Seeking help for mental health issues is a significant accomplishment that should be recognized. Suppose you’ve chosen to take charge of your mental health by seeking professional help from a Park Slope forensic and addiction psychiatrist as soon as possible. In that case, you may discover that psychotherapy is a primary care focus. As reported by the American Psychological Association, a large majority (about 75%) of those who have tried psychotherapy say it helped them improve their mental health.
Whatever your motivation for seeking psychotherapy, it helps to understand why some of the most often mentioned gains from this care modality.
- Help for depression
Trauma, life challenges, abuse, heredity, chemical imbalances, or a mix of these are only some of the many causes of depression. You may learn new coping mechanisms and learn to recognize what triggers your depressive episodes with the aid of a therapist. Several studies have shown that counseling may help people with depression manage their symptoms without taking medication. Considerable research comparing cognitive therapy with antidepressant medicines indicated that although both treatments were influential in the short term, individuals who got cognitive therapy were less likely to relapse into depression.
- Anxiety relief
In the United States, anxiety disorders are the most prevalent kind of mental illness. Around 18% of the population is affected by this. Almost half of those clinically diagnosed with depression also suffer from anxiety. Anxiety is different from the everyday yet uncomfortable stress we all feel from time to time. Chronic, debilitating anxiety is a hallmark of clinical anxiety. Those who suffer from anxiety are constantly on edge. As you may imagine, this condition can lead to many social problems.
Those suffering from the worry may find their bearings again with psychotherapy. By understanding the origins of one’s emotions, one may better understand and manage them. It allows people to become aware of and comfortable with their fears and other emotional experiences, allowing them to move beyond them and achieve their objectives.
- Boost your independence
The goals of psychotherapy are to increase your ability to think critically and solve problems, as well as your sense of self-worth and confidence. It is meant to inspire you to stop blaming others and start taking charge of your mental health, both now and in the future.
- Allows you to stop feeling stuck
People with mental illness or other disorders often report feeling “stuck” in their everyday lives, either because they believe they can’t make progress or because their compulsions, patterns, or addictions keep getting in the way. Obsession, compulsion, and other types of destructive self-sabotage may often have deep psychological roots, and psychotherapy can be highly helpful in assisting patients in tracing these roots. A person may learn to recognize and retrain negative thinking patterns that keep them stuck in their current, sad situation rather than allowing them to go ahead.
- More peace and happiness
Finding respite from negative emotions after feeling overwhelmed by them for a long time may be a very energizing and thrilling experience. When patients learn to recognize and constructively address their negative emotions, the reprieve they experienced initially might give way to a more profound sense of inner calm and contentment.
Psychotherapy is just one component of effective treatment for many diseases; medication, lifestyle modification, and behavioral modification programs may also be necessary. However, psychotherapy is a potent and efficient instrument to aid you on your journey to a better and more satisfying existence.
