First of all, let’s start by saying you should never avoid mental health treatment. Too many people do, and it never ends positively. You should push yourself to take that first step and seek help – it’ll be the best thing you ever do.
Understandably, it can feel quite scary when you approach this because you don’t really know what to do or what to expect. Here are a few important questions to ask yourself before seeking mental health treatment.
What are my main symptoms?
Start by taking an internal look at yourself and considering your main mental health symptoms. A lot of mental health conditions are caused by unbalanced hormones, which trigger a series of common symptoms. Things you might experience include:
- Deep feelings of despair
- The urge to do absolutely nothing
- Constant worry or anxiety
- Difficulty speaking to other people
- Difficulty being in public settings
- Feeling like you’re not always yourself
- Great swings in your general moods
- Anger outbursts
- Brain fog
The list goes on and on – but only you can answer this question. Try your best to write down as many feelings or symptoms you might notice on a daily basis. Funnily enough, this can be the first step in your mental health treatment journey because it gets you to acknowledge certain underlying issues.
For example, when you really start to think about it, you realize that you’ve not been getting enough sleep for months, your eagerness to do things you used to love has gone away, and you’re just not happy. It can be absolutely eye-opening, and it also helps you figure out the answers to some of the other questions on this list.
How does my mental health affect my life?
Following on from above, acknowledging and being aware of your mental health symptoms helps you see how everything affects your life. Again, it’s something you’ve never thought about before, but now you realize that:
- You’re alienating people close to you
- Your relationships suffer
- You’re struggling to achieve much at work
- You’re gaining/losing weight
In some extreme cases, your mental health could cause you to lose your job or end up withing people who used to be close to you. There’s definitely a spectrum when it comes to how your mental well-being affects you – some people see minor changes in their lives while others can have their entire life turned upside down.
The purpose of this question is to, again, gain that sense of acknowledgment and acceptance. You now know you have a problem and can see the damage it’s doing to you and other people around you. This should give you the motivation to push on and look for serious help.
What treatment will be the most beneficial for me?
It’s the most important question, but also the hardest to answer. Mental health treatment options usually include:
- Therapy & counseling
- Support groups
- Lifestyle changes
- Prescription medication
- Specialized therapies (CBT, etc.)
- Inpatient services (rehabilitation)
How do you know which of these will be the most beneficial? You don’t – unless you’ve undergone treatment in the past, and not just for your mental health. As a good example, what if you used to take medication for chronic pain? It didn’t go well, and you ended up addicted to the pain medication, meaning it caused more harm than good. It’s an extreme example, but it shows that you should steer clear of mental health meds.
Moreover, perhaps you’ve tried therapy of some sort before and didn’t get along with it. Or maybe you know that you’d be better in a group setting than alone in an office with a psychologist. You can also look back at your symptoms to try and see if any treatments align best with them. E.g. If you struggle with social anxiety, you might benefit from some sort of behavioral therapy.
Use this question to work out what’s absolutely not beneficial for you, and what might be a better shout.
How much can I realistically afford to spend on treatment?
Look…in an ideal world, this would never need to be a question. Sadly, we’re not quite at the point where everyone can access all types of healthcare for free. What’s even more despicable is that a lot of therapists charge quite large sums of money for their services, which can alienate a big chunk of the population who suffer from mental health conditions.
There is some good news, though. It is possible to get online therapy covered by insurance – and many other mental health services do come under your health insurance umbrella now. This wasn’t always the case (and some providers still don’t accept insurance), but if you look around, you will find options.
If you can’t use your insurance and have to pay out of pocket, then create a budget – as you would for any big life expense. Take this seriously; think of it as an investment in your wellbeing. Yes, parting with money sucks, but think about how much better you’ll feel. It can literally be the thing that turns your life around and gets you back on track.
At the same time, you don’t want to end up in debt, so make sure you know what you can afford.
What should I hope to achieve from treatment?
You must set realistic goals when it comes to mental health services. Don’t expect it to be a case of attending one appointment, getting therapy, and then seeing the world through rose-tinted glasses.
It takes time.
Be prepared for it to take a while before you see any changes. Also, prepare to work hard to elicit these changes. Mental health treatment isn’t something you can just sit back and hope will work. It requires a conscious choice from you to involve yourself in it and do whatever you can to see improvements. You’ll also never cure your condition, but that’s okay. Treating mental health is more about learning to live with what you’ve got and reducing the bad days/triggers.
Acquaint yourself with these five questions before getting mental health treatment. They will help you understand things a little bit better and what to expect from any treatment. You’ll no longer feel like you’re going in blind and can approach the situation with more confidence.
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