Many people have a difficult time deciding whether or not to try therapy. Decades of societal stigma have made some believe that needing therapy is a sign of weakness, and while that stigma is decreasing, the decision to seek therapy can still be a fraught one. Talk therapy comes with a number of mental and physical benefits, however, and can be especially helpful to those struggling with addiction or mental wellness.
The benefits to therapy are numerous, but include:
- Helping you deal with unexpressed or repressed traumas
- Teaching you how to deal with future difficulties
- Offering physical benefits in addition to psychological ones
- Improving brain function
- Showing you that you’re not alone
If you are struggling with addiction, our therapy programs can help you begin to heal.
Work Through Unexpressed Trauma in Talk Therapy
Many people carry trauma through their lives. Unfortunately, they’re not always taught helpful ways of processing or dealing with that trauma. Instead, many end up repressing negative emotions in the hopes that they won’t ever have to deal with them. Repressed emotions don’t disappear, however. Many times, those repressed feelings of anger or fear end up emerging unexpectedly and leading to addiction or other unhealthy behaviors.
Talk therapy and addiction therapy can help you come to terms with traumas that may have plagued you for years, and can teach you methods of dealing with them.
Prepare for Future Difficulties in Individual Therapy
One of the main benefits of individual therapy is that it helps you process past traumas and current unhealthy behaviors. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (or CBT), for example, focuses on helping people identify and adjust unhelpful behaviors and thinking patterns. By learning how to better deal with the problems that face you, however, you also develop the tools needed to better deal with issues that may come to pass in the future. Therapy helps prepare you for the road ahead.
The Physical Benefits of Talk Therapy
Most people know that therapy is intended specifically to improve mental health. What many don’t realize, however, is that a person’s mental state of being has an effect on their physical health as well.
Mental health issues often come with a side of physical ailments, from headaches to digestion issues. By improving mental wellness, individual therapy treats the root issue of many physical problems, helping you better handle addiction and trauma while also potentially alleviating some of the physical issues that may have exacerbated your mental health issues.
Talk Therapy Can Improve Brain Function
Talk therapy can physically normalize brain activity. Neuroimaging shows that therapy has physical, quantifiable effects, and is capable of improving activity in the amygdala, hippocampus, and other parts of your brain. This is because the amygdala and hippocampus function as a sort of “alarm system,” which can go into overdrive as a result of trauma, addiction, or anxiety. Therapy helps give you the tools needed to deal with mental health issues, so difficult situations no longer trigger your mental alarm system to the same extent.
Talk Therapy Teaches You That You’re Not Alone
One of addiction’s greatest lies is that you’re alone and incapable of being helped. Talk therapy, however, shows you that you’re not alone. A good addiction therapist not only teaches you tools and methods for dealing with mental health issues but can also help provide you with a support network.
Therapy helps prove that you are seen and heard, and can therefore help you overcome the feelings of loneliness that often arise as a result of mental wellness issues.
Find the Help You Need at Serenity Light Recovery
Talk therapy—whether it takes the form of addiction therapy, group therapy, CBT therapy, or more—can help you regain control of your life. Let Serenity Light Recovery help you overcome addiction and substance abuse. Feel free to contact us today, either by filling out our online form or calling us at (281) 431-6700.
As our CEO, Heather’s main calling is to stay true to the vision of the organization, which is saving lives and striving to redefine statistics by raising the standard of care with evolving treatment methods. Heather studied psychology at LSU and both the main and Clear Lake campuses of the University of Houston, and she is a certified IASIS provider and CPI instructor. She’s been helping people in recovery since 2011. Heather’s motto to live by is “I am not what I’ve done; I am what I’ve overcome.”
