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How to Choose Mental Health Services

Choosing a mental health provider: How to find one who suits your needs (from MayoClinic.com).

Seeking mental health treatment can be a big decision. But acknowledging your need for treatment is only the first step. You must also find a doctor or therapist to see. If you've never consulted a mental health provider before, you may not know where to begin. The above link to an article from the Mayo Clinic discusses how to find a mental health provider.

The article answers questions and addresses issues to consider such as how to decide which type of mental health provider is right for you and what types of services do you need. There are many types of mental health providers. Should you see a family practice doctor? A psychiatrist? Psychologist? Social worker? Does it matter? The article above provides some key ideas you should consider.

The Process of Change

What are the key elements in the process of change, and how will they be realized in therapy?

Managing Transitions

The process of change is both challenging and rewarding. Knowing what to expect can help you achieve goals in both treatment and life. The diagram below illustrates the experiences of many people who undertake major changes in their life. There is a critical period of time near the beginning of the process, the "transition phase," that heavily predicts success or failure. And it hits upon a key idea: often you feel worse before you feel better.

• Process of transition and change

The learning principle: Make a commitment to your change process, learn how to tolerate temporary discomfort in the service of your greater goals and values, and be an active observer of yourself and others as you start a new journey.

Understanding Needs

We all have needs. We all have the right to get our needs met in an appropriate and mutually fulfilling way. What we may not pay attention to at times is seeking needs at a higher level while having significant unmet needs at a lower level. For example, ever notice how you or someone you know tries to meet the complex demands at work, and striving for a promotion, while going through significant family problems? Usually, the person is not as effective as they would like to be. Their mind and energy is divided. That is because their security and emotional needs are reduced while they are striving for personal accomplishment and significance at a much higher level. It's a house of cards. The supporting structure cannot withstand the weight of what is being built above it. The diagram below illustrates the basic pyramid of human needs.

• Maslow's hierarchy of needs-expanded

The learning principle: Human needs are like buildings. The foundation determines what you can build on top of it. A weak foundation can only support a small building. A strong one can support more. We need to be mindful of giving and receiving to others, especially in our family, at the foundational level before we attempt to move upward to greater personal goals. Personal striving and seeking self-actualization while being emotionally and relationally bankrupt is a recipe for a meaningless and pain-filled life.

Self-Disclosure and Feedback: Improving Relationship Dynamics

The Johari Window (contraction of the first names of Joseph Luft and Harry Ingham, 1969), is a graphical representation of those aspects of our self which are known or unknown to us and known or unknown to others. The model illustrates a conceptual model for describing, evaluating and predicting aspects of interpersonal communication including openness, one's tendency to hide and avoid, self-disclosure, and feedback. Psychological research suggests that some degree of self-disclosure benefits relationships, increases self-esteem and leads to a more stable self-image.

• Johari Window

Appropriate self-disclosure, and the ability to give and receive feedback, is often viewed as a key indicator of positive mental health. It implies trust in others and self-acceptance. It also reduces the need for defensiveness, and the potential for embarrassment or shame. Appropriate self-disclosure also shows self-confidence, and is likely to encourage others to reveal something about themselves. This increases intimacy and trust in relationships. From the foundation of trust, we are more open to ask for feedback on our strengths and weaknesses in the service of self-improvement and personal development.

After looking at the above Johari Window diagram, what is the size of your areas? Are you more open or hidden, tell too much or too little? Do you have blind spots that limit your success in life and relationships? How much time do you devote to discovering your unknown areas and potential? The answer to those questions may explain where you are now, and how to get to where you want to go.

The learning principle: H G Wells said, "In the Kingdom of the Blind, the one-eyed man is king". Learning appropriate self-disclosure skills, along with skills in feedback solicitation and integration, without defensiveness, can help us realize our potential and become more open to experiences. Sometimes our limitations and lack of living fully are simply an unwillingness to take appropriate risks, especially relationship risks. Our fear of rejection, abandonment, or criticism defines our identity and stops our personal growth. And the strange thing about it all is there is no real danger in any of those ideas since they reside in our head and not in the world of actual experience.

References

 

Luft J and Ingham H, "The Johari Window: a graphic model for interpersonal relations', Univ. Calif. Western Training Lab. 1955

Luft J, 1961, "The Johari Window", Human Relations Training News, 5.1, pp6-7.

Luft, Joseph (1969). "Of Human Interaction," Palo Alto, CA: National Press.

How Do I Learn

Each of us has a unique learning style for various situations. Sometimes we like to read about new things and other times we like to hear about it. There are times when we learn best by doing, and other times by watching others. No one style is sufficient. For most people, we use a combination of learning styles. For example, we may first like to study about a topic and then try it out. Other times, we may want to try it on our own, and then get more information to complement or improve upon our experiences. The following diagram illustrates the major learning styles, and how a person may have a predominate learning style they use most often.

• Styles of learning

The learning principle: Knowing how we learn best helps us to prepare for new situations and gives us the best chance of success. It also helps us know when we are in situations that do not align with our strengths (e.g., training at work, school programs, etc.) in terms of learning best. Knowing we are in a less ideal learning environment for our style gives us an opportunity to make adequate preparations and adjustments. Or it helps us tolerate frustration without negative feedback to ourselves.

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