Hello
traineeki,
sorry for my late reply.. unfortunately, I noticed your inquiry too late.
Basically, the diagnostic classifications defined in the
DSM-IV and the International Classification of Diseases (specifically,
Chapter 9 of the ICD-10) issued by the WHO (
Link) can give a good orientation over when it is advisable to seek professional help. For most of the issues listed there, it would take very long time and can greatly reduce the quality of life if one would try to get rid of them by him/herself (or only to rely on drugs, which seems to become a more and more popular choice these days).
During regular sessions with a specifically trained person like a psychotherapist or counselor, however, he/she as an external, non-involved and neutral advisor and coach can help to cut down on this time significantly and aim not only at realistically achievable, but also durable relief of these psychological burdens.
Sometimes you might not suffer from a serious mental disorder as the ones linked to above, but just feel pressure or burden from other problems, like relationship issues, problems in the job, in the family, worries or uncertainties about the future, spiritual crises or other "unlisted" issues like lack of drive or motivation. While some people just hope that these problems disappear by themselves sooner or later, others prefer to get themselves professional advice and personal counseling/coaching for that as well to make most out of their lives and avoid spending valuable months or even years with reduced quality of living.
On my website, I am providing a
checklist to find out whether a psychotherapy might be helpful. Originally compiled by the OeBVP (the Austrian Association for Psychotherapy), I have translated it to assist English-speaking persons in their self-assessment.
The
German-language version of my website contains a huge load of general and specific information about psychotherapy, counseling, coaching and the various methods - if you can read German, I would recommend you to browse it for more information; if not, there are of coure many information on other websites related to these topics.
Hope that helped a bit!
Richard L. Fellner