Life is full of stressful circumstances. Most people attribute depression, stress and anxiety with something bad like losing a job, going through divorce, or the death of a loved one. However, we must learn to cope with good and bad situations. For someone with anxiety or a phobia, seeking Birmingham counseling services to help learn to cope can be very helpful.
What Is a Coping Mechanism?
A coping mechanism is a method that you use when dealing with a difficult or stressful situation. This includes both good stress and bad stress. Either way, you find ways to adapt to the situation and get through it. Coping mechanisms are the things that help you cope. When you cope in an unhealthy way, it can have a negative impact on you and/or your family. It is important to your overall well-being to discover healthy coping strategies.
Unhealthy Coping Strategies
Some unhealthy coping mechanisms are easy to identify such as excessive drinking or turning to drugs as an escape from reality. More subtle unhealthy coping strategies include:
- Withdrawing and isolating from friends and family
- Ignoring reality rather than facing it
- Overeating
- Criticizing yourself to others or internally
- Physical self-harm
- A new bad habit like chewing your fingernails or twisting your hair
In the long run, these methods of coping inevitably cause harm to you and/or your loved ones.
If you have unhealthy coping strategies, seek out Birmingham counseling services. Find a counselor who can listen and can teach you some healthy coping methods. You don’t need to go through your difficult time alone.
To Be Continued…
We’re going to cover some healthy coping mechanisms in our next blog. However, if you’re in need of Birmingham counseling services today, call us to schedule an appointment. Reach us at (205) 807-5372. Dr. Paulk’s team of professionals at Birmingham Anxiety and Trauma Therapy are certified to assist you in overcoming these issues.
