Going to therapy in 2020 may be seen as “normal” and is highly encouraged by most people especially among the younger generation. Something that was once seen as “shameful” or “weak” is now praised. Most people can benefit from a session or two of therapy, it is a good way to discover things about yourself that you may never have understood and is a great way of healing and accepting one’s past.
In 2018, Canada had 5.3 million people who said they needed some sort of help with their mental health. Including help in the areas of counseling, medication, and others. Out of those 5.3 million, only 3 million people said they got the help they needed (McDiarmid, 2019).
Seniors have recently been more interested in therapy than ever before. But why is there a sudden bump in number? Well, with people living 10-15 years longer than previous generations and with the stigma surrounding therapy being decreased, older people are realizing that they should be seeking help with the problems they have carried throughout their lives. By resolving past struggles, the older generation is able to find peace and happiness in their “golden years”.
Older generations struggle with the idea of therapy since when they were growing up there was a lot more negative stigma surrounding any sort of psychological support or help. Many times if someone was known to have mental health issues they were deemed “lunatics” and were sent off to asylums or they were socially separated from others in their community (Our history and future: 70 years of the Mental Health Foundation 2020). As time went on and mental health developments were happening more people began to receive professional help yet the stigma surrounding mental health was still present.
Based on the environment older generations grew up in, they may feel uneasy about the idea of getting help for their mental health or past. However, after attending speech therapy many older adults say they wished they had gone earlier in life.
One thing that everyone should take away is that no one is “too old” to receive the help they need and that no personal concern is too small or insignificant to be discussed with a professional.
McDiarmid, C. (2019, October 07). This is a health fact sheet about different kinds of help Canadians received or reported needing for problems with their emotions, mental health or use of alcohol or drugs for the Canadian population aged 12 and older. The results shown are based on data from the Canadian Community Health Survey. Retrieved September 23, 2020, from https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/82-625-x/2019001/article/00011-eng.htm
Our history and future: 70 years of the Mental Health Foundation. (2020, August 06). Retrieved October 02, 2020, from https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/blog/our-history-and-future-70-years-mental-health-foundation