Tag: anxiety

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Therapy 101: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy

If you’ve ever looked into getting therapy, then it’s likely that you’ve heard a lot of different terms thrown around to describe it. There are many different therapy techniques and modalities out there. This blog post is part of a series that is meant to explain some of the more common forms of therapy you’re likely to encounter as you look into potential therapists. 

What Is Acceptance and Commitment Therapy?

Acceptance and commitment therapy, better known as ACT, is a 3rd wave behavior therapy that has been gaining momentum. In recent years there have been studies looking into the effectiveness of ACT for a variety of uses.

Whereas CBT focuses on changing thoughts ACT focuses more on accepting thoughts and distressing feelings as part of life. Acceptance and commitment therapy is about learning skills on coping with distress, like DBT.

How does ACT Work?

ACT has 6 primary processes that it works on. The concept is that ACT is about increasing psychological flexibility, which is meant to help with coping with negative experiences. Naturally, one of these processes is acceptance. 

Acceptance is exactly what it sounds like, it means coming to accept the negative things that happen and the negative feelings, emotions, or thoughts we may be having. ACT does not encourage avoidance of these things or trying to change negative feelings into neutral or positive ones. 

Cognitive defusion is another component of psychological flexibility. When we talk about defusion in this sense, what we mean is altering how we think about negative things. Instead of trying to avoid them or change them, the focus is on changing the negative impact they have on us. 

Being present, something that is rooted in mindfulness, is also an aspect of ACT. It encourages individuals to be present in their feelings and the current moment, even when it’s unpleasant. It encourages non-judgemental evaluations of the world around them and the world inside of them. 

Mindfulness is also part of self as concept. This is something that in ACT is used to foster a sense of self that recognizes that events occur but they do not have to define the self. This is part of acceptance and tolerance of distressing things we may be experiencing. 

Values are one of the cornerstone components of ACT in that clients are encouraged to find meaning in their lives through values that they identify. These values are used to explore clients’ behaviors. This lets them see if these behaviors line up with the values they wish to live. 

Finally, committed action is a pattern of thinking that links all of the previous concepts together. It’s using the skills learned through therapy to formulate long-term goals for living in a way that will help them live up to their values. 

What is Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Used For?

ACT can be used in a variety of mental health contexts. It is often used for individuals with specific phobias, mood disorders, anxiety, and substance use disorder. ACT is also used for individuals who are experiencing high levels of stress, such as work stress, and life transitions. These transitions can include grief and loss, moving, marriage (though happy, this can still cause a lot of stress!), etc. There is also some research that has been exploring the use of ACT for individuals with chronic illness and pain. 

How do I Find an ACT Therapist?

Many therapists incorporate some form of ACT into their work. Here at Compassionate Counseling Company, we have a few! Emily, Niah, and Theresa all incorporate ACT into their work with clients. Also keep in mind that many therapists use core principles of ACT without listing themselves as using ACT. At the end of the day, it’s about your connection with a therapist and making sure your goals are aligned. 

Another way to find a therapist is to use your insurance’s provider list. You can look up the therapists in that database online to see what modalities they use with their clients!

Resources:

https://contextualscience.org/the_six_core_processes_of_act

https://positivepsychology.com/act-acceptance-and-commitment-therapy/#hero-single

https://www.socialworktoday.com/archive/090208p36.shtml

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Therapy 101: Dialectical Behavior Therapy

If you’ve ever looked into getting therapy, then it’s likely that you’ve heard a lot of different terms thrown around to describe it. There are many different therapy techniques and modalities out there. This blog post is part of a series that is meant to explain some of the more common forms of therapy you’re likely to encounter as you look into potential therapists. 

What is DBT?

DBT stands for dialectical behavioral therapy. It’s quickly becoming a very common form of therapy used by many clinicians and has many clinical studies to back up its effectiveness. Dialectical refers to the idea of reconciling two opposing thoughts, such as knowing someone has harmed you while also acknowledging they are not a bad person. 

This form of therapy was originally designed to help individuals with borderline personality disorder. BPD often comes with intense emotions and risky, usually self-destructive behavior as a result of emotional dysregulation. DBT is meant to help individuals tolerate distress more effectively and thus regulate their emotions more successfully. This in turn helps to reduce harmful behavior, such as self-harm and suicide attempts.

