Depression Treatment

Having Trouble Finding The Upside Of Things?

Do you often feel dissatisfied with your life? Have you found yourself dwelling on past mistakes or disappointment, unable to move forward? Are you generally sad and irritated but don’t know why?

Perhaps your energy level and capacity for joy have dwindled. You may have lost interest in activities you once enjoyed, such as exercising or spending time with friends. It might feel as though you don’t know how to have fun anymore. 

Maybe your relationships have been impacted by a pessimistic mindset. You may feel isolated among friends and loved ones, or perhaps there is interpersonal tension as a result of frequent irritability. You likely feel that if your mood could just improve, it would be easier to connect with others. 

Life would probably be a little more manageable and satisfying if you didn’t feel so moody and lethargic all the time. However, in therapeutic treatment, it’s possible to improve your mindset and find relief from symptoms of depression. 

Despite Its Isolating Effect, Depression Is Highly Prevalent And Widespread

Depression is an incredibly common and indiscriminate phenomenon that can affect just about anyone. The onset of symptoms may occur as early as childhood, and regardless of gender, age, or socioeconomic status, depression can make life very difficult for those dealing with it.

Researchers have long explored the possibility that depression has evolutionary benefits, however. Because it’s found across all generations and communities, there is evidence to support that natural selection has preserved the mechanisms in the brain that facilitate a depressive mindset. 

It has been suggested that because depressed people tend to have highly analytical minds, they’re more likely to be extremely productive and uninterrupted in their thinking. And the preservation of this ultra-analytical thinking behavior has had far-reaching cultural implications. After all, when we stop to consider all of the art, music, humor, theories, and inventions that have been created by depressed people, we can begin to see such a condition as valuable to our collective understanding and experience of life. 

Nevertheless, dealing with depression on an individual level sucks. 

As much as our culture benefits from highly analytical artists, scientists, musicians, and comedians, we’re also an incredibly busy and outcome-oriented society. Americans do not create very much time for leisure on the whole, and leisure is one of the greatest ways that the brain can repair itself from the fallout of internalized stress, pressure, and trauma. 

In some ways, because it is so common, certain symptoms of depression have become normalized and considered culturally acceptable rather than reasons to seek mental health support. And unfortunately, many folks simply do not know how to hold space for or talk about depression. 

In therapy, though, you have the opportunity to reflect on your experiences and find techniques to harness the power of your thoughts and emotions in advantageous ways. 

Depression Treatment Offers Perspective On Your Emotional Experience 

The world asks a lot of you as is—and it’s likely that at some point or another, the world has asked you to just stop being depressed. Yet in therapy, you won’t be faced with any such requests. Instead, all that will be expected of you is to just show up and be present. 

After a brief intake, we’ll begin treatment by identifying your presenting symptoms, concerns, and goals for depression therapy. Because my approach is highly tailored to meet the needs of each individual, we’ll likely consider how your childhood and history come into play while finding connections between past and current behaviors. Having this knowledge will help you to develop insight into the ongoing problems you experience as we begin building a toolbox oriented around problem-solving and emotional resilience. 

As we peel back and process your past, you’ll be able to more clearly see the dynamics present in your current reality. And soon, you’ll see that all the stress and emotional baggage that you’re carrying around can be lightened or lifted altogether.

Mindfulness is essential for this degree of self-awareness, so we will often work on identifying thoughts and feelings in the present moment. But the real healing in depression treatment comes from the therapeutic relationship itself, through which I will be able to step into and access your experience in a way that can shape your understanding of your past, present, and future. Through this process, you’ll be more prepared to show up and face circumstances in an authentic and genuine way as you get what you want out of life. 

Depression may have made you a little different from those around you, but not so different that you can’t get the same joy and satisfaction out of life that others do. Therapy gives you the opportunity to understand and move towards what’s possible—and one of those possibilities is that you can change your mindset and find relief from symptoms of depression. 

Maybe you’re interested in treating your depression with the help of a therapist, but you have some concerns…

No one could ever possibly understand the depth of what I’m feeling. 

I’ll admit that, on an existential level, it’s true that no one can ever fundamentally understand the experience of another being. But as a highly trained and empathic professional, I’ve become pretty good at understanding the perspective of my clients. I assure you that if we work together, both of us will have an enhanced experience of what it’s like to be you. 

I had a good childhood, and my parents were/are good people—what will we talk about in depression treatment?

To be clear, having a good childhood does not preclude you from developing depression. In fact, having an idyllic childhood likely caused the outside world to feel brutal by comparison. Looking at your childhood is not about placing blame on what caused you to be depressed, but rather about locating the origins of patterns. When we can adjust those patterns in such a way that they’re actually responsive to the challenges you experience, relief from depression becomes possible. 

I’ve had a bad experience when I’ve sought the help of a therapist for my depression in the past. 

I don’t create blanket treatments for my clients struggling with depression. And my tailored approach to therapy draws from a highly relational model, which is to say that our relationship is supremely important in depression treatment. If you don’t like something I do or say, let’s talk about it. Chances are that we can find a new approach to take together—one that works for you specifically as an individual.  

You Can Regain Satisfaction With Your Life

If you struggle to feel satisfied with or energized by certain aspects of your life, depression treatment can help you adjust your mindset. To schedule a free, 15-minute consultation or find out more about how I can help, please email me. 

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