Depression, Anxiety & Panic Attacks
For individuals who experience depression they often feel lonely, isolated and not understood by others in their world. People suffering depression need compassion, patience and understanding from others. They engage in negative thinking, experience low mood or crying most days, have difficulty sleeping, are often socially withdrawn, have feelings of low self-worth and low self-esteem, can express feelings of anger or irritability, or conversely labile in affect.
Please contact your Doctor or a Psychologist to assist you to manage or overcome the Depression.
Our team is available to help you with any issues around the following.
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
- Panic Attacks
- Postnatal Depression
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
- Stress
- Suicidal Ideation & Self Harming behaviours
Anxiety and Panic Attacks
We live in an ever increasing world of fast-track, time-poor and create ever increasing high expectations of ourselves. For some people they look around and see other people seemingly coping better with all these pressures and wrongly assume they are defective, or not as good as others at certain things.
They develop thoughts, feelings and behaviours that increase their physiological response to stressors to a state of an anxiety, or panic response. This becomes a conditioned response whenever they feel stressed or have a perception they will not be able to cope. The changes in their bodily functions can include increased heart rate, sweating, feeling nauseous, shaking or experiencing difficulty breathing. If the symptoms continue for an elongated time it can result in a panic attack, where they feel overwhelmed and not able to engage in the activity that is causing the stress. Unfortunately, this can roadblock people in many areas of their personal, interpersonal, social or occupational functioning.
Attending with a psychologist can assist people to better understand their cognitive, behavioural, and physical response to their anxious behaviour. It can also assist people to manage those symptoms in a more functional manner, and at times overcome the cause of their anxiety response. This ultimately leads to a more functional experience of life for them and those around them and a better quality of life.
Understanding Anxiety
Do your symptoms indicate an anxiety disorder?
If you identify with several of the following signs and symptoms, and they just won’t go away, you may be suffering from an anxiety disorder.
Are you constantly tense, worried, or on edge?
Does your anxiety interfere with your work, or family responsibilities?
Plagued by fears that are irrational, but can’t shake?
Do you believe that something bad will happen if certain things aren’t done a certain way?
Avoid everyday situations or activities because they cause you anxiety?
Experience sudden, unexpected attacks of heart-pounding panic?
Feel like danger and catastrophe are around every corner?
Emotional Symptoms
Anticipating the worst
Feelings of apprehension or dread
Feeling tense and jumpy
Feeling like your mind’s gone blank
Irritability
Restlessness
Trouble concentrating
Watching for signs of danger
Physical Symptoms
Fatigue
Frequent urination or diarrhoea
Headaches
Insomnia
Muscle tension
Pounding heart
Sweating
Stomach upset or dizziness
Shortness of breath
Tremors and twitches
At Serenity Psychology , our psychologists are trained in multi-modal methods of treatment for those people experiencing anxiety and panic attacks.
Understanding Depression
Do your symptoms indicate depression?
If you identify with several of the following signs and symptoms, and they just won’t go away, you may be suffering from a clinical depression.
Can’t sleep or you sleep too much
Can’t concentrate or find that previously easy tasks are now difficult
Feel hopeless and helpless
Can’t control your negative thoughts, no matter how much you try
Have lost your appetite or you can’t stop eating
Much more irritable, short-tempered, or aggressive than usual
Consuming more alcohol than normal or engaging in other reckless behaviour
Have thoughts that life is not worth living (seek help immediately if this is the case)
Common Signs and Symptoms of Depression
Feelings of helplessness and hopelessness - A bleak outlook—nothing will ever get better and there’s nothing you can do to improve your situation.
Loss of interest in daily activities - No interest in former hobbies, pastimes, social activities, or sex. You’ve lost your ability to feel joy and pleasure.
Appetite or weight changes - Significant weight loss or weight gain—a change of more than 5% of body weight in a month.
Sleep changes - either insomnia, especially waking in the early hours of the morning, or oversleeping (also known as hypersomnia).
Anger or irritability - Feeling agitated, restless, or even violent. Your tolerance level is low, your temper short, and everything and everyone gets on your nerves.
Loss of energy - Feeling fatigued, sluggish, and physically drained. Your whole body may feel heavy, and even small tasks are exhausting or take longer to complete.
Self-loathing - Strong feelings of worthlessness or guilt. You harshly criticize yourself for perceived faults and mistakes.
Reckless behaviour - You engage in escapist behaviour such as substance abuse, compulsive gambling, reckless driving, or dangerous sports.
