Depression Therapy
Depression Has A Way Of Robbing You Of All The Joy In Life
Living with depression often means you’ve come to see the world “through a glass darkly.” You’re aware that you’re perceiving life in shades of gray, however, apathy and lack of motivation—hallmarks of depression—make it hard to alter your view. Instead, you’re continually navigating a collective morass of oppressive thoughts and emotions.
A sense of sadness, hopelessness, or brokenness permeates daily life. At times, the pain and despair can be so profound you feel like you must be a burden to anyone who cares about you. Conversely, you may feel nothing at all—no joy, no sadness, no interest in anything—only numbness, but you’re hoping depression therapy can restore your sense of hope, purpose, and meaning in life.
Life Can Seem Like A Chore When You’re Coping With Depression
Every moment can feel burdensome, as if you barely have enough energy to get through the day. On top of that, you may have to contend with people at work or at home while holding back the tears. You may not feel much love or respect for yourself and self-care has gone out the window, with simple tasks seeming impossible.
You feel depressed, so you withdraw, but the isolation only increases your depression. Your inner critic may be having a field day, framing you as useless, pathetic, or otherwise flawed. And the days persist in a vicious cycle where improving things feels completely out of reach.
Working with a depression therapist can help you interrupt these negative cycles and offer you a new way of perceiving yourself and the world. More importantly, depression treatment can help you take control away from your inner critic and put you in touch with the wise, grounded adult within who can talk back to that self-condemning voice.
Depression Complicates Life For Far Too Many People
Millions of people struggle with depression, making it one of society’s most pervasive mental health issues. But what causes this debilitating condition? Genetics, brain chemistry, or personality traits often contribute to or increase one’s symptoms of depression. However, depression can also be rooted in trauma, often within the context of childhood experiences in one’s family of origin. Early emotional neglect, or mental, physical, or emotional abuse are often pertinent precursors to depression.
If you’ve experienced neglect or abuse, you may find yourself repeating painful patterns learned in childhood. Over time, you may notice you’ve lost connection with yourself or your emotional experience. You may have developed a tendency to overindulge in food, substances, TV or shopping in an attempt to anesthetize the pain. This effort to numb yourself to your emotional experience often can contribute to or amplify symptoms of depression.
For many people who’ve who’ve suffered trauma, there’s a tendency to develop self-critical thoughts or perceptions which can lead to depression. It is quite common to internalize unconscious, negative ideas about yourself. However, these “pathogenic beliefs,” or beliefs that cause suffering, make it difficult to gain enough perspective to heal without the support of therapy.
Deep interpersonal wounds at the heart of depression are best healed through relationships. In fact, current research supports the conviction that the relationship formed with your therapist is the most important contributing factor to positive outcomes in therapy, as it is this relationship that heals.
As your therapist, I’ll work with you to build a trusting relationship that allows you to heal and manifest real change. I’ll act as a seasoned guide to unpack and challenge any unconscious, maladaptive beliefs at the root of your depression. With the structure and guidance of weekly therapy, you’ll have support to start reconnecting to joy, hope and new meaning in life.
Therapy Can Guide You Through DEPRESSION’S “Swamplands Of THE SOUL”
With empathy and active listening, I will provide you an opportunity to tell your story, feel heard and understood. My intention is to help you to cultivate a deeper understanding of and appreciation for yourself. Ultimately, self-acceptance may be the healing balm you need to overcome your experience of depression.
As your therapist, I can help you explore the genesis of unconscious, maladaptive beliefs within a relational and developmental framework. Together, we can create a map of your current emotional and psychic terrain. Surveying this territory can help you understand the origin of beliefs that cause suffering, mitigate their impact in the present, and identify guideposts on the path toward healing.
Over time, psychotherapy for depression teaches you that you are more like a process than a fixed thing. This perspective instills hope in recovering from depression by affirming your innate capacity to grow and evolve throughout your whole life.
What Are My Depression Therapy Sessions Like?
Each person is unique, so depression treatment is often a very individualized process. To get started, I might ask for an update about what we discussed in our phone consultation. I may encourage you to take a moment to scan your thoughts and feelings and invite you to share what surfaces.
I’ll take a history of the presenting issue while providing practical support and resources for finding immediate relief from symptoms. Most importantly, I want to focus on getting to know you, validating your feelings and experiences and giving you hope that things can be better.
What Kind Of Tools Do I Use In Depression Treatment?
