I love therapy. If I could make my therapist live with me I would. But that's not an option, apparently it would be inappropriate. I digress, for far too long there has been an unhealthy stigma attached to achieving some form of mental health and the process involved to get there. Generations have learned that therapy is healthy, if not vital to acclimating to life. There is so much to learn when you have a chance to heard.
Redditor u/FRlVOLOUS wanted everyone to share and discuss why therapy is good for all of us by asking... What is the best, most valuable thing you've learned from therapy?I started out in therapy to battle my claustrophobia and it helped. I use to have to be medicated to ride an elevator, it took a bit but I was able to overcome that battle. I have since regressed because I had to stop therapy for awhile. But now I'm getting back on track. I have learned that I am capable of controlling my mindset in the moment when I feel trapped. It's a start.
Think About It
the office therapy GIFGiphyDon't judge your feelings, just try to understand where they're coming from. Judge your actions.
Oh Jack!
You can't control the actions of others, and you can't presume to know their motivations either.
A simple example would be "Jack is always drumming his fingers on the desk to annoy me. He knows I hate that!"
The fact is that, unless Jack tells you that, you cannot know if that's his motivation. Most likely, he's doing it absent-mindedly.
I know it's a silly example, but it applies to a lot of things. We tend to be very self-centred in our thinking.
10 Year Later
After I lost my oldest daughter to trisomy 18 anger was my go to emotional response to most things. I either cried or yelled. It felt impossible to process or move beyond because I felt so bitter at the unfair world I lived in. It didn't help I have abusive parents who were making things so much worse through their scumminess. I couldn't stand being any more depressed than I was. I could barely get out of bed. I definitely had to learn to process my emotions. That was almost 10 years ago. If I hadn't gone to therapy and put the work in I don't know who I would be today.
IF YOU DON'T TELL THEM...
One big thing I've learned is that someone might not know what they're doing is annoying you/hurt your feelings/offended you IF YOU DON'T TELL THEM. One of my friends critiqued a video of my training my dog but the way she went about it was unexpected and really hurt my feelings. I knew she meant well but she wouldn't know how bad it made me feel if I didn't tell her.
So I told her...
She apologized because it was not how she meant to come across. But since we had the conversation we were able to come up with an agreement that she would only critique videos if I sent them to her asking for help. And she ended up thanking me for telling her and said she was so happy that I felt safe enough to know she wasn't going to retaliate against me for it.
Time Heals
couple hug GIFGiphyGive yourself permission to grieve.
Not just for the loss of loved ones, but for anything that makes you feel sad.
So far, so enlightening. I hope y'all are taking notes. Too often we think that our problems don't merit help. As you can see we are often wrong. Let's continue...
No Excuses
Morgan Freeman Applause GIF by The Academy AwardsGiphyThat my past trauma and upbringing aren't excuses for my bad behavior, and i have to be the one to break the cycle.
Your Story
Acknowledge your feelings - and I mean ALL of your feelings.
Never give up on a NEW path or a modified path to your goals. Disc herniation received from a job I detested. It's been more than 3 decades ago... and wow does time fly.
Accepting this new path was hard for me, but the "choice" of the matter was taken from me, but one thing I would NOT give up was finding a true love.
Met online, married darn near 15 years now, best decision I ever made was NOT giving up!!!
Decided, I couldn't go out and shake my moneymaker lol, but daaamn I found online dating and the rest is "her story" i.e. my story of not giving up!!
Samesies...
My big, huge, existential emotional and psychological issues are actually NOT special — they're just like millions of other people's — and do not make me special. Learning to let them go is not a betrayal of who I am and will not make me less unique or interesting.
It is so it is...
I can live with/accept what I went through because I like where and who I am now (mostly). That was a huge success.
I think about this a lot.
If anything, at all, was different I might not be married to my wife.
If my parents stayed married, or my wife and I had sex ten minutes later, I wouldn't have these specific daughters who I love more than anything. Butterfly effect and all that.
It makes it so much easier to accept that everything I went through had to happen just like it did, but the future is wide open.
hip hop television GIF by WE tvIt's important to realize that needing therapy isn't a handicap. It's an enrichment. If you're trepidatious, just try one session. There are plenty of docs in your area that work with payments. You won't regret it.
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They might be missing out on buying things that could actually make life so much easier because it never occurs to them.
Curious to hear recommendations of items that can improve your life, Redditor icandoitw asked:
"What are some life-changing purchases that are 100% worth it?"
People thought it was worth spending a little extra for a better quality of life.
It Tracks
"Sounds simple but honestly, something as basic as a good pair of shoes that fit you well."
– Ok-Arachnid2436
Rest Easy
"A good mattress and pillow. We spend a third of our lives lying on it, why not invest in it? Anything that you use a lot, you should seriously invest in, like I have a $400 custom mechanical keyboard. People say I am crazy, but I use it every day, for hours on end, it’s my job."