When followed strictly, DBT uses a combination of one-on-one therapy with a client and a trained therapist and group skills sessions. There is also a “light” form of DBT that removes the group skills sessions and involves only the one-on-one therapy.

Can DBT be Used for Other Purposes?

DBT has been shown to be effective in treating eating disorders (especially binge eating and bulimia), bipolar disorder, PTSD, and schizophrenia. It can also be used with those who have major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and other similar mental illnesses. 

How Does It Work?

Dialectical behavioral therapy approaches clients’ problems with the idea that there is some sort of skills deficit that is making it difficult for clients to cope with their emotions and things that go on. Harmful behaviors stem from high levels of distress as a result of this. Through this idea, DBT focuses on skills building and also on increasing distress tolerance in clients. 

There are four basic skills that therapists work with clients on: mindfulness, emotional regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness. 

Therapists will use a variety of activities and help teach clients different ways they can work on these skills outside of the session. 

In more traditional DBT there are four stages that therapy proceeds in. It starts with helping to stabilize the client if they’re in crisis and allowing them to feel safe. The second stage focuses on exploring emotional pain. In the third stage, clients work on setting SMART goals and maintaining healthy behaviors. Finally, in the fourth stage, clients look at the big picture and work towards achieving them. 

How do I Find a Therapist?

There are many ways to find a DBT therapist. Right here at Compassionate Counseling Company we have clinicians who integrate DBT into their sessions (Niah, Kelly, Jessica, and Emily). However, if you’re looking for the more traditional form of DBT, then the DBT-Linehan Board of Certification is the best place to find one. If you plan to use insurance, make sure the provider is covered under your plan! You can use your insurance company’s provider search to check. 

Resources:

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/22838-dialectical-behavior-therapy-dbt

https://dialecticalbehaviortherapy.com/

https://eddinscounseling.com/dbt-101-dialectical-behavior-therapy

https://www.mcleanhospital.org/essential/dbt

https://www.verywellmind.com/dialectical-behavior-therapy-1067402

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Therapy 101 : CBT

If you’ve ever looked into getting therapy, then it’s likely that you’ve heard a lot of different terms thrown around to describe it. There are many different therapy techniques and modalities out there. This blog post is part of a series that is meant to explain some of the more common forms of therapy you’re likely to encounter as you look into potential therapists. 

What is CBT?

Cognitive behavioral therapy, better known by the acronym CBT, is the most popular form of therapy used today. The focus of CBT is to address how people react to their thoughts and feelings and how these reactions then cause them to behave. The thoughts are the cognitive part and the behavior reaction is the behavioral part of CBT.

The belief of CBT is that when we have distorted thoughts we can then have maladaptive reactions to them which then make us unhappy. These reactions and behaviors then go on to contribute to worsening mental health symptoms. 

There are also many third-wave therapies based on CBT which we will cover in later posts, like DBT and ACT. 

What is CBT Used For?

CBT is used to treat a large variety of problems. It is often the first line of treatment for depression and anxiety. It has also been successfully used in individuals with bipolar, schizophrenia, eating disorders, OCD, and many more. It’s generally considered a short-form treatment, with many people finishing their sessions within a few months. 

You don’t need to have a mental illness to go to therapy and get CBT, however. It’s also been used for those with self-esteem problems, life transitions, grief and loss, relationship issues, and insomnia. 

How Does CBT Work?

One of the core focuses of cognitive behavioral therapy is distorted thinking or more formally known as cognitive distortions. These can be broken down into 15 main categories. By addressing these different types of distortions, therapists work together with their clients to form healthier thinking habits.

These thoughts can be addressed in a variety of ways. For example, many therapists employ having the clients journal about negative thoughts in order to work on them in therapy and at home. Many therapists also assist clients in setting SMART goals, which is something we discussed in a previous post about New Year’s Resolutions. 

How Can I Get This Therapy?

The majority of therapists today use either CBT or a combination of it and other modalities. Often on their profiles either on their websites or on online databases, they will list which disorders or concerns they specialize in and which modalities they use to do this. 

Finding a therapist who can help you using CBT is easier than you would think! For example, many of the clinicians working here at Compassionate Counseling Company use CBT with their clients. 

