Depression in Teens: How to Tell and What to Do

It is common for teens to experience depression throughout their development. There can be many factors that play into this, including their ongoing brain development, social stressors, and academic stressors. One of the best ways to approach teen depression is to provide them a space to talk through their experiences without judgment. By exploring what exacerbates depressive symptoms and making plans to cope with these stressors and triggers, teens can not only overcome their depression but also learn skills to help maintain their wellbeing throughout their lives.

As teens develop, their brains are changing constantly. Like many mental health concerns, it is common to see depression symptoms emerge between the ages of 12 and 25 as these are some of the most intense years of brain development. For some teens, changes in mood may emerge slowly over time leading to a sense that your child just seems different than the happy kid they once were. For others, depression can come on more quickly, usually in response to a major event such as the death of a friend or loved one, experiences of bullying, major family changes such as divorce, or traumatic events.

What Are the Signs of Depression in Teens?

The signs of depression in teens are very similar to those seen in adults, but teens may express their depressed mood in different ways. Two of the most observable signs of depression in teens, adolescents, and young adults include withdrawal and irritability. Withdrawal may include teens staying in their room constantly, avoiding family time, not wanting to spend time with friends, or no longer engaging in the hobbies they once loved. Often, these behaviors are due to the effects of depression that cause teens to feel tired, unmotivated, and experience a loss of interest in activities. Irritability may be expressed in many ways. Often teens will appear annoyed by even simple questions, even becoming angry at times or raising their voice. They may also shut down when spoken to and refuse to engage in conversations or activities. To many, they may generally appear to have a “bad attitude.” In reality, however, these behaviors are due to the severe exhaustion and emotional pain caused by depression.

Consider times in which you feel sad, down, or even depressed yourself – it can be very difficult to carry on with conversations and other interactions throughout your day. Now imagine that you are a teen who is experiencing this for the first time! With the start of depression comes a lot of confusion, loneliness, and hopelessness. It makes sense for teens to struggle with thoughts such as, “will I ever feel happy again?” “why can’t I just snap out of it?” or “I must be the only one who feels this way.”

How Can We Help Struggling Teens?

Talk to them! Talking to your kids about your own experiences of sadness or depression can help them feel less alone and find hope in seeing how you manage and overcome similar experiences. Giving teens a place to talk with a counselor can also help by providing them a space in which they can focus solely on themselves and not worry about how others are perceiving them. There are many research-supported treatments available for teen depression, with one of the most popular approaches being Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). When used to treat depression, CBT can help to uncover patterns in teen depression, including what triggers depressive symptoms and what responses increase or reduce symptoms. The goal of this treatment is to help teens understand the connection between their depressive emotions and thoughts so that they can challenge self-defeating beliefs that cause hopelessness and sadness. By doing so, teens can begin to feel better and start to re-engage with their friends, families, interests, and motivations.

If you are noticing that your teen seems sad, argumentative, stressed, withdrawn, or just not themselves – reach out and get them support. With early intervention, teens can overcome and ward off depression through developing the tools they need to support themselves!

Are Your Anxiety Defense Mechanisms Doing More Harm Than Good?

Anxiety can take many forms in a person’s life and at times it can feel like an effective way to cope with life’s stressors. Often anxiety can be a necessary response to processing stressful environments, challenging situations, or areas of great uncertainty. There may even have been times in your life that your anxiety helped you be prepared both mentally and physically to face a challenge. Previously your anxiety might have kept your organized, motivated you to complete tasks, or prepared you for unpredictable future events in your life, family, and career. Over time your body might have become trained to respond to unpredictable situations with anxious feelings in order to signal that you are ready to face challenges head on.

Over time your anxiety developed into an adaptive response. A response that was protective, learned, and useful during major shifts, scary life moments, and times where you might have felt out of control. Progressively your body learned to respond to moments of fear, uncertainty, and adversity with anxiety in order to protect itself from the perceived threat. Your anxiety might have even been effective in protecting you, making you feel at ease, or allowing you to move past challenging times. The hardest part of anxiety being your go to defense mechanism is that it can be hard to recognize when it is not longer benefitting you, and maybe has begun to hinder your growth. So how do you know when your anxiety has crossed the line from being productive to harmful?

