Depression Counselling in Puslinch, ON.

I often describe depression as 20lb weights around your ankles as you try to tread water. Being available and supportive in a client's experience of depression is a meaningful experience. I feel at times that it's like tossing a lifesaver out to someone who is drowning and maybe overwhelmed for too long. Being present, encouraging small steps forward, in a compassionate way is a privilege every time.

In many cases, I view depression as an "alarm bell" that tells the individual that there is something wrong in their life. Have they turned their anger in life toward themselves? Are they not living their best, or preferred, life? Is there something that's happened in their life that is getting them down, but they don't realize how much power it truly has? Depression can also be about learned helplessness, or having a sense, through experience, that there is no point in even trying at something. Such helplessness can come from feeling defeated, feeling significant guilt about something, & even from self-defeating 'self-talk' that an individual engages in (without completely realizing it).

Depression can feel like a heavy burden, affecting your ability to find joy and motivation. However, you don't have to face these challenges on your own. I provide a secure, empathetic, and non-judgmental environment where you can freely explore your emotions. Together, we will explore the underlying causes of your depression, develop effective strategies for symptom management, as well as reignite your sense of purpose. Utilizing evidence-based techniques and offering personalized support, I will accompany you on a path towards healing and empowerment. You deserve a satisfying and meaningful life, and I am here to support you each step of the way.

Depression is often a response to having experienced profound psychological pain. It is a way for us to retreat or numb ourselves from the overwhelming emotions of such stressful circumstances. It acts as a protective shield in a way. In therapy, we will work towards addressing the underlying sources that are contributing to feelings of deep sadness. This can be a difficult task and as such it can be helpful to include strategies alongside our reflective work which may include CBT, DBT, Mindfulness, and Behavioural Activation. Book a free 15-minute consultation with me to see if I’m the right fit for you.

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.

Living with depression can be a very lonely, isolating experience. Through counselling, the individual can find renewed hope, well-being and happiness. I incorporate cognitive approaches such as mindfulness and gratitude practices. I can also utilize psychodynamic therapy to explore the source of the depression. Sometimes, merely identifying the root cause can provide improvement in mood, and can enhance the treatment process.

In working with individuals who struggle with depression, I primarily use a cognitive behavioural therapeutic (CBT) approach. The principal aim of this approach is to increase awareness that thoughts and behaviours drive emotion. In addition, the goal is to increase consciousness of distorted perceptions. That is, often individuals who struggle with depression do not think accurately, and if their thoughts are not accurate, than they cannot be trusted. The purpose of CBT is to bring awareness to cognitive distortions and then teach individuals how to rebalance their thoughts to be more accurate.

The common symptoms of depression can be crippling. Many try to be brave or stick it out and hope it will go away. Without treatment, episodes often increase in frequency and severity. Without depression treatment, episodes can last for years. Shauna works with you to create a depression recovery plan that fits your life and reflects your experience. Her depression treatment clinic uses evidence-based therapies, such as DBT and CBT, along with a holistic approach to making you well, including yoga, exercise, art therapy, and exercise walks.

Depression presents in various forms and has many different features. When working with me, you will find that space is created to explore the experience of depression, its influence on different aspects of your life, and how you can work through these challenges as they arise. If you are hoping to find solace in your experience, I invite you to contact me for a free consultation to see if we would be a good fit.

Negative commentary colours the experiences of individual’s living with depression. Negative thoughts, maladaptive attitudes, and perceptions of despair often are characteristic of people’s experiences with depression. Through Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT), these individual thought-processes can be altered in favour of ones which facilitate emotions and behaviours more advantageous and functional to an individual’s daily life. As a practitioner of CBT, an awareness of how an individual’s beliefs may be maintaining symptoms of depression as well as the requisite skills provided to facilitate more adaptive ways of thinking to overcome it will be taught.

I have seen many clients who have either given up or whom are on the verge giving up on, what many claim is ‘everything’…. Nothing seems to be of interest to them. Nothing really is happening in life that they want to talk about. But the persistent sadness and lack of personal drive becomes a constant burden and the constant persistence of everyone telling them to get out of their ‘funk’ is starting to take its toll. Using Dialectic Behavioural Therapy, guided meditation, mindfulness, and other strategies we work to successfully get clients “out of this rutt” and truly realize their potential.

Can we transform emotional pain into personal growth and find hope? I can help you become aware of how certain negative automatic thoughts, beliefs and expectations contribute to feelings of anxiety and sadness. Often these automatic negative thought patterns are developed as a result of a past painful and difficult experience. They determine how we deal with loss, change, conflict and social interactions. Supporting you in identifying and understanding these thought patterns, can help resolve problems in maintaining relationships and establish a stronger sense of self-worth. Schedule a free consultation with me to see if we are a good fit for therapy.

