You Need Help!: A Step-by-Step Plan to Convince a Loved One to Get Counseling

by Mark S. Komrad, Rosalynn Carter (Foreword)

If you feel that a friend or loved one has a problem and needs professional help, this step-by-step guide will give you the tools to approach, engage, and support him or her.Just about everyone knows a relative, friend, or coworker who is exhibiting signs of emotional or behavioral turmoil. Yet figuring out how to reach out to that person can feel insurmountable. We know it is the right thing to do, yet many of us hesitate to take action out of fear of conflict, hurt feelings, or damaging the relationship. Through a rich combination of user-friendly tools and real-life stories, Mark S. Komrad, MD, offers step-by-step guidance and support as you take the courageous step of helping a friend who might not even recognize that he or she is in need. He guides you in developing a strong course of action, starting by determining when professional help is needed, then moves you through the steps of picking the right time, making the first approach, gathering allies, selecting the right professional, and supporting friends or relatives as they go through the necessary therapeutic process to resolve their problems. Included are scripts based on Komrad’s work with his own patients, designed to help you anticipate next steps and arm you with the tools to respond constructively and compassionately. You will also find the guidance and information needed to understand mental illness and get past the stigma still associated with it, so you can engage and support your loved one with insight and compassion in his or her journey toward emotional stability and health.

Genres: Self Help, Psychology

282 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2012

Reviews

[Shane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extremely informative game plan for doing what it says--helping your loved one to get help-- with a large appendix of resources, books, etc. at the end. If you need this book, I feel for you. I'm in the same boat.

[Graeme · Rating 5 out of 5]

A superb book in every way, and eminently readable! Many of us have family or friends who need help, and the hard part is helping them to get it and keep at it. Dr. Komrad is deeply and broadly experienced, kind, decent, full of good sense, and never doctrinaire. He answers so many vital questions and demolishes most of the half-assed conventional wisdom that holds those needing assistance and their families back.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book holds the keys to saving the life of a person in the midst of a mental health crisis. I wish it had been around for my husband and parents in 2005 when they were faced with helping me navigate my way through two manic episodes followed by an entire year of debilitating depression. Even after receiving a formal diagnosis and some success with psychiatric treatment, a few years later I suffered two relapses and again this book would have been invaluable to my support system as I made my way back to recovery.

My family members and several close friends were an instrumental component to my treatment and recovery path. I can only imagine how much faster I’d have been able to overcome my severe depression and suicidal thoughts if they would have been armed with Dr. Komrad’s book, specifically Chapter 10 on How to Continue Your Support, which describes how the concerned party can assist in the treatment of their loved one through contact with the doctor.

I am so glad Dr. Komrad wrote this life-saving book. Since creating my theater show and non-profit, numerous individuals have approached me to ask if I had any advice on how they can help a loved one recover from mental illness. Now I have an excellent resource to recommend. You Need Help! is the ideal starting point when seeking guidance on how to get a mental health evaluation for a friend or family member who is struggling, where to go to find effective treatment, and how to be a critical part of that person’s long-term recovery from mental illness.

[Daniel McLean · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent Resource

I took a .one time reading this book, which a MAMI director referred me to. It starts slowly, but read to the end. Practical advice, and outstanding appendix for resources to consult to help you take action.

[Jenae · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dr. Komrad (no pun intended) has put together a simple, non-hysterical method for broaching the subject of seeking a professional evaluation with a troubled loved one. I can see how it would be a very good resource to aid you in remaining persistent and calm through the process. There isn't much on how to handle a loved one who has stopped treatment, but that isn't really the scope of this book.

[Crystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book if you have concerns about someone in your life, who you worry could be struggling with some kind of mental illness. It has good tips for ways to approach it that increases the likelihood of being heard. It could also be helpful for someone who is trying to get their partner to go to coupes counseling with them.

[Ladonda · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wasn't able to finish this book but I did read about 132 pages which was more than half of the book. For those who are dealing w/ a family member or close friend who are in the throws of untreated mental illness, this book provides some basic instructions and hope for those who may be desperate to help their loved one.

[Annette Steele · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a difficult book for me to read personally. Most of the advice wasn't helpful and yet I am glad I read it as it made me feel I wasn't the only one going through what I was going through.