When Worrying Becomes Excessive

There may be times when you cannot get an anxious thought, worry, or concern out of your mind. No matter how much you try to push it to the side your concern keeps entering your mind, preventing you from focusing on any other task. There may be times when your anxious thoughts do not allow you to take an active role in your life because they have taken over. No matter how logical you try to be the worries you have do not seem to go away. These worries have the ability to impact your sleep, eating, relationships and even increase susceptibility to panic attacks.

Avoiding Things That Increase Anxiety

Whether it is social situations, work concerns, family issues, or health concerns your anxiety might cause you to withdraw and avoid areas of your life that increase your anxiety symptoms. Avoidance of these situations is a normal emotional and physical response to the perceived threat, but it is not always a productive solution to your anxiety. Often removing or distancing yourself from these areas of your life can increase loneliness, isolation, and belief in your ability to be effective in these areas of your life. When you remove yourself from those triggering situations, anxiety can gain a stronger foothold in your life. Withdrawing from areas of your life can increase your risk of additional mental health concerns and symptoms including depression and suicidal ideation.

When Anxiety Impacts Physical Health

Anxiety can have a strong impact on your body. It can impact your sleep, eating, blood pressure, mood, and energy level. Anxiety as a response to ongoing stress, worry, and fear can exhaust your body and weaken your immune system. By responding to constant stress and never returning to a baseline level your anxiety can exhaust the capabilities of your immune system, leaving it vulnerable. Your anxiety can create a damaging cycle that impacts your physical health which then can increase your anxiety symptoms even more.

The signs your anxiety is doing more harm than good can go beyond the concerns listed above. You could feel that your anxiety is no longer an effective strategy for you to deal with life’s stressors, challenges, or worries. Often our increased anxiety is a learned response to stress experienced in childhood, or later life traumas. The anxiety you feel held a productive and useful role in your life for a long time, while you recovered and moved away from those fears you experienced. Yet, your anxiety no longer makes you feel a sense of preparedness, productivity, or safety. Now your anxiety might feel inadequate, misplaced, or even a burden.

Counseling for anxiety can be an essential resource when you are trying to understand and adapt to life’s challenges. Together we can understand your anxiety, manage its symptoms, and employ more tools that can be effective resources for you. You can heal from your anxiety. It not longer needs to play such a large role in your life or be your first resource during difficult times. Call or email today for a free 15 minute consultation to see how anxiety counseling can be a resource for you.

Navigating Career Stress During COVID-19

COVID-19 has introduced a variety of career stressors. Previously, work used to be a predictable aspect of your life. It provided stability, structure, certain securities emotionally and financially, that you could rely on when other aspects of your life were uncertain.

Today’s world has shifted and changed how we work and what our workplace environment looks like. Now your work may bring you more anxiety, concern, even dread than ever before. It may be creating feelings of isolation, boredom, or even be the only escape you feel that you have. The pressure you feel to keep being “successful” while at the same time enjoy what you do can be overwhelming. Stress, anxiety, depression, burnout, and fear are emotions that are being experienced at extremely high levels during the pandemic. Whether those stressors are related to financial concerns, job insecurity, keeping your business running, the stress of working from home, or the changing career dynamics, all of these areas create a level of uncertainty. That uncertainty can impact how you feel about yourself, your career, and the world around you. What do you do when your career is no longer able to be that pillar of support, relief, and escape that it once was?

Reframe Your Perspective and Be Kind To Yourself

We can be extremely critical of ourselves when areas of our life that were previously in our control now seem to be beyond our control. We can begin to second guess our choices and ability when it comes to our career. You might begin to doubt yourself and your abilities. It is important now more than ever that you are kind in how you treat and talk to yourself. You may be experiencing increased stress, which can make you feel inadequate, underperforming, and begin to think of yourself in a self-deprecating way. You might say to yourself at times, “I am not good at anything,” or “why can’t I succeed at anything.” These statements are not based on your abilities or performance, but on your response to the chaotic environment around you. It is important to reframe those negative statements about yourself into phrases that will rebuild your confidence. For example, saying positive statements to yourself such as, “success will come, you are working really hard right now, and a lot of aspects of your life are out of control.” These positive statements can not only give you strength, but also allow you to perform better during the work week and relieve yourself from some of the pressure you are feeling.

