Desk of PK hightower

2021: The Year for Faith… and Counseling

 

By PK Hightower

 

 

Raise your hand if the year 2020 threw some challenges for you mentally or physically.  Raise your other hand if 2020 was an emotional or financial struggle for you or someone you know.   Don’t feel alone if you’re reading this with both hands in the air—don’t feel embarrassed, either.  Just keep your hands raised toward God, and thank Him for pulling you into 2021.  This year has been a tough one for all of us, but even if you must limp into a new season, look back and be amazed by all you continue to endure.

 

The coronavirus, racial injustice, racial and political division, protests, job loss, business shutdowns, school closures, and an election are just some of the major splashes that will continue to make ripples into the New Year.  We’re still dealing with the political stuff—wow, who would have thought we would still be dealing with who the President of the United States would be well after the votes were counted, or not counted.

 

Now more than ever, it’s important to have faith—even if it’s the size of a mustard seed.   It’s also important to have a place to talk about those mustard seeds, care for those seeds, and lay the mental and emotional soil for them to grow into unforgettable blessings.  Friends, let me tell you that faith and counseling is the best resolution for 2021.    

 

During the early stages of the pandemic, we learned that counseling would play a major part of what would follow this virus called Covid-19.  The more we learned about it, the more panicked many of us became.  The more symptoms we read about, the more anxiety spread across the United States—the entire world was being affected by the virus. 

 

As mask mandates, curfews, and stay at home orders were given, it was only a matter of time before people would become depressed.  Many of us had to deal with seeing loved ones, family and friends contracting the virus—some recovering slowly and others not recovering at all.  Soon after, the numbers showed that quarantine and the stay at home requirements created a spike in domestic violence and threats of suicide.  Yes, this is heavy… and it seems overwhelming, but let’s talk about it in 2021 rather than sweeping the past 12 months under the rug like it never existed. 

 

Counselors and counseling centers have had to get creative in order to reach those in emotional distress since appointments are being booked but office doors remain locked.  Phone counseling has reached an all-time high, and Zoom counseling sessions have become the newest way to connect with those needing counseling—thank God for technology.  If you had your hands raised at the beginning of this blog, you should know that talking through those emotions is much better than holding them in.  Allowing yourself to let the guard down and actually let someone else in to assist can make sure that 2020 affected you without infecting your ability to be a blessing on your future and the future of those you care about most. 

 

So maybe you’re asking yourself…

 

How can counseling help me in 2021?  How do I know if I even need counseling?

 

Hindsight is 20/20, but I think it is pretty much safe to say just about everyone could use some counseling.  We will not soon forget this pandemic and how it disrupted our way of life, love, and simple freedoms.  Maybe you didn’t have any domestic violence issues in your marriage.  Maybe you never felt depressed or suicidal.   Maybe anxiety didn’t come into your emotions.  Shout to the Heavens that you didn’t check any of those boxes, but maybe you have questions regarding something you don’t want to ask just anyone.  Maybe you noticed something different in your spouse’s behavior and are looking to find a way to address it.  Maybe you just want to find different ways to connect with your own emotions since social distancing has changed how often we see people’s reactions up close and personal.   2020 has caused all of us to act differently at times, not knowing what to do or say. Truth is we all have been affected in one way or another especially in our emotions.  Some of us are really good at connecting while others are not.  Relationships require us to connect, make bonds, and care about others.  The easiest way to determine if you have been affected is to examine your emotional connectivity with others.  Your spouse, family and friends are a good place to start.  If you experience any difficulty at all connecting, communicating or simply interacting with them, then counseling should be a simple next step for you.

 

So what are signs that determine if I need counseling?

 

It’s human nature to connect with others as a means of communication, whether its body language, eye contact, verbal communication or physical communication (touch, feel, hugs, etc…).  We are designed to bond with other human beings and this unexpected Covid-19 pandemic has created a disconnect that started off harmless, but grew into something worth talking about.

 

Here are some quick and easy tips to make you aware of the warning signs:

 

1. You don’t want to talk to anyone or communicate in any way.
2. You can’t seem to make eye contact with others for any length of time.
3. You have a fear of leaving your home.
4. You can’t seem to connect with others as easily as before.
5. You are experiencing communication problems with your spouse, friends or normal relationships.
6. You feel confused when trying to communicate with others.

 

Once you realize there is an issue…

 

1. Be intentional about reconnecting with your spouse, family or friends.
2. Make yourself available to your spouse, family or friends should they wish to connect or share their feelings.
3. Try being yourself when around them.
4. Communicate your emotions

 

Should you find any of the above steps too complicated or uncomfortable, it is time to make your counseling appointment and regain control of your life and emotions.

 

Counseling out 2020 and counseling in 2021

 

Counseling has become the “norm” in 2021.  Everyone is realizing that talking about it instead of holding it in is healthier for you.  It’s the new normal mode of communicating.  It provides the perfect stadium to play through life’s emotional battles.  It allows you to explore the art of intimacy in all relationships.  Many have discovered what was once frowned upon is now the ideal way to communicate and connect with others.  After beginning proper counseling, their relationships are better, stronger, and more exciting than ever before.

 

Let go of the old you and find the new you through counseling in 2021.

GOD BLESS