When you are struggling with a mental health disorder, it can be hard to think of much else besides the symptoms you are experiencing. Sure, you might muddle through from day to day, but it is not easy, and it can feel as though you are carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders. It can seem as though no one understands your struggles—and you might feel too embarrassed (or just too stubborn) to bring them up to anyone who might be able to help.
Sometimes, your mental health struggles might cause you to turn inward so that you are not really thinking about how your challenges might be affecting others in your life. We don’t say that to make you sound selfish. Rather, we point it out in the hope that you might find yourself more motivated to get the help you need if you really think about the ways a mental health disorder might be causing harm to the people around you.
Let’s take a look at some examples of what we are talking about.
Your Loved Ones Would Like to Spend Time With You
When you are battling depression or another mental health disorder, you may find it all but impossible to participate in get-togethers with family or friends. That might even be true on special occasions—like a birthday party, an anniversary dinner, or a big family holiday gathering—that you might have been looking forward to.
And you probably were not the only person looking forward to it. So if your mental health disorder keeps you from attending an event—or feeling miserable if you do manage to go—the people closest to you will experience a range of emotions. Those emotions will, of course, include concern for you, but sadness, disappointment, or even a little anger might be in the mix as well.
Your family and friends want to spend time with you, and they want that time to be enjoyable for everyone. When you are struggling with a mental health disorder, that can be difficult to achieve.
A Variety of People Rely on You
A mental health disorder can make it difficult to keep up with your responsibilities. It can undermine your ability to do your job well, to complete schoolwork, to care for a loved one, and more. When you are struggling, it can feel like only you are affected by the difficulties you are experiencing, but as we have noted, that is seldom the case.
Your coworkers or classmates rely on you to do your part in the joint endeavor you are involved in. Your loved ones—especially those who cannot effectively care for themselves—rely on you to offer support of all kinds. When you are struggling, all of those people might find themselves struggling, too.
Your Positive Impact May Be More Than You Imagine
So far, we have talked about people in your immediate circle who may struggle for one reason or another when you are being challenged by the symptoms of a mental health disorder. But the impact of an untreated disorder could extend well beyond the people you know.
Your symptoms may keep you from a volunteer opportunity that could really make a difference in your community. Maybe instead of having an innovative idea at work that could lead to positive change, your mental health disorder ensures you just get by on the job. Your difficulties might keep you from making art that brings beauty into the world.
It is not always easy to see ways in which you might have an impact on the life of someone you do not know. But each positive day brings opportunities to do just that. An untreated mental health disorder, on the other hand, robs you of those opportunities.
Remember: This Is Not a Guilt Trip
We want to repeat this important point: our intention here is not to suggest you are selfish or that you should feel guilty about suffering from a mental health disorder. Instead, we want you to think expansively about who will benefit if you work to improve your mental health and maintain those improvements over time. You will absolutely benefit. But it is not just you. It is the people around you (and beyond), too.
Our hope is to provide more motivation for getting the help you need sooner rather than later.
We Are Eager to Help
At Peak View Behavioral Health, we understand that the symptoms of a mental health disorder can be the very things that make it so hard to seek out help for that disorder. It can feel frustrating and dispiriting to find yourself in that situation. But once you take that first step toward treatment, real and lasting improvement is possible.
Located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Peak View Behavioral Health is committed to providing personalized, evidence-based treatment plans for each person we serve. Whether you are dealing with depression, an anxiety or panic disorder, an issue springing from traumatic experiences, or other challenges, we can help. You can rely on our expertise, our experience, and our empathy as we help you renew a sense of balance in your life and embrace a spirit of hope for your future.