Find Relief In Other Areas

The current environment due to COVID-19 can feel very isolating, jarring, lonely, and abnormal. As we are all trying to endure the toll that this pandemic can take, we must look to all areas of our life to gain support. While work might have been a source of strength, support, and consistency in the past, it may not be able to provide those aspects to your life at the moment. It is important to engage in other aspects of your life that also provide you joy and relief. Whether it is working out or being physical, being creative and artistic, or engaging in safe social activities, all these areas can provide you with relief, strength, support, and success. These outlets and supportive activities may look and feel different than gaining success at work, yet they can be temporary areas of your life where you gain encouragement, reprieve, and positivity.

You are not alone in the pressure, stress, depression, or anxiety you are feeling in your career. Many aspects of your life have been upended, altered, and removed leaving an unbalance and possibly a feeling of uncertainty throughout your life. These are unprecedented times creating career stress, anxiety, and burnout for many. Career counseling and career coaching can be another source of support in your life to allow you to regain your confidence, direction, motivation, and happiness in your career and beyond. Together you and your career counselor can discover what aspects of your life and career are impacting you and how your can recover emotionally from the current stress and pressure of the world. Career counseling can be a resource that can help you find answers, gain emotional strength, and learn skills/tools that will alleviate your anxiety and find a happier career environment for you. Call us today for a free 15 minute phone consultation to see if career counseling is the right fit for you.

Anxiety and Relationships: How Your Anxiety Can Impact How You Interact With Others

Have you noticed that your anxiety has been heightened recently? Does your anxiety show up in areas of your life where it has never been before? Do you suddenly become nervous when speaking in front of others, interacting with new groups of people, or when you are interacting with friends, partners, or colleagues?

Heightened anxiety and increased stress are common emotions in today’s world as we face a global pandemic that has shifted how we work, socialize, and manage our home lives.  Anxiety can impact your life in different ways and appear in a variety of settings. Anxiety also can shift where it traditionally presents in your life. For example, in the past your anxiety might have appeared only when speaking in public or when you are meeting new people, but now your anxiety appears when you are trying to sleep and your mind has difficulty calming down. Anxiety can be a moving target that shifts and reappears as the stressors in your life eb and flow.

Your body encounters stressful and threatening stimuli every day. When you are combating stress in other areas of your life (work, relationships, health, finances, conflicts) it can affect how and where your anxiety presents. Many times, individuals will notice the physical symptoms of anxiety that they experience due to the way in which it disrupts their daily lives. Anxiety can impact you physically, emotionally, and socially effecting how you interact socially or relationally with those around you.  

What are some common symptoms of anxiety around others?

-Sweating, jittery, rapid heart rate, or mind “blanking”

-Feeling self-conscious around others, embarrassed or awkward

-Fear of being judged by others

-Fear of talking in front of groups of unknown people, or “performing” in front of others

(Anxiety and Depression Association of America, 2020)

Anxiety might be something you have battled or adjusted to throughout your life. It may have even served a protective purpose in past relationships or settings, allowing your mind and body to constantly be in “fight or flight mode.” Yet, now your anxiety has taken a different path that is not the most useful or sustainable. Anxiety can affect you physically by not letting your mind or body rest and preventing you to from engaging and relying on relationships that could be supportive in managing the symptoms of your anxiety. Your anxiety may have turned a corner and begun to negatively impact your relationships with your family, friends, co-workers, or new social settings.

You are not alone in your experience or understanding of your anxiety. You deserve to speak with someone that understands what you are going through and who can help you sort through both the physical and emotional symptoms of your anxiety. Together we can create a deeper understanding of your anxiety and create a plan to cope, adjust, and manage both the personal and social impacts of your anxiety. While anxiety is commonly experienced, it does not need to dictate your life, decisions, and relationships. Call today for a free 15 minute consultation to discuss how we can manage your anxiety symptoms together.

