6 Reasons Why Everyone Should Engage in Therapy

Consulting a therapist is still a taboo, but here are 6 reasons why everyone should engage in therapy to live a better life.

As our lives are getting faster by the day, we all experience stress, anxiety, mood swings and other forms of emotional distress at certain points.

There can be various reasons for these – meeting deadlines at work or some sort of professional setback, financial crisis or relationship woes, a personal loss (like death of parents or closed ones) or maybe something that you’re yet to decode. 

Feeling low for a considerable period of time can often lead to depression and we end up struggling to move on. It might seem like a vicious cycle, when you’d fail to concentrate.

Things that otherwise made you happy would no longer seem exciting. While you might think that it’s just happening to you – let me tell you that we all go through such phases, when emotional distress takes a toll on our lives.

Before we go deeper into understanding why everyone in today’s date needs to consult a therapist, let us first understand what exactly is ‘therapy’ – or ‘psychotherapy’ as the professionals call it.

Psychotherapy (essentially a form of talking to a therapist, which can also be called as a ‘talk therapy’) is about a safe, non-judgmental place where you can vent about things that are bothering you, discuss experiences that causes anxiety, explore your options and develop the skills to handle various life challenges that are other difficult to cope up with.

While we never hesitate to consult a doctor for our physical ailments, we often hang back when it comes to checking with a therapist for our mental dilemmas.

There’s a social stigma and various misconceptions about consulting a mental health professional – and discussing your emotions with an expert is still seen as something to poke fun at, weak or shameful.

And that’s the main reason why people don’t seek help in the first place, and keep struggling with their emotional baggages.

Also, knowing when to see a therapist can be a little challenging sometimes. After all, everyone has a bad day or goes through a rough patches every now and again – but how do you know when talking to someone might help?

Here, I would like to state a list of incidents where you might benefit from speaking to a therapist. (Please note that these are not the only situations when you should step up for consultation, but mere suggestions to help you understand if you need to check with someone.)

1) You’re having difficultly to manage your emotions, and you often break down.

2) You’re struggling to balance your relationship matters.

3) You’re indulging in unhealthy lifestyle – like overeating, alcohol addiction, spending too much time on social media, playing video games, etc.

4) You’re confused about what exactly to do in life.

5) You’re going through a transition in life (like change in career, etc).

6) You’ve moved cities and having problems to settle down/feel at home.

7) You’re having difficulty to process a traumatic event, like death or accident.

8) You’re emotional stress is hampering your sleep cycle.

9) You don’t feel as happy as you think you could be.

10) You’ve lost interest in activities you used to enjoy.

The American Psychological Association suggests considering therapy when something causes distress and interferes with some part of life, particularly when:

– Thinking about or coping with the issue takes up at least an hour each day

– The issue causes embarrassment or makes you want to avoid others

– The issue has caused your quality of life to decrease

– The issue has negatively affected school, work, or relationships

– You’ve made changes in your life or developed habits to cope with the issue

In case you’re contemplating whether to see a therapist or not, then you should give it a try. If nothing else, then just talking to someone outside your known circle (family, friends, colleagues) will give you a better perspective of things in general.

Here are 6 reasons why everyone should engage in therapy:

1. You’ll learn more about yourself. 

The therapist is usually a third person who knows nothing about you initially, but listens to your narratives in an unbias manner, helping you to connect the dots that you often fail to do yourself.

As you talk to them, you’ll get to know your strengths that might otherwise go unnoticed, and feel empowered to take action on your own.

A therapist will offer guidance if you feel lost, but they won’t tell you what exactly to do – hence, you learn to take charge of the situation (with their motivation) rather than escaping from it.

2. You’ll be more aware of your needs.

As millennials, we often confuse between needs and wants, failing to understand that there’s a thin line between the two!

Most of us focus more on our wants (as desire keeps growing with every passing day) and amidst the hustle, we ignore the needs that helps us feel alive.

Talking to a therapist will surely help you differentiate between them – and make you more aware of your needs.

Also, many of us worry too much about what others want, what others need, what others think of us – which often hampers our decision-making abilities.

While a therapist can help you to cope up getting bothered about what others think, he/she will also encourage you to choose your own path.

3. You’ll be able to focus on your goals in a better way.

Often, having too many things on our plate or focusing on more than one thing at a time can make us confused.

There’s an innate struggle to fix our priorities and eventually, we end up in a mess. Consulting a therapist will definitely help you focus on your goals in a better way.

In case you aren’t sure of what your goals are, a therapist can help you clarify them and set realistic steps to meet them.

4. You’ll have more fulfilling relationships.

Many of us have issues with trusting another person, or deal with past experiences that affects our present relationships.

And it’s not just between partners, but often we tend to have problems with parents or friends over issues that leave us stressed.

A therapy session will help you in addressing the difficulties that you’re facing and improve your emotional intimacy with the other person.

In today’s date, when each one of us are too busy in our own lives and fail to give enough time to hear our someone who’s going through a problem, a therapist will try to understand you on a deeper level and help you in maintaining healthy relationships.

5. You’ll feel better, physically as well.

There’s no denial to the fact that our mind and body are always at sync, and when you’re not feeling well mentally, your physical health tends to suffer.

Not dealing with your emotional health can lead to poor eating habits, lack of physical exercise, and overindulgence in alcohol or drugs.

Consulting a therapist, on the other hand, will impact your overall wellness and encourage you to eat good food, exercise regularly and indulge in self-love. 

6. You’ll get to lead an overall improved life.

Sometimes, just talking to someone can be good enough to just move on in life. If you feel like something is holding you back or hindering your growth, and you’re unable to track that, then seeking help from a therapist will be good.

Rather than worrying about what’s stopping you, it’s better to take a chance and try out things. Know that failure is also a way towards success and your therapist will be your best guide.

Needless to say, one motivation why everyone should seek therapy is because it helps in pushing one outside of their normal and comfortable environment.

The thought of presenting your fears, private thoughts, and needs to an unfamiliar person or a stranger may sound overwhelming in the beginning, but soon you’ll realize that it provides room for self-improvement and self-awareness.