Depression Counselling in Bon Accord, AB.

Depression can feel like overwhelming sadness, or maybe like you are in a "funk" that you can not get out of. People often start to isolate themselves, and focus on negative thoughts. I offer a warm, safe place to share your feelings, examine your relationships and perceptions that may be contributing to your depression. I introduce concrete suggestions that will help you get your back on track. People frequently feel a sense of relief after sharing their burdens. In discussing experiences people are often able to view themselves differently and gain insight into how they can more effectively deal with situations and relationships.

Depression is a common mental health condition that causes a persistent feeling of sadness and changes in how you think, sleep, eat and act. Depression is treatable — usually with talk therapy, medication or both. My primary therapeutic approach is centered on several cognitive therapies, including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). CBT for depression focuses on disrupting negative thought patterns and replacing them with more helpful ones. CBT aims to modify the unhelpful thinking and behavioural patterns that impair one’s functioning. These changes can lead to healthier behaviours and improved emotion regulation.

Depression treatment counsellors can help clinically depressed or mildly depressed individuals find the origin of their depression, so it is treated more permanently. In combination with meditation or without, cognitive behavioural therapy, Shift Protocol, which systematically reduces and/or eliminates Limiting Beliefs using Reconditioning via Exposure & Integration (REI) (more commonly referred to as Reprocessing) therapies are skillfully woven into Shift’s protocol, to create a structured and highly effective treatment. Risk factors and development factors are investigated in the initial intake session. Continued screenings for treatment progression and depression symptoms are present i

Depression can have multiple and complex causes, but most often it can be attributed to how we think. When we examine our thoughts, we can find we are struggling with automatic negative thoughts that leave us feeling depressed. Learning how to identify these thoughts and actively speak differently to ourselves armed with statements that are more true, we can see the depression levels begin to decrease.

Depending is often the result of negative thoughts and beliefs about yourself and your life. One gets trapped in a downward spiral that drains the life force out of you. Past experiences and actions may continue to haunt you. The beliefs about oneself can be difficult to fight. My approach is not to cheer lead you to fight them and be strong but to go deeper and challenge the very truth of what you are believing about yourself. Accepting ones weakness and vulnerability without being controlled by them can be hard but it is ultimately the way up to a more integrated and fulfilling life.

Everyone's depression is different - uncovering the root causes of a client's depression is critical and determines which form of therapy is best. I integrate multiple therapies such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, EMDR, Internal Family Systems, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to hep clients improve. I also have experience working with Bipolar disorder.

Research has clearly demonstrated that mindfulness-based approaches to depression are so powerful that they can reduce the chances of having a relapse by 50%! That's a big deal. A depressed mind is busy creating all kinds of negative thoughts. Mindfulness-based therapy will teach you a new way to relate to your thoughts. You don't have to believe everything you think! Especially the bad stuff, becuse it's often not true.

Depression is not feeling bad – it is not feeling. When we become depressed we try to insulate ourselves from our emotions. Treatment for depression requires a willingness to feel what we are avoiding. This requires a process of exploring the buried feelings in a safe, supportive environment. As we become friends with our emotions we can gradually come back to life.

Grey Matters International, Inc. and the work of Kevin J. Fleming, Ph.D. handles depression and other emotional disorders in a very unique way. Most of therapy or counseling processes utilize validation, unconditional positive regard, and reframing as common techniques to get someone to heal from their depression. Though this can be helpful, it rarely fixes the core problem behind it and for tough cases we then refer them usually to a psychiatrist for medication which can have tons of side effects. Instead, why not try a natural and arguably more effective way to not just change your mind, but change the brain--where the depression is rooted. Contact us at kevin@kevinflemingphd.com.

Depression feels like a deep dark hole that you can't possibly see a way of getting out. Perhaps you have been slowly sliding in for years as life stressors and challenges built up, or maybe it has been a rapid decline with something unexpected knocking you off course. My approach to working with depression includes working towards small, manageable steps to help you feel more confident in yourself and your abilities. Therapy will be like dropping down a ladder into the hole - the path is there and I will help you learn how to climb each rung to get back out again. By the end of therapy, you will find that you can laugh more, have more energy, and enjoy life again.

Are you struggling to get out of bed, losing interest in once-loved activities or feeling helpless and hopeless? The lethargic and foggy shutdown of depression can make everything in life feel just a few inches out of reach. The good news is that depression is readily treatable. I would be glad to help you explore what is keeping your body stuck in numb disconnection. Next, we form a plan to help you back to your best self. Together we tackle here-and-now symptoms with strategies of mindfulness and CBT, while also untying old knots from the past with emotion-focused and inner-child work. The heaviness of depression is your body asking for care. Are you ready to answer its call?

Sometimes life can seem dark and hopeless, leading you to question where you are heading, while feeling lost or helpless. Together we can create a safe and trusting space to explore your feelings and thoughts, without judgement. We can work towards gaining deeper insight into your thought and behaviour patterns, leading to better understanding, perspective, and hope for the future.

I view depression as a protective response that often develops when the nervous system has been overwhelmed by trauma or prolonged stress. Rather than seeing it as weakness, I help clients understand depression as the body’s way of conserving energy and guarding against pain. Through a trauma-informed and attachment-based approach, we explore the emotions and experiences beneath the shutdown, using somatic awareness, mindfulness, and gentle reconnection to restore safety and vitality. Over time, clients begin to experience relief, self-compassion, and renewed connection with themselves and their lives.