Instead of embracing life and thriving…
You’re in “survival mode” when you’re depressed, doing the bare minimum to get by and simply make it through the day.
You’ve probably found yourself in a place where you’re making decisions based solely on how much energy is required. And, as you know, when you limit your activities, your world becomes smaller and smaller.
You may sleep a lot, or you may sleep very little. But no matter how much you sleep, you’re still exhausted and drained throughout the day.
You may have noticed that your thinking has become more cloudy and negative, and you may feel hopeless about your future. You may cry daily, or you may not cry at all. In any case, motivation and drive are nowhere to be found or limited at best.
You may have been labeled, or labeled yourself, as a procrastinator. It may look to others like you are lazy or just not trying hard enough. Maybe you’ve been beating yourself up about not getting things done in your life. Depression often hides and lurks behind what appears to be laziness or procrastination.
Whatever your symptoms are, it ultimately feels like a dark cloud has descended upon your life.
Are you trapped in a web of thought loops?
If you’re dealing with anxiety, then you probably said, “Yes!”
It’s exhausting, isn’t it? Always living life on “high alert.” Always feeling like your thoughts control you instead of the other way around. You want to stop thinking about something, but it replays over and over in your mind.
Loved ones have probably tried to help by telling you to “stop worrying about it” or “just don’t think about it,” but you know it isn’t that simple. You’ve tried everything you know to do to make it stop, but the thoughts get stuck on a loop, replaying over and over until you have a panic attack or some other thought takes over.
And there are ALWAYS new thoughts, each of them ready to take your mind and body on a roller coaster you can’t seem to get off.
It’s miserable when you can never truly relax or have peace of mind!
How have you been coping?
Some people like to stay busy, keeping a face-paced life of going and going, initiating new activities, and multitasking wherever they go. It’s almost like if you move fast enough, you won’t have time to really think or feel anything. And who knows? Maybe no one will even notice that you’re depressed or anxious. You might even fool yourself.
While some escape through busyness, others try to minimize their pain by disconnecting from activities that might stir feelings of anxiety or depression within them. If this is you, you might notice you are becoming more and more isolated. You may find yourself opting out of social gatherings with friends or work colleagues, neglecting to respond to messages from loved ones, or staying home instead of going out. You may also find that you are neglecting your self-care by not exercising, eating well, or even bathing as often as you normally would.
When you stop engaging in the activities you normally do or activities you want to do, you are in danger of losing yourself to your depression or anxiety. These are warning signs for getting help because this is no way to live. Don’t let yourself believe this is the best it can be… because that is a lie. Your life can, and should, be fulfilling, and you should be able to thrive and have hope that the best is yet to come.
Depression and anxiety can be tremendous burdens.
You may have been dealing with them for so long that you aren’t sure where YOU end, and the depression or anxiety begins.
And if they go unaddressed, they can slowly steal your life away, negatively affecting your decisions, relationships, and overall quality of life.
It’s too much to bear alone.
Many times, just letting another person help you process what you are facing can be of significant help.
When you’re depressed or anxious and alone with your thoughts, it’s easy to slide into a dark place.
You need to interrupt the cycle by letting someone else in – someone with experience who can give you a different perspective.
Get rid of the leeches.
If leeches drain blood from your body, then depression and anxiety drain the energy and life from your body and soul. Like leeches, they take from you slowly and steadily.
As a result, you may not even realize they are stealing your life from you until significant damage has occurred. There’s damage to your relationships because of your isolation, damage to your body because of your lack of self-care, damage to your professional life because your work performance isn’t what it used to be. And, maybe the most significant is the damage to your self-worth, confidence, and hope for a better life.
In therapy, we will examine the root causes of your depression and/or anxiety. Is there an event in your life that you’ve repressed that manifested itself through your depression or anxiety? Do you have extended family who suffered from depression and/or anxiety? How do you feel about medication? Should you seek help from your physician? What triggers your depression or anxiety? What have you tried that has, and hasn’t, worked so far?
Depending upon your particular struggles, we will devise a plan of action.
If you have panic attacks, we will discuss ways to break the cycle. This would include learning techniques to slow your breathing and center yourself so that you are in control, rather than the panic or anxiety. If you have social anxiety, we will slowly and steadily work together to help you face the situations you fear by practicing and role-playing until you feel more in control.
Sometimes anxiety and depression stem from messages we learned when we were younger – messages that wounded us and made us doubt ourselves. I may have you complete a timeline of your life so that we can discover what those messages were, where they came from, how to purge them from your life so that you can heal from the damage they caused, and replace them with the truth about who you truly are.
It is essential to realize that your depression and/or anxiety does NOT have to define you. You are not your depression. You are not your anxiety. Your true self is covered up underneath these leeches, and you have to take action and fight to get your life back. I will help you separate your true self from the depression or anxiety and from the symptoms they have ushered into your life.
It’s time for you to take your life back!
Depression and anxiety do not have to define your life. There is help, and you don’t have to do it alone.
Together, we can face your challenges, work through their effects on your life, and chart a course that will take you out of the darkness. You CAN find your way back to a healthy, hopeful, and balanced life again!
Life shouldn’t be this heavy and difficult all the time.
Take the first step toward getting your life back. Call/text (972) 727-0044, or email me at deanna@emergeanew.me today. Or, you can schedule an initial consultation through my online scheduler.
I look forward to hearing from you!