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How did this career path improve your mental health? #Spring25

I am currently a senior in highschool who is interested in being a therapist. While the field is intended to help other people, I wonder how it can improve your own personal mental health.

psychology career-path mental-health counselor
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Claire’s Answer

Hey Rhianna!
Great question. As practitioners working in the mental health field, there are many mental health resources available for us to use if needed. Typically your work place will provide these resources and as stated above, there are required trainings that can help you understand your mental health. Working in this field can also help you to recognize your own potential mental health strengths and weaknesses that could impact your patients and workplace. I hope this helped and let me know if you have any questions!
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Rachel’s Answer

I believe that the therapists who walk the talk and do not just talk the walk benefit and make an impact in this community the most! To support others well, you need to be pouring into yourself, learning about yourself, and recognizing what is yours to own in the therapy room and what belongs to the client. One reason I picked the graduate school I chose was the fact it required each student to engage in 40 hours of personal therapy to work on themselves and also learn the experience of being the client. I've continued that on for myself with going to individual and/or couples therapy as I need additional support or guidance in my life. I've had many sessions with my own clients where they say or share something that impacts my own growth mentally and emotionally. So overall, YES, I believe it can and does improve your own mental health. I think it's also important to name that it can impact your mental health negatively too. Caring for others, holding their stories and supporting them can feel like a weight. We need to constantly be checking in with ourselves and naming what we need to help us care for ourselves as we care for others and if we stop doing that, we can find it negatively impacting our mental health.
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Hwal’s Answer

Rhianna,

I was a registered mental health counsellor in Australia and have used both my counsellor training and PA training in the U.S. to practice mental and behavioural health care for a few years, so this informs my perspective.

I believe that any helping profession has the potential to, and often does, provide benefits to the helper. Mental health practice is no different. Mental health can be complex to navigate and many of us experience challenges at least sometimes. Training and education to become a mental health professional of any kind inevitably will serve as an opportunity to better understand your own mental health - why you think, feel, and behave the way you do. This certainly has been my experience. The good news is that the journey of learning is never over, and that makes working and volunteering in the mental and behavioral health space so exciting and fulfilling.

I hope this helps. Let me know if you have any other questions.

Hwal
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