How much do we value our well-being? I often read about various health epidemics but seldom I get to read about mental health. In the Kingdom, there is a stigma attached to therapy and counseling. As a member of the team at a therapy center in Jeddah, I was told that people might feel more comfortable to visit me.

I am not trying to alter the world or enact a paradigm shift. What I would like, though, is to challenge a few misconceptions about what psychologists do. We help other people. Fundamental to what we do is not about fixing someone. No one is perfect and perfectionism in itself can be detrimental to one’s health. Instead, a key goal of therapy is to facilitate change. It may be related to one’s self-perception or related to his/her family, friends or surroundings.

Therapy can help us break a bad habit, and it can also help build new ones. Counseling can help change our perspective, which slowly but surely can change lives.

Counseling can be effective if you have issues with stress, overweight, or concentration. Sometimes just talking to a benevolent outsider can be enough to relieve tension. Other times it helps to be both accountable and supported by someone when trying to make big changes. For example, if you feel that you are perpetually dieting but unable to shed excess kilos, a psychologist can help you to navigate your emotions, identifying thoughts and behaviors around foods, which aren’t serving you well. A type of therapy called cognitive behavioral therapy, used frequently to address cases of anxiety and depression, can also be used to fight obesity.

Just like any other discipline, we have our technical terms and jargon. It’s there to elucidate, not intimidate. Surely there is no shame in wanting to better understand your feelings. So, please don’t judge us too harshly. We’re only trying to help.