A few years ago you wouldn’t have seen what you see on the Internet today. You especially wouldn’t have seen therapy talked about so openly — on the web or in person. Times have changed. People’s mental health has become viewed more as a problem with solutions instead of a problem labeled as a taboo and never talked about. And hallelujah for that.
2020 was hell in a hand basket, no doubt. Everyone had his or her fair share of struggles last year. We are all surviving everything that was thrown our way last year, albeit some are better at it than others. Some of us are floating, some of us are swimming, some of us are sinking, and some of us are in a boat paddling with oars.
Enter: therapy.
Therapy saved 2020 for me. I know you’ve seen all the posts about marriages and babies being the light in someone’s 2020 and giving them hope. Even though I had a baby in 2020 (and she’s pure joy!), I’m still crediting therapy with the award of “Getting Me Through 2020”.
Therapy is not a bad word. Therapy doesn’t make you weak. Therapy doesn’t mean you need more Jesus. Therapy doesn’t mean you are a failure. Therapy doesn’t mean you are less than. Therapy doesn’t mean your marriage is on the brink of divorce. Therapy doesn’t mean you hate your life. Therapy doesn’t mean you are insecure as a person. There is more to therapy than marriage troubles, self-doubt, and family trauma.
Sometimes you need help that you can’t find within yourself, your spouse, your pastor, your friends, your children, or anyone else in your life. Sometimes you need guidance, reassurance, and questioning from an unbiased person that only knows about you what you give them. Your mental health can be, and should be, a priority.
Therapy only works if you’re willing to make it work.
You can’t carry shame and self-doubt into it. You can’t be willing to tell half-truths. You have to be willing to give a little and take a little. You have to be willing to be torn down (metaphorically, of course) and reconstructed in some areas and you have to be willing to be built upon in others. You have to have an open mind and realize the only person you can control is you. Therapy only works if you do. It only helps you if you allow it to.
Therapy shouldn’t be something you hide from. Is it uncomfortable? Sure. Is it necessarily dinner table conversation? Not really. Should you shout it from the rooftops? Probably not, unless you really just want to. But if it’s helping you, making you happier, and shaping you more into the person you want to be, then why should it be a piece of you to shy away from?
If you’re still dealing with the mess 2020 threw your way and your head is barely above water, please consider a counseling session with a therapist of your choosing. There is nothing wrong with admitting to yourself and others that you could use a little extra bit of guidance. It could be the absolute best thing you do for yourself. Therapy means you care enough about yourself to be better. Isn’t that something we all want to do?
Asking for help is not a weakness. In fact, I think it’s something only the strongest people know how to do.
