Professional Counseling Services In Daily Life
Medically Reviewed By April Brewer , DBH, LPCStrategies for Living Better
While many kinds of mental health issues can be debilitating to an individual's standard of living, it's also true that many, perhaps even most individual's mental health are not quite as good as it could be. This is part of the human condition, but there are certainly preventative steps that you could take to live happy, less anxiously, be more effective in relationships, and more productive in everyday life. What are some proactive ways to assist with improving your wellbeing? Here are some suggestions to improve your daily life:
- Try not to be so hard on yourself. When life deals you lemons, then it is time to make your best pitcher of lemonade! We take on daily challenges in life, no matter how big or small or good or bad we perceive them to be. The reality is with every decision we make in life, there poses a risk for a positive or negative outcome. Try to do your best and make the best decision that you believe is right. Try to counter self-criticism with positive praise, especially with even your smallest accomplishments throughout the day.
- Treat people how you would like to be treated. Be kind to others. Try to get involved with community events or even help a stranger today. People appreciate an unexpected helping hand. In addition, you will also gain fulfillment by helping others.
- Try to relax. There is healthy stress then there is also unhealthy stress. An example of healthy stress could be experiencing anxiety about an upcoming job interview in one week, finding out if you will be expecting a baby boy or a baby girl, preparing to go out on a date, or preparing for an upcoming examination. On the contrast, unhealthy stress could be cycling thoughts about if you will get back with your ex, get a new promotion at work, or worrying about bad things happening to your or your loved ones. Try to make your "peace of mind" a priority and relax. Relax by taking slow and deep breaths, listen to soothing sounds or music, watch a movie, practice meditation or yoga, go on a walk, go on an outing with a friend, or exercise to burn off some stress.
- Have some fun and enjoy yourself. Often times, life requires us to be serious and structured. When is the last time you had some real fun and enjoyed some alone time or time with family and friends? The same way that you schedule time for mandatory daily tasks, try to schedule time for yourself to unwind and enjoy yourself. After all, this could help uplift your mood and increase your self-confidence.
- Participate in a hobby or learn a new skill. What are some of your favorite hobbies? If you can't remember, maybe it is time for you to revisit this and get involved in a past hobby or finding a new hobby, a new leisure interest, or taking up a new skill. This could help improve your self-confidence, improve your mood, engage with people or meet new people, enhance your occupational skillset or prepare you for a new job.
- Increase physical activity/try to exercise regularly. There are various mental health benefits from exercising regularly. To name a few, you will feel more energized, it could uplift your mood, increased energy levels, reduces stress and anxiety levels, improves sleeping patterns, and improves your overall physical health.
- Try to eat healthier and nutritious meals. Eat well balanced, proportioned, and regular meals. Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables. Stay hydrated by drinking plenty of water. And try to decrease fast-food outings (greasy, salty, and sugary foods & drinks).
- Sleep is an important priority. Are you well rested in the morning? If not, it is important to get into a regular sleeping pattern. Try to go to bed and wake up at the same time regularly. Reduce the amount of sugar and caffeine intake prior to bedtime.
- Avoid using drugs and/or alcohol to cope with life. Alcohol and drugs will not fix the problem, they will only mask it, and likely make whatever "problems" or challenges that you are going through worse.
- Accept the reality. We often create unwanted stress and low mood by excessively worrying about things that are not within our control. Acknowledging and accepting what we can and cannot change in our lives, will allow us to cope in a healthier manner, then the distressful thoughts and feelings will eventually surpass and allow you to move on.
The Role of Counseling
Looking at the benefits of professional counseling services can certainly be a part of the strategy. We've all heard the proverb about forests and trees, but are you aware of how this applies to your own life and happiness? The truth is that problems, opportunities, and nuisances all look much bigger from close-up, this leads us to see them as more important or more threatening than they really are. While many kinds of mental health issues can be debilitating to an individual's standard of living, it's also true that many, perhaps even most individual's mental health are not quite as good as it could be. This is part of the human condition, but there are certain steps you can take to live happy, less anxiously, and be more effective in relationships and everyday life. Looking at the benefits of professional counseling services can certainly be a part of the strategy.