Resources:

https://www.healthline.com/health/cognitive-behavioral-therapy#takeaway

https://positivepsychology.com/cbt-cognitive-behavioral-therapy-techniques-worksheets/#hero-single

https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-cognitive-behavior-therapy-2795747

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Make 2025 The Year To Focus on Mental Health

Mental health. It’s something we all need to take care of and thankfully something our society is starting to take more seriously. However, it can still be difficult to put a focus on this important aspect of our health. Things get in the way, maybe we’re embarrassed, or maybe we just don’t know where to begin. It can be intimidating to know how to focus on improving or maintaining good mental health. 

I Don’t Have a Disorder, Why Should I Care?

You don’t need to have a diagnosable mental health disorder in order to care about this aspect of health. Our physical health and our mental health are very closely linked. Neglecting one can often cause issues in the other. Staying ahead of that by putting a focus on maintaining mental health or improving it can help also maintain physical health. 

Poor mental health can also contribute to developing a diagnosable disorder. You may not have one now, but if your mental health starts to suffer and you don’t have any way of improving it, you could go on to develop depression or anxiety. Prevention in this case would have been the key. 

When our mental health is suffering, we can often let other areas of our lives slide. Relationships with others, sleep, work, these things and more can all be impacted by difficult stretches. 

How Can I Focus on Mental Health?

There are a lot of ways we can work on improving mental health. It’s important to sit down and really think about what areas of life you feel good in currently and which you think you could use more help with. For example, do you find that you have great relationships but you tend to feel overwhelmed or stressed at work? Then focusing on maintaining those relationships and improving your work stress would be a route to go down. Without knowing how you’re really doing it can be difficult to know what needs improvement and what just needs some regular maintenance. 

Some people work well with lists, be that on paper or digitally, and others work better just thinking things through or talking out loud. Whatever method works for you, use it to evaluate your current mental health strengths and weaknesses so you can build a plan going forward.

What Are Things I Can Do?

Maintaining healthy routines like exercising regularly, getting good sleep, and eating balanced meals can be a great start. It can also be good to try and work on things like breathing exercises or other grounding techniques in order to help get you through stressful moments. 

Make sure to keep your relationships strong. Technology can help a lot with this but try not to rely on it entirely. When it comes to improving mental health, face-to-face time can often be more beneficial to talking to someone through text or video call. 

If you have a pet, consider spending more time with them. Pets can help reduce blood pressure and loneliness. If you don’t have one, don’t worry! This is just one method of reducing loneliness. You can volunteer, pick up a new hobby that involves spending time with others, or just focus more on your friends and family. 

Try being more positive. This doesn’t mean to only be positive or to deny negative feelings or experiences. That’s toxic positivity and it’s usually counterintuitive. Instead, try being more positive in the sense of when good things happen, hold onto those happy feelings. Use that to try and combat small annoyances or upsets in your life and soften the blow of negative experiences. 

Practicing gratitude every day can be helpful, too. It doesn’t have to be big things that you’re grateful for. Sometimes just being grateful for your favorite kind of weather can have a positive effect on. It’s about taking the time to notice the small things in life that make it better, easier, or just more pleasant.

What if These Things Don’t Work?

If you’ve tried every improvement trick in the book, then you may need outside help. This can be either seeing a therapist or a psychiatrist for medication. Seeing a therapist can help us with improving mental health by giving up a place to talk about the difficult things with someone who is a neutral party. 

Another option, usually best done in conjunction with therapy, is seeking medication from a trained professional in psychiatric medication management. Some mental health problems need the chemical changes that come with medication in order to best manage them. If working on things on your own and with a therapist haven’t been enough to help manage your symptoms, then medication may be necessary. 

Resources:

https://www.family-institute.org/sharing-our-expertise/50-ways-improve-mental-health

https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/caring-for-your-mental-health

https://medlineplus.gov/howtoimprovementalhealth.html

https://www.mhanational.org/31-tips-boost-your-mental-health

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The Mental Health Consequences of New Year’s Resolutions

The year 2024 is coming to an end. Through everything, we have made it here! This is the time of year when we start reviewing how the year has gone and we start looking towards the new year. There are things we want to change or things we want to have stay the same. Many of us make resolutions to achieve these things. But are New Year’s Resolutions always the best answer? 

