Common Mental Health Issues
The click on each box below to link to videos to learn more about the subjects below.
Anxiety & Worry
Depression & Sadness
Insomnia
ADHD
How Stress Affects the body
Anger & Resentment
Negativity
Emotional Disconnection
Crying for no reason
Grief & Loss
Relationship Struggles
Learning Disorders
Childhood Trauma
Alcohol Misuse
Cannabis Misuse
Eating Disorders
Symptom Connection to Lifestyle
Cannabis & ADHD
Cannabis is a popular product and legal in most states. Inhaled or ingested it is most often used to help clients unwind, manage anxiety, or help with sleep. It is also used to help slow down the mind and calm worry. Unfortunately, today's versions are extremely potent and can cause rebound anxiety, low motivation, sleep disturbance, and psychosis. For those w/ADHD it worsens inattention and focus hanging on for days as it is absorbed in the brain. Our providers can help clients taper down or off to help improve their ADHD symptoms.
Alcohol & Depression
Alcohol is commonly used as a social lubricant, especially in these uncertain times. Alcohol though is a depressant and cleared through the liver. Even low doses of alcohol although temporarily can improve mood, tend to cause rebound depression. If you are a client on an antidepressant or dealing w/prolonged sadness, alcohol consumption needs to be kept to a minimum to help improve mood. Many medications interact with alcohol and avoidance is necessary. If you are depressed and notice your alcohol use has increased, we can help you keep your consumption to a minimum to have an improved mood.
Diet Culture
Dieting has become a way of life for most people. Regardless of your shape, the majority of people feel they are more out of shape and disappointed by what they see in the mirror. This leads to high consumption of diet foods that tend to lead to binge eating. Most people do not know that this leads to weight gain. Fad diets mess with metabolism and can lead to adrenal stress. Moods are influenced by the quality of food, proper sleep, regular exercise, water consumption, and avoidance of "fake" ultra processed foods.
Insomnia
Blue light decreases the body's ability to prepare for sleep because it blocks the hormone melatonin that promotes sleep. Decrease blue light use at night. Its important to dim lights at night. · Avoid use of bright phone and computer screens approx 2-3 hours before bed. Blue light increase alertness resetting the body's internal clock to a later schedule. Blue light, which is emitted from smartphones, computers, and bright lights, may inhibit your sleep if you're exposed to it at night.
Mild Traumatic Brain Injury & Moods
Depression is common after mild traumatic Brain injury (TBI). Approx 50% of persons with TBI lead to depression within 1 year after injury. Approx 2/3 of persons w/TBI are affected approx 7 years after injury. Depression rates are lower among the general population. Greater than 50% half of TBI sufferers who are depressed also have anxiety.
https://msktc.org/tbi/factsheets/depression-after-traumatic-brain-injury
Anxiety
Anxiety is often misunderstood as persons believe that a person must worry all the time to qualify for anxiety. But it can be related to trauma or genetics or head injury or be the result of managing unmedicated ADHD. Anxious persons may not appear worried but may have a high need for control. They may skip social gatherings or overthink, overplan, or feel so nervous their chest feels tight or may experience a "sick feeling in the pit of their stomach".
Alcohol Dependence
Alcohol dependence is more than casual drinking. Its where an individual is dependent upon alcohol to help manage their moods or initiate sleep. Persons with alcohol dependence may either drink daily or binge drink but have a hard time limiting the amount they drink to just a couple. Persons with alcohol use disorder may not experience job issues and may function but they often have friends or family express concern over the amount they are drinking. As the liver processes alcohol and as alcohol acts as a disinfectant to the immune system, its important to keep alcoholic doses to a minimum. If you drink more than 1-2 drinks daily, you may be at risk for alcohol dependence, depression, and sleep disturbances.
Panic Attacks
Panic attacks are not the same as anxiety but persons with anxiety, may experience panic episodes. Sometimes they are tied to a particular event and later can come out of nowhere. Persons with panic find themselves avoiding situations that could trigger a panic episode. They can make an individual believe they are having a heart attack and can look like one. Help for panic involves more than just medication and can be softened or eliminated with professional help.
Learning Disorders
Many adults suffer from learning disorders that went undetected as kids. These can appear as ADHD or cause an individual to feel like they can't keep up with their peers. Typically these adults are extremely smart and have figured out ways to cope to a certain degree. If you are struggling with higher math, slow reading, reading avoidance, easy distraction, spending too many hours on tasks that take others less time; you may want to get a consultation. Getting identified and evaluated may be key to being successful in your job and school.
Adrenal Stress
Our lives are considerably fast-paced compared to earlier generations. Everything competes for our time. There is rarely a time that we take time away from a screen. Our jobs required our attention as does school for hours on end in front of a screen. The stress in the world and personally taxes our bodies. We don't sleep well. We prefer sugary processed foods and we rarely get out in nature to unplug and relax. This can lead to fatigue, brain fog, burnout, irritability, weight gain (despite exercise & diet restriction). Sleep tends to be of poor quality despite feeling tired. Adrenal stress causes widespread hormone imbalance.
Early Childhood Trauma
Growing up in a chaotic home or experiencing high stress, witnessing domestic violence, being neglected, abused, or bullied all contribute to childhood trauma. Over time, untreated it can become intrusive in the thoughts and behaviors and individual has. Sometimes mood swing, depression, persistent anxiety, skittishness, or poor attention and concentration impact our adult lives often appearing as ADHD. Obtaining a thorough assessment along with a team approach can help change the challenges a client with this condition faces.
Personal Development
Positive Outlook
Healthy Eating
Regular Exercise
