Do you need help? What kind?
Recent studies suggest that matching the circumstances of the client to those of the therapist has a big impact on the success of therapeutic models of help. That is, a black teen will get better results when her therapist is black; a lesbian will do better with a lesbian therapist and so on. Teen Vogue has compiled a database for Black, LBGTQI folks, those with disabilities, among others. You can find it HERE! (While mainly designed for USA and Canada, you can use this list to find key terms to search for in your own country. Don’t’ give up!)
But what if:
- You can’t afford therapy!
- There are no suitable therapists in your area!
- You don’t want paper trail of your therapy following you around for life!
- You don’t want your Caregivers to know, and you know they wouldn’t give permission
All is NOT lost!
Try this: use the database to find out the right TERMS to search on regarding your issues. Google around, find articles, find people in social media you can trust on the topic and follow them (for example, on Eating Disorders and Body Image, look at the feeds of Jameela Jamil (@jameelajamil; “The Good Place”), a body positive activist from India. Her fun, thoughtful, inspirational, and edgy takes on the female body (she had polio as a girl, and was bullied for it) will get you through a dark day with humor and insight.
Social Media not your thing? Find an older person with the same issues that you have, a person you find trustworthy and who seems to have sorted things through, and start up a conversation. Or, gather some folks you know in the same boat as you, and start a ‘peer-counseling’ session. See what other people are thinking and trying to cope with their concerns. You’ll be surprised at how much just TALKING and BEING HEARD will give you comfort and speed you on your quest for resolution.
AND ALWAYS REMEMBER to follow regular rules of online safety: don’t give your contact details to anyone you do not know; consider using a secure browser that does not track your online history and sell it (try www.duckduckgo.com , its free!). In groups IRL, you all need to agree to general principles of confidentiality, non-aggression, support, and protect one another. And if all else fails, please contact your WUNRN RA for more information (email at the top of this release)!
Elfin Song, Florence Harrison, 1912
WUNRN Research Associate 