{"id":2432,"date":"2019-05-10T09:35:43","date_gmt":"2019-05-10T09:35:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/screening.mhanational.org\/article\/now-what\/"},"modified":"2023-08-11T14:54:50","modified_gmt":"2023-08-11T18:54:50","slug":"now-what","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/screening.mhanational.org\/es\/content\/now-what\/","title":{"rendered":"Now what?"},"content":{"rendered":"

So you\u2019ve found out you have a mental health condition<\/a>. Where do you go from here? Everyone\u2019s journey is different, but here are a few important steps that apply to pretty much everyone.<\/p>\n

(Not sure whether you have a mental illness? Check out our free, and confidential mental health tests<\/a>!)<\/p>\n

Take time to sit with your feelings<\/h2>\n

One of the first things you\u2019ll want to do is take a look at how this new information makes you feel. Having a mental health condition can be very overwhelming. It affects each person differently. You might be feeling scared, angry, embarrassed, guilty, or confused. On the other hand, some people feel relief at finally having a name for what they\u2019ve been experiencing. It\u2019s okay to feel any of these things\u2014or all of them, or none of them!<\/p>\n

Eventually you\u2019ll want to start working through these feelings. But for now, it\u2019s enough to just do your best to acknowledge them. Working through your feelings about mental illness is an ongoing process. It won\u2019t happen all at once.<\/p>\n

Why is this so important? Taking time to acknowledge your feelings can help you attend to them instead of letting them sit in your brain, overwhelming you. Having a mental illness is normal. Don\u2019t let your brain or anyone else tell you otherwise.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s ok to feel this pain\u201d<\/p>\n