Therapy for Men

Are You A Man Struggling With Mental Health Concerns?

Do you experience stress or anxiety due to your job, your relationship, or from a sense of uncertainty?

Are you stuck and overwhelmed in your day-to-day life and wondering how to change things?

Maybe you feel like no one cares about you or your needs and find it difficult to share your feelings with those closest to you.

You might be looking for a professional to talk to in a confidential environment so you can get your life back on track. You’re probably asking yourself if therapy for men could provide relief and understanding.

Signs That You Could Use Support For Your Mental Health

Sometimes, life becomes complicated, or a major life event occurs, leading to the feeling of shell shock or bewilderment. Maybe someone in your life has left, and you find yourself going through grief and loss. Perhaps stress has become overwhelming due to ongoing problems at work, school, or home, leading to mental and physical symptoms that make you feel miserable.

When anxiety or traumatic memories come into the picture, you might experience panic or fear, with shortness of breath, a racing heartbeat, or excessive sweating. With depression, your energy levels might bottom out, and you struggle to motivate yourself to get out of bed while fighting feelings of hopelessness and sadness.

These feelings can come out as anger, and you might find it difficult to control your irritability around the people in your life. You might overindulge in substances or unhealthy habits to provide some relief, but now consider this to have become another problem on top of everything else.

No matter the reason for your concerns over your mental health, help is available. Talking to someone in therapy about the issues men face could help you untangle the complexities of your life, process any difficulties you’re going through, and move on with balance and hope.

Men Aren’t Commonly Taught To Reach Out For Support

Despite the general decrease in stigma about getting mental health support in the past few years, men may still feel some conflicted feelings about mental health treatment. Men are more often shamed for showing their emotions around people who still cling to outdated beliefs about how each gender “should” behave. They might avoid seeking support altogether for fear of judgment from others.

Other stereotypes persist, such as men being expected to be tough and know how to handle things on their own. As they are less likely to grow up learning how to express their emotions by having those behaviors modeled for them, they often lack the words or awareness to express their feelings.

Men Might Not Think of Therapy As A Solution… but more men are seeking help

More men are seeking therapy today than a few decades ago. In 2023, nearly 17 percent, or about 1 in 5 men received some form of mental health care in the United States – an increase from around 8.5 percent two decades earlier. (1) The growing number is positive in the sense that more men are recognizing the value of their mental health and emotional well-being.

No matter their walk of life, if they give counseling a shot, men can find that their therapist has ideas about empowerment that they wouldn’t have thought of on their own. For instance, they could learn about the psychology of work-life balance that can help make positive changes in their days. They could consider seeking out therapy not as a sign of weakness but as a smart investment in themselves.

Men’s Therapy Can Be Your New Resource For Wellness

At Shift Counseling, we understand how hard it can be for men to reach out for help, so just being here and considering therapy is a step worth noting. We welcome men who seek treatment and have experience meeting men's counseling needs.

Counseling is a great choice for unpacking issues that keep men like you feeling down, and it can also help you develop healthy self-care habits and build self-esteem. Our therapists will read between the lines and ask questions that can help clarify what is bothering you.

We can help you find healthier coping skills for your most troubling symptoms and improve your communication so you can repair your relationships with your existing support systems. Your needs are important and we are here to help, with both male and female therapists on staff who regularly work with men, so you can work with who you feel most comfortable with.

We Utilize Evidence-Based Modalities To Treat Mental Health Symptoms

When you first begin therapy sessions, we will listen, provide support, and help you share what you’ve been going through. Once the issues that need to be addressed become clearer, we may start incorporating certain therapeutic modalities like Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) to challenge your negative thoughts and help you improve your coping skills for stress.

You might have experiences in your past that are worth addressing and processing differently. For men who have been through trauma, we have trauma-informed counselors and therapists who are trained in treatments such as Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). This kind of therapeutic modality helps to re-program your traumatic memories so they no longer create distressing symptoms.

Because men’s mental health so often impacts their physical well-being, we also incorporate mindfulness and body-based interventions to help you with those aspects of how bad you are feeling. This involves taking note of where you feel distress in your body and using breathing, movement (even walking or exercise), and meditation to regain control of your nervous system.

We are here to listen to and support you, with the expertise to help you understand that you aren’t alone and that your problems are solvable. Men's mental health is very important and we have seen the positive changes that can happen in therapy for them, their partners, and their families. We can’t wait to provide the same benefits for you.

You Might Still Have Questions And Concerns About Men’s Therapy…

I am nervous about finding the right therapist to open up to.

You may be ready to start counseling but don't know who to see. Therapists are here to listen to your story objectively without judgment or we aren’t doing our jobs the right way. We have male counselors as well as female counselors who work with male clients at our practice.  Men who seek counseling services don't always talk openly with other men about their experiences with therapy, but about 40 percent of our clients are male at any given time. 

I’m nervous my therapist will judge me for my issues with anger.

Anger is a very common issue for men. There is a saying that "anger is the only emotion that it is socially acceptable for men to express."

We understand that anger may be the tip of the iceberg, but we also do not believe that anger is a "bad" emotion. It's what you do with the anger that is acceptable or not. While disregarding our policies or engaging in aggressive behavior towards our staff will not be tolerated, speaking of your anger is not an act of aggression and will not be stigmatized.

Can you help me improve and solve the issues related to my relationship?

Issues like depression, anxiety, and trauma often show up in people's relationships. We can help you work on your issues that may be contributing to relationship problems, like improving awareness, communication skills, and coping skills.

We Are Ready To Help You On Your Path To Healing

Reach out to Shift Counseling for a short discussion to check if we are in network with your insurance and to learn more about therapy for men. Call us at 708-522-4009 or reach out through our Contact Form. Additionally, if you are ready to get started right away, we offer easy online scheduling for your convenience.

1.https://www.statista.com/statistics/673172/mental-health-treatment-counseling-past-year-us-men/