Depression Treatment in
the San Francisco Bay Area
You’ve been faking it for others far too long
You feel overwhelmed, sad, and unable to feel joy
Maybe, you can’t find the motivation or energy you want to have
Feelings of depression are typical for everyone at some point in their life. We’ve faced 9/11, economic crises, a global pandemic, and so much conflict as a community. It’s normal to be thrown a curveball in life and have a hangup over it in the last 20 years. Whether it’s an outside event that we hear about on the news, things in your life, or very commonly, depression just showing up without any cause - what you’re experiencing is a regular life event.
But if you’re finding yourself stuck more than usual, the depression has been hanging around too long, you feel like you can’t bounce back, and the depression symptoms that come with depression are holding you back from living the life you want to live; it is time to seek support. You deserve to live life, and we can help treat the depression symptoms so that you can experience joy again.
“People think depression is sadness. People think depression is crying. People think depression is dressing in black. But people are wrong. Depression is the constant feeling of being numb. Being numb to emotions, being numb to life. You wake up in the morning just to go to bed again.” — Anonymous
Typical Depression Symptoms that Lead Adults to Seek Depression Treatment in the San Francisco Bay Area
While depression looks different from person to person, sometimes day to day, there tends to be some commonness to the overarching emotions that we classify and cluster as “depression.” You may feel experience every single one of these, or you might just feel a few, there is no right or wrong.
Feeling unrecognizable in the mirror
Sadness, unable to feel joy
Weight changes, either up or down
Heavy feelings
Guilt / Shame / Worthlessness
Trouble concentrating
Hard time looking forward
Feeling lonely, even when you’re with others
Sleeping too much or too little
Difficulty doing life tasks
showering
grocery shopping
putting gas in the car
attending work
attending social events with friends and family
Feeling unmotivated / loss of energy
Faking smiles and happiness
Lack of or loss of interest in many areas across your life
goals, hobbies, social interactions, responsibilities, etc
Sleep isn’t restful
Unfulfilled
Feel like you go back and forth between depression and anxiety
Numbness
Irritability / overreacting
Thoughts of suicide
Unable or no reason to smile
Aches and pains that are unexplainable
Do any of these symptoms sound like you? If so it might be time to reach out for depression help.
You know that there has to be a way to live without depression.
Less Sadness
More Joy
A Depression Therapist in the San Francisco Bay Area Can Help You Find Your Joy!
Are you ready to leave that heavy feeling in the past? Not be numb anymore? Feel the sunshine on your face!
We have helped so many others face depression and piece by piece, get them out of the negative loop that keeps depression alive. Depression treatment helps people look forward to seeing friends & family without dread. Our depression therapist in the San Francisco Bay area has helped people look forward to showering and have enough energy to be able to do what they need to after!
When you have the energy and motivation to live life again, you get to become the person you want to be for yourself and others.
My Approach to Depression Treatment in the San Franciso Bay Area
I’ve battled depression (and anxiety) off and on almost my entire life, so I understand the deep pains of depression. Additionally, I know what it feels like to catch yourself laughing and thinking, “wow, I don’t remember the last time I did that!” I work so hard to help each person I work with experience that moment when joy enters their lives again. Once it starts, we keep digging for more of those moments, which become easier and easier.
As I’ve said on other pages, I don’t share my story for any other reason than to be transparent. To let you know that you aren’t alone. Depression, anxiety, grief, illnesses, stress, etc, happen to all of us. No one is immune from them and everyone needs help getting through them, even the professionals.
The Tools I Use…
Having been through it, treating depression has become a passion of mine. Using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is one of my favorite tools for depression and anxiety therapy. Not only is there a ton of research to support that it works, but seeing someone’s facial expression change because they had another “aha” moment in their thought pattern. Then having that little piece stick with them throughout their week and begin to experience positive and joyful changes in their day-to-day life is so profound and rewarding.
One of the things I hope all of my clients develop is to treat themselves with love, kindness, and respect. To learn to treat yourself like you would a friend and offer forgiveness when you’re hard on yourself. Depression is hard, and we are always hardest on ourselves. Offering that forgiveness piece back to yourself is a challenging thing to do, but one of the kindest things you can do for yourself.
