Things That Can Help If You Are Hesitant To Take Therapy

It is getting cold, and so are the seasonal blues. Every time I talk about cold, fever, or pain in the joints, I hear people tell me to visit the doctor of their recommendation but on the other hand, if I say how the winter gets to me in ways other than physical health, I’ve been told things like- “ah! It gets better, don’t worry”, “it’s just in your head”, “think positive”. We have always talked about mental health and physical health in contrasting ways. The taboo and stigma around seeking mental health services and external help have stayed with us for long enough. It not just makes us apprehensive of it but restrains us from going out and seeking help in times of need.

We become hesitant to seek professional help even when we know we need to talk to someone and voice out these concerns that are causing abruption in our life. The thing to do in that scenario would be to talk to a friend or someone who you can trust, who is already in therapy or understands the importance of mental health. This would help to understand the therapeutic process from a third perspective and the progress they made. They would share their feelings related to therapy, their experience and also encourage you for the same. Another thing that can be helpful is to speak to a psychologist, not for taking therapy but for voicing your concerns and later making an educated decision. This is like consulting with any kind of doctor, meeting them and seeing if you felt comfortable talking to them and addressing all the doubts as well. If you are not open to talking to others about it. Things that can help you on your own are differentiating about what kind of psychologist you would prefer and identifying who you would be most comfortable with and seeking a psychologist based on those preferences. This includes- gender, age, experience, geographical area. You can also read up from blogs or books where people share how going to therapy helped them and what goals they could achieve. This would not only normalize the therapy process for a first-timer, but also motivate you to go out and seek that sort of help and be where you want to be. The hesitation towards going to therapy alone can also be eased up by joining support groups. These support groups act as allies and are on the basis of something which is common to all the members. A trained professional facilitates the group. These support groups will give you space to open up a little and into talking about yourself and some difficulties that you have faced, without taking away from your experiences. You will know how so many others float in a similar boat as you. These support groups can also be of different forms, like if you are into art or writing. There are support clubs just focused on that, even on films and books, but all related to mental health. 

We understand going to therapy can seem like a lot but it is just as simple as going to a doctor when your fever isn’t getting any better even after all the home remedies and taking paracetamol is not helping, you might need a test or a different set of medications or the fever is from a stomach infection. This happens in therapy too. A psychologist or psychiatrist may request a test to corroborate evidence with their clinical judgement to make a correct diagnosis or to determine a problem or concern more accurately to suggest the best ways of dealing with the problem. Therapy gives you a new lens through to look at a problem or understand its deeper meaning of it. We hope all your winter blues go away and for any further assistance please reach out to us at imperfect website.