Thinking of Mental Health Therapy? Go Through This Checklist. If you're struggling with any of the signs listed in the article, you may benefit from some professional help.

Since the start of my career as a mental health therapist, the most common question posed by prospective clients is, "How do I benefit from going to therapy?" Well, the answer is not a one-size-fits-all type of response. Generally, the outcome of seeking mental health therapy usually results in the growth or desired change in the issues being addressed in the treatment sessions.

If you are failing to reach success or achieve your goals despite reasonable efforts, this may mean your mental health isn't functioning optimally. You can change your mental health status and turn this around at any time. In therapy, you regain your ability to restore wellness and positivity into your life.

Therapists are impartial, non-judgemental, confidential professionals who give you the space and voice to express and work through internal and external struggles. They can also help you:

• gain new insights, perspectives, resources and education
• challenge unhealthy or unhelpful habits, ways of thinking and behaving
• learn or reinforce healthy coping mechanisms
• validate your thoughts, ideas and emotions.

Therapists have extensive training and education in the theories and methods that help clients achieve their personal goals through intervention and treatment planning. During therapy, you can develop skills and insights that transform your inner self. You don't need to have a disorder or a serious mental health issue to attend and benefit from therapy. Therapy is mind work.

It is important to know that mental health symptoms can often go unrecognizable. Some people, at certain times, can develop harmful, problematic, detrimental and even debilitating mental health symptoms. Below I have provided some signs, symptoms and signals related to your mental health.

If you are struggling with any of the following, this may mean it is time for you to seek out a trusted mental health therapist:

1. Anxiety, nervousness and fear
2. Feeling overwhelmed or panicky
3. Lack of motivation or direction
4. Extreme mood changes that result in high or low moods such as mania or depression
5. Difficulty concentrating or focusing
6. Feeling easily distracted
7. Feeling worthless, lost, sad or depressed
8. Feeling irritable or easily agitated
9. Having frequent bad dreams, nightmares or night tremors
10. Having flashbacks of traumatic or troubling events or circumstances
11. Feeling easily startled, watchful or guarded
12. Either a noticeable increase or decrease in appetite
13. Eating too much or too little
14. Irrational thought patterns
15. Drinking or using drugs more than usual
16. Engaging in irregular and risky sexual behaviors
17. Preoccupation with sexual thoughts
18. Feeling urges to gamble despite consequences
19. Feeling discouraged or hopeless about the future
20. Isolating and seeking out more moments of solitude or wanting to be alone
21. Avoiding specific people, places and things
22. Frequent physical aches or pains due to distress
23. Difficulty experiencing pleasure
24. Forgetfulness or issues with memory
25. Arguing frequently or experiencing increased conflicts
26. Becoming obsessed with trivial or small pursuits
27. Experiencing unwanted, repetitive behaviors
28. Being uncaring or aggressive
29. Feeling numb
30. Seeking out attention or noticeable attention-seeking behaviors
31. Having noticeable mean or cruel behavior
32. Feelings of guilt or shame
33. Feeling needy or as if your needs are going unmet
34. Feeling disconnected from your physical body
35. Feeling paranoid
36. Experiencing unwanted and unpleasant thoughts
37. Having trouble making decisions
38. Difficulty thinking logically
39. Feeling overly emotional or reactive to certain situations
40. Losing or the loss of interest in personal appearance, self-care and grooming
41. Losing interest in doing things once found to be pleasurable
42. Losing or gaining significant and noticeable weight
43. Missing appointments, frequent cancellations or absences
44. Negative thoughts or thinking patterns
45. Neglecting children, pets or caregiving responsibilities
46. Concerns from other people about getting help
47. Problems with the police or the legal system
48. Racing or rapid thoughts
49. Feeling speedy or slowed down
50. Feeling that others are trying to hurt you or something bad is going to happen to you
51. Feeling restlessness
52. Feeling frequently fatigued and exhausted
53. Seeing or hearing things others don't
54. Feelings of excitement
55. Irregular or unhealthy sleeping patterns such as sleeping too much or too little
56. Discontinuing medications or wanting to take more medication than recommended
57. Thoughts of hurting yourself or thought about hurting other others

These 57 mental health signs, symptoms and signals are common reasons why people seek out mental health therapy. However, they aren't the only signs.

It can be difficult to accept that you may need help. Most private therapists provide free consultations to discuss prospective clients' mental health symptoms before scheduling an appointment. These consultations provide an opportunity for you to confidentially discuss your mental health issues to find out how therapy can work for you. If you think you need mental health therapy, you are not alone. Seek out help, you'll be one step closer to your transformation.