The Role of Counseling
We've all heard the proverb about forests and trees, but are you aware of how this applies to your own life and happiness? The truth is that problems, opportunities, and nuisances all look much bigger from close-up, this leads us to see them as more important or more threatening than they really are.
Most times we turn to our family, friends, colleagues, or even strangers to discuss sensitive or pressing thoughts to. Sometimes we even choose to hold it all inside, until we feel as if we will spill over. All which may have negative outcomes. However, talking to a qualified therapist allows you an alternative option, the opportunity for a nonjudgmental listening ear to help provide you a sense of clarity and guidance to help improve your daily life and meet realistic goals in your personal and/or professional life.
Talking things over with a qualified therapist can help you keep your mental clarity and perspective even during stormy weather. The key to improving your state of mind is often just seeing things as they are and in proper context, whether this means knowing where you stand in a relationship or worrying less about the small stuff.
In addition, a professional counselor can provide knowledge regarding mental health issues that are often left undiagnosed, especially if they are not causing serious behavioral problems. Knowing that you might be affected, however slightly, by conditions such as depression or anxiety disorders is the first step towards taking action, whether this means pursuing treatment through talk therapy, learning ways to better cope with an issue's effects or ways to facilitate a condition's symptom relief.
Online Professional Counseling Services
By using the internet to connect with a therapist, you can have access to a qualified counselor at the tap of your fingertips via your mobile phone, tablet, laptop, or desktop computer. While you shouldn't expect an instant response to the email messages you send every time, simply putting your thoughts and feelings into words can be of immediate relief and benefit, as can reviewing the course of your previous conversations you have had with the therapist. If you feel that it is needed, you can also schedule real-time live counseling sessions through instant messaging chat, phone call, or video chat.
These services offer the same kind and quality of treatment as an office-bound therapist can, but at much lower cost and in a much more convenient format. Especially for those suffering from potentially severe mental health issues, chronic medical conditions, or physical limitations, online therapy now makes it possible to access effective professional help from anywhere at any time, while eliminating some common barriers such as financial, travel, and time constraints.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):
What is professional Counselling?
Professional counseling services (PLLC registered or otherwise) are a type of mental health service that utilizes talk therapy and acts as a guider people to reclaim their lives from symptoms of mental illness, trauma, and other instances of change, from divorces to relocations to job loss. Counselors are so named because they do just that: they counsel. Unlike other mental health professionals, such as psychologists, counselors are trained to help people take control of their lives and enact practices that will improve their habits, thought patterns, and behaviors. Counselors are often found in specific settings, such as rehabilitation clinics, schools, and community centers, because they are trained to offer mental health services to a wide variety of clients, with countless different issues, needs, and goals.
What are the counseling services?
Counseling services are mental health services that offer counsel to their patients. This means that clients are evaluated differently than in appointments with a psychologist or psychiatrist; rather than approaching new clients from the perspective of a mental illness, counselors evaluate clients’ needs based on existing thought patterns and behaviors, and work with clients to create strategies to improve mental health, whether that be through altering thought patterns, developing coping techniques, or engaging certain practices that calm anxiety, acts as a form of anger management, or boost self-esteem. Counseling services are extremely broad and can include everything from general mental health counseling to career counseling and school counseling. For more information about mental health service, contact local therapy companies and clinics to determine if they accept most insurance plans, or whether you need to make other arrangements.
How much does better help counseling cost?
The precise number will depend on person to person. BetterHelp is an online counseling platform and, as such, does not accept most insurance plans. To help defray the cost of counseling, individuals seeking help may enter background information about themselves, and receive a decrease in services, based on income and needs. That being said, BetterHelp counseling rates (insurance free) range from $60-$80 per week, which includes unlimited messaging and a once-weekly video conferencing, telephone, or other home services with a mental health professional.
Is a professional counselor a therapist?