Struggling with mood disorders can make life very challenging. The most basic tasks can feel overwhelming and unmanageable. I understand this from personal experience as well as years of work with clients who are diagnosed with depression or bipolar disorder. It can be difficult to explain to others in our lives what it feels like to live with depression. I will validate and support you while helping you explore your feelings and find positive coping strategies that are the right fit for you. Book a free consultation to see if we are a good fit.

Depression is an experience of complex emotions that can leave one feeling helpless, hopeless and worn out. It is understandable to shutdown or feel lost, or sometimes feel angry and annoyance. You do not have face this alone. Together, we can explore, uncover and understand the underlying factors which uniquely affect you, and lead to low mood. I will create an open, non-judgemental and compassionate space for you to reconnect with yourself and regain access to your deepest needs, while working to create healthy coping mechanisms so you can feel empowered again. Please contact me to book a free consultation and begin your journey toward healing!

Do you wake up or go to bed feeling the blues? Do you feel dread and wonder how you will get through the day? Are you experiencing negative thoughts? I can help. Not only do I use talk therapy with my clients I help clients by using a technique called CBT Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. CBT can help you notice triggers and events that effect both thoughts and mood restoring balance.

Are feelings of sadness, hopelessness, or exhaustion weighing you down? I’m Simona Ilieva, a Registered Psychotherapist specializing in depression therapy. Together, we’ll explore the underlying causes of your depression and work to develop strategies that empower you to regain a sense of hope and purpose. Whether you're dealing with chronic depression or a recent emotional struggle, I’m here to support you. You don’t have to face this alone; healing is possible. With the right support, you can reclaim joy and start building a brighter, more fulfilling future. Let’s take that first step together. Book a free consultation today.

Depression can be debiltating often affecting many aspects of ones life. Individuals can feel hopeless, helpless and even emotionally paralysed. Fortunately due to the prevelence of depression in North America, there have been a number of strategies to help individuals regain their emotional strength and find their way back. Cognitive Behavioural and Dialectical Behavioural Therapies provide individuals with a number of tools to turn life around and regain control.

If you’re feeling down, having trouble enjoying things you used to, sleeping changes (sleeping too much or not enough), changes in your appetite (too much or not enough), or just feeling lethargic, you might want to see a psychotherapist and might feel depressed. Through CBT, DBT, and Narrative Therapy, you can see life in a better light, and get back to the life you want to. Book a free 15-minute consultation to start your healing journey.

Depression is one of the most common and uncomfortable emotions that we experience and occur for many of us at some point in our lives. The accompaying lack of motivation, low energy, reduced enjoyment in activities, changes to sleep and appetite, and patterns of negative thinking can be extremely distressing and disruptive to our lives. Through treatment with therapy, it is possible to recover motivation, find new perspective, reconnect with the joy that you once had in your life, and find greater freedom and balance.

There are many reasons why people suffer from depression. We help to find the reasons why and also work in collaboration at implementing a variety of supports to help you through. We do not diagnose but we do help you manage your depression. There are many steps that you can take to help you move towards a healthier way of functioning. We offer a safe environment for you to take those steps.

I use CBT to help improve depression symptoms. We explore: causes, triggers and symptoms to work on. I use behavioral activation to help make a list of enjoyable activities that you can begin with. Having someone to listen empathically is immensely useful. Helping to understand early signs of depression is also essential so that you can intervene to help yourself as early as possible.

Depression involves a persistently low mood coupled with a loss of enjoyment in activities that once inspired joy. While this condition is synonymous with a loss of hope for those who suffer from it, there are in fact a great many effective treatments that can help. While painful emotions are part of life, counselling can help you process them so that you can move forward and rediscover happiness. In my experience, customizing every treatment plan to the individual provides the best outcome as each clients needs are as individual as they are. Reach out, change your path and start your recovery.

The fog of depression is often an isolating blackness, a heavy cloud that obscures the sunlight, casting shadows in all areas of our lives. You don’t have to endure this journey alone. In our sessions I will join you in this journey and sit with you in the darkness. Together we will navigate a safe path towards hope and healing knowing that even in the darkest moments you won’t be alone.

The thoughts and depth of sadness or lack of emotion is a very difficult thing to experience, especially on your own. Depression is one of those things that can take over your life - your mental health, your job, your relationship, and your enjoyments in life. The symptoms can leave you feeling "paralzyed" and very stuck in life. Most of all, it can leave you feeling alone. I work a lot with my clients on navigating and managing the very difficult symptoms of depression. This means work on current (and even past) issues, and finding your own, individualized treatment plan to conquer these symptoms. Everyone's needs are different, and I'm here to help and listen and work through it with you.

Hope Centered Counselling has a lot of experience working with Anxiety and Depression. We know that often holding space is all someone can handle on a bad day. The darkness sometimes just feels like too much. We know that asking our clients to make big changes in their life to get better just doesn’t cut it. Baby steps are necessary to start the journey to recovery together. We know its hard and some days there’s nothing in the tank, but we really do care about what you are going through and have the capacity to hold space for you through the journey until you turn a corner. You just don’t have to be alone anymore if you find the right therapist to share the walk with you. We care!