Depression Counseling in Old Bridge, NJ.

Depression can be debilitating, but it can also be a dull ache that underlies one's everyday activities. You may appear to be doing "fine" but underneath it all, there is a depressed feeling that does not go away. Using an integrative approach, I can help you work through the underlying issues while addressing the day to day challenges. Seasonal depression or Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is also a common and highly treatable depressed state that is often seen in the colder, darker months and around holidays.

I address depression by exploring its roots in childhood. What were the negative influences that made you believe things would never get better? What made you feel it was pointless to try? Where does your low self-esteem come from? Together, we can identify these factors and how they affected you, and then question their validity in your present circumstances, as an adult with adult capabilities. In addition, I will teach you coping strategies, including mindfulness practices, self-compassion and self-care, that will help you reduce depressive symptoms on a day-to-day basis.

I help people who are depressed and need thhelp getting to a better place. Common issues I help with: unhappy in your marriage or relationship and don't know what to do about it, depressed and having trouble eating, sleeping or getting out of bed, you're feeling very isolated and alone, feeling very sad about your relationship, divorce, feeling rejected or abandoned, low self-esteem, you're not even sure why you feel depressed, you're feeling very irritable, stressed, overwhelmed and miserable most of the time. I'm easy to connect with and genuinely interested in help you find better coping skills and make positive changes.

While implementing a cognitive behavioral approach, I have extensive experience in helping clients improve their mood and quality of their life. I utilize evidence-based methods that can relieve emotional pain and aid clients’ recovery from debilitating symptoms. Treatment can bring back positive feelings, allowing you to improve your connection with yourself and others, achieve fulfillment and help you to function at your best.

When you are depressed, you lack energy and motivation, and want to isolate, which is one of the worst things you can do. Negative thinking drags you further into a hole, and staying alone with your thoughts can make the depression worse. I will help you evaluate your thoughts and your situation more objectively, and give you ideas about how to begin to pull yourself out of the darkness. Trying to do it alone can just prolong it. Sometimes you just need a hand to pull you up. I can do that.

My approach with depression is utilizing multiple techniques from cognitive behavioral therapy to reframe and restructure negative thought patterns and work together to change unhealthy behaviors as a result of those thought patterns. The goal is to identify and address unhealthy thought patterns in order to change those behaviors to relieve symptoms of depression.

Children and adolescents who act out due to symptoms of AD/HD, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Autistic Spectrum Disorders, and School Underachievement constantly receive negative feedback from parents, teachers, and peers. This results in underlying feelings of helplessness and hopelessness leading to depression. I motivate such children to develop self-control which leads to improved academic and social skills. This leads to social acceptance and academic achievement and self-esteem rises. Helplessness and hopelessness dissipate and depression and anxiety lessen.

Your teen can, and will, rewire their brain to think and feel differently. In our work together, your teen will replace unhealthy coping skills with healthy ones. They will learn about depression and identify ways to manage it with techniques that work for them. If needed, I will assist them in creating a safety plan. I will help them identify their warning signs, internal coping strategies, people they can ask for help (both at school and home), crisis resources, and how to make their environment safe. Most importantly, I will communicate safety concerns with you so we can partner as a team to support your teen. With counseling, struggling teens can develop into thriving adults!

I believe that depression is nature’s way of shutting us down when there is some element in our life or our past that overwhelms and burdens us. It is often something experienced that our usual ways of coping cannot remedy. A client experiencing depression is often ‘turning off’, ‘shutting down’ and going inward in response to something in their life or in their relationships that is just too much to bear. I help depressed clients discover what it is in their life that is overwhelming them and help them find the strength and power to directly face the matter that is causing the turn inward and the shutting down.

Depression can feel extremely dark and debilitating. Therapy can help bring light into the darkness. Dr. Spada can hold the flashlight for you, while you lead yourself into the light. Many things in life can make us feel depressed. Understanding deeper thought patterns can hero facilitate feeling differently and living your life differently. When it comes to understanding your depression, exploring what's really going on and brining intentionality into your life is key.

Depression can disrupt or color our lives in so many ways. Likewise, depression can have different causes and stay with us for different lengths of time. Some believe that understanding the role our thoughts play on depression is useful. Others believe that being able to speak to a therapist and channel our depression is useful. No matter the philosophy, visiting a therapist can be a positive step in reclaiming your life from depression and taking back control of your own life.

