If you’re struggling to cope with life’s stress and anxiety, or even feelings of loneliness, it may seem reasonable to make an appointment with a therapist. There’s no need to rush, advises clinical psychologist Emily Edlin, and warns that therapy shouldn’t be the default for some life issues that you can probably handle on your own with the right tools. In her opinion piece, washington postEdlin will first explain who he is. should If you are suffering from more serious mental health issues that are negatively impacting your work, relationships, or sleep, seek therapy. But for the rest of us, accepting that we may feel anxious and uncomfortable at times, and learning how to feel and deal with our emotions, perhaps allows us to continue functioning on our own. Edlin writes.
“Anxiety is, for the most part, a healthy human emotion,” fellow clinical psychologist Tracy Dennis Tiwary tells Edlin, adding that what’s often even worse than the anxiety itself is the resulting “meta-anxiety,” In other words, he points out that being anxious means feeling anxious. Edlin offers a list of coping tips you can use instead of automatically heading to a therapist’s couch, including using meditation apps, listening to mental health-themed podcasts, and getting a coach (not the same as therapy). Masu. Seek professional help only after you have tried all of these recommendations, or if you are considering self-harm or suicide, or if someone close to you has expressed concern about recent changes in behavior. Edlin points out that self-care should be: Gardening. “A therapist can help when mental health symptoms make it difficult to pick up a shovel and get started, but most people can be their own gardeners,” she writes.more here. (There are also stories about other therapies.)