The social stigma associated with mental health is so overwhelming that people refuse to seek help or even confide in the fact that they need help. Over the years, therapy is often considered the last resort in treating mental illness, with many of the victims forcing a strenuous façade to let the things tide over with time. At other times, people find it difficult to separate mental health issues from regular day-to-day emotions. Either be the case, the result is needless suffering that only worsens with time.
Earlier, the intervention by a trained expert, more accessible is the identification and treatment of the problem. Reaching out to a therapist does not require you to cross over a certain threshold of crisis. Rather than waiting for things to clear out on their own, take a step towards self-care by reaching out to professionals whenever you feel like it.
Speaking on the same, here are some tell-tale signs that you must watch out for and consider getting help from professionals.
Contents
Emotional Distress
Emotional outbursts are part and parcel of our life. Sometimes emotions are too heavy to be stuffed in. However, the question is how often and the gravity of the outburst. Does your outburst limit your rational thinking? Does your outburst make it difficult for you to face people back? If you have no reason for the random burst of anger or the time you cry yourself to sleep, you need to consult a therapist. A therapist will help you channelize the energy or help you learn how to manage them.
Unhealthy Coping
It is common for people to use reward mechanisms to cope when things are going bad. Indulgence in eating, drinking, or other substances acts as a reward to alleviate the pain and source happiness when things don’t feel right. However, if you have a mental illness, the void is too big to fill. Though initially, the coping mechanism may seem to work fine, later on, the void becomes too large that the coping mechanism turns unhealthy, leading to substance abuse.
Anxiety Disorder
Anxiety disorder is the most prevalent mental health disorder, and each year the percentage of people suffering from it is on the rise. However, anxiety is expected when you face unprecedented situations, anxiety disorder props when the sense of anxiety or fear elevates even in non-threatening situations. A constant feeling of dread that creates panic even in the slightest cause is a sign that you need to seek help from therapy.
Body Disorders With No Medical Explanation
Your body shows various signs of any distress that it faces. Like other illnesses that affect a specific body part, mental illness takes a toll on the body’s nervous system, which, in turn, affects different parts of the body. Our body’s common signs that call for attention are fatigue, digestive issues, headaches, and a weakened immune system. If these symptoms don’t give a clinical diagnosis, you can point towards underlying emotional turmoil or stress as the cause.
Straining Relationships
When you are dealing with emotions too strong to handle yourself, you slowly detach yourself from others. You can see yourself building a wall between yourself and others, slowly withdrawing yourself into the cocoon. You might not even seem to notice, whereas your friends and family members might be raising concern over this behavior, leading you to think, what is all this fuss about.
Sleep
Too little or too much sleep is a sign that your body is under mental stress. Sleeping in can be a sign of fatigue or your body’s mechanism to avoid things. Getting too little sleep can be because of underlying stress or other mental issues. A healthy sleeping pattern is essential to help your body relax and rejuvenate itself to face the day ahead. Calling on a therapist might help you address the issues that disturb your sleep-wake cycle.
Conclusion
Seeing a therapist as a confidant to let you shed your guard might help you drop the inhibition of approaching them. The central assertion that needs to be sent out is that seeing a therapist does not require a benchmark. You can always seek help when you feel uncertain or cannot deduce the cause of the symptoms since an early deduction is better than waiting for the disorder to worsen.
