Is Depression Affecting Your Quality Of Life?
Does life feel “off,” dull, or lackluster?
Is it hard to get excited about or feel motivated by anything?
Yet do you convince yourself that nothing is wrong, further adding to the overwhelming pressure that you feel just to get through the day?
You may believe that because your life looks good on paper—a good job, a stable relationship, a comfortable place to live—you don’t deserve to feel sad. And though you can recognize everything you have, your existence seems meaningless lately. Living in this dull reality, it’s hard to maintain a sense of purpose and motivation.
Your mental and emotional state is probably impacting you physically. Perhaps you’re tired and sore every morning despite being relatively inactive. Or maybe you’ve noticed changes in your appetite, sleep patterns, and sex drive.
Depression May Be Impacting Your Ability To Connect With Others
If you’re struggling with symptoms of depression, it’s likely that your relationships have been affected. You may have withdrawn from friends or lost interest in doing social activities. And when you force yourself to go out or engage with others, you might end up feeling worse or guilty for not enjoying your time.
Your intimate relationship has probably been impacted too. If you have a hard time feeling affectionate or connected to your partner, it’s possible that things between the two of you have become tense and conflict-oriented. Though you might be able to put on a happy face for the rest of the world, you can’t seem to hide your depression from your significant other.
Life would feel so much more manageable and gratifying if you could just maintain your energy and interest in the parts of your life that bring you joy. Luckily, depression is highly treatable and can be helped with therapy. At Firefly Wellness Counseling, we are here to help you overcome depression so that you can feel happier and more functional.
If You’ve Developed A Pessimistic Outlook, You’re Not Alone
The world seems to be an increasingly dangerous and uncertain place. The past several years have felt bleak and heavy with the rise in political divisions, gun violence, and climate change. The Covid-19 pandemic only exacerbated these fears, forcing the vast majority of us to deal with unforeseen changes in our work, families, and everyday lifestyles. On top of that, many of us have had to confront the grief of loss, whether someone we know died of the virus or prolonged illness has kept us from leading a normal life.
Unfortunately, necessary safety measures have often furthered feelings of hopelessness and isolation. Social distancing has kept us from loved ones, while virtual work prevents us from making daily connections. We were already living in a progressively tech-reliant society that removed face-to-face interactions, but the pandemic only worsened our chance to relate to others at a time when human connection has been essential.
Depression seeps in slowly, making us not want to do anything, including asking for help. Because symptoms of depression zap us of our mental, emotional, and physical energy, it’s nearly impossible to feel motivated to seek treatment. Not to mention, depression is poorly understood, causing us to overlook symptoms or assume that we’re just feeling irritable.
Yet, counseling is an effective way to find relief from the thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that have developed from your depression. Working with a therapist, you can challenge limiting beliefs and take back the control over your life that depression has taken away.
Therapy Gives You An Opportunity To Combat The Effects Of Depression
When your everyday life is clouded by depression, it’s hard to view yourself and your struggles with empathy. A therapist’s job is to treat you with unconditional positive regard, affirming your experiences and offering individualized guidance. With their support, you can feel safe to speak your mind and share about the challenges keeping you from a happy, fulfilled life.
At Firefly Wellness Counseling, we specialize in depression treatment. Our team of compassionate, skilled clinicians will individualize your experience in therapy so you can develop meaningful, effective solutions to combat depression.
The Therapeutic Process
Counseling is available to teen and adult clients, and we have options for virtual sessions if you’d prefer to meet with your therapist online.
Initial sessions will help your therapist better understand your background, presenting symptoms, and goals for depression treatment. We’ll work together in therapy to explore the areas of your life where depression is affecting you and figure out where some of your symptoms originated. Though we won’t spend the entire time rehashing your childhood or discussing your parents, it’s important to know how certain behaviors developed so that you can disrupt the patterns that aren’t contributing to a healthy, satisfying outlook.
With this insight, you can better understand yourself and your stressors so that you don’t feel regularly triggered. Taking small steps toward healing, you will notice improvements in your mood, self-awareness, and ability to communicate how you’re feeling.
The Methods We Use
Our collaborative therapy model blends holistic, person-centered approaches with evidence-based depression treatments. As a team of diverse, experienced therapists, we draw from a wide range of techniques, and each of us offers a unique counseling style that can be adjusted to meet the needs of our clients. Though we may incorporate different methods, we all see tremendous value in the healing qualities of the counselor-client relationship itself. Sessions are typically directed by our clients so that we can focus on your specific objectives for counseling.
In addition to mindfulness skills that can help you become aware of your feelings and behaviors, we will likely use Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) in depression treatment. Both approaches are effective for addressing self-limited beliefs and negative thought patterns. And CBT, in particular, is useful for changing unhealthy behaviors related to depression.
Instead of seeing yourself as the enemy, you can learn to view yourself with curiosity and compassion. Reducing symptoms through mindfulness and deep breathing can allow you to feel more relaxed. With added depth and emotional awareness, you’ll be able to recognize when you’re falling into unhelpful patterns. Soon, you’ll have the energy to re-engage with your relationships, work, and interests as you move toward a more enjoyable existence.
You don’t have to settle for a dull, lackluster experience of the world—life can be vibrant again. In therapy for depression, you have the opportunity to develop the skills and perspectives you need to feel more motivated, engaged, and satisfied.
Still Not Sure If Therapy Can Help?
Things aren’t bad enough to warrant counseling for depression.
You don’t have to be in crisis to benefit from therapy. Even if your symptoms don’t seem severe to you, they are still very real and affecting your quality of life. You deserve to feel better, and our therapists understand that any struggle—no matter how seemingly small—should be given space and the potential to heal.
I don’t have time for depression treatment.
Therapy is an investment of your time, but it’s intended to give you back some of the time and resources depression has taken away. By developing emotional awareness and learning valuable coping skills, you can experience symptom reduction in a relatively short period of treatment.
Depression treatment sounds expensive.
Counseling for depression is most effective when done weekly. However, we can certainly discuss scheduling options with you if your budget does not allow for weekly sessions. And while we don’t accept insurance, we are happy to give you a superbill to submit to your provider for reimbursement.
Take Your Life Back
If life regularly feels dull and unsatisfying, you may be struggling with depression. Fortunately, the therapists at Firefly Wellness Counseling can help you feel better in depression therapy. To schedule a free, 10-minute consultation, contact us or visit our Book Now link.