Depression
Most people will be affected by depression at some point in their lives, either directly or through loved ones who are depressed. You’ve probably heard about more than one of the different types of depressions that people experience. They include major depression, dysthymia, and seasonal affective disorder (SAD).
Anxiety
Anxiety is one of the most common mental health problems throughout the world, and it can create tremendous suffering. It can rob you of self-confidence, productivity, and peace of mind. It can also create conflicts in your relationships with others. When you feel anxious, worried, or panicky, you’re telling yourself that you’re in danger and that something terrible is about to happen.
Trauma and PTSD
Unfortunately, a person may be assaulted by trauma, an experience so unexpected and awful that the stress is overwhelming and s/he becomes unable to cope with life. Sometimes a traumatic experience is a single event; sometimes it occurs again and again. In any case, people react uniquely to traumatic events and the severity of trauma is based on the individual who experiences it.
Grief and Loss
Grief is a natural emotional reaction to a loss. It is one of the most intense human emotions, and is universal. Simply put, if you live long enough, you will lose someone; therefore you will have to grieve. Grief is also highly misunderstood in our society.
Illness and Caregiving
Personal illness and illness of a family member can post some unexpected challenges. Illness of family member can affect the whole family. The emotional and psychological responses of each individual in the family may be different. If you are newly diagnosed with a chronic illness you may have a difficult time accepting this news or you may also have questions about your illness and want some education and resources for coping better. If you have been living with an illness you may find that adapting to a new “normal” way of life can be difficult.
Are you LGBTQ identified and experiencing distress, depression, anxiety, destructive patterns or other emotions that are interfering with your functioning or quality of life? Depression, anxiety and substance abuse are reported to be higher in Lesbian, Gay, Bi, Transgender, Queer and Questioning populations. This of course does not mean all LGBTQ identified people experience these mental health problems, but homophobia (internalized and societal) contribute to the higher risk for LGBTQ people to experience mental health distress.
LGBTQ
Stress
Stress is our mental, physical, emotional, and behavioral reactions to a perceived demand or threat. Stress is unique to each individual and comes from situations or thoughts that result in one feeling frustrated, angry, or anxious. Although stress is an unavoidable consequence of life, experiencing some amount of stress in our lives is beneficial as it protects us from danger, prepares us to react quickly and appropriately in a crisis, prepares us to meet challenges, and motivates us to perform our best and overcome challenges. Nonetheless, most of us experience excessive amounts of stress in today’s competitive world, and this becomes quite distressing and harmful for our cognitive, physical, and emotional health.
Marriage and Couples
We come into our relationships with our own personal knowledge of the world and with our own assumptions of how things should be. It can be hard to imagine that the one we love might have different expectations than our own, but they do. And, although they share many of your ideas of how to make a good relationship and a good life, some of their thinking is different than yours. When you become aware of these differences it may be disappointing, frustrating and even scary. It’s at this time that many people look for counseling to strengthen or save their relationships.
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Attachment
Attachment forms the foundation for a child’s physical cognitive and psychological development. A bond that forms between a child and his or her parents or primary caregiver, healthy attachment occurs when the caregiver provides not only the basic necessities of food, shelter and clothing, but also the emotional essentials with touch, smiles and eye contact.
Attachment disorder is a treatable condition in which individuals have difficulty trusting anyone or creating loving, lasting intimate relationships due to serious disruptions in forming that bond during early childhood.
Substance Abuse
Our therapists are trained to help you in managing your struggle with substances. More information on this topic to come.