Client Testimonial: The Power of Seeking Help

Written in her own words, this teenage client has asked for us to post her testimony of counseling in order to encourage others to get help.

Middle school can be a difficult time for any kid. Sometimes even when it appears that everything is alright, there is an unsettling feeling of the exact opposite. In middle school I earned straight A’s, had friends, even a “boyfriend”. Aside from all that however, I was never able to fully ignore this feeling on sadness and uneasiness. I was confused about what I was feeling. I ignored it, with the hope that these feelings would all go away on their own. 

Middle school is hard for any child because kids can be mean. Sadly, when you’re young you ignore taunts and feelings of sadness. Those feelings are chalked up to “kids just being kids”. I had class mates who mocked me. I was told that I acted “like a baby”. Girls called me by rude nicknames, they told me that I had anger problems. They would harass and upset me with the intent of making me feel angry and sad for their amusement. However, I called many of these girls my friends and never spoke up about how much their words truly hurt me.

For nearly 5 years I carried the weight in my mind of the hurtful words of kids in middle school. I carried those same feelings with me to high school. Finally after starting freshman year I decided enough was enough. I found the courage to speak up and talk to an adult. I told my parents how I was really feeling. I hadn’t felt like myself in so long. I thought that going to high school would help my escape the awful feelings I experienced in middle school. However, this was not the case. Soon after I began attending regular therapy sessions. Through that process I learned that words hurt. I learned that keeping your feelings bottled up inside is dangerous. Kids need to stop being afraid of their emotions. There is nothing wrong with wanting to seek professional help in sorting out how one feel. In fact, it wasn’t until earlier this year, when I began EMDR therapy, that after so many years I finally have begun to regain my confidence.

Seeking professional help for what I was feeling was one, if not, the smartest decision I have ever made. I can not begin to express my gratitude for my therapist and all she has taught me. Or to my parents for allowing me to go and helping me along this journey. From experience I can say words hurt because they are powerful. But using that power to seek help or speak up about what one is feeling is only beneficial in the long run.