To honor National Suicide Prevention Month, we want to do our part in bringing awareness to men’s mental health and breaking the stigma surrounding it. Let it be known, kings, it is brave to seek help and reach out for support when you are struggling. Therapy is an effective and powerful tool to better your mental health and address your emotions in a healthy manner. Let’s start the conversation and learn the benefits of therapy:

Emotional Outlet 

Therapy provides a safe, confidential, and non-judgmental space to discuss your mental health struggles. This is a zone where you can express and explore your emotions freely in an environment where there is no criticism. In the beginning of your therapy journey, you may feel hesitant to deep dive and share your thoughts with another – this is normal! As you continue your sessions, you will grow more comfortable as your trust with your therapist strengthens.

Navigating Life 

There are certain transitional periods in our life where we can feel lost or stuck, among other things. There is no reason to go through these difficult times alone. Therapy can help you navigate major life transitions within your personal and professional life, and provide you with an outlet to discuss your fears and tools to face them. 

Develop Healthy Coping Mechanisms  

Therapy allows you to learn and implement healthy coping mechanisms into your life, rather than keeping your emotions locked inside or engaging in unhealthy behaviors. Your therapist can provide you with tailored resources and techniques to help you cope with negative emotions and experiences. Whatever aspect of life you’re experiencing anxiety or stress in – family, work, personal – you don’t have to let it take over your life. Maybe next time you’re feeling anxious or stressed, you’ll take a walk in nature and engage in self-reflection instead of retreating to old patterns.

Improves and Strengthens Relationships 

It’s difficult to form and maintain meaningful relationships when we’re struggling mentally. With therapy, you’ll receive the tools needed to communicate your emotions in a clear and direct manner. When we’re not conveying our feelings effectively, misunderstandings are more likely to arise and create unnecessary conflict with loved ones (and also add extra stress into our lives.) While communication is a crucial part to successful relationships, so is active listening. 

Unhealed past trauma can hinder you from connecting with others deeply and creating strong emotional bonds. A therapist can help get to the root cause and provide insight on how to overcome these wounds. 

Facilitates Personal Growth 

As you progress in therapy, you’ll notice significant personal growth from where you started in the beginning. You’ll gain self-awareness and the ability to understand yourself on a deeper level. With consistent therapy, you’ll come to acknowledge what you’re feeling and why, allowing you to handle situations more effectively when you might have just shut down or exploded before. Remember: you’re not going to be magically healed after one session with your therapist, and healing is not a linear journey. 

Expressing your emotions does not make you weak – in fact, it makes you a stronger man. Be a part of the change, and encourage other men to join you in breaking the mental health stigma.