Teen and Adolescent Mental Health Therapy During COVID-19

The current life of teens and adolescents due to COVID-19 looks a lot different than anyone could have imagined. The ages of approximately 12 through 18 years old usually call to mind images of sporting events, dances, and crowded school hallways. But little if any of that is happening right now. The pre-teen and teen years are a critical time in adolescent development. Typically, adolescence involves learning to navigate complex social situations, managing increasing responsibilities, and making strides in identity development. As humans we are wired to grow and learn in social contexts, and each of these tasks of adolescence require interacting with others. So, what happens when the world outside the family is all but removed?

Why is my teen struggling to do schoolwork?

So many teens have lost their natural daily and weekly structure without in-person school. Just like adults, they also get burnt out working on a computer all day in a stagnant environment. Think about your own experiences as an adult – do you have times that you need to refresh and get out of the house in order to feel that you can return to a project? Consider that your kids probably feel similarly, but perhaps to an even greater intensity. Adolescent brains are still contending with learning to self-regulate. This means that teens are essentially hard wired to need more movement and excitement. It also means that they struggle to have patience, sit still, and control impulsive urges. Your teen may suddenly seem to daydream more, seem more distracted from their schoolwork, or become angry, frustrated, or upset. This is not because they suddenly don’t care; it’s because their brain needs more stimulation. No matter how engaging online education is, adolescents will still be missing out on critical experiences of social connection and exposure to new environments that foster growth, learning, and identity development.

Why does my teen suddenly seem to have developed anxiety or depression?

This could be for many reasons. Sometimes anxiety and depression can stem from boredom. Teen brains need a lot of stimulation, and when that doesn’t happen anxiety can occur out of an unfulfilled craving for more interaction and excitement. Similarly, feelings of depression can happen as a coping response that allows teens to feel that they don’t need as much stimulation. Many adolescents are also facing having lost significant social interactions. They may no longer have easy access to supportive friend groups. Their bond with their sports teammates may not translate to a text, phone, or social media relationship. They may have been in the process of joining or forming a new social group that was interrupted and lost in all of the changes. Perhaps they have begun to consider their own identities and were hoping to find supportive peers to connect with while they explore who they are and who they wish to be. Adolescents also thrive in structured environments. Without the natural structure of school, they may feel lost or overwhelmed. Through all of these changes, you as the parent may also feel that you adolescent child has begun directing some of their emotions toward you. Family tensions are common when any member of the family is struggling. Often, when we feel upset, hurt, scared, or stressed, we will take it out on those we are close to. If you are having to set firm boundaries and find yourself saying “no” a lot more to protect your child’s health and safety, this is bound to happen even more often. Often, the burden of providing structure and boundaries is shared with supportive adults outside the home, such as coaches and teachers. If it is suddenly all on you, it makes sense that your kids might also perceive that you are saying no more too.

Why doesn’t my teen want to get out more or see friends when they can?

This can feel complicated. Maybe your adolescent used to beg to see their friends and get out of the house, and now that you are finally feeling able to loosen some of the restrictions they don’t seem interested anymore. How could that happen? Should you be worried about them? There may be many reasons for this. It is possible that they don’t feel as connected to their friends anymore and are worried about how to navigate reconnecting. Perhaps they have begun to adapt to having less social connection in their life as a means of self-protection. Maybe they have still have fear about their health and safety that they haven’t yet expressed. Regardless of the reason, it can be important to consider a slow reintroduction of social activities to allow hesitant teens time to warm up and feel comfortable.

Remember, even though physical school is not happening, kids are still going through the same developmental, neurocognitive, and physical changes of adolescence. It is a time in which most kids naturally struggle with their self-esteem, self-image, and overall confidence. Going through these stages during the chaos of COVID-19 is unprecedented, and in many ways online school can make it feel harder for self-conscious kids to avoid feeling put under a magnifying glass. You may even feel the same way in meetings that you have online. You both deserve a great deal of compassion!

How could therapy help my adolescent right now?

Therapy can be a useful tool no matter what your kids are struggling with. We can work with teens who seem unmotivated to remind them of their goals and help create structure that will allow them to make progress forward. We can also work on supplementing their current reduction in external motivators by figuring out what sources of internal motivation and resources they can tap into. We can also be a place for teens to process their experiences. Sometimes teens just need their own space to share their emotions and thoughts. Teens may struggle to share things with their parents, and even their friends, because they are worried how their struggles will affect others they care about, or how they might be viewed by others. Feeling like they have a therapist in their corner for when they need more support can be a vital step toward them feeling more in control and settled. Therapy is also the perfect place to help you and your kids to feel more connected. When huge changes and stressors enter our lives, communication skills often get lost in the shuffle. By providing a calm space for your family to rediscover how to share and find joy with each other, you can reopen lines of communication and feel more connected.

