Sometimes depression is an episode with a starting point we can easily identify. Sometimes it’s more like a wave that gets bigger and smaller but is usually there. Either way, the goal is to feel alive and optimistic about life moving forward.

The band Old Crow Medicine Show describes depression poetically with the lyric, “My heart is broken ‘cause my spirit’s not free.” Depression is a cage that holds back our true selves. Recovery is freeing yourself to be who you are and living the life that nurtures your true self.

Depression is what brought me to therapy when I was 16. We called it anger, but under that wall-punching exterior was a very sad and lost person. My therapist helped me feel heard and valued. She made sure to help me see that I was a good person who had more power than I thought. I also had to deal with things that led to the depression. That’s not easy, but with help is absolutely doable. My job is to help you out of the darkness and find your path.

We often find that the person with depression has anxiety that led to not feeling free to be themselves, they lose connection to themselves and what they love, and then depression kicks in. That loss of connection is a key aspect that makes depression spiral and wears the person down. Reconnecting to the self is a necessary piece of the equation. This is done through a combination of therapy and taking action outside of therapy to live your life.

There is absolutely a chemical component to depression, but don’t get too caught up on that meaning it is genetic or inborn. The depression spiral is partly a “lack of dopamine spiral”. The person feels down and loses motivation to do things like exercise, socialize, challenge themselves and have fun - the things that create those feel-good chemicals. Now they aren’t getting those chemicals that uplift them, so they lose more and more motivation, lose more connection to things that create those chemicals, and depression takes over.

People ask about medication, and my short answer is that is totally up to you if you want to try anti-depressants. For some people they give a temporary boost that makes it easier to take action. Very often such medication is best served as a short-term relief as the person establishes a healthy lifestyle and works things out in therapy - then the medication is no longer needed. However, medication in itself rarely has lasting effects. I strongly believe that if your life is depressing on paper, you will be depressed. Therapy is to help let go of the internal battle of depression while providing guidance to create a life you enjoy!

With or without medication, my goal with depressed clients is to help them work through whatever stops them from being them, then to do the things that boost the feel-good chemicals. We also inject pride, optimism, and self-appreciation because when people are depressed they tend to not view themselves very kindly.

Treating depression is really a personalized approach. We may discover that there is some deep work needed in order to connect with yourself and live a fulfilling life. Maybe it’s more about needing to find meaning and start on a fulfilling path to squash depression. I’m here to help you move past depression and leave it in the past for good!