potential. Low self-esteem can negatively impact our career, relationships, and sense of value and purpose.
Conversely, high self-esteem and self-worth can help us accept failure, motivate us to get up and try again, empower us to cultivate healthy relationships, and inspire us to pursue our goals and dreams. One-on-one or group work with a therapist can give you the tools to refute negative self-talk, see yourself in a more accurate and compassionate way, and walk in the confidence that comes with that.
Form Healthier Habits
This is a time of year when many people make resolutions aimed at curbing bad habits, starting healthy ones, or both. Perhaps you’d like to make those kinds of changes, but don’t know where to start, or you’re discouraged by having tried and failed on previous attempts. While there’s no magic bullet – long-lasting change typically takes time and hard work – meeting with a counselor can help you set goals, come up with strategies for achieving them, and identify potential pitfalls that might get in the way. Big change starts with taking the first small step, and for many people, that step is booking an appointment with a trained therapist.
Improve My Decision Making
Each person’s story is unique and many decisions are not black and white, but we can all get better at the decision-making process. As mentioned above, your counselor won’t make decisions for you; you’re the expert on your life, and you have to live with the decisions you make. But one of the most important benefits of mental health counseling is gaining a fresh perspective and learning to see choices you didn’t even know you had. Counseling can help you feel an increased sense of agency and intention, directing your life rather than just reacting to it.
The Bottom Line: Heal and Grow
At the end of the day, you have little to lose and a lot to gain by going to counseling. While this is by no means an exhaustive list, it represents some of the common benefits that come from meeting with a counselor. Investing in your own personal growth and well-being can help right now and pays dividends for the rest of your life. Take that step today and find out first-hand what counseling can do for you.