Why We Make Resolutions

Usually, we’re inspired to make these changes in our lives for some reason or another. Maybe we want to get healthier in some way or change habits we feel are holding us back. For some of us, we want to set some kind of goal in a skill we already have. For others, they want to gain a new skill. 

We make resolutions because we want to better ourselves in some way. But we also make them so that we can look back on the year and note if we’ve made positive progress towards something. It’s important to many people to feel as if they’ve done something good for themselves or pushed to become a better version of themselves. 

However, we also put a lot of pressure on ourselves because of the social importance of New Year’s Day. 

Why Many of us Fail 

That pressure we put on ourselves is a big contributing factor! We focus less on why we made the goal or resolution in the first place and more on how we’ll feel at the end of the year if we fail. This just sets us up for failure because we’re being motivated by fear and shame instead of something positive. 

Another reason is that many of us set vague resolutions and not measurable goals. What does “get healthier” really mean? This is so difficult to measure and understand that it can seem as if we’ve made no progress towards this goal, even if we have! It’s important to set specific goals because of this. The seeming lack of progress can be really disheartening for someone who is working hard towards something. 

Negative Mental Health Consequences of Resolutions

When we “fail” at fulfilling our New Year’s resolutions, it can feel as if we’re just stuck. Some of us can feel as if we’ll never achieve anything, never fix a bad habit, or never realize our dreams. This is incredibly difficult to deal with, especially year after year, and it can lead to anxiety and depression in some people. These negative feelings and thoughts can be really detrimental to many people. 

If we’ve failed at these same resolutions before, the anticipatory failure can also contribute to greater anxiety and depression. It can be something we dread every year and yet we still set the same goals and approach them in the same way. This generally isn’t good for most people’s mental health and it’s why many of us feel so badly by mid-March. 

There’s also an issue with the “new year, new me” approach. This encourages us to make so many changes all at once that it becomes overwhelming. This isn’t a sustainable or long-term way of approaching making positive changes in our lives. Small, incremental changes make for much better and long-lasting effects in our lives. 

Is it Possible to Set and Achieve Resolutions?

Of course! Not only is it possible in general, but it’s also possible to approach them in a healthier way that can contribute to better mental health, not worse. In next week’s blog post, we’ll be discussing how to go about setting New Year’s Goals as opposed to New Year’s Resolutions. Not that you need to set goals around a specific time! 

That’s another important thing to remember. Sometimes the best time to start working towards a new goal is June 27th, May 18th, or even December 3rd. The point is that the best time to start working towards goals is the time that you’re ready to. Trying to push yourself to set and achieve goals based on a certain day of the year is just setting yourself up for trying to achieve something you may not be mentally ready for, which sets you up for failure. 

Resources:

https://centerstone.org/our-resources/health-wellness/how-new-years-resolutions-impact-mental-health/

https://www.choosingtherapy.com/new-years-resolutions

https://www.columbiapsychiatry.org/news/are-your-new-years-resolutions-faltering

https://www.everydayhealth.com/emotional-health/why-not-to-make-a-new-years-resolution

https://www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org/2020/01/realistic-new-years-resolutions-for-your-mental-health/

https://www.nami.org/people/mental-health-resolutions-for-the-new-year/

https://www.psychiatry.org/news-room/apa-blogs/americans-top-5-new-years-resolutions

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Transition Stress: The Anxiety of Change and How to Cope

As we approach the end of the year, there’s so many things on our minds. Many of us are planning holiday parties or get togethers. Many are wondering what to gift, make, or how they’ll spend their time. And often we think about changes we want to make in our lives. The end of the year really makes us sit and think about things ending, changing, or transitioning. Of course it can make us excited or hopeful but these transitions can also be stressful. 

Why Do Transitions Feel So Stressful?

The short answer is that we don’t really love change, even if change is good for us. It can be difficult to go from thinking about something one way to then thinking about it a new way. It takes time to adjust to that and it can be stressful, depending on what it is. And if the changes we’re implementing come with new routines or schedules, that can make things even more difficult for us. 

We love patterns. It’s how our brains evolved to work and finding patterns in things makes us comfortable. There’s safety in knowing what’s going to happen next. If it’s a transition we weren’t expecting or had no choice over, it can add a feeling of helplessness and loss of control that makes it difficult to cope. This can cause some serious anxiety when thinking about the transition or changes that are coming. 

