Living Out Our Values Series, Part 1
In this series, we share insight directly from our therapists about what each of our Company Values means to them and how they are played out in our work.
Value 1: Mental Health Care is Valuable and Has the Power to Change Lives
Imagine spending 45 minutes with someone whose sole focus is you. During this time, everything you think, feel, and say matters. Your perspective is important, and you don’t need to prove anything or convince anyone. You are safe, you are seen, and you are valued just as you are. Most of all, you are not alone. Whatever happens, there is a caring other to share the experience with. This is the essence of therapy—providing a space where you are validated and empowered, fostering growth and change. At Bellaire Family Counseling, one of our company Values is that “we believe that mental health care is valuable and has the power to change lives.” Our team reflects on why we believe this to be true. (Quotes from the Bellaire Family Counseling Team are in italics.)
The Broad Impact of Mental Health
“Mental health profoundly affects every area of our lives. No one should have to endure the burden of untreated mental health issues, big or small, on their own. Bringing them to the light is already the first step of getting better.”
“The effects of mental health are far reaching and varied: Relationships can be restored. Sleep can be improved. Trauma can lose the power to hurt. Feelings that are too overwhelming to experience alone can be safely ‘felt’ and released. Destructive behavior patterns can be changed. Physical health can be improved. People can learn to recognize danger and ignore false alarms when danger isn’t present. People can function better at work or school. Attachment styles can change. Hope and happiness can grow. It’s not a reach to say that through mental health care, lives can be saved.”
The Power of Being Believed
“One of the most significant things a therapist can say to a client is, ‘I believe you’.” This simple affirmation can be profoundly powerful. “Reflecting and validating a client’s feelings and experiences can create a sense of connection and safety. When humans feel connection, validation and empowerment, we grow. That’s what happens during the therapeutic process: growth and change.”
Capacity for Change
Humans have an incredible capacity for change. “Change can be really hard, and it can take a lot of time, but it is possible. People can change and grow, especially when they want change, put effort into change, and are in a therapeutic relationship.”
One therapist points to the butterfly effect, a concept from chaos theory, to illustrate how small changes can lead to significant outcomes e.g. a butterfly flapping its wings could influence a tornado weeks later. In therapy, “small changes from therapy can ripple through a client’s family and social systems. Imagine a teenager realizing their mom is truly on their side, a child finding the courage to speak up against bullying, a father experiencing the joy of sobriety, a woman discovering that perfection is not a prerequisite to being loved, or a couple finding deeper connection through forgiveness. These small shifts can change lives and, by extension, the world.”
Therapy as Healthcare
“Mental health care has the power to change lives in the same way that all healthcare has the power to change lives. Every time someone goes to the doctor, and gets antibiotics for something that very well could have killed them 200 years ago, their life has been changed. I see Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) very much in this same light when used to treat OCD and related anxiety disorders. ERP, and other forms of evidence-based treatment, changes lives because it can heal people and help them move past something that society had very little idea of how to treat at one point in time- just like infections.
This is one of the things that is so wonderful about our field. It helps people live more fulfilling, meaningful lives, and it does it through so many avenues.”