“I can’t stress enough how much Bert Nash has helped me”

Kim Brook had never equated her mental health with her physical health.

That is, until she started having difficulty managing the stress in her life.

“Before, I would think my mental health would take care of itself,” Kim said. “I grew up thinking that mental health was a separate issue from physical health. But I found out if I don’t take care of my mental health, things won’t get better on their own.”

Relationships, life changes, a stressful job, it all added up. Kim was struggling with things she hadn’t dealt with before and she was wondering how to manage them emotionally. Then a friend recommended the Bert Nash Center.

“From a friend’s suggestion, I went to Bert Nash,” Kim said. “Finances were a concern, and this friend said Bert Nash can work with you.”

When Kim first came to the Bert Nash Center, she wasn’t sure what to expect. She also had to rethink her own views about mental health.

“I was coming in with this stigma that I grew up with that needing help in any kind of way made you a weak person,” Kim said. “I also didn’t think anyone would understand me; that they wouldn’t get it. But at some point, I felt like I didn’t have a choice. I needed help.”

Kim discovered there were no quick fixes. That her mental health was a process.

“It wasn’t always a smooth journey for me,” she said. “I didn’t connect with some of my initial therapists. It wasn’t because of anyone’s fault. There just wasn’t that connection. Also, I wasn’t always consistent with attending and I wasn’t giving 100 percent of myself to the process. I didn’t see my mental health as a journey as much as I wanted someone right away to say this is how you fix it. I started thinking about it as a process.”

Over time, Kim began to embrace her own mental health journey.

“It didn’t happen overnight,” she said. “But I found I could talk with a professional I trusted and I wouldn’t be judged. It was very freeing.”

Kim is grateful her friend told her about the Bert Nash Center.

“I’m feeling better; I’m learning new skills,” Kim said. “Every time I go to Bert Nash, I feel stronger and healthier. Once I realized that the big steps were the results of a lot of small steps, things got much better for me. I can’t stress enough how much Bert Nash has helped me.”