What Kind of Transitions Can Affect Us?

Technically, anything that brings change to our lives can affect us and stress us out. Moving, changing jobs, having a baby, and getting married tend to be the big ones that people think about. But consider how for children, the end of the year signals the end of a school semester. For some of them, it means potentially not having friends in any of their classes when the new semester starts. Maybe it means a new teacher they’re never met before. Even though these things aren’t necessarily bad, they can absolutely affect someone’s mental health. 

Making changes to our health can also cause stress. Maybe you’re cutting back on caffeine. Some people experience withdrawals from this that can be pretty unpleasant, including headaches. It also means a change in your routine of not going to the coffee shop as often or making something different in the morning to drink at home. These are little things that can add up if you’re already struggling with other things. 

Is There Anything We Can Do?

We can’t avoid change, not forever. Change is good for us in the long run even if it doesn’t feel good at the moment. Some stress management techniques can help in the moment for dealing with these uncomfortable feelings. We’ve explored some of these techniques in a previous post about grounding techniques. These can be used if you feel overwhelmed or very anxious due to these changes. 

Another option is to talk to someone you trust. Leaning on social supports during times of transition can be especially helpful. They often understand the impact these things can have on you and are likely to be able to support you through tough transitions. They can be there to remind you of the reasons this will be good in the end and they can also help you cope. 

However, if talking to a loved one doesn’t help, consider reaching out to a therapist. Many people go to therapy just to help cope with transitions and changes. It can help to get someone neutral to chime in on what’s going on and to help listen to you. 

Change doesn’t have to be difficult to cope with long term and there are options out there for help dealing with them. But do remember that it’s normal to struggle with change and that it’s normal to be anxious during these moments. 

Resources:

https://blog.calm.com/blog/transition-anxiety

https://balancedthoughtstherapy.com/blog/why-are-transitions-so-stressful

https://bettertogethertherapy.co/what-are-the-psychological-effects-of-transition

https://www.crusescotland.org.uk/about-us/news-and-blogs/the-impact-of-transitions-and-how-to-cope-with-them

https://marblewellness.com/post/why-are-life-transitions-so-hard-navigating-change-with-resilience/

https://manhattancbt.com/life-transitions/

https://psychcentral.com/anxiety/how-to-manage-anxiety-during-periods-of-transition#definition

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The Mental Health Benefits of Counseling

Almost every week, we mention how speaking to a therapist or counselor can be of benefit for addressing a variety of needs. However, this is the first time we’ll be addressing the benefits of counseling more closely. Of course it can be used to address specific mental health disorders but it also has more far reaching benefits than just helping people to cope with mental illness.

What is Therapy?

Therapy, or counseling, often refers to talk-therapy or talk-psychotherapy. This is a form of treatment which involves speaking to a trained professional about a problem you’re having. The professional then uses evidence based practices to help you build skills to then address whatever concern brought you to therapy.

One of the main benefits of counseling is that there is no one size fits all approach. There are so many different forms of therapy. For example, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is one of the most well-known forms. And many people often think of psychodynamic or psychoanalytic therapy when they first imagine therapy (you know, Freud and a couch). 

However, there is also ACT, DBT, EMDR, ERT, and many, many more. Many of these forms of therapy were developed to target specific mental disorders or problems that people may be having. Motivational Interviewing (MI), for example, was developed for addressing substance use disorder. 

What Does Therapy Help With?

There are many benefits of counseling to consider. Of course, it can help with mental illness, such as depression or anxiety disorders. However, it can also help with things like coping with grief or loss, dealing with stress, handling transitions, and other issues people may be facing. 

Therapy can also help with working on self-esteem, problem solving skills, self-confidence, and coping with rough patches in your life. Most people who go to therapy only do so for a short period of time, usually to help resolve a current issue such as the death of a loved one. 

People also seek out therapy to help with communication skills, relationship problems, and for help addressing conflicts they may be facing in life. 

How Do I Find a Therapist?

Word of mouth is an excellent way of finding a therapist. Ask around and see if you can get recommendations from doctors or people you know who have gone to therapy. Your insurance provider is also a great resource for finding a therapist as that will be the easiest way to insure that the cost of your sessions will be covered. 

We have a large list of clinicians here that are also an option for those looking into the benefits of counseling and considering getting counseling themselves. 

