Wild Water Mental Health

 Talking to a stranger about private matters can be uncomfortable. A licensed and trained professional is aware of this and will structure sessions in such a way that the client is put at ease and assured that what they share with the counselor is private and confidential, and they need share only what they feel comfortable sharing. There is a limit to privacy and confidentiality when the client reports information that indicates imminent threat of harm to self and others, recent/current child abuse, or recent/current elder abuse. Mental health professionals are mandated by law and ethics to report these things to the appropriate authorities. 

Simple answer: the soothing sound of water.  But there's more to the story than that.

Everyone needs to find something that nourishes their soul.  For me it's the sound of water rushing over rocks or sand, or discovering a creek or waterfall that is so remote only the deer and elk know of its existence.  I feel pure joy when I make these discoveries or hear that sound.  I just call it wild water.

Water IS something else.  It's essential to life. 

One snowflake joins others in colder months, creating snow accumulation as tall as a two story building,  In the spring that snowflake and its little snowflake buddies will melt and become the water in that tiny stream way up high among the elk and deer.  The stream will find its way to a larger creek, and that creek will join with other forks and creeks to create a river.  Rivers converge to create large reservoirs and larger rivers that provide water for our homes, irrigate crops, and generate electricity.  It provides us with recreational opportunities.  It provides us with food.  A fair amount of it makes its way to oceans, creating a unique ecosystem that supports many animals and plants that are essential for a healthy ocean, as well as sources of food for animals as small as plankton or as large as a bear or Humpback Whale. 

Water is also powerful.  It can alter our landscape, destroy communities with avalanches, flooding, and storms that will take lives if not planned for proactively and with respect.

From infancy to adulthood to old age we transition from that stream to a creek to a river and finally, a lake/reservoir or the ocean.   Who we become is the result of the convergence of wild water, and how we manage it is vital to our health and wellness, especially our 

mental health.

It's essential to find joy in life, 

to find pleasure and meaning in the

simple things. 

It's essential to take care of your mental health, so...

...appreciate the tiny stream, don't be afraid to ask for help navigating the rapids, waves and currents, and respect the journey of  the water.

Therapy? Counseling?  These terms are often used interchangeably.  While there can be a large overlap between the two, therapy and counseling have subtle but key differences in approach. The different approaches guide the frequency and duration of therapy or counseling. In general, therapy is long-term and counseling is short-term. Therapy is more exploratory; counseling is more solution-focused. Both therapy and counseling involve speaking with a licensed professional.  Therapy and counseling can even occur in the same session. 

Therapy focuses on the totality of your current and past experiences, including a more in-depth examination of your past and how it influences who you are now. You will discuss why you felt a certain way about a situation, where the emotion(s) you felt came from, how you responded, and if there are better ways for you to respond in similar situations. Other aspects of therapy include exploring causes of fears, habits, or attitudes. One of the main goals of therapy is to understand past and current thought processes and how past events influence them, either negatively or positively. Once those processes are identified as beneficial or detrimental, the client and therapist discuss ways the client can begin to develop patterns of thinking and interacting with others in a way that is more positive and productive for the client.

Counseling is present-focused and more practical.  You will work through how to manage a specific challenge. Your past may not be explored as much as it would be in therapy.  The goal is to have your immediate needs met so that you can get back on your feet and continue with your life.  For example, a mental health counselor will teach you coping mechanisms to cope with current stressors, or what you can do to manage depression and anxiety. Counseling ranges from short-term treatment which focuses on a particular problem the client wants to work through, to longer treatment plans for lifestyle shifts or stress-related problems. Relatively brief counseling immediately targets specific symptoms and situations with advice and guidance to resolve the issue. 

It’s important for the client and therapist to immediately identify goals for counseling and/or therapy. Doing this gives the therapist and client a clear expectation of what the focus of counseling and/or therapy will be, an agreement about the frequency and duration, and what constitutes success or improvement for the client. Therapy should never be extended for the benefit of the therapist. It’s also important for both therapist and client to have an up-front agreement that the counseling/therapeutic relationship will end if the client isn’t feeling rapport with the counselor, if the counselor feels that he or she doesn’t have rapport with the client, or if the counselor determines that they lack the expertise to ethically help the client. It usually takes more than one session to make these determinations, but counseling should be terminated once the lack of rapport or expertise has become evident.

I like to go wading in the water.  It's wild!

Some of what my grandma writes on this website will be her opinions!  Factual information, including research, will be referenced and/or available via a live link.