How do I know if I should seek therapy? How do I know if I am actually mentally ill or if my brain is just playing tricks on me? How do I know if I’m only experiencing normal day to day anxiety or if I actually have a disorder? Do I see a therapist or a psychiatrist? Aren’t the two different somehow? How do I know what kind of help to look for? I know how I feel but I do not know how to say it with words. What could a therapist/psychiatrist possibly do for me if I can’t even tell them what I am feeling? I want to try but I am so afraid of failure.

Please help a struggling person This is going to be long and i apologize. Since about 11 I’ve been treated for bipolar disorder and no antipsychotics ever had any effect on me. All made me feel lucid or zombie like. Recently a psychiatrist diagnosed me with ocd and adhd and told me that the two illnesses together can present as bipolar disorder and that’s probably why i was misdiagnosed the majority of my life. I’ve come at a cross roads in my life. I desperately need help but only see my psychiatrist once a month which doesn’t really help. I’m not really a therapy person either. Can someone please help me out and tell me if I’m crazy or if they’ve had similar experiences?? My freshman year i had a 4.0 and was excited at the thought of becoming a med student in the future. Now that it’s summer I’m spiraling. I’m so angry all the time. I won’t let anyone see me or talk to anyone. Im so afraid I’m not good enough and my thoughts consume me. Im constantly worried about the future and have vivid day dreaming episodes of where I’ll end up and how I’m going to fail. I won’t go out and have gained weight and now i constant obsess about my weight and won’t let anyone see me because of what i look like. My thoughts are in patterns and repeat and repeat and won’t go away. I can’t even function anymore. All i do is lay in my bed and think. It’s like a bad movie that won’t turn off. I also won’t allow myself to experience any sort of love connection because I’m terrified of confirming or denying my sexuality. My brain is constant and i feel like there’s nothing that i can do to ever turn it off and feel normal. My intrusive thoughts and starting to become my only thoughts. This panic state has been my state for about 3 weeks now. Can someone give some advice?

I’ve been considering going to therapy or going for a psych evaluation as I am undiagnosed but am concerned after reading online about what and what not to tell people. My issue has everything to do with violent thoughts and i’ve read that some therapists or doctors have been known to call the police or notify those involved in said thoughts and it’s possible to essentially get mentally hospitalized etc etc? i’ve been trying to bring myself to reach out for help for over a year now and this is a huge problem for me. does anyone have any experience w a situation like this or any advice? literally any type of feed back at all is appreciated. Hope everyone is doing well

I’m scared of going to therapy/counseling incase I slip up and tell to much and get put into a mental hospital or CPS will get involved (I am 18 but the age of majority is 19 in my state so until next year I can still be taken and put into a foster home) I’m scared of being on medication, when I was around 8-9 my mom had me so medicated for my anxiety and OCD I would sit there and drool on myself…as embarrassing as it is it’s true. I’m scared of being diagnosed with something else and it limiting me in the future. I’m scared of my therapist/counselor going home at the end of the day and making fun of me or telling my story to people. Anyone else have any experiences like this or advice? Thanks!