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Therapists Raleigh-Durham NC - Third Wave Psychotherapy Therapists Raleigh-Durham NC - Third Wave Psychotherapy
  • Home
  • Therapists, Counselors, & Coaches
    • North Raleigh
      • Amanda Bloom, LPC, NCC
      • Ashley Davis LMFT
      • Caitlin Kline, LCSW
    • Downtown Raleigh
      • Marie Agius, PhD, LPC, LCAS
      • Carlos Bello, LPC
      • Jordan Bunch, LCSW
      • Megan Davis, LCSW
      • Jamie Grisham, PsyD, MPH
      • Bryan Landaas, LCSW
    • Wellness Hub (North Raleigh)
      • Carlos Bello, LPC
      • Jordan Bunch, LCSW
      • Jennifer Frederick
      • Melissa Harvey, LMFT
      • Christina Kurpiel LPC
      • Bryan Landaas, LCSW
    • Durham
      • Carlos Bello, LPC
      • Jamie Grisham, PsyD, MPH
      • Alan Harper, LCSW
      • Christina Kurpiel LPC
  • Psychotherapy
    • Therapy Groups
      • Overcoming Social Anxiety
    • Online Therapy
    • Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
    • Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT)
    • Couples Therapy Raleigh NC
    • Dialectical Behavior Therapy
    • Family therapy Raleigh NC
    • Marriage Counseling
    • PTSD Therapy
    • Treatment for Depression
    • Treatment for Anxiety
    • Stress Reduction & Management
  • Mind + Body
    • Yoga & Mindfulness Classes
    • Wellness Coaching
  • About
    • Pricing
      • How To Pay for Therapy
      • Psychotherapy Pricing
      • Life & Wellness Coaching Pricing
    • Contact & Locations
      • North Raleigh, NC
      • Downtown Raleigh, NC
      • Wellness Hub (North Raleigh)
      • Durham, NC
    • Join the Third Wave Team
      • Employment

Treatment for Depression

Get Help Now! Click or Call (919) 886-4052
What is Depression?
Common Signs & Symptoms
Treatment for Depression
The Third Wave Approach

What is Depression?

Depression is among the most common mental health concerns. People of all ages are vulnerable to experiencing symptoms of depression including persistent sadness, loss of interest, social withdrawal, change in appetite, sleep, and energy levels, and decreased concentration. In the most severe cases, a person may experience thoughts of harming themselves or suicide. When any of the above symptoms begin to interfere with a person’s life or cause health or safety concerns, seeking professional help from a trained mental health professional (e.g., therapist, counselor, psychologist, psychiatrist) is highly recommended.

Learn More


  • NIMH website on depression

  • Mayo Clinic website on depression

  • NAMI website on depression

Depression – Common Signs & Symptoms

The hallmark feature of depression is persistent sadness, feeling down or blue, and oftentimes irritability and/or anger. In addition to these changes in mood, an individual experiencing depression will also experience many of the symptoms listed below.

Thinking

  • Rumination
  • Hopelessness
  • Loss of motivation (e.g., nothing seems enjoyable)
  • Thoughts of harming oneself
  • Suicidal thoughts

Physical

  • Change in appetite (e.g., increased or decreased)
  • Change in sleep (e.g., sleeping more/less, poor quality)
  • Decreased energy
  • Fatigue
  • Decreased concentration and focus

Behavior

  • Social withdrawal
  • Inactivity
  • Staying in bed longer than usual
  • Avoiding stressful situations (e.g., work, school)
  • Increased substance use/abuse
  • Self-harm (e.g., cutting, burning)
  • Suicide attempts

Psychotherapy for Depression

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Widely known as CBT, Cognitive Behavior Therapy targets your thoughts.  Events trigger thoughts, which directly affect our feelings and consequently determine our actions. CBT recognizes you cannot change every situation, so therapists work with you on changing the way you think about events by reframing negative, unhelpful thoughts into more realistic, helpful thoughts.  CBT teaches you to control what you can control: yourself.  The goal of CBT is to help clients determine the accuracy of their negative thoughts and form alternative, healthier ones.  Clients also work on changing depressed behavior patterns that result from dysfunctional thinking.  Unhelpful thoughts are the foundation of depression, so creating healthy, alternative thoughts will alleviate depressed moods.

