Focusing on You

Some areas to get support on in counseling:

Depression & Anxiety

Depression and anxiety are 2 common reasons that people come to counseling. Sadness, fear and worry are normal feelings that we are experience. However, these feelings can be overwhelming and impact our daily functioning. If you are dealing with impairment in your daily routine due to depression and/or anxiety, consult with your primary care physician to rule out any medical concerns and seek medical recommendations. Take a depression screening: https://adaa.org/iving-with-anxiety/ask-and-learn/screenings/screening-depression

Symptoms of depression often impact our normal day-to-day functioning and activities. Depression can consist of sadness, loss of motivation and energy, loss of pleasure in activities and interests, eating too much or too little, sleeping too much or little, hopelessness, and suicidal thinking. In children and adolescents, depression can be exhibited by an increase of irritability or anger. Counseling can help to build coping skills to manage depressive symptoms and address negative thinking and patterns as well as understand and get support for any underlying concerns or grief.

If you are suicidal, in crisis and at risk of harm, call suicide and crisis lifeline at 988, text HELLO to 741741 or call 911 if you are experiencing medical or life threatening emergency.

Anxiety can vary from feeling socially insecure and overly self-conscious to panicky, panic attacks or obsessive-compulsive behaviors. Anxiety can be simple avoidance of doing things that we feel anxious about, fear of judgment or worry that something bad will happen. Anxiety can be debilitating or increase over time as we avoid more and more things. We feel anxiety physically which can cause us to believe that anxiety is rational or real when sometimes it is not based on evidence. Counseling helps to educate you about anxiety and common methods include challenging thoughts, understanding and improving your self-talk, tolerating anxiety vs. reacting/avoiding, and exposure therapy.

Grief & loss

Many of us experience grief and loss, and too many of us deal with it alone. We are strong for others and ourselves. Others move on, back to their normal lives while we still grieve daily and silently. Supports do not know how to help, what to say, are afraid or forget to ask. Those grieving often feel sad, lonely and alone, guilty or angry. Many deal with spiritual, faith and meaning disruption and confusion. Grief can be delayed or prolonged as we are often in survival mode after a loss or we struggle with avoidance or denial. Grief and loss can be a death of a loved one or pet, a job or dream or related to physical or mental illness, move, change or trauma or family discord. Counseling is a safe place to be listened to, understood and get support for the lifelong process of grief. There are no simple answers or solutions to grief as it is more a journey of finding meaning and healing.

Relationship Concerns

Counseling addresses many different types of relationship concerns. Relationships include with parents (biological, adopted, step, aging), siblings, children, friends, significant others, ex-spouse or ex-significant others, co-workers and bosses. We can find ourselves in unhealthy or toxic relationship patterns that counseling helps address, change and work through differently. We can also have traumatic experiences in and from relationships whether that be domestic violence, emotional, verbal, physical or sexual abuse, neglect, abandonment, loss, addictions, or affairs. Counseling helps get support and address past traumas to begin steps of integration of meaning and healing.

Life Transitions, Changes & Stress

Life changes and transitions may be positive but also increase stress. Whether it be a new job, a move, a new stage of life (separation or divorce, retirement, parenthood/empty nest, marriage), processing this change can help with adjustment. Counseling is a safe place to receive support to talk through any emotions, reactions and even past issues that might be surfacing.

Spiritual Meaning

For those who value spirituality, faith can be integrated in your counseling. I support how you want it to be a part of your counseling whether discussing faith meaning and questions, spiritual loss and angst, or just want to know that it can be integrated if desired. As I believe that everyone is a unique person, I believe that one’s relationship and faith in God is personal and unique as well. I meet people where they are and so do not persuade or proselytize.