How Therapy Can Help

This post was originally written for Anise Health. Original blog can be viewed here.

We all have an idea in our heads of what therapy looks like. For many, the concept invokes movie scenes where the patient is laying on a couch while a middle aged White therapist wearing glasses sits behind them taking notes. Depending on where and how we grew up and the messages we received from our community, we develop internal stories about what therapy is and who it’s for. 

The truth is that nowadays, therapy looks really different than how it used to. Especially when you are able to find a culturally-responsive therapist, we begin to understand that we carry all the facets of ourselves wherever we go, whether we want to or not. Just like how each of us is a unique combination of our personality, experiences, and cultures, therapy also needs to be unique to you. 

There’s no right or wrong way to use therapy. Here are some examples of how therapy may look different, based on what you are coming in with:

1. You’re overwhelmed. There isn’t any one specific thing that’s going horribly wrong, but it also doesn’t feel like anything is going right. You might not even know what you’re really looking for. Your therapist helps you understand your feelings and figure out healthier ways to manage them. Through processing and exploring, you gain more clarity around your needs and values so that you can cultivate a more meaningful life.

2. Things are going fine. Maybe you’ve gotten mental health support before and you’re pretty well versed in understanding your feelings and behaviors. However, you still find it really helpful to set aside 45 minutes a week to talk to a neutral person. You can really say whatever you are thinking without worrying about burdening your therapist and you appreciate being able to talk through your daily ups and downs. You also appreciate having somebody hold you accountable for the changes you say you want to make. 

3. Something terrible has happened. Things are falling apart and you need help NOW. Your therapist can help you make sense of what happened and begin your healing process. Together, you figure out what you need to start picking up the pieces and get through this chapter in your life.

4. You’ve never been to therapy before but you’re starting to feel like you could use some help. Your therapist helps you gain a better understanding of your own mental health, including how your past experiences shape who you are and how you manage stress. You start to develop more ways to describe how you are feeling, especially if this isn’t something you had modeled for you growing up. You start to connect the dots between why you are the way you are and things start to make a lot more sense. You even start to develop some self-compassion for what you’ve been through, while also feeling more empowered to take accountability for your life. 

Did any of these stories resonate with you? While this isn’t a comprehensive list, it does highlight some of the different ways that therapy can be useful. With a culturally-responsive therapist, you can be sure that the intersection of all your different identities will be thoughtfully considered. 

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Anise Health is the first culturally-responsive digital mental health platform offering therapy, coaching, and digital self-service tools that are tailored for the unique needs of communities of color. Anise interventions move away from diagnosis-driven, Eurocentric models and towards incorporating culture and intersectionality into evidence-based treatments, which research shows to be 5x more effective.

Anise is available in California and we are currently accepting Asian-identifying adults (ages 18+) and partners/family members as new clients (more launches coming soon). If you’re ready to see how Anise can support you, fill out the brief Client Intake Form. You’ll be matched to culturally-responsive clinicians within 2 business days, and you will get a free 15 minute trial consultation to ask questions and see if it would be a good fit. Take action today to start taking care of you!

Signs That You Could Use Some Support

This post was originally written for Anise Health. Original blog can be viewed here.

It’s been a difficult chapter of the global timeline. The last few years have not only caused new challenges but also highlighted underlying issues that many of us have been dealing with all along. What used to be the norm is increasingly unbearable and people are struggling.

How do you decide when it’s time to seek professional help? For many people, especially from communities of color, professional mental health support  still carries a negative association. “That’s only for crazy people”, we often believe. “It’s not that bad”, we insist, “There’s nothing wrong with me, I just need to get over it.” We wonder, “What would my parents say if they found out?” 

Sure, your life isn’t falling apart. Everything seems harder and you know you’re not happy, but you’re still holding down your job. You have friends and family so everything is okay…right? 

Therapy, coaching, or other forms of mental health care are not a last resort. If you have the means, it can give you a safe space to figure out why things feel so hard lately. Providers can also help you develop skills to make managing your life a little easier for long-term wellbeing. With a culturally-responsive clinician (like one that you would be matched to at Anise), therapy can also help you better understand how your culture impacts your beliefs, behaviors, and patterns. Coaching helps you translate what you’re learning about yourself into realistic and tangible actions to make positive lasting changes.

Don’t wait until it feels like things are on fire to reach out. Here are some under-recognized signs that it might be time to talk to a provider:

• You feel too tired to do the things you used to enjoy.

• You have aches or pains that can’t be explained by injury or other health conditions.

• Even when you have free time, you can’t fully relax.

• Your thoughts keep racing at night so that you have a hard time sleeping.

• Having to make a decision, even like where to eat for dinner, fills you with dread.

• You feel numb.

• Conversely, even the small things bother you a lot.

• Despite your best efforts to “get over it”, you keep obsessing over a certain problem or memory.

• The thought of responding to messages, even from loved ones, feels exhausting.

• You find yourself escaping into TV shows or your social media.

• You feel really emotional but you don’t want to burden your friends.

• Even if you tried to talk to someone, you wouldn’t be able to find the words to express your feelings.

• You feel jumpier than usual.

• You find yourself fantasizing in your head about running away to start your life over.

• You’re having more arguments with people you care about.

• You’re feeling more disconnected from others. 

• You react poorly when people question you or try to give you feedback, even if they have good intentions.

• Navigating social situations feels hard.

• You have trouble focusing, whether you’re at work, with friends, or trying to do your hobbies.

• Your response to stress is to apply more pressure to yourself so that you get it together.

• You feel stuck in the same patterns and can’t get yourself to change. 

• Even if nothing new has happened or there’s no big change, you get the feeling that it would be helpful to have somebody to help you process your day-to-day or to keep you accountable.

Ultimately, there is no minimum bar that you need to meet in order for therapy or coaching to be helpful. What if asking for help didn’t mean that we were broken, but just human? What if we didn’t wait until a crisis to take action, but instead viewed mental health services as preventative care? Even if you could survive without it, what if therapy and coaching could make your life just a little easier? If you would want that for your best friend, why not for yourself too?

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Anise Health is the first culturally-responsive digital mental health platform offering therapy, coaching, and digital self-service tools that are tailored for the unique needs of communities of color. Anise interventions move away from diagnosis-driven, Eurocentric models and towards incorporating culture and intersectionality into evidence-based treatments, which research shows to be 5x more effective.

Anise is available in California and we are currently accepting Asian-identifying adults (ages 18+) and partners/family members as new clients (more launches coming soon). If you’re ready to see how Anise can support you, fill out the brief Client Intake Form. You’ll be matched to culturally-responsive clinicians within 2 business days, and you will get a free 15 minute trial consultation to ask questions and see if it would be a good fit. Take action today to start taking care of you!