Online Therapy for Depression

We all have an idea of what depression is. There are lots of commercials for antidepressants on television every day.

They show depressed people depicted in movies and TV shows.

Most of us know someone that has depression, but we never really know what it’s like unless you’ve experienced it yourself.

As I discussed on my About Me page, part of my life experience that led me to a career as a therapist is my struggle with depression off-and-on for much of my life.

I know what depression is like!

This experience equips me with an insight into depression that others cannot have unless they have also experienced depression.

I don’t act like I’m the authority on your life, because I’m not – YOU are!

We’ll work together in sessions as collaborators.

I use self-disclosure as a way of normalizing life’s difficulties to help you navigate life more effectively.

My approach is a holistic and integrative style of therapy – meaning I look at your entire life and use multiple therapy techniques to fit each individual.

I believe I can help through Online Therapy for Depression!

With my extensive experience in helping people with depression, along with my own experience with depression.

Plus, with all my knowledge about best practices when it comes to helping people with depression, including the way I’m able to connect with people that are feeling depressed.

All this adds up to me being able to provide effective and quality help for you to learn how to better manage depression and achieve Optimized Living through Online Therapy for Depression.

We all feel down at times. This is a natural way to experience life events including the loss of a loved one, the stresses of life, or when something happens we don’t like.

Feeling depressed at times is a perfectly normal emotion to have, just like all the other emotions we are capable of having.

Clinical Depression

The problem is when it hangs on and lasts for two weeks or more; that’s when it becomes, what is called, clinical depression.

Sometimes the symptoms of depression get worse in severity, or you start to have some new symptoms of depression you didn’t have before.

If you’re experiencing depression, then you understand what I’m saying.

You may be experiencing depression right now; I’ve experienced depression many, many times in my life; lots of people have experienced depression in their lives.

What Does Depression Feel Like?

You understand the feeling of being weighed-down
Feeling like you’re in a deep dark black hole that has no way out
Feel alone – disconnected from others and/or yourself
Everything looks darker and less vibrant through the lens of depression
Don’t notice any of the good things that are happening in your life
You rarely smile, and when you do, it feels fake
Have difficulty getting out of bed in the morning
When you think about taking a shower, it feels like it takes all your energy, so you don’t shower for a few days
Making a simple decision can feel completely overwhelming

Suicide

It’s common to have thoughts of not wanting to be alive any longer invade your mind and not go away.

Also common is to have thoughts about how you could die.

A huge warning sign is when you don’t just think about not being alive any longer or you’re thinking of ways to die, but when you have an actual plan on how you will kill yourself and have the intent to complete the plan.

If you are experiencing this, please contact me, and I can help get you connected with someone that can help – whether that’s me or another therapist/counselor.

Just get the help you need – Now!

Some Statistics on Depression

Depression is very common, an estimated 16.2 million adults in the United States had at least one depressive episode in their life. This represents 6.7% of all U.S. adults. 1

Over 300 million people experience depression all over the world, which is equivalent to 4.4% of the world’s population. 4

The total estimated number of people worldwide living with depression increased by 18.4% between 2005 and 2015. 4

The prevalence of adults that have experienced a depressive episode was highest among individuals aged 18-25 (10.9%). 1

Depression often causes problems in a person’s day-to-day life. One study showed that 80% of adults with depression reported at least some difficulty with work, home, and social activities due to their depression. 2

Don’t become a statistic of depression! Get the help you need now through Online Therapy.

Differences in Symptoms Based on Age

In Younger Children, Symptoms of Depression may Include:

• Sadness
• Feeling irritable – agitated – getting in trouble at school
• Being clingy – not wanting to be away from a parent or other loved one
• Worrying more than usual – fearful of something bad happening
• Refusing to go to school – crying before school – hating school when they liked it before
• Having increased aches and pains – complaining about not feeling well – missing school because they say they are sick
• Wishing they weren’t alive – talking about death

In Teens, Symptoms of Depression may Include:

• Sadness
• Irritability – agitated – getting in trouble at school – aggressive
• Feeling negative about themselves – feeling worthless – having low self-esteem
• Increased anger – having a shorter fuse than typical
• They change from being a good or average student to a poor student – failing grades – not turning in assignments
• Missing more school than usual – making excuses about not going to school – ditching school
• Feeling misunderstood by almost everyone – become increasingly sensitive
• Start using alcohol or recreational drugs – start abusing prescription medications
• Isolate themselves – staying in their room more often than usual – not having friends over anymore – not going to friend’s homes anymore
• Quit playing sports – stopped attending after school activities – don’t do much of anything during the weekend
• Self-harming behaviors – cutting on self – burning self
• Talking about suicide – death – wishing they were dead

In Older Adults, Symptoms of Depression may Include:

• Personality changes – not being the same – acting different
• Having memory difficulties – can’t remember where they live – can’t remember their phone number – forgetting people’s names
• More physical aches and pains than usual – back pain has worsened – starting to get headaches when they never used to get them before – getting headaches more often
• Wanting to stay home more often than usual – they don’t like being around family or friends as much anymore
• Easily fatigued – problems with sleep that they never had before
• Decreasing appetite – loss of interest in food – weight loss
• Thinking of suicide – wishing they would die – older men are at higher risk of suicide

Risk Factors that Seem to Increase the Likelihood of Developing or Triggering Depression Include:

• Traumatic experiences in your life – physical or sexual abuse – neglect – exposed to violence
• When major life events happen – death of a loved one – losing a job – getting divorced – moving away – retiring
• Chronic sleep problems
• Diagnosed with a serious or chronic illness – cancer – heart disease – thyroid disease – chronic pain
• History of other mental health issues – anxiety – post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) – eating disorder
• Lack of social support – having few friends – spending too much time alone – prolonged social isolation
• Abusing alcohol or other drugs – can lead to chemical changes in the brain – self-medicating
• Taking certain medications – sleeping pills – steroids – sedatives – blood pressure medication – prescription painkillers – Check with your doctor before stopping any medications
• Conflict with your family – difficulty in relationships – personal turmoil
• Low self-esteem – view yourself and the world in a pessimistic way – easily overwhelmed by stress
• Lack effective coping skills – don’t use the coping skills you have – use mainly unhealthy coping skills