What is depression? How can counseling help?

Many people feel sad, discouraged, or "down" once in a while, but for some people, this mood does not go away. There can be a loss of interest or pleasure in life. When these problems last two weeks or more, and are so bad that they get in the way of daily living, it may be depression. A person with depression may experience emotions such as hopelessness, despair and anger. Energy levels may be low and the simple day-to-day tasks may seem overwhelming.

Turning the garbage of life into fertile soil for new growth.

Counseling can provide you with effective relief from your distress. Studies have shown that talk therapy works as well as pills do for depression, anxiety and other disorders. Actually, it works better, if you take into account the lower relapse rate. The advantage of cognitive therapy (over drug therapy) is that it seems to keep working even after the therapy sessions are over. Often a majority of those who are treated with medications alone may relapse. But the majority of those treated with talk therapy continue to do well. A cost-benefit analysis shows that while cognitive therapy may be as expensive as drug treatment to start with (since it involves extended one-to-one sessions with a highly trained specialist); it is cheaper in the long run

What is talk therapy, counseling? Counseling is a way you can make your life better. Talking through your concerns with a competent therapist can help you find better ways to cope, solve problems and set realistic goals. Counseling, therapy, talk therapy or psychotherapy are general terms for a way of treating mental and emotional disorders by talking about your condition and related issues with a highly trained mental health professional. Through these talk sessions, you learn about the causes of your condition so you can better understand it. You also learn how to identify and make changes in

Therapy? Counseling? Not everyone needs professional help.

However, talk therapy may be beneficial when you are having struggles that hinder your ability to function effectively at work, your ability to concentrate is diminished, or when your level of emotional pain becomes too troublesome. If you are feeling unfulfilled, depressed, anxious or isolated, you can work together with a highly trained Licensed Professional Counselor to gain insight and to understand effective ways to achieve lasting relief.
Some indicators that therapy could be beneficial include:

My theoretical frameworks

It is my attitude that you are created as a person of value. No matter what the source of your distress: random life circumstances, your own choices, or the choices of others, I will not judge you. I want to create a setting in which you can explore those parts of your life that are not working well or that may be causing you pain. I consider it a privilege to walk alongside of you during the distressing times of life. That is when there is opportunity for change.