We all want to feel good in our bodies and minds. If you are facing obstacles that keep you from achieving those goals, mental health and behavioral health services can help.
Sometimes, though, people hesitate to seek out these services because they don’t know which kind of service is right for them. The truth is that mental health and behavioral health overlap quite a bit- in fact, not all professionals agree on the distinction between them. Rather than looking specifically for mental health or behavioral health services, it’s more important to seek out a professional who can help with your specific challenges, works in a way that will provide the support you need and is a person you feel a connection with.
Distinction between Mental Health and Behavioral Health
Mental health and behavioral health are not defined in clear contrast to one another by professionals in the field. Consider this definition of “mental health” by the American Psychological Association:
Mental health is a state of mind characterized by emotional well-being, good behavioral adjustment, relative freedom from anxiety and disabling symptoms and a capacity to establish constructive relationships and cope with the ordinary demands and stresses of life.
Then compare it with this definition of “behavioral health” by the American Psychiatric Association:
Behavioral health refers to the array of professional services delivered to populations suffering with mental illnesses, substance use disorders and maladaptive health behaviors, such as lack of exercise, poor dietary habits and lackluster engagement in care.
These two definitions don’t directly contradict one another. Psychologists define mental health as the state of psychological well-being, which contains a behavioral component. Psychiatrists define behavioral health as a therapeutic approach.
This is not to say that the two approaches are interchangeable. There are some general differences in the approaches that you can use as a starting point if you have a sense of your treatment goals.
Mental Health Therapeutic Goals
Mental health therapy tries to address psychological disorders such as:
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Bipolar disorder
- Stress
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
Addressing these challenges can involve a variety of approaches. Talk therapy is commonly deployed as mental health therapy. In this approach, patients are encouraged to communicate their problems, and a therapist helps them work through their difficulties. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is an example of this approach. People are encouraged to focus on their thoughts, addressing negative thought patterns and working to change them as a means to overcome psychological disorders. People learn coping mechanisms to deal with anxiety and limit disabling symptoms.
Sometimes people are brought together as a group to work through difficulties that they have in common. Psychiatrists (medical doctors who specialize in mental and behavioral health) may use medications to help manage mental health disorders.
Behavioral Health Therapeutic Goals
Rather than focusing directly on a person’s mental state, behavioral health therapies focus on addressing unhealthy behaviors, such as:
- Disordered eating
- Not getting enough sleep
- Substance use disorders
- Not maintaining good hygiene
- Destructive interpersonal interactions
Behavioral health recognizes that these unhealthy behaviors are often manifestations of psychological disorders, and that they can worsen both the psychological disorders and a person’s physical health. By changing the behaviors, the hope is that this will also result in improvement to the underlying psychological disorders, which, in many cases, is well supported by psychological research.
Behaviors have the advantage of being objectively observable . This makes it easier to identify the problem and for a clinician and patient to work together to identify therapeutic goals. These goals might be framed either in terms of the behaviors themselves or their negative outcomes. In other words, a person might strive to improve their relationships with their loved ones, address struggles with substance use, manage intrusive thoughts, etc.
Complementary Care for Better Results
The truth is that many people benefit from a combination of approaches, getting care that helps improve thoughts and behaviors while incorporating other resources. Comprehensive behavioral health services may include support in additional areas, such as housing, employment, access to food and more so that an individual can develop a lifestyle that supports healthy behaviors.
Get the Psychological Wellness Resources You Need
At WellPower, we are focused on improving each person’s access to the care they need for recovery, resilience and well-being. With over 30 sites and nearly 200 service locations in the Denver area and beyond, WellPower likely offers care in your community. We are a nationally recognized innovator in care at the individual level that makes a difference at the community scale.
Families are the foundation of our community, and mental well-being is the foundation of the family. Matching children and their parents with the resources they need for recovery and resilience helps build healthy families that make Denver a better place to live. Our comprehensive behavioral health services deliver the right resources for a person’s specific needs at their age and situation to make treatment more effective, delivering measurable results.
If you are looking for the mental health or behavioral health services that are right for you, we’re here to listen and offer personalized recommendations for your care. Contact us to schedule and appointment today. Click here if you need crisis services or call (844) 493-8255 to talk to someone or text “TALK” to 38255.