– NappyR6
Heavy Rest
"If you have trouble sleeping, a weighted blanket. I’ve gone from about 5.5 hrs average sleep per night to 7 hours average which is incredible for me, and I wake up feeling so well rested"
– IAMACiderDrinker
Better In The Dark
"Blackout curtains. Especially in the summertime, they help you sleep so much better."
– DeathSpiral321
Listen Up
"Good quality re-useable ear plugs. Soooo much better than the cheap foamy ones."
"They will definitely improve your life if you go to loud concerts. Filter our overtones so you can hear the music better at a loud punk show. Also hearing loss is irreversible and there's no cure for tinnitus."
– DoozersDude
Clear The Air
"For blind/visually impaired people: A smartphone. They literally are life changing, and can function as numerous separate and extremely pricy accessible devices and can do things like color and money recognition, text recognition, the uses are amazing."
"In general though, if you have allergies, especially seasonal or pet, AIR PURIFIER. When we bought our hous a few years ago, my allergies got so bad, we were almost considering moving, but then i bought an air purifier and it was so life changing, i got one for each floor of our house. One of the best purchases ever."
– LegallyBlindArtist
Life can be made easier with the help of these items.
Efficient Multi-Tasking
"A second monitor."
"Suprised i didnt see this yet, but it improves productivity so much as you can have tabs open and type whatever you want on the other or even watch youtube etc."
– fiddle_my_tool
Taking Stock In This
"3+ gallon stock pot. Boil pasta, potatoes, or whatever without a boil over. No more starch water burning all over the burner."
– sonicduckman
A No-Brainer
"a fully functioning computer."
"many people don't have one, they exist in phones or tablets, and holy sh*t they are missing out."
– Immediate-Sky-4191
Clean Solution
"Washer and dryer. No planning days and accumulating quarters for laundry. Just dump a load in a go about my business."
– Kanden_27
Save your back and your money by hiring people to do hard labor.
Refrain From Heavy Lifting
"paying for movers to do everything from pack to move all of it."
"never doing that sh*t again."
– Great_Cockroach69
You Deserve It
"People really underestimate the power of this."
"At least in my social circle, for a long time it was just understood that if someone was moving everyone was showing up that day to lift and lug from house A to house B with the rich reward of beer and burgers after, as if it had all been some fun party everyone loved. This persisted even after people could conceivably afford movers."
"I personally think it is A LOT to expect of friends do that for you. Yeah, when you're young and you have three bags of clothes, two boxes of books, and a futon (and no disposable income at all), it's understandable. But paying for movers and then packers is something I did as soon as I had any money to pay for it. That is what money is for, it's not necessarily what friends are for."
– zazzlekdazzle
The best pandemic purchase I made that was worth every penny was for several sets of free weights.
Once I canceled my gym membership, I invested in some dumbbells so I could follow YouTube workout videos in the comfort of my home.
They are not cheap; however, I'm saving more money in the long run without having to pay a monthly gym membership fee.
I've seen more gains from using the free weights and following an instructor on a monitor, and my motivation to work out is higher than ever.
If you find yourself plateauing at the gym, you may want to invest in making some changes to your exercise regimen that works for you.
In case you had any doubts about hacking...
"Programming."
"Don't nobody code that fast lol."- lmoore0621
The better question is, what does Hollywood get right?
"Programming/hacking."
"Just about anything medical, including deaths."
"Just about anything dealing with space."
"Just about anything dealing with natural disasters."
"Actually, now that I think about it, I don't think Hollywood really gets anything right about anything."- Xyrus2000
"Objection!"
"Big-shot lawyers."
"Especially in big firms, it’s a lot of just endless hours in front of a desk doing doc review."
"Sincerely, someone studying to do endless hours in front of a desk doing doc review."- geeeeeetar
Season 2 Nbc GIF by Law & OrderGiphyThe irony...
"Acting."- passingshrew
For better or worse...
"Cops."- Mr_man67
Wake Up Coffee GIF by FOX TVDrop that baton!
"Conductor/performer."
"Oh my god just take a lesson or two and learn how to hold the instrument right."- soysaucemmm
Crunching those numbers... incorrectly...
Accountants. I'm sorry, but the action Thriller "The Accountant" starring Ben Aff-lack, was in no way a true representation of my job. - User Deleted
Defying all laws of motion...
"Physicists."
"It's hilarious how they act!."- Prestigious-Order-62
back to the future 121 gigawatts GIFGiphyAt least depending on where you went to school...
"Teaching."- sarahaudley
If we're being honest, most people tune in to watch films or television shows to escape from reality, and aren't usually looking for a documentary on these professions.
Though, for anyone thinking they want to be a scientist after watching Back To The Future... you might want to really think that one over...