Some people have the misconception that therapy is only for wimps. Nothing could be further from the truth. "Not only do successful people not fear therapy, but they embrace it," Richard Taite, founder of Cliffside Malibu and a big proponent of behavior change, told me earlier this year. Intelligent people make use of it." And therapy isn't just something smart people do; it's something that almost everyone should try at some point in their lives.
This is why: Many of us grew up believing that internal matters should not be discussed and should be swept under the rug. This is possibly the worst thing you can do for yourself. Suppressing your emotions and failing to address your psychological issues, particularly if you have experienced severe pain or abuse, can lead to many topics. If you need a logical reason, consider that depression is a significant contributor to the global disease burden, the leading cause of disability worldwide, and costs billions of dollars in lost work each year.
1. The effects of therapy last a long time.
One significant advantage of talk therapy is that its effects are long-lasting. This is because you are working through issues and developing tools to help you deal with future problems. "Psychodynamic treatment is long-lasting," Margulies says. "The positive gains continue and grow over time as if some work is consolidated after therapy is stopped. This makes sense to me because it implies that we will continue to use the reflective lens in thinking about, discussing, and expressing feelings about our inner lives after treatment is completed. The entire process of talking with the therapist is internalized, so self-therapy picks up where therapy leaves off." Though medication may be necessary for some, there is a risk of relapse after it is stopped. The "getting-to-the-cause" aspect of therapy is a significant reason why antidepressants and treatment are thought to be most effective when used together.
2. Physical symptoms are also treated.
Physical symptoms can be triggered by psychological trauma or even general ennui, and depression and anxiety are well known to have significant and sometimes debilitating physical effects. If therapy is successful, it can help these issues fade away. "There have been some studies that show that therapy can help with various physical ailments," Margulies says. "When people do not express feelings but swallow them and keep them buried and out of conscious awareness, one's body often reacts. It functions as a barometer that indicates danger! Something is wrong and needs to be fixed. Somatizing symptoms such as stomach aches, headaches, insomnia, and ulcers are a few ways our bodies respond to stress and psychic pain."
3. Suppressed emotions will come back to haunt you in the future.
The most serious disadvantage of not talking about things is that unspoken feelings and traumas can accumulate and explode later. "A lot of people avoid talking about their feelings about a variety of things," Margulies says. "However, suppressing or dampening one's feelings does not make them go away. They linger and fester, only to erupt when an innocuous comment is made." Even if you don't have a full-blown breakdown later on, not fully processing events and emotions frequently leads to negative thought patterns that can affect every aspect of your life, including your relationships with your spouse, parents, children, coworkers, and even yourself. So learning how to process them can alter your maneuvering in various ways.
4. Finally, the passive-aggressive act will fade away.
Working through old (or new) anger is processed so that it no longer needs to be expressed passive-aggressively. "Angry feelings are frequently expressed in a passive-aggressive manner rather than a more direct and less aggressive manner," Margulies explains. "Someone who feels slighted may respond with a sarcastic remark or fail to appear at an agreed-upon time, 'forgetting' the appointment." So, abandon the passive-aggressive mode of expression; your loved ones will thank you.
5. It will also give you a fresh perspective on other people.
One fantastic advantage of therapy is that it helps you understand yourself and others. When we don't process our negative thoughts, they become ingrained, and we see the world through that lens, making many assumptions that may or may not be accurate. "They come to see how they often make assumptions about what the other person intended," Margulies says of her work with people in psychoanalytically oriented therapy. Then, when they do a reality check by asking a friend what they thought when they said something, they are frequently surprised to learn that they had an entirely different perspective." It's much easier to understand others' intentions and motivations when you don't have the clutter of your own (often incorrect) assumptions.
This blog post was written by the content team of Adicator Digital Marketing Agency.
