When to Seek Professional Help?

In 2020, hospitals and front-line health workers were pushed to the brink in many countries around the world as the COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc on our health care systems. Through this global emergency, life as we all know it dramatically shifted, as social distancing became part and parcel of our daily vocabulary, and face-masks and hand sanitisers became sought-after commodities.

As people around the world grappled with ever-changing restrictions on travel and socialising guidelines, adjusted to snap lockdowns, suffered financial and job losses, were separated for long periods from loved-ones, and, perhaps worst of all, lost family and friends to this insidious disease, the spotlight became increasingly focused on the impact of the pandemic on people’s mental health.

Government funding for mental health services has increased, making it more accessible and affordable for people to seek mental health support, and preliminary reports suggest that the uptake of mental health services (especially Telehealth) have increased markedly in the past year, compared to the year before.

Under the current circumstances, where the need may be higher than normal, and accessibility possibly greater than ever before, many of us who may previously have never considered getting support or for mental health difficulties, are now seriously contemplating seeking help for the first time. It should, however, be no surprise to most that getting support for our mental health challenges is not always easy, and there are a myriad of possible barriers and hurdles to overcome.

The idea of sharing our difficulties and negative emotions can already be a challenging experience, and doing so with a complete stranger can certainly seem odd and counterintuitive. For most of us, this is certainly not always a prospect that we feel comfortable with, or embrace readily. In fact, the majority of people who visit a psychologist, or any other mental health support service (especially for the first time), will experience a certain amount of anxiety and nervousness, just as people often do when they visit a dentist. And whilst significantly more normalised, a certain amount of stigma around mental illness remains, especially for those who grew up in a slightly earlier era.

Some common questions or thoughts that may arise for a typical prospective help-seeker may be along the lines of :

“Are my mood difficulties problematic or is this just a normal level of fluctuation?”

“Are my issues significant enough to be seeing a psychologist, or will I just be wasting their time?”

“Maybe there are people out there who need help more than I do and I would just be taking up resources for those who really need them”

“How would I find the right psychologist for me?”

“Where would I even start in terms of telling someone what’s going on?”

“I don’t even know what it is that I want to achieve from therapy”

“Will a psychologist really be able to help me?”

“What if dragging my issues to the surface makes things worse?”

All of these doubts and questions are understandable and normal, but need not stop us from seeking help if we need it. If you are considering mental health support, but feeling unsure about whether you really need it or whether your problems are “serious enough”, it may be worth booking yourself in for an initial assessment, and if nothing else, you can at least achieve peace of mind in knowing that you are doing ok.

If you are unsure about how to relay your problems, or what exactly you want or need from therapy, this is something that the psychologist can help you with. As a client/patient, it is not your responsibility to have crystal clear goals in mind, or even to have a really clear sense of what kind of help you need, before your visit to the psychologist. In fact, the goal of the first 1-2 session(s), is for the psychologist to work that out with you, by asking the right questions, and formulating a relevant treatment plan for your feelings or stress, with your input and consent. Do not be afraid to ask questions if you have them, and your psychologist can address your concerns, for example, by providing you with a general idea of what treatment would entail (e.g. the therapy approach they think would be most suitable). You can then make an informed decision as to whether that sounds reasonable and helpful (or not), and whether you would like to further pursue therapy.

In addition, if you are thinking about getting some mental health support for the first time, also consider some of the practical steps listed below:

• See your GP (book a longer appointment!), and they can help you develop a mental health care plan (MHCP) which will entitle you to a Medicare rebate for psychology sessions
• Your GP may also provide referrals to psychologists that they have worked with before, or think may be suited to you
• Check out the websites of individual psychology practices, which will often have a list of their practitioners. Find one that suits your purposes (i.e. specialising in treating the issues you are concerned with), and/or one that you feel you can relate to or connect with
• Call up the clinic if you are having difficulty choosing a practitioner and the administrative staff can provide more information in helping you find the best fit
• Current wait times for psychology services are longer than usual, but do not be deterred if you feel that mental health support would benefit you. You can request to be put on a waitlist, and there is a good chance that an earlier appointment will become available

Finally, it is worth noting that for those of us who have taken the all-important step in attending our first psychology appointment, it can be extremely disheartening and demotivating if we are unable to connect with the psychologist we saw. As with most things in life, psychology is not a one-size-fits-all type of service, and just as we take time to find our favourite coffee shop, or the hairdresser that styles our hair just-so, it is important to also take time to find the psychologist that is right for us. The therapeutic alliance (between client and psychologist), has been shown to be one of the best predictors of therapeutic outcomes, so a good fit is not only about making the experience slightly more pleasant, but also key to good outcomes. So whilst it may be frustrating if our first attempt at finding the right therapist was not a fruitful one, persistence is key, and will likely pay off. Good luck in your help-seeking endeavours!