We have been writing over the past few months about the toll that this pandemic has taken on people’s mental health, including some first-hand experience within our own immediate family.
As the anxiety of the spreading virus took hold last year, we had to step in to help one of our children who become quite obsessive and finally lost the ability to cope with the grim news reports. The feeling that there was no escape from contracting COVID had completely taken over.
She began compulsively researching every aspect of the disease and viruses hoping to find something that all of the experts had overlooked. Over a few weeks this had become all consuming in her life, so when we noticed she was becoming manic we knew that we needed to find some way to help.
But we had very little experience in these matters and needed to learn all that we could as fast as we could, because in a situation such as this knowledge was our best friend. So, we began studying to find the best, as well as the most convenient, ways to obtain help. In the midst of that investigating we discovered an amazing source of information at BetterHelp.com.
They have put together a collection of their very best articles on subjects ranging from what to look for when seeking a psychiatrist to how much it should cost, along with ways to lower that cost, sometimes to nothing.
There are links to posts exploring the different types of psychiatrists and the difference between a therapist and a psychologist. One of the most helpful for us was the look at the many types of mental disorders that also identifies their symptoms. This made it possible to eliminate the conditions that obviously weren’t part of the problem and focus on the ones that might be.
Now, just to be clear, we are certainly not advocating self-diagnosis, playing doctor by searching the internet can most definitely be a bad idea, and might just convince some people that they have all sorts of terrible diseases and syndromes. But on the BetterHelp website we found tons of material about what can be treated, how that treatment should proceed, and ideas on the best ways to obtain help.
Reading their articles gave us insight into the details of how psychiatry works and offered us some idea of what to expect from therapy, not just for our child, but for ourselves as well.
Knowing what to expect made a huge difference in our ability to deal with issues as the arose and to have some confidence that the process was working.
Another huge plus, especially during the social distancing requirements with the pandemic, was the ability to do much, if not all, of the planning and treatment online. Even if there had not been the restrictions due to the virus, this would make things easier. It also adds a level of privacy to the process that is appealing to many people.
Fortunately, our story has a happy ending. Everyone is doing quite well now, thanks in no small part to the help we found and everyone in the family pulling together.
David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com
For more about BetterHelp.com and their programs, please see these previous articles we have shared here on GypsyNester.com:
Some Observations about Online Therapy
Anxiety is Almost Unavoidable These Days
Don’t Let the Cost Stop You from Seeking Help
Exploring the Different Types of Therapy
Identifying Problems in the Present with Cognitive Psychotherapy
Examining the Role of Geriatric Psychiatry as our Loved Ones are Aging
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