Often parents reach out to therapists because they just aren’t sure what is going on with their adolescent kids. They may seem different, like they suddenly changed and just don’t act like the happy kid they once were. You might feel confused, hurt, and at a loss of how to get through to your adolescent. Parents often feel like once their kids reach adolescence a wall goes up and they aren’t as close as they used to be. As painful as this can be, it is not out of the ordinary. Therapy can be a great place to gain peace of mind and to get resources for you and your family. Call today to find out exactly how we can help you and your teenage or adolescent child cope with the stress and changes caused by COVID-19.

Work Life Balance: Does It Even Exist?

Does your work week feel like it never ends? Does one work week feel like it blends into the next? Can you remember the last time you felt fulfilled from both your job and the areas outside of your work?

All of these questions are common when you are struggling to maintain motivation at work and feel like you are also taking an active role in your home life. You might feel at times that your energy is tapped, and you do not have enough to go around; between work responsibilities, family concerns, and taking care of your personal needs. As a result, you might start to feel unsatisfied, anxious, depressed, or just generally unhappy at your job and at home.

The concept of having a balance between your work and the various other aspects of your life is a frequent area of discussion when talking about work stress and career burnout. Finding a “balance” between your work life and your family, friends, and other personal interests can be a challenge for any working professional. When you are tired, and emotionally/physically exhausted the last thing you are thinking about is balance. So how do you know when you have reached a point of imbalance between your work and personal life?

You feel like you are going through the motions in both work and life.

The joy is not there whether it is when you are talking to a colleague, or with a loved one. You find your mind wandering and wishing you were somewhere else, unable to focus on the current topic. Previously, work, family, and friends brought your life excitement and joy. Now either work or personal relationships feel taxing, exhausting, and uninspired.

You feel like your performance has suffered at work, at home, or both

You feel like you are unable to get ahead at work or at home. Each part of your life has a never-ending to-do list that keeps evolving, multiplying, and shifting. You want to be able to be present, prepared, and competent in these areas of your life, but recently you feel as if your performance has not been up to your usual standards.

Work life balance is different for everyone

Finding what works for you, your family, and your job is an individual process and will look different for everyone. You have unique skills, interests, and dynamics in your life that are personal to you and might look different from your co-workers or family members. When thinking about your work life balance ask yourself what areas of your life are important to you, make you happy, and enhance your life.

Adapt what your work life balance looks like.

Shifting your work life balance as your career and family life change is critical. From the beginning of your career to now, both you and the workplace are every changing. Acknowledging that your work and personal needs are going to change is an important part of being able to readjust the balance in multiple areas of your life.

Finding your work life balance is a process

It will take time to find a balance in your life that works for you both at work and at home. Your ideal version of balance may not be achievable at this moment nor be exactly what you envisioned, and that is okay. You are taking the time to recalibrate your life and find a happier medium that allows you to enrich your life in multiple areas.

You deserve to be happy in both work and your personal life. Times can be stressful and overwhelming, but not being satisfied with your work or career does not have to be the new normal. If you want to reorient the balance in your life or find our what career dynamics can work best for you, call us today for a free 15 minute consult around career counseling.

National Suicide Prevention and Awareness Month

September is national suicide prevention and awareness month, and in line with this, we wanted to share a bit about how we help keep you and your family safe while being seen at our practice. Suicide treatment is a major area of research and clinical focus for our providers. For every client, we work diligently to ensure that we are monitoring and continually assessing for safety to best support your progress. For every client, you can be assured that we will take the following steps:

1. A thorough suicide risk assessment is performed during every first session. For adult clients, this means that assessing for and taking steps to enhance safety is often a main focus of your initial work with your clinician. For children, it means we ask about and assess for safety in many different developmentally appropriate ways. This includes both verbal conversations and questions, as well as through observing signs in your child’s behavior. All of our clinicians have extensive experience in conducting suicide risk assessments, and you can trust that we will be both thorough and direct.

