I have always heard the saying that doctors make the worst patients, the same goes for some mental health professionals. We procrastinate when it comes to accessing mental health services. This definitely doesn’t help reduce the stigma of why and how we access mental health support.
Not many of us are willing to acknowledge the need to see a mental health professional and it can be quite challenging for those of us from cultures where the only people who seek mental health services are deemed “crazy” by society.
Life throws each one of us different curveballs and that includes life stressful times. Such a season had finally knocked at my door and this was definitely my wake-up call. So what was the wake-up call? It was an outfit. An outfit?? You might ask. Yap!! Life has a weird way of showing us how we need to pay close attention to our lives.
It was a lovely Saturday that my girlfriends and I had planned an outing nicknamed named club mzururo.com (paraphrased to mean girls always having fun). My friend had planned this awesome night out at one of those Italian towns in the downtown area. As soon as my friend saw me she asked “What are you wearing? That’s not like you dressing like that for this kind of occasion!!!”. Okay, I got her point, this wasn’t my kind of style. The blouse was one of those batwing tops which never seemed to work well with my physique but on this particular day I had somehow ended up pulling it from my closet although it had been there for over 2 years. I had contemplated giving it away on several occasions because it wasn’t doing it for me but it somehow was still in my closet. How did I even think of wearing it, especially on such a fun night? I wasn’t paying much attention to my normal self and had lost interest in what was important to me. I was too overwhelmed and didn’t even realize it.
After that night I decided to find some kind of support for my own mental wellness. It took me a long time to get the courage to book an appointment to speak to a therapist. As an immigrant, I knew that it would be important for me to get a mental health professional who was not only educated but culturally competent and understood how cultural influences impact one’s overall health. I was lucky to get a therapist who understood my intersections; my Christian faith, my cultural background, different determinants of health, impact of acculturation among many others. All these were factors that were important to me and factors which the therapist had to put into consideration when she helped me navigate my challenges.
During my first appointment, the therapist asked me what kind of support I was looking for but I had no idea why I was in her office in the first place. How do you even explain something that you really don’t understand more so to a stranger? To cut the long story short after just 3 sessions I had figured something about my life and why the sudden change. This gave me a road map on how to continue with “my normal”.
I was glad to learn and work on my broken path and work on the little glitches of life. Those three sessions taught me something; the need for mental tune-ups and check-ups for mental wellness. I had mental health counseling as a resource at my disposal but why not take advantage of this support? Why wasn’t I using it? Frankly, I didn’t think I needed it and with the stigma on mental health, I didn’t want to be a statistic of accessing mental health services.
None of us is immune to life stressors, jobs, family, kids, parents, life changes; no one is immune to emotion. We take our cars for regular tune-ups to avoid any future major mechanical problems and most of us go for regular doctor check-ups and physicals but we rarely access mental health professionals for support. So why don’t we put this in our regular routine like anything else? There is a lot of stigma around accessing mental health services but support can help one navigate life stressors coping skills, navigating a career path, grief, relationship issues or issues such as depression or even offer a time to vent. It is a matter of getting someone to help us find our inner strengths if need be. Unfortunately not addressing these life stressors and challenges impact our quality of life. Is sweeping things under the rug all worth it in the long run?
Mental health is part of public health but it will all begin by normalizing the process. So as you write down your upcoming medical appointments with your eye doctor, dentist, regular doctor, fitness trainer, etc remember that a mental health professional/counselor might be a vital support for your health. And oh ya, I finally gave away that blue batwing blouse to somebody who totally rocked it.
Resources for finding Mental Health professions in your area
Most Workplaces in North America offer Employee Assistance Programs (EAP) where you can connect with a counseling therapist.