I’m looking forward to helping you find joy again
-Stephanie
When You're Ready
Get Depression Treatment
in the San Francisco Bay Area at
Bay Area Therapy for Wellness
Our depression therapist is skilled and ready to help you reduce the ways depression is showing up.
This is how we are going to do it
Like anxiety, the most respected psychotherapy treatment for depression is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, usually called CBT. This isn’t a coincidence; there is mounting evidence that shows that depression and anxiety tend to be “married” in a sense. This means that if you have anxiety, there is a good chance that you also have depression and vice versa. They may or may not be present at the same time, but it’s a fascinating correlation that has come forward over the years.
When we talk about Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, the basics to remember are that we are exploring thoughts, feelings, and behaviors and how they influence each other. When it comes to depression, one of the things we look at is the negative feedback loop. The negative loop is essentially that - negative thoughts lead to negative feelings, leading to unhelpful behaviors, which are stuck on repeat. We want to disrupt this system and provide space for positive things to start popping in.
Sometimes, we need to dig deeper and tap into a psychodynamic approach. This essentially means that we will also explore how/if any unresolved issues and unconscious feelings are impacting moods and behaviors and contributing to the symptoms of depression.
During our time together, we will work through any contributing things that may be unresolved, and we will challenge your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Through all of this work that we will do together, you’ll gain new tools and insights to help you reframe your mindset and reduce your symptoms.
Even though all of this sounds good, you might still have some hesitation. The thought of picking up the phone might be too much right now. That’s okay. We have several ways to get in touch with us; you can pick up the phone, send a text an email, or fill out our forum on our contact page.
We know it’s scary, but we also know it’ll be worth it. Let’s connect.
Less Sadness
More Joy
Is it Grief or Depression?
If you’re feeling like, yes, this depression stuff sounds like what I am going through, but I’ve recently lost a loved one or a pet. Or maybe you had a huge life change. Then check out our page on grief counseling. Grief looks a lot like depression, but there are times when grief can change to depression. We’re skilled with grief and depression and can help you sort that out. Then you can be on the road to a life with less heaviness.
What about medications as a part of depression treatment?
The general consensus in the mental health field is that psychotherapy and medications are the most helpful when combined in treating depression.
With that being said, Stephanie has helped many people who didn’t need medications and a lot of people that did. The first step is almost always to try therapy first and add medication in later if we need an extra helping hand.
Stephanie is not a licensed psychiatrist or medical doctor and cannot prescribe any medication. If we get to a point where you want to try medication in addition to therapy, Stephanie is happy to help find a great psychiatrist. She is willing to work collaboratively with the doctor to meet your needs in depression treatment.
Start Depression Treatment in the San Francisco Bay Area
You’ve researched “depression symptoms” and now “depression help”. Now you made it here and we are glad you did! When you’re ready Bay Area Therapy for Wellness is ready to help you find that JOY again. Our depression therapist is here and ready to help you reignite that spark! Here’s how:
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You're already here
We know that reaching out to a depression therapist can make you feel crappy. But, you’re already here looking for depression help.
Use one of our easy ways to send a quick message (contact forum, phone call, email,l or text) saying “hey, I’m interested in getting depression help” and we will get back to you to schedule a time for your complimentary consultation.
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Complimentary Consultation Online
We have 20 minutes together to briefly touch on the depression symptoms and what you are hoping to get from therapy in the San Francisco Bay area.
We will also use this time to make sure we are a good fit for each other, we will both have time to ask and answer questions.
If you decide to move forward, we’ll schedule your first appointment.
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Start getting Help for Depression in the Bay Area
Our first session will include a brief overview of some paperwork and we’ll start getting to know each other and build our rapport. We’ll also go a little more in-depth over how you’ve been feeling lately. While also collecting some more history.
We’ll continue to meet from there and start working on sparking joy in your life again.
We can help!
Depression treatment isn’t the only online therapy we offer at Bay Area Therapy for Wellness. We are skilled in many different types of therapy that allow us to treat chronic medical conditions, caregiver burnout, feelings of grief, family counseling, anxiety, and more. We do all of this by offering virtual telehealth sessions for anyone in the state of California.