2. Follow-ups are always a part of treatment. Risk for suicide is not stagnant and can change in response to stressors. We check in repeatedly to ensure that all clients have what they need to face life’s challenges. We also utilize interventions at the first sign of risk, responding with treatment approaches that are well-researched and effective.

3. We will provide you with resources for where to seek help in the case of an emergency. This may include hospitals, crisis lines, and behavioral urgent care centers. We also provide referrals for those in need of more intensive treatment prior to working with us. We will remain by your side to support you in determining what is the best path for your or your child’s treatment and safety needs.

4. When working with children, we always share crucial safety information with parents as soon as possible. We take all statements regarding suicide, self-harm, and death seriously and always follow-up to ensure safety. We encourage you to always bring to our attention any concerns regarding safety so that we can help support you and work with your child on ways of expressing themselves. You will never be left in the dark regarding your child’s risk for suicide or self-harm, and we will be certain that we have a system set up to help us communicate regularly. We will also work with you on steps you can take to help keep your child safe at home.

Many individuals seek treatment because they are having distressing thoughts. Many others seek out counseling after hearing their child expressing distressing comments regarding suicide, death, or self-harm. It can be overwhelming to worry about the safety of yourself or of a child. We are here to give you the support you need to process these experiences and determine what steps are needed to feel better. For parents, often just having a professional there to consistently check in and assess for suicidal thoughts in your child can help ease your mind. Through thorough risk assessments and identifying strategies to help you child cope and help you monitor signs of distress, we work to also help reduce the occurrence of your child’s distressing thoughts.

A vital step in suicide awareness means taking your concerns seriously and seeking out help. Thoughts of suicide can feel extremely lonely, as can struggling to support a child who is having these thoughts. You do not need to handle this alone; at Snowline Counseling, we encourage you to express all of your thoughts and emotions and we promise to meet you with acceptance and support. Suicide prevention begins with asking for help and is successful when you feel there is someone in your corner who you can rely upon.

Adapting as an Athlete

Being an adaptable athlete is an important skill especially in the world today. With competitions being cancelled, postponed, or turned virtual, your schedule might not be as predictable as it once was. To add to things, your training might also have been impacted by a variety of factors: overcrowded trails or roads, not being able to train with your team, shifting family or work dynamics.

Adaptability as an athlete is not just adjusting to the challenges that come your way. It also means being able to shift your mindset when facing a sudden change. This includes checking in with yourself about how you truly feel about all of the shifting, as well as finding ways to adjust that do not overtax or cause additional stress on your energy or time.

Here are some things to think about when making adjustments:

1. Think about what challenges you have faced in the past and how you adapted. What work for you? What made your life more stressful or difficult?

2. Examine what changes you might have to make in the future. Think about what works best for you physically, emotionally, and mentally.

3. Remember that adapting is a process. No change is finite. If you feel things are not working for you, you can continue to shift them until they fit for you.

Working From Home with Kids: How to Navigate the Stress and Struggles

Working from home is an adjustment in and of itself, and when you add in navigating the demands and schedules of kids it adds a whole new level of disruption.

Figuring out routines, childcare, and space/privacy needs can cause a great deal of stress. While there are many ideas found online for how to keep kids occupied during work from home days – here we want to focus on much needed tips for stress reduction during these transitions.

Know What is Within Your Control

One of the main things you can do to help keep calm in the chaos of working from home is to focus on the things you can control. This can mean finding a comfortable space in your home dedicated to work, choosing to use headphones or sound machines for privacy, asking a partner for help with entertaining kids, and when possible deciding what work times are best for you. This also means accepting the things that are out of your control. Kids might walk in during a meeting. Your internet may cut out at times. Tasks that were quick in an office may take a bit longer. While these experiences can range from annoying to aggravating, focus on giving yourself compassion. Many times, we hold higher expectations for ourselves than others hold for us.

Take Time for Yourself

Taking time for yourself as a parent is never easy. There are always demands on your time at home – often from your children and family, and now from your home office. Now that you are working as well as living at home it is important to carve out dedicated time for focusing on your needs. Much of your day consists of taking care of the needs of others and making sure that they are content and happy. Consider the empathy you have for others and their needs and try applying that to yourself as well. Making a conscious effort to take time for yourself can help to recharge you emotionally and physically to be able to tend to other areas of your life more efficiently.

