When Should You Seek Help for Anxiety: Tips From a Christian Counselor in Minneapolis

When many people are struggling with a mental health related concern, it is easy to feel like they are alone. However, the numbers show that about 20% of all adults in the United States struggle with a mental illness in a given year. Not only that, but many more people struggle with mental health challenges that come and go over the years.

Sometimes, getting the help of a trained professional or Christian counselor can make all the difference in the world with your anxiety. In other cases, people manage their anxiety on their own and feel stronger for what they learn as they go through difficult times.

It is not always obvious whether the right choice for you is to reach out to a Christian counselor or to manage a mental health challenge with your own current resources.

Read on to learn about how you can decide if it is the right time for you to get help from a professional counselor.

Seek Help With Your Anxiety When You Need It

There are two basic ways you can decide that you want to get professional help for a mental health challenge.

No matter what your situation is, it can always help to have one more person on your side to help you to work through a difficult time. Taking on a new exercise or habit can be much more effective, completing it with another person, especially if that person is a professional at what they do. Getting the professional help sooner than later can save your resources ultimately, and not waste any time getting relief for your anxiety.

The other way you can decide it is time to get help for your anxiety is by trying your other options first. There is a lot that you can do on your own to improve your mental health. Only if your other options fail to resolve your anxiety in a way that satisfies you might it then be necessary to seek further help.

So what can you do before you decide to see a counselor?

Learn How to Improve Your Mental Health

One of the most powerful things a counselor can do for you is teach you about activities & exercises that can improve your mental health. For example, many people find that prayer and meditation can be powerful tools for helping them get a better handle on their anxiety.

However, you can learn how to perform a wide variety of types of meditation without needing a counselor to help you do so. All of us have specific habits that help us reduce feelings of stress. However, implementing new habits alone can be very difficult. Often we need accountability from others to keep the motivation for change.

If that describes your own situation, then you might want to seek professional help so that you have support as you learn about new ways to improve your mental health.

On the other hand, you might consider making an attempt to learn specific habits on your own first to reduce your anxiety. You can also set yourself reminders to go on walks or spend time in nature. Coming up with your personal self-care plan.

Another powerful way to improve your mental health is by participating in a daily gratitude practice. This is retraining your thought process. If you can add these healthy activities to your life without the help of a counselor, you might find that you can work through your anxiety or depression on your own. It might just take the self-discipline to continue to build new habits and mindsets consistently in your daily schedule.

The same goes for improving your diet and exercise habits. Eating a healthy diet can provide you with more energy and a better mood. Exercise is one of the most powerful ways we have so far discovered for helping people achieve better mental health. There is a lot of evidence for the body, mind, soul connection.

Ask for Support From Family and Friends

If the things you can do on your own do not resolve your anxiety, you can get help without going straight to seeing a counselor. Your family and friends can be amazing resources for helping you work through a difficult time.

Many of the people you know will have gone through similar mental health challenges at one point or another in their lives. Sometimes, just having a sympathetic ear to talk to helps people understand better what is going on with their emotions and thoughts. Knowing we have resources and are not alone is a key for reducing fear.

Find Strength in Your Faith

Taking quiet time to read through your favorite scriptural passages can be another way to help with your anxiety. You may also find solace by attending services or watching sermons and uplifting messages online. Like relationships, staying more connecting to your faith reduces the fear that you are alone in the struggle. Going to spiritual resources can help you go beyond just our own psychological resources or limitations.

Find a Therapist Who Can Help You

If you have tried these other ways to improve your mental health and still want help, that can be a strong indicator that it is time to seek counseling. As powerful as these other techniques can be, counselors spend many years learning how to help people manage anxiety and other mental health related concerns.

As physical therapy helps heal the muscles within your body, psychotherapy is the process of healing major regions of how the brain processes stress. Therapy will get down to the root of why you feel the way you do, and what you can do to improve how you are feeling.

Get Help With Your Anxiety From a Christian Counselor

Making the decision to get help with a mental health challenge from a professional or Christian counselor can be a big step. Many people struggle to know when the right time is to take this step. By following the process laid out in this article, it can be easier to know when it is time to get in touch with a counselor who can help you through your challenges with anxiety.

To learn more about how you can find the right professional Christian counselor to help with your anxiety, reach out and get in touch with me at any time. I am trained in Cognitive-Behavioral (CBT) approaches for addressing anxiety.