Episode Transcript
Interviewer: Are you feeling overwhelmed, distressed, depressed, or just simply need to talk, but not sure how to proceed? Dr. Benjamin Chan is a psychiatrist at University of Utah Health. And what do you recommend for someone who feels a need to seek mental health care in today's world? Has that changed, or is it pretty much the same path?
Dr. Chan: It's still pretty much the same path. I mean, we have our outpatient providers, counselors. So we have therapists, psychologists, psychiatrists, not only here at the U, but throughout Utah, throughout the nation.
There has been a large uptick of activity. People are calling in, scheduling appointments, talking through their feelings. There's so much negative emotion, so much uncertainty that it feels good just to connect with someone and share those feelings.
Now, my mental hat that I put on says, "Oh, this has to be with a mental health professional. They're trained. They can do cognitive behavioral therapy. There could be a medication management aspect to this." But when I take off my mental health hat and just put on my human hat, that connection can be with someone in your family or a long lost friend from college or high school. And it's incredibly powerful and beautiful to connect with someone and share those emotions.
So yes, the University of Utah Health, everyone who are mental health providers are here and ready, and we are very, very busy and that pathway is still open. But I also feel that connecting with someone is also a part of that ability to take care of yourself during these times.