Feeling anxious or depressed?
INDIVIDUAL PSYCHOTHERAPY with VANESSA E. OUTLAW or GUTHRIE STROZIER
ANXIETY
Anxiety is an extremely common struggle for many people. It is also incredibly treatable. If you suffer from panic attacks, stress, chronic tension, phobias, social anxiety, or chronic butterflies, anxiety can be debilitating and affect your quality of life.
Because anxious energy is experienced in the body, many of the tools used to break free from anxiety focus on helping the body and mind feel more “settled.” Have you ever noticed when your body becomes activated by anxious feelings, the experience can be so unnerving that it makes you even more anxious! Attempts to decrease the symptoms can make you more aware of your inability to control those feelings only to make you feel even more anxiety. Quickly you can find yourself in a cycle that spins out of control.
One key skill to escape this cycle is to learn how to tolerate the physical sensation of anxiety so that it can pass naturally, rather than feed on itself. Counterintuitively, when you turn toward your inner experience, rather than fight against it, you will begin to feel calmer inside. Learning to tolerate that unpleasant feeling becomes a critical skill that takes training and practice.
Resolving one’s anxious feelings can bring peace and clarity. If you feel stuck or crippled by persistent anxious thoughts or constant uncontrolled worry, we can help you to quiet the noise and find rest in a clear mind.
If you're ready to break free from the hold of of anxiety and worry, reach out and let's push against what's uncomfortable together.
DEPRESSION
All of us feel sadness and depression at one time or another. These feelings can become a sign of a bigger concern if you begin to lose interest in things you used to enjoy, want to sleep or stay wrapped up in bed all the time, or begin isolating or withdrawing from important relationships and activities. Depression is a miserable experience that can leave you unmotivated and even having thoughts of dying. The good news is most people can get better with treatment.
Depression can emerge when you don't know how to process intense emotions. An auto-pilot defense is to simply shut down. Therapy can help you learn to move through emotions in an empowered way, so that you can regain a sense of aliveness, joy, and meaning. Mindfulness and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) can help you access and process your feelings, accept and nurture your true self, and heal wounds trapping you in the past.
Depression is often more biologically-based than situational and medication can be an effective treatment option. WE support your choice to consider medication as a tool to manage depression symptoms and will work closely with your medical providers. Research shows having healthy relationships and support is a key component in psychological health. Our therapeutic relationship can be a stabilizing, safe relationship in which to address the root of your symptoms.
Recovering from depression often takes time and sometimes it feels like you can’t go on another day. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. We believe having someone to walk there with you can make all the difference.
If you're ready to free yourself from the weight you're carrying, call us and let's walk this path together.