This post is for all of you who don’t think you have a mental health problem. Probably. Most likely. I mean, you’re basically fine. You get by. It’s really no big deal. There are a lot of people who are much worse than you are. Am I speaking your language?
So how do you know if you have a mental health problem and what makes something a problem anyway? I’m guessing you’re not ready for a full psychological evaluation so I’m going to make this as simple as I can. There are three questions that I invite you to ask yourself to see if you might have a problem. Think of it as a screening test.
1. Does it cause you distress?
When I refer to distress, I am including various states of mild, moderate or severe discomfort affecting you on an emotional, mental, physical and/or spiritual level. You may feel pain and anguish, or numbness and emptiness. Perhaps it’s not THAT bad, but there’s a sense of something unpleasant that nags at you, that you can’t quite ignore or be rid of. People have differing levels of tolerance for pain and discomfort, but what you are feeling is something you would rather feel less of or not feel at all. While unpleasant feelings and sensations are a part of the human experience and do not automatically signify a mental health problem, you may have a sense that what you’re experiencing is in excess. You feel it quite often or all the time. It is triggered by specific situations that you subsequently find yourself wanting to avoid. It seems out of proportion to what you would expect yourself to feel. You suspect that your experience is different from the norm. The distress you are feeling may indicate that you have a mental health problem, particularly if it negatively impacts the quality of your life.
2. Does it impair your functioning?
Functioning can be applied to anything that you need to do, choose to do, or want to do with yourself and your life. It starts with the provision of your basic needs (i.e., food, shelter, clothing) and self care (i.e., hygiene, dietary habits, sleep, exercise, health). Some of you are also responsible for providing for the basic needs and care of others. Responsibilities are a large part of functioning with obvious examples being work, school, family and financial. Another part of functioning that some of us neglect – because we believe we don’t have to do it – is enjoyment and fun. If something is hindering your ability to meet your basic needs, to care for yourself and/or others, to fulfill your responsibilities or to feel a sense of enjoyment and fun, you may have a mental health problem.
3. Does it interfere with your relationships?
There’s a reason why “relationships make the world go ‘round” is a saying. Most people have the desire to form relationships with others in some capacity. Most people must relate with others in order to function adequately in their personal lives and as members of society (see #2). The most important relationships tend to be family, friends and coworkers or classmates. If something is interfering with the important relationships in your life or you do not have important relationships at all, you may have a mental health problem. This interference may be coming from you, from those with whom you relate or from outside forces and circumstances. While relationships can be tremendously enhancing when they are healthy and fulfilling, they can be highly stressful when there is a conflict or barrier and highly destructive when there is dysfunction or abuse. When we lack satisfying relationships or relationships altogether, we can feel deeply lonely and isolated. Has someone close to you expressed concern about you? Has someone told you that you have a problem? Has someone asked you to change or suggested that you seek help? While you may not be sure if their feedback is accurate, I encourage you to consider it. Sometimes others see things about us that we aren’t yet ready to see about ourselves.
If you answered no the the above three questions, congratulations you are problem-free (or in deep denial, but I’ll have to cover that in another post). If you answered yes to any of the above three questions, further exploration is warranted. The purpose of a screening test is to identify the need for more rigorous examination – to confirm the true positives and to rule out the false positives, if I’m going to be technical. How do you accomplish that? By gaining knowledge from reputable sources, consulting with people whom you trust and by seeking the help of a professional when the first two options do not suffice. To get you started, here is a list of resources.
If you are ready to say that you have a mental health problem, or to at least consider it, let me be the first to welcome you to Contemplation. What is Contemplation, you ask? It is a state of being that is integral to the process of change. Stay tuned because it is one of my favorite things to talk about.
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