Resources:

https://www.avila.edu/2022/12/13/5-benefits-of-working-with-a-mental-health-counselor/

https://www.coe.edu/student-life/health-wellness/mental-health-counseling/potential-benefits-counseling

https://www.harmonyridgerecovery.com/10-benefits-of-mental-health-counseling

https://www.healthline.com/health/benefits-of-therapy

https://www.mhanational.org/therapy

https://positivepsychology.com/counseling-process

https://online.sbu.edu/news/5-ways-mental-health-counseling-builds-stronger-communities

https://www.verywellhealth.com/benefits-of-therapy-5219732

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Cancer and Mental Health

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, which is arguably one of the most discussed cancers in the media. There is a large push to get those assigned female at birth to check themselves regularly for lumps or anything that may feel out of the ordinary. Regular breast screenings are incredibly important to your overall health as early detection of cancer is critical for the best outcomes with treatment. However, one thing that is often not discussed is how cancer and mental health can intersect. 

Cancer and Mental Health

Receiving a cancer diagnosis of any kind can be absolutely life changing and devastating. This is not only true for the patient themselves but also for their loved ones. Many of the treatments can be difficult on the body and certain cancers carry with them lower chances of survival, especially if caught late. 

Some of the most common concerns with cancer and mental health are anxiety and depression, with social isolation as a result of cancer being a risk factor for worsening mental health. 

Many cancer patients experience fear, uncertainty, anger, and disbelief after a cancer diagnosis. There can be a sense of “why me” or “did I do something to deserve this?” This can be especially true for cancers such as lung cancer, which are often related to smoking. However, it is important to understand that no one deserves to get cancer and that doctors are still unsure as to why some people develop it while others don’t. 

Because of the serious nature of a cancer diagnosis, it can be difficult to talk to others about it. This can help contribute to isolation and loneliness. Sometimes cancer patients avoid talking about it out of fear of making others uncomfortable and sometimes it’s because they themselves don’t want to talk about it. It can be helpful to broach the topic with those closest to you just to get their support, if you’re comfortable with it. 

All the feelings someone could have around a cancer diagnosis are perfectly normal. There is nothing inherently wrong with feeling anxious, sad, angry, or any other negative emotion as a result of a diagnosis of this kind. However, when those feelings start to make life more difficult or are getting in the way of quality of life, it’s time to reach out for more support. 

When to Reach Out

Some mental health disorders can be difficult to distinguish from symptoms of cancer or side effects from treatment. For example, depression. Sadness from a cancer diagnosis is perfectly normal and those feelings will wax and wane over time. Depression, however, is much more serious and could require treatment for the best outcomes. 

  • Signs to look out for:
    • Fatigue
    • Changes in appetite
    • Weight loss or gain
    • Changes in sleep patterns
    • Irritability
    • Feeling hopeless
    • Feeling worthless
    • Extreme levels of guilt (out of proportion)

If you feel you may want to harm yourself or are thinking of killing yourself, reach out to your care team ASAP to get help with these feelings. There are many options available for help. 

The standard treatments for depression are something we’ve covered in our blog post about major depressive disorder. However, it is important to know that when it comes to cancer and mental health, one needs to consider the specific ways in which depression can impact treatment and quality of life and how cancer can contribute to MDD. 

Taking care of mental health is associated with better mental health outcomes, possibly because of the likelihood of adhering to treatment and being open to learning more about the diagnosis and what can be done. Being more proactively involved in your treatment plan can make a difference for long-term outcomes. 

How Does Cancer Contribute to Depression?

There are many things about a cancer diagnosis that can impact the likelihood of developing depression. One of the major things is the sense of loneliness and feeling like there’s no one you can open to. It’s incredibly isolating to feel as if you have to hide large parts of yourself from loved ones. 

Other factors include:

  • Body image (self conscious because of bodily changes)
  • Guilt (“Did I do something for this to happen?”)
  • Change in daily activities and plans
  • Change in energy levels
  • Pain
  • The fear of dying
  • Anxiety and panic due to uncertainty and fear
  • Fear of cancer coming back after treatment
  • Fear of what will happen to family
  • Anxiety over medical costs
  • Not being able to work
  • The need for others to help care for them (loss of independence)
  • Long hospital stays

It is worth mentioning that these things can also contribute to worsening mental health of the loved ones of a cancer patient. If someone in your life has been diagnosed with cancer and you feel as if you may be becoming depressed, reach out to someone for more support. 

