“I will love the light for it shows me the way, yet I will endure the darkness for it shows me the stars” ~ Og Mandino
Depression and Anxiety
DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY COUNSELING PORTLAND OR
Although you can easily look up the signs and symptoms of depression and anxiety, to live with them and to move past them is not as easy. They can take over so subtly and/or so overwhelmingly. There is a spectrum that runs the gamut. Sometimes, more subtly, you can experience your mind constantly racing, worrying more than usual, not sleeping, making lists and never feeling like you can catch up. At these times, life begins to feel like more of an effort than ease. Your breathing is shallow; sometimes you realize your chest and shoulders are so tight that you think you have forgotten to breathe. Anxiety can increase to levels of panic; suddenly you become afraid of the door and all that is on the other side. A traumatic event or a building of stress can spark this. It all feels overwhelming.
This feeling will pass. You are not alone
There are also those times when you feel like you have hit the wall; nothing feels right and you question who you are and how your life has meaning. Sometimes, feeling like you have entered the abyss, so deep and so dark, you become numb, no longer feeling anything; nothing has meaning. You have forgotten and no longer care to try to remember. You feel alone and disconnected. You actually believe in this moment that it has always been this way and there is no way out.
We all have sadness and difficulty with life’s struggles, transitions, and losses. There are times when we need the support of an objective party to not only listen, but also have the knowledge to guide and understand.