“Am I Depressed?”
When feeling depressed, you may ask, “Do I need counseling?” Talking with a therapist can begin to boost your hope so the factors around you that contribute to your feeling depressed seem more manageable.
Depression Symptoms
Feeling depressed? The symptoms don’t always look the same, but many common factors exist. They vary among individuals, and they commonly include:
*Down or sad mood
*Loss of interests or pleasure
*Hopelessness
*Feeling empty
*Loss of appetite
*Sleep disturbances
*Worthlessness
*Back pain
*Chest pain
*Headaches
When Is It Time to Seek Help?
When these symptoms impair everyday function and your relationships with others, your anxiety or depression has become severe. Avoiding social interaction, an inability to drive, avoiding going to work, and staying inside all of the time are examples of when symptoms are starting to go too far. It’s during these times when people seek out additional help to reduce their distress, like talking to a licensed counselor.
Therapy can be one step to help someone struggling with anxiety and/or depression. During the first initial appointment, a therapist meets with you and gathers information about what you would like to see improve. Then with the help of the therapist, you create a plan for specific steps to guide you toward living a better life.
Developing a plan for your life with a therapist will likely involve one of the most effective therapeutic treatments for anxiety and depression, called Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). CBT involves replacing negative and irrational thoughts with a healthy and adaptive thought process, ending the depression and anxiety cycle. Mindfulness Meditation is another method used to help the client slow down and be more present with how they are feeling, which can help the client with being more attuned to what they are feeling, and with time to refocus, choose a healthy behavior such as taking a walk, journaling, speaking to a friend or doing something fun to recenter yourself.
Experiencing depression can be a scary time in a person’s life. There is a better way. At Charlotte Counseling Associates we work with our clients to teach positive coping mechanisms that will help them to live happy, fulfilling lives. You can be ok. You can feel like yourself again.
Relationships and work performance can also be negatively impacted by someone with depressive symptoms. Talking with a counselor can help you discover immediately if you fit the criteria for a Depressive Disorder or if you only have symptoms that can be alleviated.
Contact Us:
Phone: (980) 224-3233
Email: admin@charlottecounselors.com
Send Us a Message
New clients, please send us a message to schedule your free 15-minute Q/A call with Charlotte Counseling Associates, so we can answer any questions you may have and find out if we’re a good fit for working together to help you achieve your goals.