I went to counseling today. One hour. 

Not because I’m sick. Not because I’m crazy. Not because I feel broken or empty. Not because my marriage is falling apart, or because I don’t know what to do with my life. 

Not because I’m hurting. Not because I need healing. Not because I’m currently feeling crushed by the weight of the world. 

Not because I need attention. Not because I need a ton of advice. Not because I’m wandering aimlessly through life. 

Not because anything is wrong with me. 

I went because I am healthy and because I want to stay healthy.

I went because I feel good and because I want to stay feeling good. I went because tune-ups and check-ups and check-ins and oil changes are so much easier than replacing a busted engine. 

Friends, sisters, mommas, brothers, leaders, introverts, extroverts, fellow depression/anxiety sufferers: don’t be afraid of help. Don’t put off help. Don’t be embarrassed by help. It’s ridiculous, and a little sad, frankly, that it comes with any kind of stigma whatsoever in our culture. 

We all need a boost from time to time, whether it’s in our personal lives, in our motherhood, in our marriages, in our friendships.

Life is hard and it’s just a little easier when you can talk to a professional who knows a thing or two. Sometimes they see things we can’t. Sometimes they can put things into words in a way we couldn’t before. Sometimes they can lighten the load. 

Keep your body healthy so you can keep acting and giving and doing. 

Keep your mind healthy so you can keep learning and growing and dreaming. 

Keep your soul healthy so you can keep laughing and loving and living and passing that on to those around you.

This silly belief that counseling and therapy are bad and embarrassing and are only to be used in trauma-like situations HAS TO GO. Bye Felicia. It’s out-dated. And it’s dumb, to be honest. I’ll do anything I can to end it, so if finding out I get help regularly encourages you to make that appointment—awesome. That’s what I’m here for, to let you know you aren’t alone. 

There is no shame in getting help. 
There is no shame in getting help. 
There is no shame in getting help. 

Read that again. And again and again, until it fully sinks in, my friend.

This article originally appeared on Facebook at Amy Weatherly