Depression Counseling
I provide counseling for those suffering from depression and who have a desire to be free from it. If you’re feeling down, fatigued, bored, less motivated, stressed, upset, or irritable then you might be experiencing depression. Sometimes our depression is temporary or short lived and related to a recent event. Losing a loved one, a job, having something go poorly, being broken up with. Sometimes our depression is long term – not related to any recent events. For either case counseling can help. Every year about 1 out of 20 people experience significant depression. Short term or temporary depression would not technically be diagnosable, but still something that can be worked through to make it not last as long or be as painful.
Treatment
There are several areas we can explore to help with your depression, whether it’s short of long term.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
We look at your thought patterns to examine ways to approach things differently in our heads so we can feel differently about them. Check out my CBT page for more information.
EMDR
Sometimes depression is related to a recent of childhood trauma. Being in a car wreck, childhood abuse, or bullied at school growing up. Check out my EMDR page for more information on EMDR.
Mindfulness
Being more aware of our thoughts, feelings, and reactions to events can help us modify how we experience them. Mindfulness is also great to move us away from stress or self-judgement. Check out my Mindfulness page for more information.
Coping Skills
These are methods a person uses to deal with stressful situations. This can be hobbies, socializing, favorite games, talking with friends, etc. Sometimes we need to try new things, expand on what we already do, or just slightly modify our toolbox of coping skills.
Medication
Anti-depressant medications are an option. Although in an ideal world we would never need medication for anything, there are times it can be beneficial. Counseling has been shown to be more effective long term than medication for dealing with depression, but we can do both if it’s at that point. If you’re interested in medication feel free to reach out to a local psychiatrist.
Physical Health
There is a strong mind-body connection and working on our physical health helps our mental health. We don’t need to be as healthy as an Olympian, but there’s always changes we can make. Eating a bit healthier, moving more, having more time in nature, or starting an exercise routine. I also recommend seeing your doctor for a check up to see if there is anything off balance in your body – e.g. hypothyroidism, low nutrients, blood sugar issues.
If you’d like to start your path towards alleviating depression with counseling, contact me today.