It is the start of December. The wind blows, it is cold, it rains, and it is miserable outside. The mornings are dark, the days are short, and the evenings endlessly long. There is a distant cheer of Christmas approaching, but you just don’t feel it yet. You don’t have the energy for it, you spent it all dragging your feet from the morning until you can finally hit the couch in the evening. No amount of hot chocolate or cake can give you that lift, that perk in your step, that spark in your eye. Every task is an effort, and you keep asking yourself... is there something wrong with me? How can it all get better?

If you feel this way, I have to assure you – you are not alone. Many people feel the same at some point, especially around this time of the year. They sit and wonder, how can I get myself out of this dark spot and back on track again?

The answer is simple - talking helps.

You can sit down with a friend and share your thoughts, laugh it out and get the support you need. Sometimes all you need is just to chat to someone. But what if your family is out of reach, and you don’t want to burden your friends with your problems? Where can you turn to then?

Not many people realise that therapy is a valid option for them, that it is not necessarily reserved for depression or some serious mental health disorders. No issue is too small or too big to benefit from therapy. Therapy… this sounds a bit scary, right? You picture a couch you have to lay on and a cold, distant doctor, analysing everything that you say. This doesn’t sound very pleasant, so why would you put yourself through it?

Well, for start, there is no couch, and the therapist is far from this impersonal, clinical figure you imagined. During the therapy session you talk to a person who is qualified, but also to someone who will not judge you, someone who listens to you and really hears what you are saying. Together with a therapist you will find your own answers to the questions that are bothering you. Although there may be different styles of therapy, they all have the same goal – to help you feel better.

If you feel in any way down, incapable of moving forward, anxious about the future or the direction your life is going, you could give a talk therapy a chance. It will not make your problems go away immediately but it will make it easier to cope with them, to find the solutions to them, and in the process to feel happier.

Whatever you are going through, you don’t have to struggle with it alone. Contact the BUas therapists and arrange for them to talk to you, together you will find a solution to what is bothering you. You can find a list of therapists and how to contact them here on the BUas portal.