Mental Health Still Matters (Especially When Social Distancing)!
Mental health matters.
That is the simple slogan that I chose for my private practice when I began putting together my office space and designing my website. It is the message I want to put out into the world with everything I do.
You may think to yourself, aren’t we at a place in our world where people know that mental health is important? And we have come so far. But as a licensed professional counselor candidate, I still work with people every day who think, act, and believe the idea that “Other people’s mental health matters, but not mine.”
They don’t have stigma against others who access services or reach out for support. They offer care and concern for their loved ones going through depression or struggling with anxiety. But when it comes to themselves and sometimes their family, the idea is that they should be strong enough to get through things on their own. They should know how to help themselves since they are often the ones helping others. They should keep the hard things they are going through to themselves so that others around them don’t suffer. In school, they call that “shoulding all over yourself.” It’s where you place unrealistic and unreasonable expectations on yourself and keep yourself from getting the things you need.
So yes, my slogan still stands: YOUR MENTAL HEALTH MATTERS. Yes, YOURS. You deserve the care, understanding, empathy, and love that you give so freely to others. It is not weak to be vulnerable. At the end of the day, that is the message that gets ingrained and prevents people from accessing the support of friends, family, or a therapist.
My primary practice as a therapist is focused on children. Internalized stigma in parents about accessing mental health services can be unconsciously transferred over to children. I strongly encourage parents, caregivers, and safe adults in children’s lives to look at these deep-seeded beliefs in yourselves and ask if there is a child in your life who may need some extra support from a qualified therapist?
Mental Health Matters: COVID-19 Edition
Amidst the world changing every day, I believe that now, more than ever, children are in need of an extra outlet for social support, guidance, empathy, and validation from a trusted professional.
I have seen many of my clients using Zoom sessions (video telehealth) over the past few weeks. This is a secure, confidential way to provide counseling services that are HIPPA compliant while also complying with the social distancing recommendations put out by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization.
Through these counseling sessions with children and adolescents, I have seen that our children are struggling. They have transitioned from constant connection with friends to complete isolation overnight. They have gone from having an entire semester of school left with their favorite teachers, friends, and activities to being at home every day with no end in sight. Sports are cancelled. Concerts are cancelled. Things that children have worked on all year have disappeared into thin air.
Friendships are now occurring through FaceTime and texting. The acquaintances and relationships that were just beginning to bloom, feel like they have come to a screeching halt. For children who don’t typically struggle with mental illness, these changes are drastic and bring with them grief, anxiety, excess energy, and a lack of social connection that typically keeps them afloat.
For children who do experience symptoms of mental illness, lack of structure, changes in routine, and disconnection from social supports have drastic impacts on daily functioning. Kids with anxiety are struggling with the uncertainty and lack of answers. Children with depression are having a hard time getting out of bed, showering, and completing daily tasks. Young adults with a dysregulated relationship to food are feeling overwhelmed with the changes in mealtimes, lack of food security, and different food choices available.
I am happy to report that although I miss my office space and seeing clients face to face, Zoom has enabled us to utilize all the positives of technology. From file sharing, to going over worksheets together and seeing their journal work through photos, no aspect of the therapeutic relationship has been lost. I am so grateful for that.
For anyone who knows a child who is needing support, I hope that you know that I am here and able to provide mental health services in this stressful time. I am here to help children process their reactions to the changes in their world, help establish a healthy routine at home until things return to normal, help increase coping skills, and help make a family game-plan for managing mental health symptoms in children.
For parents who are now wondering how to keep their children occupied while also providing them with educational information, I would love to use this time to offer temporary telehealth support including
-fun, psychoeducation about emotions, worries, social skills, and more
-reading books with children that support mental health
-art projects that help children build self-awareness
As always, I offer a sliding scale and am committed to working with you to make services are affordable for your family.
Indigo Hobson-Lowther
LPC-C