Life Can Take A Toll On Your Mind And Body
Death, divorce, job loss, chronic illness — these situations can bring both tremendous stress and distress into your life.
But even daily stressors — the kind you think you can handle — can eventually overwhelm you, throwing your life out of balance and affecting both your psychological and your physical health.
YOUR JOB
Fewer people doing the same amount of work. Late hours, demanding bosses. Disharmony among co-workers.
YOUR FAMILY
Trying to make a marriage work. Making ends meet. Troubled teenagers. Caring for young children and aging parents. Challenges of dual careers.
YOUR PHYSICAL HEALTH
Headaches. Getting sick from being stressed out. Recovering from a life-threatening illness. Learning how to live with a chronic disease.
Your Mind and Body Work Together
Psychological studies show that your mind and your body are strongly linked. As your mental health declines, your physical health can worsen. And if your physical health declines, you can feel mentally “down.” A positive outlook can help keep you healthy.
You can improve the quality of your everyday life by building resilience, which will help you adapt to stress and bounce back from life’s most difficult times. Resilience isn’t something you’re born with — it’s something you can learn over time. Resilient people have strong emotional well-being, healthy relationships and an optimistic outlook. Optimism and good relationships have been shown to improve health and longevity.
Pay attention to what your body is telling you about the state of your mind. If you’re getting tension headaches, for example, your body may be telling you that you need help dealing with whatever’s on your mind.
A Licensed Professional Counselor Can Help With Everyday Life
A licensed professional counselor can help you meet the challenges and stress you face every day by working with you to create strategies that build resilience. Talking to a mental health professional can help you deal with difficult thoughts and feelings that can affect your day-to-day functioning.
Psychological well-being and learning resilience go hand-in-hand and provide:
- The capacity to make realistic plans to deal with stressors in your life and carry them out
- A positive view of yourself and confidence in your strength and ability to confront life’s challenges
- Skills in communication and problem solving
- The capacity to manage strong feelings, negative thinking and unhealthy behaviors that may arise when you’re under stress
- Ways to avoid illness brought on by stress and anxiety
A Psychotherapist Can Help When You Can’t Do It On Your Own
Sometimes you may face overwhelming feelings or serious illness. Psychotherapy has been shown to be effective in treating depression, anxiety and other behavioral health issues. Patients who struggle with heart problems have been shown to live longer when their treatment included psychotherapy.
When you reach a point in your life when you want professional help, you want to talk to someone with whom you feel comfortable and whom you can trust. A good friend can listen, but a psychotherapist has the skills and professional training to help you learn to manage your stress and emotions when you’re feeling overwhelmed.
- Psychotherapists are experts in human experience and behavior.
- Psychotherapists are trained to help people cope more effectively with life problems, using techniques based on best available research and their clinical skills and experience, and taking into account the person’s unique values, goals and circumstances.
A psychotherapist can help you identify your problems and figure out ways to best cope with them; change unhealthy behaviors and habits; and find constructive ways to deal with a situation that is beyond your control. In other words, a psychotherapist can improve both your physical and mental well-being.
It’s Time To Talk To A Psychotherapist When…
- You want to prevent life’s stressors from threatening your physical or emotional health.
- You want to build your confidence and resilience to meet challenges head-on.
- You want to gain a mental edge to be your best at your job and with your family.
- You or someone in your family has been diagnosed with a chronic illness.
- You’re overwhelmed and can’t handle the problem yourself.
Information provided by: American Psychological Association