Welcome!
We’re so glad you took the step of visiting our site to learn more about mental health services for yourself or a loved one. Even if you’ve been struggling for awhile, the idea of opening up about your life to someone you don’t know can be scary and overwhelming. Or it may be hard to imagine how just talking to someone could even help. We hope you take a bit to read through the information below to know if it really is time to seek counseling from Christian Perspective Counseling for you or your loved one and, if so, how it can help.
10 Ways To Know You Might Need Counseling
Studies show that changes in sleeping and eating habits (too much or too little) are closely tied to mental health. People with mood issues, anxiety, ADHD, and other mental health conditions commonly have sleep issues, and poor sleep can make life more difficult due to emotionality and negative thoughts. Also, suddenly beginning to eat more or less than what’s normal for you may be emotional eating. Counseling can help to manage your sleeping and eating habits as well as to identify what the underlying cause(s) of the changes might be.
1. Changes In Sleeping and Eating Habits
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Whether circumstances in life are very stressful for a season or you feel like your usual ability to deal with average stress has been lost, feeling incredibly overwhelmed is a sign that counseling could help. Counseling during such times can help you organize a plan to handle stressful circumstances and/or identify what may be affecting your usual coping ability, such as strong emotions that need to be processed.
2. Feeling Incredibly or Consistently Overwhelmed
If you’ve recently begun to withdraw from social situations and friends or isolate yourself, this may also be a sign that you’re struggling more than you thought. Feeling no motivation to do what you used to enjoy can also be caused by anxiety, depression, or other mental health struggles, and counseling can help you learn and treat what may be troubling you.
3. Avoiding Friends and Fun
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Even pessimists are able to have hope that there will be an end to their challenges. If you’ve lost the hope that your challenges will come to an end or feel like you’re in a spiral of negative thinking, you may be struggling with a bout of depression. Feeling irritable all the time and not caring or having energy enough to do basic things like shower regularly, get out of bed, or show up for work or school are also sure signs that your mood is struggling. Counseling and/or psychiatric medication can help determine the cause of your depression, restore hopeful thoughts, and re-energize you.
4. Feeling Hopeless and Not Caring
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Intense emotions that are hard to control may also be a sign that your mental health could use support. As stress or unprocessed feelings persist, our ability to manage them can wane. Sometimes, past trauma, burnout, or grief can be the underlying cause, which counseling can explore. Thought processes can also become intrusive and difficult to stop. Seeing a counselor can help you understand and cope with strong feelings as well as teaching you to control your thought processes more effectively.
5. Out of Control Feelings and Thoughts
6. Trauma
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Trauma happens when an event overwhelms your momentary ability to cope and the powerful feelings that are created get lodged in your mind and body. With counseling and/or medication management, healing from past trauma and old hurts can allow you to live free of the overwhelming residual feelings.
7. Harmful Habits
When harmful behaviors are too difficult to stop on your own, counseling can help you understand why you’re choosing them despite their harm and can then help you make a plan for stopping them. Addictions can sometimes be driven by other root causes like trauma, depression, or anxiety. Understanding these primary conditions can make a powerful difference in being able to stop harmful habits.
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Carrying on after the loss of a loved one, a hope, a role/ability, a major move, or a relationship can be difficult to do on your own. There is no timeline or universal process for grief, but, if your grief stays too challenging for too long, you should see a counselor for help. Counseling can help you to process the troubling thoughts and complicated mix of powerful emotions involved with grief.
8. Grief
9. Relationship Challenges
Family, work, social, and church relationships can all be complicated and hurtful at times. Counseling can help you process relational hurt and teach you better communication skills to build understanding with one another so that, even despite conflict, you can have more fulfilling relationships.
10. Understanding and Growth
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Counseling isn't just for problems and struggles. It's also perfectly suited to help you develop your perspective on life events, personality traits, relationship patterns, and questions about the direction your life is taking. Sometimes, God answers prayers for help with these things through professional helpers!