It can be difficult to know the differences between different types of mental health professionals, but in the case of professional counselors and therapists, it is surprisingly simple: they are one and the same! Although the term “therapist” can also be used to describe an individual’s psychologist, this is more likely to occur on the part of the client or patient, rather than the part of the professional in question. Psychologists and psychiatrists are typically identified as such (i.e.,“I’m Dr. Mareek, and I am a psychologist), while a professional counselor can use the terms “counselor” and “therapist” interchangeably. Some prefer the term counselor, because it denotes some amount of counsel being delivered in the relationship, while others prefer the term therapist, because it is a term people are more familiar with, when it comes to mental health.
Professional counselors are able to treat mental health conditions, general issues, and more serious concerns, such as alcohol and substance abuse. Although the term “therapist” might seem to hold more esteem or denote more professionalism, a counselor and a therapist perform similar if not identical tasks.
What's the difference in a therapist and a counselor?
There isn’t one! The terms “therapist” and “counselor” are largely interchangeable, though “counselor” is an actual certificate and degree that can be awarded, while “therapist” is usually a commonplace term, or a term used by people other than the professional, themselves. A therapist is anyone who delivers therapy, which makes the word quite broad in all that it encompasses and can include speech and occupational specialists—people who do not work in the mental health field at all. Therapists provide some type of therapy, and in the case of counselors, that therapy is mental health therapy.
What are the 3 types of therapy?
The three recognized types of therapies are psychodynamic, cognitive-behavioral, and humanistic. Although each of these types has the client’s best interests in mind and treat mental health issues, each approaches the issue being discussed a different way. A psychodynamic approach, for instance, focuses on processes and patterns of thought. From this perspective, a therapist might evaluate why a client thinks a certain way, and how those thought processes can be altered to improve health. A cognitive-behavioral approach focuses primarily on behaviors and identifies how those behaviors point to thoughts and beliefs. Because behaviors are seen as the primary delivery system of a patient’s issues, behavioral are also targeted as the agents of change best used to improve a client’s health. Finally, a humanistic approach deviates from systems and processes, and focuses almost entirely on individuals and how individuals approach their lives, and how those individuals can change their specific behaviors, thoughts, and ideas to more authentically embody and express who they are.
What is the best type of therapist?
Therapy is a highly personal, highly variable service, and there is not a single type of therapist that is ideal or better than others; instead, evaluating what makes a therapist the best means evaluating what makes a therapist best for you. While one person might benefit greatly from a humanistic approach to therapy, another might be best served by a therapist who focuses more on a cognitive-behavioral approach.
Which Counselling approach is best?
There is not one counseling approach that is best overall; instead, different counseling approaches are best for different therapists and different clients, though all are evidence-based in their approach. For some people, understanding how the human race works and how that framework fits into their own specific issues, neuroses, and problems is comforting, illuminating, and can help inform their therapy sessions, For others, individual-based approaches are ideal, without a focus on the larger scope of mental health and human behavior. For still others, behavior reigns supreme, and behaviors inform every discussion that takes place between the counselor and the client. Counseling approaches may not be too widely varied, but human beings are, and there are specific approaches that suit certain people, without one person or approach being better than the other.
What is the best type of therapy for anxiety?
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is one of the most commonly used types of therapy to intervene in anxiety symptoms, but it is far from the only type of therapy that is useful for treating anxiety. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy involves an approach to therapy that seeks to improve behaviors, thereby improving thought processes and patterns. Though CBT, people with anxiety are able to challenge deeply held beliefs and compulsive systems that do not serve them or their mental health and begin to adopt behaviors that are far more conducive to mental health.
What is a good vitamin for anxiety?
Vitamins B and D are the most frequently suggested vitamins to use to improve anxiety symptoms, though they are far from the only vitamins that can be useful to help mental health. Having a vitamin panel done is one of the best ways to begin using vitamins to support mental health; a general practitioner can conduct a series of blood tests to evaluate for any vitamin deficiencies you might be exhibiting, and vitamin supplementation routine can be developed from there.
Vitamin D is often recommended for anxiety because it is one of the vitamin deficiencies most commonly linked to declining mental health, including both anxiety and depression. Some have attributed this to the loss of the sun in winter months or rainy seasons, which causes a marked deficiency in vitamin D absorption, while others attribute a lack of vitamin D to insufficient dietary sources of vitamin D. Improved vitamin D levels have been linked to improvements in mood and anxiety disorder symptoms.
