I have struggled with my mental health ever since I was very young. You may be wondering why I am choosing to tell you something so personal. My reason is that I am trying to break the stigma behind mental health and attending therapy. There has forever been a stigma towards those with mental illnesses, those with psychological diagnoses, and those who attend therapy. There is this idea that these people are somehow “tainted” and should be kept away from. In reality, these people are still much like you, they just have something else to deal with. The stigmatized, knowing about the stigma, then hide the fact they struggle, see a therapist, or take medicine. These people should not have to feel this way. There is no issue with needing to sit down and reevaluate what is going on in life and just talk to someone about it. We all have our own troubles and predicaments. It is not fair to judge others on theirs or judge how well they can deal with them. All in all, we are all struggling, and we are all trying to navigate our ways through life. I believe that anyone could benefit from therapy, even if they do not think their situations are that serious. It is important to communicate your emotions no matter the circumstances. I also think that being open about mental illness is important to show that the stigmatized are not alone. As a psychology student, I have learned a lot about mental illness and how hard it is for individuals to accept their diagnoses and go about their life. Mental illnesses affect daily functioning and cause severe distress. It would make it a lot easier for these individuals if the stigma could be erased and they could be more accepted into society.
Therapy does not have to be stigmatized. No one should have to be embarrassed to tell someone they attend therapy sessions or feel as if they have to try to hide it altogether. Therapy has a wide array of benefits for anyone. Therapy can help build positive coping skills, as everyone has bad days and sometimes may not know how to deal with them. Therapists can help identify what is troublesome and can help in coming up with ways to strengthen resilience against having negative thoughts or behaviors. Also, everyone has troubles in their relationships at times. No one is an expert on relationships, but therapists can help with approaching the situation and seeing it from both sides. This may not be widely known, but you do not need to be diagnosed with a mental illness to be able to go to therapy. An individual can choose to go to therapy due to a stressful life event, a break-up, a death in the family, or just about anything. It may even be more comfortable for you to talk with someone about your troubles who is outside the situation and can give you an overall unbiased opinion.
So, to start off with trying to break the stigma, I have attended therapy since I was thirteen, and there is nothing wrong with that. It is okay. Attending therapy is okay.
HCXO, Kasidy
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