ASK A THERAPIST

I have severe anxiety and it is preventing me from finding a job, what do you recommend?

Since thoughts create feelings and feelings create behaviours, you might be scaring and/or criticising yourself, feeling anxious, and stopping yourself from taking steps to find a job. If you can figure out what cognitive tape is making you feel anxious, you can often recognise that it’s not true, just a familiar protective pattern from childhood experiences. Confront the negative or self-critical message and imagine yourself ejecting and replacing it with what you’d tell a friend or loved one in your situation. A therapist can also help you identify and modify the thought pattern so that as you think positively, you’ll feel more relaxed and confident, so it will be easier to take positive action toward achieving your goals.

I have been harming myself for a long time now. It makes me feel better but I know it's wrong. What can I do to stop?

If you’re struggling with self-harming, we highly recommend speaking to a professional that may be able to help you process feelings from your past and present. Even though you’re aware that harming yourself is wrong, you’ve been using it to cope for a long time. It’s easy to create a habit, but it can be really hard to break one. If you find yourself developing an urge to self-harm, it’s really important to be aware of what’s triggering you. Once you know what is triggering you, creating a safety plan with your therapist, a trusted friend or family member can be helpful and also give you ideas on other alternatives to try to resist the urge. People self-harm for various reasons and it may be helpful to distract yourself until the urge passes. Calling a friend and talking about something completely different, playing with a pet, going for a run/walk are all things to consider going when you feel an urge. Some other techniques include journaling how you feel, listening to music, drawing or painting. Deep breathing is also a really good technique to self soothe and give yourself a sense of calmness. If all of that doesn’t help, it may be helpful to speak to a therapist to find substitutes for the cutting sensations as you continue to develop coping mechanisms.

RELATED POST

COMMENTS