What Can Help Support Mental Health?

There are many different things someone can do to help support or improve their mental health after a cancer diagnosis. With cancer and mental health support, it’s important that your cancer care team is part of some of these choices. Depending on your health and needs, some options may not be suitable, so get guidance from your care team before making any major changes. 

Somethings you can do:

  • Support groups
  • Therapy
  • Medication
  • Mindfulness practices like
    • Meditation
    • Journaling
    • Yoga
    • Breathing exercises
  • Eating balanced, nutritious meals
  • Light exercise, if possible (check with your care team)
  • Seeking out social support from loved ones
  • Pastoral counseling, for those who are spiritual, can be very helpful
  • Spending time with pets/animals
  • Keeping to your normal routine within reasonable limitations

It can also be helpful to ask the care team where you go for appointments or treatment about what options they have at the facility to help support cancer and mental health together. It could be that there are options you’re not even aware of that are there!

Things to ask about:

  • Therapy dogs at the facility you attend for treatment
  • Counselors at the facility you attend
  • Social workers who can connect you to counselors, especially those who specialize in the mental health needs of cancer patients

Cancer can be a life changing diagnosis, especially if caught in the later stages. However, people are living longer and with higher quality of life even with advanced cancer than they ever have before. While all feelings around cancer are valid, you don’t have to suffer with poor mental health, too. Make sure to seek out help, whether you’re the patient or a loved one. When it comes to cancer and mental health, you have options to take care of yourself and support the best quality of life for yourself. 

Resources:

https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/coping/feelings

https://www.cancer.org/cancer/survivorship/coping/support-service-animals.html

https://www.cancer.org/cancer/managing-cancer/side-effects/emotional-mood-changes.html

https://www.macmillan.org.uk/cancer-information-and-support/treatment/coping-with-treatment/cancer-and-your-emotions

https://www.mhanational.org/cancer-and-mental-health

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Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Can Affect Anyone

May was Mental Health Awareness Month and on our socials, we shared information about different mental health topics throughout last month. These blog posts are part of a series where we expand on those topics and offer more information. 

Post-traumatic stress disorder, more commonly known as PTSD, is a mental health disorder that develops as a response to a traumatic event. Currently, we’re not sure what exactly causes PTSD, as most people who experience trauma do not develop PTSD. We do know that people who were assigned female at birth are much more likely to develop PTSD than those who were assigned male at birth. We also have current statistics for PTSD: 3.6% of the US adult population has PTSD with 37% of those with PTSD having severe symptoms. It usually develops within months of the traumatic event and symptoms can last months, years, or even be life-long. Treatment is critical for helping to manage these systems. 

Traumatic events that have been linked to development of PTSD are: sexual assault, abuse, witnessing a death, combat/war, terrorist attacks, being in an accident, and even experiencing the trauma of a loved one second hand. 

Often, the symptoms are broken down into four main categories: re-experiencing, avoidance, cognitive/mood, and arousal. 

Re-experiencing:

  • Recurring, intrusive thoughts about the event
  • Flashbacks
  • Bad dreams
  • Intrusive memories
  • Avoidance:
    • Avoiding the place where it happened
    • Avoiding people who remind you of the event
    • Avoiding objects or other things that remind you of the event
  • Cognitive/Mood:
    • Memory problems related to the event
    • Negative self-image or thoughts
    • Guilt or shame
    • Numbness or depression
    • Anxiety
    • Derealization
    • Dissociation
  • Arousal:
    • Hypervigilance
    • Easily startled
    • Difficulty concentrating
    • Sleep disturbances
    • Irritability

Children have also been diagnosed with PTSD and we often see them develop it in response to many of the same situations that adults do. However, they can show some different symptoms such as:

  • Regression (for example, a toilet-trained child suddenly wetting the bed)
  • Unusual and sudden clinginess (usually to a parent or another trusted adult)
  • Re-enacting the traumatic events through play

Early diagnosis and treatment is critical for the best possible outcome for an individual with PTSD. This can help with reducing the severity of symptoms or even eliminating some of them entirely. Treatment can help the individual get back to a healthy level of everyday functioning and help them manage symptoms such as nightmares, flashbacks, and many of the other distressing symptoms of PTSD.

