I have worked with children and teens for over 15 years as well as families and adults that have symptoms of depression as well as diagnosis in depressive disorders.

 

There are many components that can impact a child’s mood and behaviors and it is vital to look at all elements to best facilitate change and manage a child or teens or adults mood.

 

My assessment looks at all aspects of an individuals life. Is the client receiving adequate sleep? Sleep has a huge impact on mood and depression. What is the amount of sleep and is it a high quality sleep?

 

Is the client eating healthy balanced meals throughout the day or is client skipping meals? Nutrition is important in relation to a client’s mood and emotions.

 

What is the client’s and families medical history? Is there a genetic predisposition to mental health issues ? What is the families mental health history?

 

What is the client’s medical history that might impact his mood? What medications is the client taking? Substance use ?

 

What stressors are currently going on with the client? What were past stressors or past trauma or pain that may be impacting the client today that was never addressed? Grief and loss that is unresolved can impact mood and depression? Divorce?

I look at a child’s self esteem and their thought process. I look at helping a child or adult express their thoughts and feelings that may be stuffed or repressed in healthy ways.

I look at a client’s balance in their family life, social life, and what activities they are participating in? Is exercise on regular basis involved? Is the client spending too much time on: social media? Phone? Video Games? texting? What healthy activities is the client participating and involved in? How much time are they spending with family? Extracurricular activities?

Helping a client find balance is  very important for youth as well as for adults daily

 

CBT is very important in looking at what messages and thoughts one plays throughout the day. Unhealthy thoughts or thoughts that are distorted or irrational will impact mood and behavior and this is why CBT is very important in looking a moods and behaviors. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is evidence based and is used world wide.

 

 

There is as much evidence for cognitive behavioural therapy as there is for medications to treat mild and moderate depression, as well as evidence that they have a synergistic effect,” says Dr. Gratzer. “In other words, for the hundreds of thousands of Canadians struggling with depression, Internet-assisted cognitive behavioural therapy offers a cost-effective and empowering way of accessing an important treatment.”

 

 

One of the most common types of mental health disorders that children, teens, and women experience is depression. We all have times when we feel: down, low, unmotivated and lack energy however when symptoms occur for over two weeks it may be sign of a depressive disorder, grief and loss and more.

 

Major depression occurs twice as frequently in women as major depression occurs in men. Depression is a persistant state that will negatively affect ones physical well being and health as well as how one performs, behaves, and ones mood.

 

Depression is one of the most common mental health disorders in society however it is not diagnosed due to a number of reasons and it needs to be looked at by a professional in order to help alleviate symptoms that impact ones life.

 

Many things contribute to depression: grief and loss, loss of friends, changes in relationships, new schools, new life transitions, negative thinking, financial stress, bullying, social issues, low self esteem, family stress, abuse, trauma, genetics, biological predispositions, environmental factors, negative self talk feeds negative moods and much much more.

 

Treatment for depression can include: counseling, coaching, psychotherapy, meds, or a combination of some of the above or all of the above.

 

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is an evidence based treatment used in therapy to help with depression and anxiety as well as other disorders. CBT looks at the relationship between thoughts, feelings, and behaviors .

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy looks at thoughts to see if the thoughts have distortions in them. By identifying unhealthy thoughts we can change them to healthier thoughts. These healthier thoughts will impact our feelings as well as future behavior in a positive manner .

An example of some cognitive distortions follow :

Black or White Thinking: you look at things in black n white and see little shades of gray or other colors in your spectrum .

Mind Reading: you read others minds and jump to a conclusion that is not supported by facts .

Magnification or minimization: you blow things out of proportion or you shrink their importance .

Labeling: instead of stating you made a mistake you call yourself names .

CBT is a powerful form of therapy that has evidence and research to support it.

 

CBT is based on the fact that our thoughts cause our feelings and behaviors not external things, like people, situations and events. CBT is a research based therapy w evidence to show positive results. It is rapid in terms of results obtained compared to other therapeutic techniques .

Cognitive Behavioral therapy is considered a brief type of therapy .

The average number of sessions is 15.

 

CBT Cognitive Behavioral Therapy makes use of homework and is highly instructive in nature. Rapport with the therapist is important in CBT however the focus is on teaching rational self therapy skills.

 

Learning what goals you desire and helping you achieve those goals is part of CBT.

CBT is just one of many techniques used to create changes in moods and depression.

 

www.LifeWorksaz.com counseling provides therapy and psychotherapy for adults , families, and teens in phoenix Arizona, Scottsdale AZ, Cave Creek Az, Glendale AZ, Peoria AZ, Chandler Az.