When to talk to someone struggling with mental fitness

On March 16, a grassroots committee hosted the Worland Mental Fitness Fair at the Worland Community Center.

Members of the panel were Dr. Ralph Louis, psychologist from Oxbow Counseling in Basin; Janae Harman, owner of Family Circle Counseling in Worland; Mary Johnson, CEO of Oxbow Counseling in Worland; and Carol Bell, provisionally licensed therapist at Foundations Counseling in Cody.

The panel answered prepared questions that came from the committee and from similar events in Shell, Greybull and Cowley.

The Northern Wyoming News will be covering the questions on a weekly basis throughout the next several week.

Question 1

How do we know who’s struggling with mental health challenges? How do we know when we should talk to somebody?

Louis: “If you think it, you probably should go ahead and talk to them. Often people when they’re struggling, they isolate, they withdraw. So they might you might not easily notice that there’s something wrong, you just might notice that they’re missing, that they’re not participating in the things they used to do, that they’re not attending church, they’re not going out socially, that they’ve just kind of disappeared. Reaching out to them may be uncomfortable. But it could be a big help, and it could save a life. Sometimes you notice that people have either too much energy or not enough energy, or they’re talking too much, or they’re talking too little. And things like that can tell you that they’re struggling up there in stress.”

He said talking about these things can be uncomfortable. “But discomfort is not something to hold you back. I always tell people comfort is overrated. What you really want to do is feel that discomfort and push through it and do something to connect with someone. Alcohol and drug use is also a sign when people are having trouble when they’re struggling. They’re not coping well with life. And simple things like sleeping too much, eating too much, not eating enough.”

He added, “And if someone obviously if someone’s experiencing a trauma, or a loss, that’s a time I think, as a community, most of us here do pretty well with that. We reach out. I’ve noticed the outpouring of support for people who have suffered a loss in our communities. And I think that’s something we do well, and we know that that helps.”

Next week: What if someone does not want help?