These states are part of life and we all experience them. Sometimes, though, they take on a life of their own, overwhelming our best attempts to manage them and interfering with our well-being, our relationships, and our daily activities. When this happens we can benefit from consulting a mental health practitioner. These practitioners can help you manage your way through emotional, physical, psychological, relationship, and financial challenges.
Mental health practitioners come from a number of different disciplines. Social workers, counselors, psychotherapists, and psychologists are all mental health practitioners and use similar approaches to helping people with their mental health and social problems. With a few exceptions, differences in the approaches used depend more upon the individual practitioner than upon the discipline.
The methods used in a typical session are numerous and varied, and depend on the individual practitioner and your own comfort level. Techniques can range from emotional support and problem solving, technical and scientifically-based strategies such as CBT (Cognitive Behavior Therapy) to more metaphysical, energy-based approaches such as DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy) and EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). Finding a counselor and a therapeutic approach you are comfortable with is key to the success of the process, so be choosy.