Treatments generally include medications, such as SSRIs, and therapy. Therapy usually consists of some form of CBT (like exposure therapy and recognitive structuring) and EMDR. Learning self-management techniques is also critical to successful therapy, such as the ability to self-soothe and use mindfulness strategies. 

PTSD can co-occur with other disorders like depression, OCD, panic disorder, and substance use disorder. Often, treating these disorders co-currently is the best way to see improvement, as PTSD improves with the treatment of OCD, for example, and OCD improves with the treatment of PTSD.

Want help with PTSD? Look at our list of clinicians and contact us to book an appointment.

Resources:

https://adaa.org/understanding-anxiety/posttraumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd

https://www.nami.org/About-Mental-Illness/Mental-Health-Conditions/Posttraumatic-Stress-Disorder

https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd

https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd#part_6135

https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/ptsd/what-is-ptsd

https://www.samhsa.gov/mental-health/post-traumatic-stress-disorder

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When Worrying Takes Over: Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Our next post for Mental Health Awareness Month, which was in May, is going to focus on generalized anxiety disorder, or GAD. On our socials, we covered these topics during May and these blog posts are part of that series, expanding on those topics and giving more information. According to WHO, 4% of the global population experience an anxiety disorder. And NIMH reports that 20% of adults in the US have an anxiety disorder. There are many different kinds of anxiety disorders but GAD is the most common. However, there is concern that GAD is actually underdiagnosed because of societal stigma and lack of education about anxiety disorders. Due to the fact that many symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder feel primarily physical as opposed to purely psychological, many people mistake their symptoms for signs of a physical ailment.

It generally develops in adulthood, around age 30, but it is common across all age groups, including children. It’s diagnosed twice as often in women and people assigned female at birth, though at this time it’s unclear why. Some research suggests that societal factors could play a role in this.

Risk factors for developing generalized anxiety disorder include: experiencing child abuse or trauma, having a chronic illness, living with a lot of stress, and substance use (such as: alcohol, nicotine, caffeine, and recreational drugs). It often co-occurs with other mental health disorders, such as major depressive disorder, or MDD, which we described in a previous post. 

Symptoms of Generalized Anxiety Disorder

There are many symptoms of GAD to look out for. If any of these symptoms interfere with your daily life or relationships, it could be time to seek out a diagnosis and treatment. Symptoms must be present for at least 6 months:

  • Worry excessively about everyday things
  • Have trouble controlling their worries or feelings of nervousness
  • Know that they worry much more than they should
  • Feel restless and have trouble relaxing
  • Have a hard time concentrating
  • Startle easily
  • Have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep
  • Tire easily or feel tired all the time
  • Have headaches, muscle aches, stomachaches, or unexplained pains
  • Have a hard time swallowing
  • Tremble or twitch
  • Feel irritable or “on edge”
  • Sweat a lot, feel lightheaded, or feel out of breath
  • Have to go to the bathroom frequently
  • Children and teens are more likely to worry about school performance and the health of loved ones

Treatment

Generalized anxiety disorder is very treatable, even in chronic cases. However, it is important to seek out treatment as soon as possible to ensure the best outcome. There are a variety of treatments including medications, therapy, and some complementary additions someone can use to help their GAD along with other treatments. Medications, such as SSRIs, SNRIs, and buspirone are commonly prescribed to help treat GAD. Benzodiazepines were once a common treatment but are no longer generally recommended due to concerns about dependency and limited long-term effectiveness. CBT and ACT are common forms of therapy used, often in conjunction with medication, to treat GAD. 

There are also complementary changes someone can make that can be added to the above treatments. For example, some lifestyle changes like limiting caffeine and nicotine, can help reduce anxiety symptoms. Mindfulness like meditation and journaling are also often recommended. Getting enough sleep, exercise, and joining support groups for those also experiencing anxiety are commonly added as recommendations to traditional treatments. 

With proper treatment, many people go on to be able to return to their normal routines and regain functioning and quality of life. The earlier the treatment, the more quickly someone can return to their lives and the more effective treatments are likely to be.

Resources:

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/23940-generalized-anxiety-disorder-gad

https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/generalized-anxiety-disorder-gad#part_6119

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK441870

https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/anxiety-disorders

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