Develop a Routine

Since working from home started, most routines went by the wayside. From your family routine to your pre-and post-work routine, everything has been upended. Since your work and family life have no natural separation these days, finding ways to distinguish them is essential. Rediscover pre- and post- work routines that help you switch your mindset and prevent you from feeling distracted in both home and work life. Discovering ways that allow you to transition your frame of mind from work life to home life can allow you to achieve a more balanced dynamic at home. This can include getting dressed for work as though you are heading to the office, or going for a drive at the end of the work day to ease back into home life.

Create Space Between Work Life and Family Time

Finding separation between work and family life, even when they are happening in the same space, goes hand in hand with developing a routine. Creating a designated space that you conduct your work in, or where you feel most productive can allow you to mentally attune to your work needs while minimizing the distractions that being in a home environment naturally bring. Working in shared or multi-use spaces (such as the kitchen counter or dining table) can impede our ability to get in the work mindset, so when possible aim for an area that is truly dedicated for work.

The steps to creating a more balanced work from home life for you and your family can be difficult. You do not need to maneuver the ever-changing environment alone; child counseling, family therapy, and parenting sessions can assist you and your family in navigating the various adjustments, stressors, and struggles that occur while continuing to build your bond. We are here to help you decide what individual and family counseling options could fit for your family’s needs!

Anxiety and Stress in College Students: How To Notice the Role Anxiety Has In Your Life

College is typically viewed as a time of exciting new experiences. Making new friends, living in a new atmosphere, and developing your identities. Yet, despite this optimistic portrayal, many college students find themselves overwhelmed with stress and anxiety. Trying to manage these feelings on your own while being away from your biggest support system and navigating a new environment is one of many sets of challenges you might face in college.

If you have felt this way, you are not alone. In a recent study, 63% of college students reported feeling overwhelmed in the past year and 23% reported being “diagnosed or treated by a mental health professional for anxiety in the past year” (American College Health Association, 2018).

There are many reasons you may be feeling stressed, overwhelmed, or just not yourself. You may even be encountering these feelings for the first time, leaving you confused about what to do. Whether it is the stress of being in a new environment, overwhelmed with work or social responsibilities, being far from your support system, or just that college is not how you imagined, these all can impact your anxiety and overall mental health. Many students and young adults experience stress, anxiety, and depression even though it may not be commonly talked about or acknowledged.

So what are the next steps?

It can be important to recognize some initial physical and emotional signs of anxiety in order to seek help when necessary.

1.       Worry that interferes with daily life.

2.       Feelings of apprehension or dread.

3.       Restlessness or irritability

4.       Anticipating the worst and being extremely alert to signs of danger.

5.       Pounding or racing heart, or shortness of breath.

6.       Excessive sweating.

7.       Headaches, fatigue, insomnia.

8.       Upset stomach.

(NAMI, 2017)

These are just a few of the warning signs that can appear when anxiety enters your life. The biggest highlights of the anxiety signs mentioned above are that anxiety can interfere with your daily functioning or your ability to effectively engage in school, relationships, work, and personal needs like you otherwise would. It can be persistent, uncontrollable, and overwhelming. You may be feeling a mix of physical and emotional symptoms. These symptoms can change and intensify based on your stress level the environment around you. Some of them might have been more manageable at another time in your life, but now they feel like they are taking over.

These experiences can at times feel impossible to manage, but you do not need to do it alone. Together we can work through the stressors, triggers, and symptoms of your anxiety and allow you to take back control. Through talk therapy, you can become more aware of how your stress and anxiety affect you and what steps you can take to manage your emotional and physical symptoms. If you want to develop a plan to manage your stress and anxiety give us a call today and together we can work toward feeling better.