Vitamin B actually covers numerous types of vitamins, including vitamin B12, a vitamin often linked to decreased cognitive function, and biotin, a vitamin most often linked to hair and nails. Vitamin B levels can be improved through dietary habits and can help with stress hormones and other anxiety byproducts.
Does CBD help anxiety?
Although CBD is not a recognized treatment for anxiety, it has been identified in numerous anecdotal trials as a strong, effective means of soothing anxiety symptoms. CBD is linked to better sleep, increased physical relaxation, and fewer racing thoughts, all of which are often present in anxiety disorders.
What helps severe anxiety?
Severe anxiety is usually best helped by a robust treatment regimen involving therapy, medication, and dietary and lifestyle changes, and may even benefit from the addition of mindfulness practices. These practices can vary widely in their scope; some involve merely taking a few moments each day to take stock of your surroundings, while others require a devoted 10-15 minutes of meditation each morning and night.
Severe anxiety is best treated with an aggression that matches symptom severity. If anxiety is so severe that leaving the house to attend to responsibilities, for instance, a treatment approach might involve immediate medication and therapy sessions, and the addition of certain dietary, exercise, and lifestyle changes. Severe anxiety can be debilitating, and immediate and intensive treatment is usually the best way to begin experiencing life in a way that is enjoyable, safe, and peaceful.
How can I get rid of anxiety fast?
For immediate anxiety relief, you can try engaging in a mindfulness exercise, such as identifying 1-2 things you can detect with each of your senses. You can also try breathing exercises or removing yourself briefly from the situation causing a spike in anxiety. If you are at an after-work party, for instance, and feel yourself beginning to experience intense feelings of social anxiety, it can be useful to excuse yourself to get fresh air outside, retire for the restroom for a few moments to breathe and relax, or even wander around the venue for a few moments to regain your bearings.
Getting rid of anxiety fast can also mean taking the medication that your mental health practitioner has prescribed for you. Many mental health medications are designed to work quickly, in order to provide almost immediate relief from symptoms of anxiety.
Although there is no tried-and-true way to eliminate anxiety in a rush, consistent application of therapy techniques, mindfulness practices, medication, and other interventions will help soothe symptoms of anxiety, and symptoms may be easier to soothe and manage quickly over time.
What to tell someone who has anxiety?
People who have anxiety are often accustomed to being dismissed or ignored for their issues, so one of the best things to tell someone that has anxiety is that you are willing to listen and learn about their experiences. Anxiety is often not visible to even those closest to you, and as such, it can feel alienating and overwhelming to experience anxiety symptoms. Letting someone who has anxiety know that you are willing to give them space if they need it and help if they need it is invaluable.
Conversely, one of the worst things to tell someone who has anxiety is that they should “get over it,” or “just do XYZ.” Anxiety is a legitimate, recognized mental disorder, and as such, it is cruel, and wildly inaccurate to suggest someone with anxiety can merely ignore their symptoms or just stop having disordered thinking patterns.
What can I take over the counter for anxiety?
There are vitamins, minerals, and herbs that can be used to help with anxiety symptoms. Vitamins B and D are often recommended to improve symptoms of anxiety, as both help the body manage and regulate hormone production that can play a role in declining mental health.
Magnesium is a valuable mineral involved in mental health, as magnesium can help improve sleeping patterns and cognitive ability and can lead to feeling less tense. Magnesium baths have also been linked to decreases in muscle tension, and may be simple, effective tools to help sleep.
Finally, lavender, St. John’s Wort, and chamomile have all been linked to improvements in anxiety symptoms, including feelings of tension, fear, or persistent restlessness. Chamomile and lavender tea are common, and can help feelings of anxiety or sleep issues, while St. John’s Wort is more frequently used as a dedicated source of herbal treatment. St. John’s Wort is the only supplement on this list that is known to cause serious issues, however, and should not be taken without first consulting your healthcare provider.
