Therapy for Adults
We believe the goal of psychotherapy is helping you to become more aware of your own feelings and the feelings of others, allowing you to make healthy and responsible choices. There are numerous ways to accomplish this, based on your own specific needs and issues. You might benefit from the help of a professional therapist if you: (Please click on any of these topics for more information.)
- feel stressed or anxious
- have problems with alcohol or drugs
- experience difficulty in relationships
- suffer intense feelings of anxiety at times
- have trouble controlling your anger
- are depressed
- feel uncomfortable around others
- have difficulty paying attention or focusing
- engage in repetitive behaviors, such as nail biting or hair pulling
- are experiencing marital and/or family problems
- cope with stress-related physical problems
- suffered through a traumatic experience earlier in life
- have trouble sleeping
Psychotherapy can have benefits and risks. Since therapy often involves discussing unpleasant aspects of your life, you may experience uncomfortable feelings. On the other hand, psychotherapy has also been shown to have many benefits. Therapy often leads to better relationships, solutions to specific problems, and significant reductions in feelings of distress, but there are no guarantees of what you will experience.
In your first session your therapist will offer you some sense of what therapy will entail and how she or he will work with you to address your concerns. You should evaluate this information and whether you feel comfortable working with your therapist. If you have questions about our procedures, you should discuss them with your therapist whenever they arise. You have the right to ask for the rationale for any aspect of your treatment or to decline any part of your treatment.
Click here to arrange for an initial appointment.
ANXIETY:
We all experience anxiety. It's a natural way of protecting ourselves. But persistent fear and worrying can interfere with an individual's ability to live a productive life.
Anxiety can range from mild to severe; and while symptoms generally begin in childhood, the feelings can persist, off and on, through one's life.
Psychotherapy has been quite effective on many people who suffer from anxiety disorders.
DEPENDENCY/ADDICTIONS:
Many times, addictive behaviors grow out of both genetic and environmental factors. An individual can develop an addiction to a variety of substances and behaviors. Florida International University has compiled a checklist to help determine when there could be a problem:
- Thinking about the activity a lot even when not doing it.
- Inability to control the amount of time spent doing the activity.
- Increasing the amount of time that is spent doing the activity.
- Denying there is a problem, even when many things are obviously going wrong.
- Hiding the activity from family and friends.
- When unable to do the activity, becoming irritable, moody, tearful, angry, or hostile.
- The activity becomes more important than relationships.
- Forgetting or ignoring family events such as birthdays and visits from friends because of involvement with the activity.
- Extreme, unpredictable mood swings.
- Blaming others for one's own troubles failing to take responsibility for one's own actions.
- Headaches, stomach disorders, and other unexplained and ongoing physical symptoms.
- Neglecting one's appearance and doing hurtful or illegal things.
RELATIONSHIPS:
Relationships are among the very most important aspects of our lives. When our relationships are going well, we can feel secure and comfortable; but when there are problems, it often feels like life is spinning out of control.
Many times. relationship problems are the result of poor communications. Therapy can help to reopen those line sof communication and to learn to deal with the issues that are causing the conflict.
SEVERE ANXIETY:
Panic is a severe and disruptive form of anxiety. A panic attack can happen any time, anywhere. It is a sudden episode of intense fear that often intense physical reactions -- sweating, rapid heartbeat, dizziness, nausea and feeling out of control.
Panic attacks are a potentially disabling condition, but our profession is having good results treating sufferers with therapy and relaxation techniques.
DEPRESSION:
In the past, many people believed depression was "all in the head" and that an individial could just "snap out of it."
We now know that depression is not always something that you can treat on your own. Depression is a disorder that often results from biological and chemical causes. The three most common kinds are:
- Major Depression, which intereferes with the ability to work, sleep, study, eat, and in genereal, enjoy one's life.
- Dysthymia is less severe but often results in long-term, chronic symptoms. It's not usually disabling, but dysthymia keeps individuals from feeling good or functioning well, over long periods of time.
- Bipolar disorder, the third major kind of mood disorder, is also called manic-depressive illness. Bipolar disorder is less common than the other varieties of depression.
Bipolar is characterized by severe mood changes: severe highs (mania) and lows (depression). Sometimes the mood switches are dramatic and rapid, but most often they are gradual. In the depressed cycle, one can have any or all of the symptoms of a depressive disorder. In the manic cycle, the individual may be overactive, overtalkative, and have a great deal of energy.
Mania often affects thinking, judgment, and social behavior in ways that cause serious problems and embarrassment.
After depression and alcohol dependence, social anxiety is ranked as the third most common mental health disorder in the United States. It is characterized by a strong fear of being humiliated or embarrased in social situations. Sufferers of social anxiety may either avoid the situation or may feel distressed about attending or participating in the event.
Social anxiety often starts out as simple shyness but can become a disruptive lifetime condition. It more commonly affects women and many times runs in families. Fortunately, there are several forms of therapy that can effectively treat the disorder.
ATTENTION DEFICIT DISORDER:
ADD is characterized by having difficulty paying attention, hyperactivity and impulsive behavior. It's estimated that between three and five percent of chiildren are affected by ADD. It had been thought that most ADD sufferers outgrow the condition by adolescence, but researchers now think that in many people, the symptoms continue into adulthood and can create sigificant problems.
Adults with ADD tend to be distracted easily, are forgetful and sometime shave trouble finishing projects. They're often disorganized and have difficulty making decisions.
The psychologists at CPN have a great deal of experience and success diagnosing and treating Attention Deficit Disorder in adults.
OBSESSIVE COMPULSIVE DISORDER:
One study has found that it takes, on average, 17 years for an individual suffering from obsessive compulsive disorder to seek the help of a professional.
Obsessions are thoughts, impulses and images that cause severe anxiety. Compulsions are repetitive physical or mental acts aimed at trying to neutralize the anxiety of the obsessions.
OCD goes well past the behaviors of nail biting and hair pulling. Symptoms can include washing one's hands excessively, repeatedly counting and continually rearranging things.
Behavioral therapy is quite effective in treating individuals who suffer from OCD.
MARITAL & FAMILY ISSUES:
Originally, therapy was designed to include the therapist and one patient. But under many circumstances, it makes sense to include more than one person in the process.
Within families and marriages, there are disagreements at time. The key to successful relationships is the willingness and ability to deal with those problems in a positive way that respects each person's needs. Many times, a therapist can help develop communication and behavior patterns that couples and families can apply to defuse interpersonal struggles before they become destructive.
STRESS-RELATED MEDICAL PROBLEMS:
Many times, physical ailments such as headaches and back pain have a psychological component. When the sufferer feels more stress, the physical pain gets worse.
Too much stress can damage the immune system, the heart, the digestive system and more. CPN's psychologists help clients become aware of the stress they're feeling before it can take a further toll on their health.
POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS SYNDROME:
When someone is exposed to a life-threatening event, he or she often has a very difficult time giving up the memories. Individuals with Post-Traumatic Stress disorders repeatedly re-live the event, through flashbacks and nightmares. Many people with PTSD feel detached and have trouble sleeping and concentrating.
CPN's therapists are extremely knowledgeable about trauma and its reacxtions and can help victims develop strategies to help ease the frightening memories.
SLEEP DIFFICULTIES:
Problems with sleeping are usually the result of a combination of psychological disorders. Chronic insomnia, for example, is often caused by depression. By identifying and treating the underlying issues, we can help our patients sleep better; and many times, better sleep habits can assist patients in dealing more effectively with the underlying psychological problems.