Concentration problems - Trouble focusing, making decisions, or remembering things.
Unexplained aches and pains - An increase in physical complaints such as headaches, back pain, aching muscles, and stomach pain
At Serenity Psychology South Perth, our psychologists provide a safe place for those clients to engage in a manner that suits them, and the levels of depression they are experiencing. We use multi-model methods of treatment depending on the individual and the personal factors involved such as personality characteristics, an individual’s strengths and challenges, and social supports to name a few factors. This creates an environment to change unhealthy thoughts, feelings and behaviours, develop productive and positive coping skills, communicate better with others around them and to develop a better quality of life, whether resolving depression or learning to live with the depression, in more functional ways.
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
In Australia it is thought that around 2% of the population experience OCD. It is not uncommon for the obsessive and compulsive behaviours to appear in childhood or early adolescence. A person who has OCD will spend many hours in their day repeating behaviours such as checking or washing, and this can interfere with their personal, interpersonal, social, and/or occupational functioning.
Let’s have a look at what obsessions and compulsions are to understand OCD in a better way. Obsessions are defined as consistent and persistent worries, concerns, impulses and / or images that are created by the person and are intrusive, or cause marked distress and/or anxiety. Compulsions are rigid and repetitive thoughts or behaviours that a person feels driven to perform in response to their obsessions. These thoughts and behaviours have rigid boundaries and rules, which the person must follow to counteract the distress caused by the obsession. This can be a fear of contamination by dirt, germs or microorganisms that will harm self or others or a need to be ordered, neat or methodical.
If you experience these thoughts, feelings, or behaviours please seek assistance with a Doctor or Psychologist.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
What is PTSD?
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can develop following a traumatic event that threatens your safety or makes you feel helpless. Most people associate PTSD with battle-scarred soldiers—and military combat is the most common cause in men—but any overwhelming life experience can trigger PTSD, especially if the event feels unpredictable and uncontrollable.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can affect those who personally experience the catastrophe, those who witness it, and those who pick up the pieces afterwards, including emergency workers and law enforcement officers. It can even occur in the friends or family members of those who went through the actual trauma. PTSD develops differently from person to person. While the symptoms of PTSD most commonly develop in the hours or days following the traumatic event, it can sometimes take weeks, months, or even years before they appear.
Traumatic events that can lead to PTSD include:
Assault
Car or plane crashes
Childhood neglect
Kidnapping
Natural disasters
Rape
Sexual or physical abuse
Sudden death of a loved one
Terrorist attacks
War
Signs and Symptoms of PTSD:
The symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can arise suddenly, gradually, or come and go over time. Sometimes symptoms appear seemingly out of the blue. At other times, they are triggered by something that reminds you of the original traumatic event, such as a noise, an image, certain words, or a smell.
While everyone experiences PTSD differently, there are three main types of symptoms:
Re-experiencing the traumatic event
Avoiding reminders of the trauma
Increased anxiety and emotional arousal
Symptoms of PTSD: Re-experiencing the traumatic event
Intrusive, upsetting memories of the event
Flashbacks (acting or feeling like the event is happening again)
Nightmares (either of the event or of other frightening things)
Feelings of intense distress when reminded of the trauma
Intense physical reactions to reminders of the event (e.g. pounding heart, rapid breathing, nausea, muscle tension, sweating)
Symptoms of PTSD: Avoidance and numbing
Avoiding activities, places, thoughts, or feelings that remind you of the trauma
Inability to remember important aspects of the trauma
Loss of interest in activities and life in general
Feeling detached from others and emotionally numb
Sense of a limited future (you don’t expect to live a normal life span, get married, have a career)
Symptoms of PTSD: Increased anxiety and emotional arousal
Difficulty falling or staying asleep
Irritability or outbursts of anger
Difficulty concentrating
Hypervigilance (on constant “red alert”)
Feeling jumpy and easily startled
Other common symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
Anger and irritability
Guilt, shame, or self-blame
Substance abuse
Feelings of mistrust and betrayal
Depression and hopelessness
Suicidal thoughts and feelings
Feeling alienated and alone
Physical aches and pains
If you experience any of the above symptoms, seek out professional help at your earliest convenience. The psychologists at Serenity on South Psychology Clinic are trained in the treatments of PTSD and offer a safe and non-threatening environment for you to explore management and treatment strategies that are right for you.
You can contact us here or make a booking here.