Recovery from a mental health condition is a deeply personal journey. It involves finding meaning in the initial definitions, symptoms, physical connections, and assessments from a mental health professional, which can be challenging. Fear and anxiety may cloud your thinking, and preconceived ideas of negative stigmas and misconceptions can be difficult to overcome. However, you are not alone in this journey. There are proven evidence-based therapies and approved medications assigned for the treatment of mental health conditions. Mental health professionals are continually improving care to include a mind-body connection. Learning the 5 stages of mental health recovery offers clarity and builds trust with your treatment team, who support you every step. Your active participation and commitment are crucial in this process.
The 5 Stages of Mental Health Recovery
This model of change utilizes a biopsychosocial approach to recovery and treatment for a mental health condition. Biopsychosocial includes physical, emotional, and cognitive changes throughout the recovery process. It is essential to understand that everyone’s journey is unique, and there is no one-size-fits-all recovery timeline. However, the process is straightforward, and each stage presents challenges and successes. Your unique experiences and challenges are an integral part of your recovery.
Stage 1 – Acceptance: Realizing the Issue
The first stage of resolving a problem is realizing that there is a problem. People experiencing a mental health condition are initially in a high level of distress from symptoms they do not understand or can control. It is human nature to resist change, and it is much easier to deny the need for change than to accept it. Therefore, when symptoms are undeniable, many retreat and hide from accepting the truth, blame others for the problems and refuse treatment. It’s okay to struggle with acceptance. Your feelings are valid and understandable.
According to Mental Health America, in 2022, 19.86% of adults experience a mental illness, which is equal to nearly 50 million Americans. Just under 5% of those are experiencing a severe mental illness. In the same year, over 11.4 million adults had serious suicidal thoughts. 5.5 million people with mental illness in the US are uninsured, which is an obstacle to getting treatment. Over 27 million adults with mental illness are not receiving treatment. Another alarming statistic is that ¼ of adults with a mental illness have not received the treatment they need.
Stage 1 of the 5 stages of mental health recovery includes people with a mental health condition refusing to accept their problem. The most common reasons for this are stigma, cost of treatment, lack of access, and misinformation about what mental health care is and what it can do. Many people are uneducated about mental health and refuse to believe that this is what is causing their symptoms. Once there is acceptance of the problem, recovery can begin.
Stage 2 – Education: Learning and Self-reflection
Eventually, people admit there is a problem because they want to stop feeling so miserable. It isn’t easy to understand mental health conditions without education. Finding a mental health provider can be challenging, but education can begin once there is acknowledgment and acceptance. With a small amount of educational information, validation can begin.
Factors that initiate a connection and self-reflection include:
- Biological factors: Genetics, brain chemistry, and prenatal exposure to substances or traumatic experience
- Life Experience: Trauma, abuse, history of mental health conditions in the family
- Environmental factors: Cultural and societal influences, family beliefs, external stressors
Suddenly, something clicks, and there is acceptance of mental health recovery stages. Just a little education spurs self-reflection and connection. Realizing that difficult and negative things are in your memory is not difficult to conclude. With the slightest moment of clarity, mental health can suddenly make sense. The feelings of anticipation, hope, and excitement allow for the possibility of treatment.
Stage 3 – Action: Committing to Change and Starting Treatment
The first question for a mental health professional concerns treatment. Many may ask, what are the stages of mental health recovery? Learning more about mental health leads to an assessment by a mental health professional. The evaluation can be challenging to complete if symptoms are intense. Fighting through the symptoms to be present and answer questions can be exhausting.
Questions in a mental health evaluation could include:
- Demographic information, address, phone, date of birth, medical history, family history, education, relationships and work history
- A description of the current symptoms, physical illnesses, or substance misuse
- A brief discussion of feelings, thoughts, and actions surrounding the symptoms and current life experiences
- Cognitive evaluation includes attention span, language, memory, thought content, visual proficiency, and orientation
- Physical exams and, in some cases, lab tests
Answering the questions and remembering pertinent data during this evaluation may be challenging. Extreme mental health symptoms can cause memory problems. After the assessment, the healthcare provider can offer a diagnosis and a treatment option. In the 5 stages of mental health recovery, Stage 3 includes a commitment to change and the beginning of treatment. The provider may prescribe medications to decrease severe symptoms.
Stage 4 – Healing: Working Through Challenges and Sticking With It
Healing is a process, and it doesn’t happen overnight. Working through the challenges of mental health recovery can be rewarding once an individual decides to stick with it. It’s essential to know that asking questions when going through changes is okay. A question to ask and discuss with a therapist is, “what are the 5 stages of mental health recovery?” It can be frustrating and a reason to give up if recovery stages are unknown and expectations are unrealistic.
The change includes becoming aware of what it takes to recover from mental health issues. Getting help is the first step, but it’s vital to continue understanding that recovery is a process and ask for help as the process continues if it is needed. The following factors are steps for managing mental health recovery. These crucial learning processes take time to understand and follow through with.
- Practicing self-care: learning what a balanced diet is and how it affects mental health, regular exercise affects the production of feel-good hormones that positively affect mental health, and avoiding using drugs and alcohol as coping mechanisms
- Mindfulness and meditation: these techniques aid in focus, controlling thought processes, reducing anxiety, and addressing stress
- Therapy: individual and group therapy is highly effective for managing mental health conditions
- Medication: beneficial for controlling symptoms of depression and high anxiety
- Stigma: breaking the stigma and misconceptions of mental illness to know and understand that recovery from mental illness is possible
Stage 5 – Commitment: Continuing Long-Term Recovery
Pledging a commitment to understand and work through the 5 stages of mental health recovery to maintain long-term healing is imperative to the success of the process. Learning to review the progress made continually, the benefits of a healthy lifestyle, and avoiding drugs and alcohol to stay on track helps to stay on course. The highest level of self-care is striving to manage a lifestyle that promotes overall well-being. Staying open to continual positive change is life-changing.
Why All 5 Stages of Mental Health Recovery Matter
All 5 stages of mental health recovery are critical to understanding and leading to optimal mental and physical health. Balance is crucial to success in managing mental health, and understanding how to achieve balance through the five stages of change is beneficial. With these guiding principles and a robust support system to lean on, success in recovery is much easier. Choosing a mental health recovery program that is innovative and utilizes evidence-based therapies, medication-assisted treatment, holistic therapeutic techniques, and relapse prevention strategies is beneficial for those with substance use disorders and mental health conditions.
Understand How the 5 Stages of Change Offer Hope in Recovery in Tennessee
Understanding the recovery process and how changes occur during treatment is vital to success in treating substance use disorders and mental health conditions. Tennessee Valley Recovery offers comprehensive treatment programs that address dual diagnosis, treating co-occurring substance use disorders and mental health conditions. The staff of professionals are compassionate and encouraging as a support system for clients to stay hopeful and work through drastic changes. Contact Tennessee Valley Recovery today to begin accepting help on a recovery journey.