At my first therapy session, I didn’t take my coat off because I was so nervous and uncomfortable. I had no idea what to expect besides the clichés on television. I told none of my friends where I was going on Monday afternoons for an hour, but looking back, I’m sure my friends would actually have understood. But I was 14 in 2014, and at that point, the conversation on mental health hadn’t really begun among the daily lives of the people I knew. At least in my view, going to therapy was something I could admit to no one, barely even to my parents. As a result, this experience with therapy for just a few months in the middle of Freshman year wasn’t that helpful. I wasn’t actually open to the idea of therapy helping me, or I just thought it would happen magically without any effort on my part.
Photo Credit: Google Images
Here is Sokka giving Aang his own therapy session. As a big fan of Avatar the Last Airbender, I had to include this.
In the spring semester of junior year of High School, when I was more stressed than I’d ever been in my life, I wanted to go to therapy. I was having issues with friends at school as well and it was just all around a crappy few months for me. But I didn’t. I was again afraid of what my parents might say or think; my mom has a tendency to overreact that I didn’t want to provoke. There was also the pressing issue of money. If therapy was more affordable, I think many people’s lives would be greatly improved.
The last time I did therapy, I did tell my friends about it and had a completely different mindset going into it so it was much more helpful than the first time. Money was still an issue, so I only went a few times over the period of three months, but I’ve gotten invaluable skills in coping with anxiety and difficult times that I wouldn’t have gotten without changing my outlook.
Photo Credit: Google Images
Like Jim says, there is no shame in seeking outside help. Life is hard.
You don’t have to be having a terrible year, month, or life in general in order to go to therapy. Everyone is always struggling with something in their life. Provided you have money, if you want to talk something out with a professional who is trained in understanding the ways that the human mind works, this can help immensely. My mom always says it’s better to talk about the things that are bothering you rather than bottling them up. Who better to talk to about things that are weighing on you than a professional?
I can’t offer more insight than just my own personal experience, but I hope this resonates with people and can convince someone out there to start the process of getting help.
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