Depression Counseling in Baldwin Harbor, NY.

If you have a pulse and a heart, you have been sad. Using the science of happiness rather than standard interventions for depression we focus on increasing positive emotion, engagement, and meaning rather than directly targeting depressive symptoms. In using these interventions with clients I have noted the effects of these interventions in a variety of settings. In informal and clinical settings these interventions have commonly been reported to me and referred to as “life-changing.”

In my approach to depression counseling and treatment, I provide a compassionate and holistic perspective, tailoring my interventions to the unique needs of each client. Drawing upon my 8 years of experience as a Board-Certified adult psychiatrist and specialization in Reproductive Psychiatry and Integrative Women's Mental Health, I offer evidence-based therapies and medication management.

My approach emphasizes teaching people to challenge negative thoughts and maladaptive thinking. It enables clients to recognize distorted thoughts that promote negative perspectives which contribute to symptoms of depression. By learning how to accentuate strengths and utilizing one's own unique skills, clients struggling with depression learn how to achieve a more positive outlook on life.

Depression can range from being draining to being completely debilitating. Wherever you land on that spectrum, so much of depression involves negative thinking of oneself, others, and the world. Talk therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy are research-backed successful tools in providing support for those experiencing depression. I use talk therapy to provide a space for clients to share their feelings and things that either lead to or are affected by their feelings of depression. Cognitive behavioral therapy helps identify and shift negative thinking patterns as well as behaviors, which ultimately creates a more positive cycle in ones life and decreases symptoms of depression.

Sometimes depression is a chronic feeling of loss of energy, sadness, and inability to take action. At times, it can be triggered by certain situations in life. Depending on the specifics for an individual, help may consist of working with internal beliefs or may consist of working to improve a life situation, or a combination of these. I get to know the client, finding out how they experience the depression, what is going on in their life, what may have first started the depression, and what thoughts they experience. I can also work in conjunction with a psychiatrist where needed. Therapy interactions help the client see and embrace more positive and effective thoughts and energies.

It can often seem like society expects us to be happy and positive at all times, that any admission of sadness or a loss of motivation, energy, or engagement with life is a personal failure. But Depression isn't a personal failure, and it is also more than just "feeling sad". If you find yourself down in the hole of disconnection, surrounded by a fog that is interfering with your life and relationships, you need a hand to help you climb out. A trained therapist understands the mechanics of depression and can help you understand it and find strategies to make your way up and out of it, and back into the light. Please contact me so we can begin to work on this process together.