I was able to level my moods and adjust the way I felt about myself.

I didn’t want to admit that I needed help. I believed I could handle it on my own - the ups and downs of life - the confused feelings inside. Finally I was urged to seek help and my parents found me a psychologist whom I would see every week. The hard thing for me was that there wasn’t anything wrong.  At least, nothing I could pin point. I was just really confused with life in general and what it meant.

I thought seeing a psychologist would be looked upon critically. Yet my family and friends supported me and believed in me more than I did.

The great thing about therapy is it’s confidential.  You are in a room with someone who genuinely wants to help you, and anything you disclose is kept to that room. Sometimes it’s hard to talk to your friends about how you feel because you don’t want them thinking you’re different, I didn’t anyways.

So every week I found myself again in that room, a room in which I could speak freely and be heard.  One of the things that troubled me was experiencing highs which would be followed with lows or bouts of depression.  Looking back I’m not sure how I was able to live that way for years.  But through talking and practicing different techniques I learnt in therapy, I was able to level my moods and adjust the way I felt about myself.  I learnt to love myself and be forgiving of those things I didn’t like - the first step to changing them.

In going to therapy I also realized that you don’t have to have one specific problem.  Maybe you just need a little direction or another perspective that allows you to see things differently, and therapy offers exactly that.  These days I am more aware of my feelings and able to channel both the good and bad in a way that’s positive for me.

In closing, I just want to say - especially to teenagers – “keep an open mind!”   Therapy is something that can benefit anyone.

Lee

Kogarah, NSW