When Should You Seek Professional Help?

When should you seek professional help? Any time is a good time, but some milestones call for a helping hand

- Rachel Lopez

Sure, it makes sense to go to a counsellor when someone close has passed away. Grief is difficult. So are anxiety, depression, divorce, abuse, addiction and phobias. But therapy can help in smaller ways too.

Priyanka Varma, a clinical psychologist, counsellor and psychotherapist, founded The Thought Co in 2014. The mental-health awareness organisation sees patients mostly aged 18 to 35. "Many of them have trouble adjusting to adult life," she says. "There are new freedoms, money, the hustle and the sense that you can do anything. But there are also responsibilities. Some people have trouble setting boundaries."

Poor mental health shows up in the form of too much or too little sleep, over-exercising, struggling with intimacy and moving ahead. Here are some key moments when working with a trained professional can smooth the journey onward.

When chasing a degree: "If you've given the same exam three or four times and you're depressed because it still hasn't worked out, you might need help accepting that you need a new path," Varma says. One of her patients attempted the same exam for eight years because he believed it was his only chance for success. "A lot of people are sold a particular journey of life. Your path might lie elsewhere."