Mood Disorders

Have you ever felt like the pressure of the world is on your shoulders? You may be feeling stuck in a fog where everything feels muted, and joy seems distant. Do you feel that getting out of bed is a monumental task, and that just walking through your daily life requires all the energy you can muster? Or have you ever felt like you’ve been on top of the world one minute, only to plummet into sadness or irritability the next? You can’t seem to get a hold of your emotions however hard you try. Do you feel like you’re on an emotional roller coaster but you don’t why?

If you have felt like this for a while, you may be in the midst of a mood disorder. Mood disorders are medical conditions that affect our ability to regulate our emotions. They impact how we feel, think, and handle daily activities. 

How it feels 

Being in the midst of depression is hard. It hurts. Physically, you are likely feeling fatigued, your appetite may have changed, and your sleep patterns may have altered. Emotionally, you may be struggling with a profound sense of sadness, hopelessness, and/or emptiness. You may feel like you are a disappointment to others who don’t seem to understand what you’re going through; they expect you to act like nothing is wrong. Day-to-day, you are likely feeling increasingly trapped in a deep, dark hole and any light you sense seems impossible to reach. Your thoughts have changed. They have become distorted, and you may have come to believe you are worthless and undeserving of help. 

Being in the midst of a mood disorder riddled with mood swings hurts (too). With mood swings, you likely feel confused and disoriented. Sometimes your emotion changes are mild and might make a bit of sense, but other times your emotions change so rapidly and unexpectedly that you may feel you have whiplash. You may perceive that you are being pulled in different directions, unable to find stable ground to stand on. You are no longer able to trust your emotions; deep down you know that when your emotions are intense, you are not reacting in a way that makes sense but feel unable to stop. Having emotions has likely become increasingly distressing and unmanageable. 

For more information about mood disorders, please click here.

Anxiety Disorders

Do you have a constant gnawing worry that follows you everywhere you go? Do you have a voice in your head that constantly whispers worst-case scenarios? Do you worry about what others may be thinking of you? Perhaps you feel like you’re walking on a tightrope over a pit of judgment and scrutiny. Have you ever felt like you have to perform certain actions because you can’t stop thinking about them if you don’t? Have you found yourself avoiding certain places or situations so that you won’t feel distress? 

If you have felt like this, you may be in the midst of an anxiety disorder. Anxiety disorders are medical conditions that affect the way we process emotions and stress. Anxiety disorders involve excessive and persistent feelings of worry, fear, or apprehension that interferes with daily functioning. 

How it feels

Being in the midst of an anxiety disorder is like constantly having the feeling that something is going to go wrong. You likely feel on edge, tense, and uneasy in seemingly safe situations. Physically, you may experience a racing heart, shallow breathing, sweating, trembling and/or stomachaches. Mentally, you are likely experiencing racing thoughts, an inability to concentrate, and a sense of impending doom.

If your anxiety relates to social situations (social phobia), you are likely feeling like all eyes are on you most of the time. You likely feel as if your every move and flaw is being scrutinized by others. You may start blushing, sweating, or trembling in social situations while your thoughts are racing about how others are perceiving you at that very moment. After the fact, you are likely replaying what happened like a movie reel in your mind. You experience an intense fear of being judged, embarrassed, or humiliated; so much so, that everyday interactions may become overwhelming. 

If your anxiety traps you in a cycle of intrusive thoughts and compulsive behaviors (obsessive compulsive disorder), you likely feel like you are constantly trying to keep yourself and others safe. You may feel exhausted by the time-consuming rituals (compulsions) you feel forced to complete because if you do not, you are left with intrusive thoughts, urges, or images (obsessions) that cause you severe distress. If you do not do the compulsions, you feel that you have not protected yourself, others, or your property from the possibility of harm. You likely realize that your thoughts and actions are irrational, but you feel powerless to change them. You likely also feel embarrassed and shameful about your compulsions and therefore try to hide them from others. 

For more information about Anxiety Disorders, please click here.

What to Expect of Therapy

We will start with a thorough assessment of your history, to understand your specific struggles, triggers, and underlying issues. During the first few therapy sessions, we will work toward establishing a good therapeutic alliance built on mutual trust, honesty, and empathy. I am here to listen non-judgmentally and work toward an understanding of your specific needs and experiences. Together, we will establish a treatment plan tailored to your needs and preferences. If you feel like I am not a good fit for you, please do not hesitate to share this. Not all clients and therapists work well together. It is very important that you feel comfortable with me. Also, know that therapy is hard. It requires a significant investment of effort, energy, patience, and perseverance. I am here to guide and support you but ultimately it is your openness and willingness to implement changes that will guide your journey in recovery. 

In general, therapy for mood and anxiety disorders aims to help you understand your symptoms, learn coping skills to manage those symptoms as well as reduce distress, build resilience to help tolerate uncertainty and adapt to life’s challenges, improve relationships, and promote self-compassion. Pending your individual needs, we will spend time focusing on a variety of relevant topics, including but not limited to self-esteem, maladaptive thoughts and related feelings, emotion regulation, intrinsic and extrinsic pressures, core beliefs, relationships, family and generational habits, communication patterns, interpersonal skills, and avenues of change. 

In therapy, we will rely heavily on Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) to help identify and change negative thought patterns and behaviors that contribute to depression, mood swings, and anxiety. You will learn practical skills to challenge negative beliefs, problem-solve, and develop healthier coping strategies. For anxiety, you will learn to replace irrational thoughts with more balanced and realistic thoughts, develop coping strategies to manage anxiety symptoms, and gradually confront feared situations through exposure exercises. For OCD, Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) involves gradually exposing you to your obsessive thoughts (exposure) while preventing you from engaging in your compulsive behaviors (response prevention). Over time, this results in a decrease of OCD symptoms as you learn that you can tolerate anxiety related to obsessions without performing compulsions.

We will pull from Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) to combine CBT and mindfulness practices to help improve emotion regulation, interpersonal effectiveness, and distress tolerance. We may also discuss mindfulness techniques to cultivate awareness of the present-moment with nonjudgmental acceptance of thoughts, emotions and sensations to reduce risk of getting caught in negative/anxious thought patterns that can trigger depressive episodes and/or reactivity to stress. 

We will likely utilize Interpersonal Therapy (IPT) to address interpersonal issues that can contribute to and maintain a mood or anxiety disorder. We will explore how relationships and life events may contribute to your symptoms, and help you develop more effective ways of relating to others and managing interpersonal conflict. 

Supportive therapy provides a safe and empathic environment for you to express your feelings and receive validation and encouragement.

Making lifestyle changes may also become relevant. Developing a healthy lifestyle that includes regular physical activity, adequate sleep, and stress management techniques supports long-term mental health recovery. 

Learning strategies to prevent relapse will be discussed. Knowing how to identify and cope with triggers that may lead to relapse is essential to treatment. When the time comes, we will develop a relapse prevention plan to help you stay on track in your recovery journey.

Lastly, there may be a time when you are referred for a medication consult. If that is the case, we will spend time discussing how medication may be helpful in your particular case and why it is advised. However, consulting about, and making the choice to take medication, is ultimately your choice.

The Goals of Therapy

Ultimately, the goals of psychotherapy for mood and anxiety disorders are to empower you to reduce symptoms, enhance coping skills, improve relationships, increase self-awareness, promote behavior change, and build resiliency to achieve lasting physical, emotional, and psychological well-being.

To find out how to support a loved one suffering with mental health issues, please click here.