COVID-19 and Mental Health

While the recent outbreak of COVID-19 (novel Coronavirus) is most often regarded as a physical health concern, it certainly creates deep impacts for our emotional and mental health. Emotional reactions are common and expected as the world tries to grapple with uncertainty and prevention efforts. At Snowline Counseling, we want you to have a place to process these responses in a safe and supportive environment. In considering how to support your own mental health during this time, we would like to put forth the following recommendations (some of which are adapted from WHO, CDC, and NIH):

1.     Stay informed, not overwhelmed: during times of crisis, information can be ever-present, and at times confusing or contradictory. Diving into the media reports can provide useful strategies for enhancing safety but may also be emotionally draining. It can be helpful to stick to specific sources of information (such as the CDC or WHO websites) and limit how often you check for updates.

2.     Isolation can exacerbate mental health conditions: while it is essential to follow public health guidelines for limiting social and community interactions at this time, it is also important to recognize the need for human interaction and recreation. It can be helpful to find low-risk ways of connecting with others, perhaps via phone calls, video chat, or in open-air settings while practicing social distancing.

3.     Children may also experience fear and confusion: talking to children about the current state of things in very clear and direct ways can help to ease some of their concerns. Children are extremely perceptive and are certainly aware when a crisis is occurring. Staying calm, providing reassurance, and being available for questions and processing can help ease children’s worries. It can also be helpful to explore appropriate sources of information with adult supervision and limit the continuous exposure of children to information in a similar fashion to what was recommended above. Awareness of behaviors that can help to maintain health and prevent the spreading of illness can allow children to gain a sense of control and agency. Children should also have access to safe, socially connecting activities to reduce anxiety prompted by isolation. For more guidelines, the following article may be helpful: https://www.nasponline.org/resources-and-publications/resources-and-podcasts/school-climate-safety-and-crisis/health-crisis-resources/talking-to-children-about-covid-19-(coronavirus)-a-parent-resource

4.     Keep up with your mental health practices: whether it is getting exercise, feeling productive, doing mindfulness, or engaging in mental health counseling services – now is the time to maintain your mental health and wellness routines. The same goes for children who may be comforted by structure and schedules and may further benefit from speaking with a mental health therapist. It may also be wise to check in with yourself and be aware of signs that you or your children are struggling with the emotional toll of the current events. Sudden changes in behavior and physiological signs of stress (headache, stomachache, muscle tension, irritability, tearfulness, increased use of substances, difficulty concentrating, etc.) may indicate a need to seek professional help or increase self-care behaviors.

During these times, please know that the clinicians at Snowline Counseling are here to support you in all the ways that we can. For current clients, please reach out if you are in need of additional sessions or need more resources. For new clients or those who are unsure of what support they may need, we are happy to initiate phone consultations with you and connect you with other providers and services as needed. Services that we provide which may be of particular help at this time include:

Career transition and work-related counseling

Child therapy services

Parent consultation and therapy

Health counseling

Trauma-focused approaches

Family counseling

COVID-19 Response

Fear, anxiety, worry, panic, helplessness, and hopelessness are common responses to global disasters, including pandemic outbreak. With so much media coverage, confusion may emerge in response to a struggle to grasp the current events and how to react. Much of the media coverage is rightfully focused on maintaining physical health and taking steps to reduce spread and prevent illness. These aspects of precautionary measures are highly necessary; however, attention must also be paid to your emotional and mental health as well. Here at Snowline Counseling, we are taking several steps to increase your safety and contribute to public health efforts to reduce the impact of COVID-19 on our community. Firstly, we are engaging in significant cleaning procedures between client sessions following guidelines set forth by the CDC. We are temporarily removing shared resources at the office that may contribute to the spread of infection, such as tissues, business cards, pillows, and blankets. Additionally, we will refrain from using any fans or other devices that circulate air within the immediate offices.

Please rest assured that we are also continually monitoring the health statuses of our clinicians and limiting social contact in our personal lives to reduce the spread of infection. In accordance with standard company policy, any clinician showing any signs of infection or illness will not attend any in-person sessions. In order to further support community efforts to increase social distancing, we are also offering telehealth sessions to all current and new clients at this time. As per Colorado guidelines, all clients must currently be present in the state of Colorado during all telehealth sessions. We encourage all clients to take advantage of this option at this time to help protect your health and the health of our clinicians and our community. Please reach out as always via phone or email with any questions and concerns. It is extremely important to us that all community members have access to the mental health services that they need and we are committed to providing such services during this especially challenging time.