190 Harwood Avenue S, Ajax, ON L1S 2H6

Depression Therapy

Does It Feel Like No Matter How Hard You Try, Nothing Ever Works Out?

Are you feeling helpless, hopeless, or disappointed because your need for love and connection is not being met? Have you started believing that you are unworthy of affection from your friends and family? Maybe you find yourself overwhelmed as you over analyze every decision because you’re worried every choice will be wrong?

Despite your best efforts, you probably feel like you continually mess up, so it seems pointless to try again. At work or school, you might stop yourself from making friends or investing in romantic relationships because you’re convinced you can’t live up to everyone’s expectations.

Depression Symptoms Can Be Overwhelming

If feelings of hopelessness make it hard for you to meet your responsibilities, it can take a toll on your mental and physical health. You might find it hard to make decisions at work or have trouble focusing on tasks you need to complete. The stress of it all might even cause constant headaches or exhaustion. When everything seems hopeless, your motivation might dwindle, making it hard to do anything—even the things you usually enjoy.

I know that right now, you may feel like a burden—as if your pain is too much for anyone to bear—but you are valued and worthy of love. Depression counselling can help you see that truth for yourself while teaching you how to tell others about your experience and how they can support you.

Depression Is Common When Our Society Bases Self-Worth On Achievements

Our society often ties self-worth in with performance, so every time we struggle or fail it can feel like a little more of our worth is being chipped away. And as we grow, the mountain of expectations keeps getting taller, with responsibilities piling up in school, at work, and in relationships. It can start to feel like no matter how high we climb, none of it matters because we can never make it to the summit.

When we face unrealistic expectations from teachers, parents, or other authority figures, it’s easy to internalize those feelings of disappointment each time we don’t succeed. And because many of us aren’t taught how to set reasonable expectations or overcome disappointments, these perceived failures can reinforce our beliefs about being unworthy or unloveable.

Many People Don’t Know How To Deal With Depression On Their Own

Coping with depression can be difficult if you can’t turn to your support system for help. This is true for many who come from cultures or communities where depression and mental health aren’t discussed.

If you aren’t used to hearing about other people who are dealing with depression, it can feel like you’re alone in your struggles and that you should be able to overcome any symptoms by yourself. And if you can’t, depression can reinforce those feelings of failure.

But you’re not alone. In fact, depression is one of the most common mental health issues people face. One in four Canadians will experience a level of depression serious enough to need treatment at some point in their lives. With counselling, you can develop a deeper understanding of your depression and learn how to heal, manage symptoms, and overcome any feelings of disconnection or inadequacy.

You Can Learn To Increase Your Self-Worth And Self-Confidence With Depression Treatment

As counsellors, our job is to create a safe place for you to explore the factors and the beliefs about yourself that may contribute to depression. We will give you space to understand the events that might have affected your internal experiences. Depression treatment can be a place for you to receive the reassurance and validation you need to build solutions and move forward.

What To Expect In Depression Counselling Sessions

During therapy sessions, our goal is to help you discover what parts of you are holding onto emotional burdens and how these unvalidated burdens contribute to depression. We will work with you to understand the parts within that arise to protect you from experiencing further pain. And we will invite you to delve into how these parts impact your sense of self.

As our sessions progress, we will lead you through a process to discover your strengths and help you identify solutions to build trust in yourself and cope with depression. Together, we will forge a path that leads you to trust in your ability to manage depression and take back control of your life.

Therapy Can Offer You An Individualized Approach To Learning How To Deal With Depression

The experiences that contribute to symptoms like hopelessness and discouragement are different for everyone, so an important part of therapy is understanding your unique emotional patterns that contribute to depression. We use a variety of methods to help you understand your relationship with yourself, your connections with others, and how you perceive the world. Using this newfound awareness, we can do the deeper work like breaking negative thought patterns, healing the parts of you that hold on to distress, identifying what you need to be happy, and tailoring a strategy that will help you get there.

It can be difficult to enjoy the new opportunities life brings when you’re struggling with depression. We are here to assist you in learning how to have compassion for yourself so you can look forward to all of your firsts––whether it’s your first semester in school, your first job, or your first relationship––and rediscover your excitement for each new chapter of life.

You May Have Concerns About Depression Counselling

I’ve tried to get help with depression before, but it didn’t work. How do I know therapy will change anything this time?

We know it’s disappointing that counselling didn’t work for you in the past, but there is still hope. Connection is one of the most important aspects of effective therapy, which is why we will work hard to make you feel safe and secure in every session and during every conversation.

We also use a variety of methods to tailor treatment to your needs and the outcomes you want. We know you want things to be different, and we want to help make that happen for you.

I’m worried you will judge me, and I don’t think I can handle that.

We understand that sharing your thoughts and feelings with another person can be scary. One of our biggest priorities in therapy is to create an environment where you feel safe, heard, and valued. Part of that is encouraging you to let us know if something we say makes you feel uncomfortable. We’ll always work hard to make sure you feel secure and free of judgment or blame.

Can therapy still help me if I don’t know why I’m depressed?

It must be frustrating not understanding why you’re depressed. However, part of the therapy process is helping you discover where your depression originates. Yet, sometimes, the reasons why aren’t always apparent. While you and your counsellor are exploring possible reasons why you feel the way you do, counselling can help you develop personalized strategies for dealing with the thoughts that contribute to depression so you can start feeling better right now.

You Can Learn To Value Yourself

If a profound sense of hopelessness or unworthiness makes you feel lost no matter how hard you try, depression counselling can help you find compassion for yourself and trust in your abilities. For a free, 15-minute consultation, contact us to schedule an appointment.