CBT focuses on cognitive restructuring (reframing thoughts) and the present (immediacy).  Client and therapist work together to uncover core beliefs he/she has about him-/herself and how those beliefs affect the content of his/her thoughts. Therapy reveals clients’ value systems and how they determine their worth. What and how clients think about a situation is more important than the reason why they process information in a particular way.  Therapy is time-limited (usually lasting 12-20 weeks), goal oriented, and targets specific issues one at a time using an educational approach, having clients write down their negative thoughts in a Daily Thought Record or journal and scheduling activities to increase behavioral activation.  Common techniques used by cognitive behavioral therapists include Socratic Questioning, role playing, guided discovery, and imagery.  Clients are expected to be interactive, completing regular homework assignments and in-session activities.

Research suggests CBT is as effective as antidepressants and attends to the lingering symptoms medication does not improve.  It is an especially effective therapy for people whose symptoms are not as intense and for which medication is less appropriate.

 

Behavioral Activation

Behavioral activation is both a stand-alone treatment and essential component of CBT used to assist clients in reducing depressed moods and improve problem-solving skills. Depression often leads to a lack of structure and activity and one way to combat depressed moods is to develop a daily routine and execute small tasks within it.  Therapists help individuals learn to challenge themselves and make strides toward acting in the manner they did before depression.  People experiencing depression often become less active because they believe there is no point in doing things they once found pleasurable, but this only worsens their symptoms. Therapists help clients begin to re-master enjoyable behaviors, their depression levels will decrease.

To schedule an appointment please click here or call (919) 886-4052 for more information about our depression treatment services in Raleigh and Durham NC.

Learn More


  • NIMH website on depression

  • Mayo Clinic website on depression

  • NAMI website on depression

TW logo white letters

Our Approach to the Treatment of Depression

Our approach to treating depression is to gain a better understanding of the function that depressive symptoms serve in our clients' lives and help find healthier, more effective strategies to meet those needs.

Get Help Now! Click or Call (919) 886-4052
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    © 2019 — Third Wave Psychotherapy PLLC

    • Home
    • Therapists, Counselors, & Coaches
      • North Raleigh
        • Amanda Bloom, LPC, NCC
        • Ashley Davis LMFT
        • Caitlin Kline, LCSW
      • Downtown Raleigh
        • Marie Agius, PhD, LPC, LCAS
        • Carlos Bello, LPC
        • Jordan Bunch, LCSW
        • Megan Davis, LCSW
        • Jamie Grisham, PsyD, MPH
        • Bryan Landaas, LCSW
      • Wellness Hub (North Raleigh)
        • Carlos Bello, LPC
        • Jordan Bunch, LCSW
        • Jennifer Frederick
        • Melissa Harvey, LMFT
        • Christina Kurpiel LPC
        • Bryan Landaas, LCSW
      • Durham
        • Carlos Bello, LPC
        • Jamie Grisham, PsyD, MPH
        • Alan Harper, LCSW
        • Christina Kurpiel LPC
    • Psychotherapy
      • Therapy Groups
        • Overcoming Social Anxiety
      • Online Therapy
      • Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
      • Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT)
      • Couples Therapy Raleigh NC
      • Dialectical Behavior Therapy
      • Family therapy Raleigh NC
      • Marriage Counseling
      • PTSD Therapy
      • Treatment for Depression
      • Treatment for Anxiety
      • Stress Reduction & Management
    • Mind + Body
      • Yoga & Mindfulness Classes
      • Wellness Coaching
    • About
      • Pricing
        • How To Pay for Therapy
        • Psychotherapy Pricing
        • Life & Wellness Coaching Pricing
      • Contact & Locations
        • North Raleigh, NC
        • Downtown Raleigh, NC
        • Wellness Hub (North Raleigh)
        • Durham, NC
      • Join the Third Wave Team
        • Employment