How to Determine The Right Mental Health Resource For You
10 Questions to Assess Where You Are and Where You Want to Go
For years, we’ve gotten something wrong about our mental health.
Many of us were taught that the only time to pay attention to our mental health was in crisis.
If we approached other parts of our health in this way, it would look like only seeking out a doctor when we had a heart attack and refusing to go to preventative check-ups or do a stress test when we have a scare.
With our physical health, we often take preventative measures and attempt interventions to help us return to wellness.
Why is it so hard for many of us to think of our mental health in the same way?
When it comes to our mental health, we equate health with a lack of attention, prevention, or intervention. Physical health is not determined by whether we get sick or not but by our ability to recover using the tools at our disposal. We know healthy people are healthy because they get sick and can get well again!
“Mental health is about having feelings that fit the situation and then managing those feelings well.” —Lisa Damour, PhD. Clinical Psychologist
It’s appropriate for a healthy person’s white blood cells to rush to address germs, just as it’s appropriate for our bodies to respond with anxiety or sadness in the face of uncertainty and loss.
It makes sense that when we encounter difficult or traumatic circumstances, physically or mentally, we require additional support or different interventions than other seasons of our lives.
If we spend months in a hospital, we would expect to need to follow up with our PCP and potentially take part in outpatient therapies to aid our recovery. In the same way, we might expect to create a continuing care plan after leaving an intensive therapeutic experience.
At Milestones and Onsite, we like to say that there is a continuum of care that a person can deploy based on their circumstances. Our mental health ebbs and flows, as do our mental health needs and goals.
As we grow in our emotional health, we may desire a deeper exploration into our past to create a plan for our future and seek out professionals who specialize in innovative modalities, attend an intensive or group workshop experience, or take part in an intensive outpatient program for a season.
When life is going well, we may shift our frequency or cadence with our professional support and to more preventative measures like regular therapy sessions, a process group, or coaching.
Following an impactful growth experience like Milestones or an Onsite intensive or workshop, we may want to transition to a more concentrated level of care like an intensive outpatient program.
How do you determine the next right step based on your current health and goals?
We suggest spending time creating a plan by connecting with yourself, the safe people in your life, and the trusted professionals in your support system.
To get you started, we’ve provided a few questions for self-reflection.
10 Questions to Assess Where You Are and Where You Want to Go Next On Your Mental Health Journey.
- On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your mental and emotional health?
- Do you feel like your feelings fit the situation and then you can manage those feelings well consistently?
- What does your mental health support look like in this season?
- Have you recently encountered a difficult or traumatic circumstance, or are you going through a transition?
- Do you feel like you’ve tapped the efficiency of your current support and want to explore a different form of support?
- Do you have consistent mental health tools to help you manage stress and anxiety?
- Do you have preventative routines and habits that serve and support your mental health?
- What feels like the right amount of support in this season?
- Could a deeper experience like a workshop or intensive outpatient program enhance your current therapeutic relationship?
- What do the trusted voices in your life suggest as your next step?
As you reflect on these questions, we’d love to support you on your emotional and mental health journey through our continuum of care options. Explore our offerings, including Onsite Wellness House’s Intensive Outpatient Program, which recently opened in Nashville.
Five Experiences from Milestones and Onsite’s Continuum of Care
Milestones
Milestones is a comprehensive and bespoke residential therapy experience that focuses on healing what hurts and finding a new way forward. Ready to address the trauma, anxiety, codependency, and stress that’s weighing you down? We’re here for you.
Onsite Wellness House’s Intensive Outpatient Program
At Onsite Wellness House, we help you build practices and rhythms that lead to long-term success, not just short-term relief. By providing safe, accessible, and engaging weekly group programming coupled with best-in-class individual trauma counseling, Onsite Wellness House provides a bespoke healing experience to help you find sustained wholeness.
Onsite Intensive
Intensives at Onsite are individually curated to provide a customized space for hope and healing. A therapist or a team of therapists will create a custom experience tailored to get you unstuck and on a growth path. Available for individuals, couples, families, or groups.
Onsite Group Workshop
Experience outer change through inner healing. Take a step back, reset, and unlock the many joys of the whole of who you are. Our workshops are designed for personal growth in a safe, welcoming, and collaborative environment that allows you to explore and cultivate lasting positive change.
Online Courses
Self-guided learning to meet you wherever you are—because, yes, you can do the work in sweatpants. Further your growth with affordable and accessible classes.
Our team is here to help you find the best next step for your healing journey—whether at Onsite or Milestones, or somewhere else within our wide referral network.
