Seeking Therapy

I forget where I heard this quote, so I am going to credit it as anonymous, but it is useful nonetheless:

"When we are sick, it is expected and it is the norm that we go to the doctor to receive proper treatment. Why, when we are feeling emotionally troubled for an extended period of time, is it not always the norm to see a therapist?" 

There are many people out there who would benefit from having having a therapist, but are reluctant to do so because of the stigma surrounding it. Today, I'd like to discuss why I believe that therapy should always encouraged, and provide a testimonial as to its effectiveness. 

If it weren't for modern medicine, many of us wouldn't be alive right now (including myself). This is simply because the human body isn't built perfectly. It has many flaws, and we aren't always the best at taking care of it. The same applies to the mind. Most people's way of thinking is inherently flawed in one way or another. Just as doctors specializing in compensating for the inherent flaws of the human body, clinical psychologists specialize in correcting the inherent flaws of the human mind. In specific, Cognitive Behavioral Therapists specialize in restructuring the way that we think, and eliminating faulty thought processes. 

If someone was battling cancer, it would be totally unacceptable to tell them, "toughen up! It's just cancer." By analogy, why is it remotely okay to tell someone battling depression to "cheer up. It's all in your head." If I were to say to a cancer patient, "cheer up! It's all in your tumor!", how do you think they'd react! The body and mind should be treated as analogous, and it is only appropriate that we do so. In many cases, therapy is required to cure mental disorders, just as is surgery for cancer. 

If it weren't for therapy, I wouldn't have recovered from OCD. My therapist (bless his heart) pointed out the numerous ways in which my thinking had been causing me distress, and slowly taught me more efficient, practical, and less stressful ways of thinking. In particular, my therapist emphasized the importance of avoiding "all or nothing thinking," which involves only giving yourself two opposite options or possible outcomes for a situation. For example, if I were to take a difficult test, I might think "I either flunked or got an A." A more rational way to approach the issue would be to think "I could have flunked, gotten an A, or anything in between." 

Overall, I think that it is about time that we recognize the importance of therapy, and completely eliminate the stigma behind it. Most people would benefit from therapy, not just those who are struggling from mental disorders. The analogy between medicine and clinical psychology is extremely robust. 

If you're comfortable doing so, share your experiences with therapy in the comments!