FAQs
What is Mental Health?
Mental Health is a broad term that includes the full range of psychological and psychiatric conditions. These problems range from symptoms of depression and anxiety to severe mental illness (SMI; schizophrenia, bipolar, eating, and borderline personality). When these symptoms manifest, they span mild-to-severe intensity. The human brain is wired toward recovery so most people do not experience mental health concerns that require psychotherapy or psychiatric services. However, for roughly 20% of Americans, these mental health challenges create issues at work, home, school, or other environments.
What are speech/language and communication disorders.
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How can speech and language services improve mental health outcomes?
Mental health problems can be deeply rooted in speech and language challenges. For example, challenges with effective communication can cause or increase depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms. This increase in symptoms can make it even less likely that you have adequate communication strategies in the future. Speech and language services can provide skills that allow you to communicate verbally, non-verbally, and understand other ways others are attempting to communicate with you. Improving speech and language skills allow you to engage your social environment across environments including work, home, and school.
How can mental health evaluation and treatment improve communication?
Seeking treatment for mental health challenges improves communication by helping you understand and regulate your emotions. Emotions can impact ways you choose to show up in your world. For instance, out of frustration or anger, you may socially withdraw from important others instead of communicating about challenges you experience. This social withdrawal can increase mental health symptoms. Psychotherapy works to help you understand more adaptive emotion regulation so you may spend more time engaging in communication strategies with others versus simply withdrawing and socially isolating yourself.
When should you seek mental health services?
Who provides mental health services?
Who provides speech and language services?
Things to look for when choosing a mental health provider?
Things to look for when choosing a speech and language/communication provider?
You should seek psychotherapy if you begin to experience symptoms that are disruptive to your home, work, or school life. This is called functional impairment. Although many may benefit from psychotherapy, only about 20% of the US population experience mental health symptoms that rise to the level of clinical significance. You should seek professional help if you are experiencing challenges with mood (e.g., feeling down, low, or depressed; nervous, anxious, or on edge; anger; stress), sleep (problems going to sleep or staying asleep), drug/substance abuse and dependence, or severe mental illness more days than not. Due to the explosion of pop psychology, mental health has become less stigmatized as of late. This pushes the idea that everyone needs psychotherapy to “process” daily stressors. Although supportive talk therapy (providing a safe space to help people deal with daily life) is not an approach based on science, many find it useful to vent their frustrations to an objective professional. Science-based psychotherapy focuses on reducing specific mental health symptoms in a structured way that maitains professional boundaries and does not create dual relationships between the person receiving therapy and the person providing therapy services. If you experience suicidal or homicidal thoughts, you should call 988 immediately to reach the suicide and crisis lifeline.
When should you seek speech and language services?
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Mental health services can be provided by a range of providers including, but not limited to: Clinically-trained psychologists, psychiatrists, counselors, clinically-trained social workers, marriage and family therapists, among others. Although they may be important to your recovery, religious leaders and life coaches do not provide clinical psychotherapy unless they have been trained and are licensed by a state-recognized board to provide these services. For most clinical psychotherapy providers, there is an ethical code that prohibits having a dual relationship with patients/clients. This is why your family members and friends should not be your therapist even if they are clinically licensed. Dual relationships between psychotherapists and their patients (hospital settings)/clients (community/private practice setting) put people who are receiving psychotherapy at risk for being exploited and emotionally harmed.
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Credentials to look for in a mental health provider:
Licensed psychologist (PhD or PsyD)
Licensed psychiatrist (MD)
Licensed clinical social worker (LCSW)
Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT)
Licensed professional counselor (LPC)
Therapeutic approaches:
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)
Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT; pronounced “act”)
Family systems
Applied behavior analysis (ABA for Autism Spectrum disorder)
Cultural sensitivity or culturally responsive
Functional analytic psychotherapy
Getting started is simple. Reach out through our contact form or schedule a call—we’ll walk you through the next steps and answer any questions along the way.