My philosophy of therapy and change is that change comes from within. As a therapist, I ask a great deal in asking an individual to change, as change is an incredibly difficult task for everyone. The journey of change requires both the client and myself to work collaboratively throughout this journey. It is for this reason that the rapport between the client and myself is critical. I aim to provide all my clients with the space to explore their underlying feelings, thoughts, and behaviors so that they can engage in change.

Depression is often controlled by our unconscious feelings, thoughts, memories, and dreams. Drawing on Positive Psychology and other therapeutic models, I help clients to understand how we relive early experiences unconsciously, and I coach them on behavioral techniques they can use to overcome the vicious cycle of negativity and change their present. These include a blend of empirically based techniques clients can use at work or at home to overcome depression, end self-sabotage, and get unstuck.

Our credentialed music therapists tailor sessions to each individual, utilizing personalized music exercises and interventions to address each person's unique symptoms of depression. Our music therapists work with each client using musical elements like songwriting, processing, and guided imagery to help clients find their own voice and learn new coping skills to help manage depression of any severity.

Depression is a mood disorder that can cause a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest that can interfere with daily functioning. Reaching out for help is a step towards wellness. Symptoms of depression can vary from person to person, but it is a very treatable condition. Therapy for depression helps you overcome the feelings of hopelessness and despair and to gain control of your life.

I work with many people with depression whether as individuals, or in the context of couples therapy. I help people to become aware of their thoughts, feelings, and the experience they have in their bodies around their depression. I work cognitively and behaviorally to help them understand distorted thinking. I also work to "externalize" the feeling of depression, and help people understand that, "you are not your thoughts." Depression may be visiting you, but you are not depression. Mindfulness is a tool I use with depression to help people understand what is happening to them in the moment, and to begin to open to emotions that may be blocked.

As someone who has Bipolar Disorder, I have a passion to help those who struggle with depression. Although I haven't struggled with depression in over 20 years, I know the depths of despair that one can fall into. I know what is necessary to gain victory over depression and the skills one needs to acquire to break free of this paralyzing state of mind.

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 presents itself when we feel abandoned by ourselves. By showing up for our needs, making space for our emotions, validating our feelings, processing past traumas; depression can ease its grip and we will feel happier, lighter and more at peace with ourselves. I provide a safe space to process all of this so depression no longer needs to control the client’s life.

Is sadness and despair overwhelming your experience of yourself and the world? Do you feel as if a dark cloud is hovering over you? Do even the simplest things seem too difficult to accomplish? Do you wish you could just leave, even though you don’t even know where to go? Are feelings of helplessness overwhelming you? If you can identify with these descriptions, then you may be struggling with clinical depression. Depression can be temporary striking because of overwhelming life events or it can be more persistent. Regardless of its source, there is effective treatment for these symptoms. Let's work together to help you bring hope and joy back into your life.

Through the use of cognitive behavioral therapy, patients will learn the relationship between their thoughts, feelings and behavior. They will learn relaxation techniques and coping strategies to tackle difficult situations. Patients will learn coping skills to handle stressors which may be precipitating a change in mood. Developing interpersonal skills is key to establishing better relationships with significant others, family, and friends.

Dr. Marty has developed his own approach to handling depression he calls Focused Short Term Therapy (FSTT)* It combines new cutting edge therapies in the field of energy psychology as well as short term focusing on the depression. When appropriate Dr. Marty uses hypnosis and self hypnosis as well. To learn more about this approach you can go to: http://drmartytashman.com/focused-short-term-therapy-fstt-2/

I help my clients learn how to let go of their depression and replace it with acceptance and joy. Depression often occurs when we take situations and others' behavior personally. When we think they mean something about our self-worth. You can learn how to define your own self-worth and not allow anything outside yourself to determine your mood. I can help you learn how to take better care of yourself by learning to heal the deeper feelings underneath your depression like sadness, helplessness and loneliness.

We all do our best to have an abundance of hope in our lives. Sometimes circumstances, emotional wreckage and frustration prevent our reaching our goals and expectations. By identifying the emotional toll charged by an endless cycle of frustration, a personal plan of growth will be put in place. This approach short-circuits frustration and provides hope now and into tomorrow. Dr. Eljay has 20 years of counseling experience in lessening this burden.