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2020 and Mental Health

2020 is a weird year. A year that has been a whirlwind for so many people. For me, 2020 was a weird and complicated year. In January I got pregnant and I thought 2020 was going to be great. Then came March and Covid 19. I got scared, like many people. Scared for myself and for my growing baby boy. Thankfully I was able to work from home full time, so I spent months in the house. My job as a counselor is stressful as is, and it usually impacts my mental health. But having to dive into the world of telehealth so suddenly was crazy! Plus so many of my clients were beginning to struggle. A lot of them lost their jobs, some found themselves still working and being in the line of Covid. There was so much going on for my clients, and for me. It was a struggle to try and manage my 100+ person caseload via phone and Zoom. I had to go to doctors appointments alone for my pregnancy because my husband couldn’t attend them with me. Mental health is something that is important for everyone to address, whether you have a formal diagnosis or not. You don’t just need to address your mental health if you’re depressed or anxious. You need to address your mental health to avoid and manage any symptoms. Which brings me to an important point. You don’t need to have depression to experience symptoms of depression. You don’t need an anxiety disorder to experience symptoms of anxiety. Having symptoms and having a disorder are two totally different things. I explain to people constantly that when anxiety or depression becomes a clinical diagnosis, it enters the realm of affecting your daily life. When you can’t get out of bed because of depression, when your anxiety prevents you from leaving the house. That’s clinical. What’s more important is the note that you do not need to be clinically depressed or anxious to get help.

There are so many resources resources for help. It doesn’t matter what you’re struggling with, get help. Support groups, individual therapy, group therapy. There’s large agencies that can see you same day, there’s private counselors that can provide services, there’s online resources that you can access for free. In a year like 2020, when so many things have changed, when we have had to adjust our daily lives because of a virus, when we have had to look injustices in the face, when we have had to address the media and it’s portrayal of things, when we’ve really had to look at ourselves and our world in a completely different way. 2020 is a very uncomfortable year for a lot of people, most people likely and for a variety of reasons. The most important thing is that you’re taking care of yourself, physically too but equally if not more important mentally. As a counselor myself, i’m not afraid to say that I have my own counselor and I take medications to manage my own depression and anxiety problems. There’s no shame in asking for help, in fact it’s probably the best thing you can do. Therapy is amazing, and i’m so thankful that I not only get to experience the benefits myself but that I am able to help others experience the benefits. Especially in difficult times such as the things we have seen in 2020. 

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