Signs You Might Benefit From A Counsellor
Personally, I could be biased since I am a counsellor, but I believe anyone and everyone could benefit from having a counsellor at different junctures in the journey of life. Whether you are doing well and could be even better or not so well and could do with a mental health check up or even a tune up, counseling could be a good idea. Counsellors can be a nice injection of clarity into brain fog or even brain freeze. It’s nice to be able to talk to someone who is removed from the situation you find yourself in and can speak into your life with no strings attached. But I can also appreciate that it requires an investment of time, money, and effort.
So I thought I’d put a list of reasons that you might want to make an appointment sooner than later ☺
Signs you might benefit from seeing a counsellor..
Feeling Stuck: Slow or no improvement of symptoms
- Crisis research suggests it usually takes about two weeks (give or take a couple weeks) for a crisis state of mind to subside. Our brains require some time to re-sort priorities and possibilities after a large change. After a crisis, we tend to need to go into high gear and then our minds and bodies typically adjust and come back to baseline. However, there are times when they don’t and these are the situations where you may want to book an appointment.
- The other scenario is the “Frog in the Kettle” phenomenon where we start to get accustomed to living in an unhealthy situation because it happened slowly over time and we didn’t realize it was a problem until the problem is too big for us to handle on our own. Which leads to my next scenario when you may need a counsellor..
- Crisis research suggests it usually takes about two weeks (give or take a couple weeks) for a crisis state of mind to subside. Our brains require some time to re-sort priorities and possibilities after a large change. After a crisis, we tend to need to go into high gear and then our minds and bodies typically adjust and come back to baseline. However, there are times when they don’t and these are the situations where you may want to book an appointment.
Feeling overwhelmed
- If life feels like it is too much and the word ‘drowning’ comes to mind, you may also want to book an appointment. The typical human stress response takes our thinking brain offline when we are overwhelmed. This would be a good time to find someone to help you sort your life decisions. Counsellors can provide assistance in organizing and clarifying the decisions you can make and those you cannot. For peace of mind, it is important to know what is in my control and what is not.
Needing a sounding board
- So maybe you’re not frozen but just would like some help getting clarity on a looming life impacting situation or decision. This is also a good opportunity to explore what is important to you so you can make a well-informed and thoughtful decision rather than a knee jerk reaction. Being a sounding board is a super power that many counsellors can offer.
Or maybe you just have a yearning for personal growth: emotionally, socially, self awareness, self confidence, or all above the above. Capitalize on the momentum of this feeling!!
- This is an admirable mission no matter how well or how badly you are doing. John Dewey said that it is not the experience that teaches but the reflection on the experience. Being a catalyst is another super power of many counsellors. Having someone listen attentively and make insightful observations can prompt a person to have deeper conversations with themselves and others and the insights gleaned from this process can launch further potential. Give it a try and be pleasantly surprised at how much more you can be.
These are some of my ponderings about the benefits of the counselling process. Let me know if you would like to come in and do a mental health check up and/or tune up. Our admin staff at Thrive Life would also love to offer some suggestions for other counsellors you could benefit from. Wishing you the best as you move along on the journey we call life ☺