When I’ve been asked what I do as a job (we all have an element of nosiness don’t we) and I say I’m a Counsellor, to quite a few people it’s as if I’ve suddenly asked for their opinions on the subject of mental health. I get some quite strong opinions as well, such as the following:

• I don’t need Counselling as I’ve got friends to talk to.
• I can’t see why some people don’t just snap out of it.
• I know someone who’s off work with depression but they’ve got nothing to be depressed about.
• Just get to the Doctors’ and get some happy pills. You don’t need to talk about it.

I imagine that if I get the above points said to me, if you are suffering from a mental health issue and you’ve opened up to others about it then at some point you will have also been told these things as well. Maybe now you have stopped opening up about it and remain quiet so as not to draw attention to yourself.

So, are those opinions valid? Well, everybody feels their opinion is correct, we all have them but they’re not necessarily factual, let’s look at the common opinions as listed above.

Friends – these can be helpful to talk to but do they also have their own issues in life to deal with, do you end up being known as the one in the group who could bring everyone else down, maybe you’ve experienced this and find they contact you less and less. Also, some things you think about and want to talk of can be extremely personal and you may not want them knowing.

Snap out of it – well, why didn’t you say earlier, thank you for solving my issue. I’m assuming people who say this have never experienced mental health issues. The feeling of being in a deep pit unable to clamber out, an extreme effort just to get up in the morning.

Nothing to be depressed about – mental ill health doesn’t just pick on people who have recognised tangible issues, it picks on people rich or poor, educated or uneducated, young and old. It is a truly non-discriminatory, non-prejudiced illness.

Happy pills – this is a controversial point and one that some people benefit from and some don’t. Maybe you have been on anti-depressants for quite some time and still feel depressed, anxious etc. Do you need to try something else altogether. Do you get side effects from the tablets that sometimes feel worse than the original condition?

If you can relate to any of the above points and are feeling stressed, anxious, depressed, sad or just maybe generally ‘out of sorts’ then perhaps Counselling could be for you.

You can ring/text or email me to have an informal chat before making an appointment plus I also work from two locations: Skipton and Clitheroe town centres.

Thank you for reading this and I wish you good mental health.

Simon Cookson

Tel: 07740 436371