Depression therapists in Harrogate, England ENG, United Kingdom GB
Depression
Sara Aicart-Pendlebury
Art Therapist, Human Givens Practitioner (HG.Dip.P), Member of Human Givens Institute, IFS therapist Levels 1&2, Narm Practitioner
If you are feeling low, or depressed I can help you by integrating behavioural, cognitive and interpersonal approaches with relaxation, visualisation and guided imagery techniques. Contact me for a free consultation to feel more motivated, with a clear plan how to begin to solve your problems. Contrary to common belief, depression is not primarily a biological illness, inherited through the genes. Nor is it the setbacks, crises or tragedies in our lives that cause depression. It is our response to adverse events that determines whether we get depressed or not. Research shows that people most likely to suffer depression are those who react to adversity by taking it personally, seeing all areas of their lives as blighted by it, and the misery as going on forever. Depression is always a second and unnecessary problem, and just makes problematic circumstances worse. This is good to know because it means that, instead of feeling helpless or hopeless, people can learn to take back control over their lives. They may not be able to change certain circumstances but they always have options about how they react to them.
The symptoms of depression include low mood, loss of interest or pleasure in usual activities, loss of appetite and energy, sleep disturbance, feeling agitated or lethargic, worthless or guilty, difficulty in thinking straight and having repeated thoughts about suicide. Antidepressant drugs may help some people because they lift levels of a ‘feel-good’ chemical in the brain; unfortunately, they do nothing to change the underlying circumstances or thinking patterns that led to the depression. Depression is always related to unmet essential emotional needs and that is why the human givens approach, which focuses on helping people in distress find healthy ways to meet their emotional needs, is so successful.
Depressed people may seem deflated and flat but, in actual fact, they have raised levels of a stress hormone called cortisol, which means that they are in a state of constant high emotional arousal. When our emotions are aroused we can’t think rationally, so this is why people deep in the grip of depression can’t concentrate well or even make simple decisions. Learning simple relaxation techniques to calm themselves down will start reducing those cortisol levels.
The main reason that depressed people are so emotionally aroused is that they spend a vast amount of time worrying about the future or beating themselves up about past events. Perhaps they still feel guilty about something that happened recently – or years ago; perhaps they are frightening themselves with dire ‘what if?’ scenarios (likely or unlikely), in which loved ones encounter dangers or they themselves lose their jobs or their homes; perhaps they feel beaten down by chronic pain or anger (“Why did this have to happen to me?” “How could he have been so cruel?”); or maybe they experience a combination. They also have a huge tendency towards negative thinking – “I’ll never be good enough”; “I’ll never cope”; “nothing ever goes right”; “the pain will only get worse”. All this kind of negative imagining and thinking saps an enormous amount of energy – and makes people utterly miserable.
Far from feeling more refreshed after a night’s sleep, most people with depression wake up next day still exhausted and feeling totally unmotivated. It is hard for them to get out of bed and do anything at all. We now know why this happens. Psychologist and co-founder of the human givens approach Joe Griffin carried out research over many years which showed that, when we dream at night, we are discharging unexpressed emotional arousals from the previous day. If earlier we were upset about something our spouse did or didn’t do, but kept it to ourselves, we would later dream that out, perhaps in the form of getting angry with someone else (dream content is never straightforward); that would have the desired effect of lowering our levels of emotional arousal, so that we can start next day afresh, even though we are unlikely to remember we had the dream. (If we did express our feelings with our spouse at the time, we wouldn’t need to dream about it. And, of course, if we wake up and remember what our spouse did or didn’t do, we may get emotionally aroused about it all over again, requiring more dream discharge that night, if we still don’t resolve it.)
15 Years Experience
Depression
Gui Mansilla
Registered Psychotherapist, Lawyer (Arg) M.Div (USA) Reg. Psychotherapist (CA) Coach (Ca)
Embark on a transformative journey to break free from the grips of depression with my client-centred approach that acknowledges both the chemical and behavioural dimensions of this relentless mental health challenge. In my over two decades of experience, encompassing more than 17,000 hours of direct client contact, I have dedicated myself to unravelling the complexities of depression.
I firmly believe that the roots of depression often lie in the soil of childhood neglect and trauma, making it imperative to identify its origins for effective healing. Guiding my clients to develop insight is just the beginning; we then traverse the path of acquiring new skills to address the unmet needs at the core of their struggle.
As clients learn to meet these needs, the shackles of depression gradually loosen, and the joy of living is rekindled. I infuse the therapeutic process with friendliness and entertainment, fostering an environment that promotes faster and more positive results.
If this resonates with you, I extend an invitation to a consultation. It would be an honour to explore the possibility of collaborating on your personal journey of healing and growth. Together, let's navigate the terrain of depression and rediscover the vibrant life that awaits beyond its shadow.
19 Years Experience
Depression
Tamzin Brain@HypnoChange4U
Therapist, Ad.Dip.CP, DipHyp CS, Dip CP, MNCS (Acc), MHS, Counselling Cert, CACHE3, B.A. Honours Degree PsyCrim
Therapy can help you to work with your feelings, thoughts, perceptions, and internal or external conflict. It gives you the opportunity to reflect on what is happening within your life and yourself; reduce confusion; consider alternative ways of doing things, make positive changes and to move forward into the life you want.
13 Years Experience
Depression
Karen Queller
Art Therapist, M.A Expressive Arts Therapy
What does depression mean to you? What is your own unique process of experiencing depression and how can we make that work for you instead of against you.
5 Years Experience
Depression
Dr David Tilbrook
Psychologist, Chartered Clinical Psychologist Specialising in Psychotherapy with Senior Practitioner Status
'Depression' can be our starting point but generally does not tell us much about what is going on at an internal emotional level. We will work to understand what the emotional dynamics are that are getting you depressed or keeping you there, and then work together to free you from unhelpful patterns and coping mechanisms so you can regain your vitality and purpose in life.
24 Years Experience