My clinical orientation as a depression therapist is eclectic, reflecting a combination of various theoretical perspectives. My approach to depression treatment is drawn from a broad range of therapeutic modalities, including psychodynamic, relational, mindfulness-informed, CBT, integrative, somatic, and trauma-informed psychotherapies.
My approach holds that our early relationships and past experiences are formative and can have a profound effect on how we relate to ourselves and one another. My focus is on your emotions, the repetition of patterns stemming from your past, your relationships, and developing your awareness to find new approaches to coping with problems. I find that early experiences can create thought and behavioral patterns that if left unchecked, can cause challenges later on.
Illuminating early experiences and relationships can shed light on current patterns and allow you to make more conscious choices in life. Developmental and family-of-origin experiences have a profound impact on the unconscious mind and can play a critical role in shaping the thoughts that contribute to depression. As such, bringing unconscious beliefs and motivations into conscious awareness is pivotal to how I help people recover from depression.
A Mindfulness-Informed approach to depression poses questions that invite you to both witness and take a step back from your experience. This vantage point provides valuable perspective and helps illuminate the origins of your unconscious beliefs. Mindfulness can help with depression by supporting you to observe and regulate your difficult experiences and emotions. The definition of mindfulness by Jon Kabat-Zinn explains, “Mindfulness means paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally.” Mindfulness can empower you to respond more consciously to your experiences, talk back to your inner critic and challenge unproductive ideas about yourself.
The practice of self-compassion is essential to recovering from depression. By noticing beliefs you hold about yourself and challenging those that cause suffering, you can begin to adopt a more compassionate stance toward yourself. Self-compassion helps with self-acceptance, which is crucial to recovering from depression. The practice of self-compassion involves treating yourself with warmth, encouragement, and support. Current research indicates that self-compassion is one of the most powerful sources of strength, coping, and resilience we have. The practice of self-compassion can support you to accept your whole self, even those parts of you that may feel hard to love, as these are the parts that need your love the most.
Regardless of how you feel now, treatment for depression can support you to fundamentally change how you think and feel about yourself. If your thoughts lead you through the blackberry brambles into “the swamplands of the soul,” depression therapy can support you to take a different path. By working with a therapist to cultivate your self-awareness, unconditional positive regard and new ways of thinking that build you up, you can overcome depression and live your best life.
Self-Compassion And Mindfulness-Informed Therapy For Depression
Do You Still Have Questions Or Concerns About Depression Therapy?
What are some natural ways to reduce depression symptoms outside of therapy?
I find that optimizing self-care through proper diet, exercise, sleep and a healthy social life can help relieve many aspects of depression. Being mindful of what you put in your body—whether it’s sugar, alcohol, or too much exposure to social media or the news—may also aid you in your recovery from depression.
I support creating structure, systems and routines that serve you in your life. Perhaps most importantly, remember to practice kindness, be a good friend to yourself, and have your own back.
I’m completely intimidated by the idea of depression treatment.
Though it may sound counter-intuitive, therapy can be fun. As a therapist, I believe that laughter is healing and can be especially helpful for depression. I tend to be playful, have a good sense of humor and will take delight in making you laugh. Laughter can help you relax and feel safe. Even if something challenging comes up, my intention is to support you to feel safe, seen and cared for. As such, it’s likely therapy won’t be nearly as scary as you may think.
I worry that even a therapist won’t understand what I’m going through.
It’s understandable to feel hesitant, but I assure you, I have years of experience effectively treating depression in clients from diverse backgrounds. I’ve helped people from all walks of life overcome depression, be they doctors, nurses, lawyers, scientists, tech consultants, therapists, educators, artists, writers, or musicians.
What’s important to me is that we figure out together how and why depression is a factor for YOU. Understanding the origin and progression of your depression is key, as to get out of a dark place, it often helps to know how you got there to begin with.
It Is Possible To See The World In A Different Light
If depression has you stuck in a mire of sadness, self-doubt AND self-criticism, Therapy Can help you find a brighter perspective on life.
Feel free to contact me to set up a free 20-minute phone consultation, or leave me a confidential message on my office voicemail: (415) 292-5888.
Book a Phone Consult
If you have questions or would like more information, feel free to contact me to set up a free phone consultation. Please provide your contact information and some times you’d be available for a 20-minute phone conversation. I look forward to hearing from you.
IMPORTANT INFOrmation
You may call my office voicemail 24-hours a day and leave me a confidential message.
I am available to meet with you online or in-person at my Union Street office.
Appointments are generally 50-minutes in length and are scheduled on a weekly basis.
Longer or more frequent sessions are available for more intensive work.
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