Licensed therapist
Assesses concerns and provides psychotherapy. Look for training relevant to your needs, such as ERP for OCD or trauma-focused care. Most therapists do not prescribe medication.
HUMAN AUGMENTS / MENTAL HEALTH & CARE
YOU ARE WORTH
TAKING CARE OF.
Your life is precious. You deserve the support and care you need.
Depression, trauma, obsessive thoughts, overwhelming anxiety, and attention difficulties can be treatable. Therapy may be enough; sometimes medication or combined care is needed. Treatment and practical support can make a real difference. You do not have to work out the answer alone.
Struggling is not a character defect. Biology and brain chemistry can contribute, alongside trauma, stress, sleep, physical health, and your circumstances. Mental health is more complex than a simple “low serotonin” explanation. You deserve care whatever the cause. Read NIMH’s explanation ↗
HUMAN HELP / NO TOOL REQUIRED
If you need help now.
Thinking about suicide, self-harm, or unsure you can stay safe? Reach a person now. Do not wait for medication to take effect or finish this tool first.
Suicidal thoughts can improve with effective care. Treatment may include therapy, safety planning, and medication for a contributing mental-health condition.
Attempt, overdose, serious injury, or immediate life-threatening danger: call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department. If you can, ask someone you trust to stay with you and help you get care.
988 serves the United States, 24/7. Outside the US, use your local emergency number or find a helpline in your country. NIMH: help for suicidal thoughts ↗
01 / MAKE SENSE OF YOUR EXPERIENCE
A starting point.
A conversation.
NO ANSWERS SENT
Choose experiences you want to discuss. You don’t need to know their name.
This is an educational conversation aid, not a validated screening test, diagnosis, suicide-risk assessment, or prescription. It does not calculate a score or the chance you have a condition. Symptoms overlap; a clinician can explore their causes.
YOUR NEXT CONVERSATION
Topics to bring to a professional.
Bring the whole picture.
Tell the clinician about your symptoms, sleep, physical health, medications and supplements, alcohol or drug use, and any previous treatment. Mention periods of unusually high energy or little need for sleep, even if you came in because you feel depressed. Ask about therapy, medication, alternatives, side effects, costs, and follow-up.
You can ask for help before you have a diagnosis. A therapist, psychiatrist, PMHNP, or primary care clinician can be a starting point.
Your entries stay in this page. This tool does not send them to an AI, store them in a database, save them in browser storage, or put them in the URL. Browser session restoration may retain form entries; use Clear my entries on shared devices. Downloads and clipboard copies are saved outside this page when you choose those actions. Ordinary hosting logs may exist. External links have their own privacy policies.
02 / UNDERSTAND YOUR OPTIONS
Treatment can help.
Learn what to ask.
11 OCT 2026
Prescription medication: only under qualified professional care.
Use prescription medication only when prescribed for you and monitored by a qualified prescriber. Do not borrow or share it, buy from unregulated sellers, or use this site to start, stop, change, combine, or choose a dose. Bring every medication and supplement to a clinician or pharmacist for an interaction check.
We are against doping and nonmedical misuse. Properly prescribed treatment for ADHD or another health condition is legitimate care. Needing treatment is not cheating, weakness, or a moral failure.
Sometimes therapy is enough. Sometimes it isn’t.
Therapy can be effective on its own. Some people also need medication; others benefit most from both. Needing more than therapy does not mean you failed, and medication is not a requirement for everyone. If you are not improving, tell your clinician so you can reassess the diagnosis, approach, and support together.
NIMH: therapy and combined treatment ↗The guides below explain conditions and treatments a professional may discuss. They are a general reference library—not a list of medicines selected for you. Suitability, approved ages, and prescribing rules vary. Medication may be useful, unnecessary, or unsuitable; therapy and other support remain real treatment.
Follow-up is part of treatment.
Benefits can take time, and side effects or lack of improvement deserve review. Antidepressants need monitoring at every age; some people under 25 develop increased suicidal thoughts or behavior, especially when starting or changing treatment. Report changes promptly and get urgent help if safety is at risk. Do not stop suddenly without professional advice.
NIMH: benefits, risks, and medication monitoring ↗Medication classes: Wikipedia & official further reading
Wikipedia is a secondary reference, not prescribing guidance. Start with the official links and ask your clinician about your own situation.
CARE, NOT SELF-MEDICATION
Alcohol and recreational drugs
are not the answer.
You deserve relief that helps you build a life.
Alcohol, recreational drugs, and misused prescriptions are not a treatment plan. They can worsen mental-health problems, disrupt sleep, interact with medication, and lead to dependence or overdose. A brief escape can carry lasting costs.
If you already use substances to cope, this is an invitation to get help—not a judgment of your worth. Substance use disorders are treatable. Counseling, recovery support, and prescribed medications for some conditions can help. Medication for addiction treatment is legitimate health care.
Get support for stopping safely.
If you drink heavily and regularly, take benzodiazepines regularly, or may be dependent on either, stopping suddenly can be dangerous. Ask a clinician about medically supported withdrawal. This is a reason to get care promptly, not to manage a taper on your own.
Seizures, severe confusion, trouble breathing, inability to wake, or a suspected overdose need emergency medical care: call 911 in the US.
SAMHSA’s helpline offers treatment referrals and information; for a suicidal or emotional crisis, use 988.
NIMH: substance use & mental health ↗ NIAAA: alcohol treatment & withdrawal ↗ FDA: benzodiazepine safety ↗ SAMHSA: treatment referrals ↗
03 / TAKE THE NEXT STEP
Find someone
qualified to help.
A licensed therapist, psychiatrist, or PMHNP can help you work out what comes next.
Psychiatrist
A medical doctor specializing in mental health who can evaluate, diagnose, and prescribe. Some also provide psychotherapy.
PMHNP
A psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner with advanced training who can assess, diagnose, and prescribe within their licensed scope, and may provide therapy. State practice requirements differ.
Primary care clinician
Can assess symptoms, check physical contributors, treat some conditions, and arrange referrals. You can start here if specialist care feels out of reach.
Make the first appointment easier.
- Ask whether the clinician treats your concerns and your age group.
- Check their active license with the relevant medical, nursing, psychology, or counseling board where you receive care.
- Ask about cost, insurance, sliding-scale fees, telehealth, wait times, and confidentiality.
- Bring your notes. Agree on goals, follow-up, and who to contact if symptoms worsen.
Care should fit your life.
If cost is a barrier, ask about community health centers, public clinics, or sliding-scale services. If the first clinician is not a good fit, you can seek another qualified professional.
Being trans, nonbinary, or LGBTQ+ is not itself a mental illness. You deserve respectful mental-health care without having to defend who you are.
Directories here focus on the US. Elsewhere, start with your local health service, licensed clinician, or insurer.
SAMHSA: types of providers ↗APNA: psychiatric advanced practice nurses ↗
Sources, privacy & information limits
This community resource was checked against the linked sources on 11 October 2026. It has not been clinically validated or reviewed as a medical service. The organizations linked do not endorse this tool. Information and treatment recommendations can change; your clinician’s assessment matters.
Official clinical sources support the guides. Wikipedia links offer optional secondary reading. The tool uses your selected topics to organize a conversation; it does not infer a diagnosis, select a medicine, or determine that you are safe. Nothing selected does not mean nothing is wrong.
No accounts, embedded trackers, or third-party forms are used in this tool. Entries are kept in page memory; copied or downloaded notes are yours to protect. Clear entries when you finish, especially on shared devices.