Occasional anxiety is a normal part of life but when anxiety begins to control normal parts of everyday life causing you to avoid certain places or situations, it may be time to seek help.  Anxiety comes in many forms: generalized, social, separation, and phobias.    

Common symptoms of Anxiety include:  

• Feeling worried, nervous, or restless 
• Feeling a sense of impending danger or doom 
• Trouble concentrating 
• Increased heart rate
• Hyperventilating
• Feeling weak 
• Sweating
• Upset stomach (GI Issues) 
• Difficulty sleeping  

Depression can take on many forms such as sadness, loss, and anger.  Everyone feels down at times but consistently having feelings of sadness, worthlessness, and general not caring could be indicators of depression.  Many people who have depression may not even know it.  Depression is highly treatable.  

Common symptoms of Depression include: 

• Feeling sad or anxious 
• Feeling hopeless, worthless, or pessimistic 
• Feeling angry and annoyed 
• Loss of interest in activities you once enjoyed 
• Crying more than usual
• Difficulty concentrating or making decisions 
• Decreased energy 
• Difficulty sleeping or changing sleep patterns that have become unhealthy 
• Chronic pain with no apparent reason 
• Thoughts of self-harm, death, or suicide 

Trauma is a response to a significant negative event.  Different events and experiences are traumatic for different people.  Trauma can have long lasting negative effects on people physically, emotionally, and/or psychologically.   

 Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is an event or series of events that causes intense and disturbing thoughts, memories or flashbacks. 

 Symptoms of Emotional Trauma: 

• Denial 
• Sadness 
• Anger 
• Easily overwhelmed by emotions
• Feeling “numb” 

Symptoms of Psychological Trauma: 

• Anxiety 
• Irritability/Mood Swings 
• Poor Concentration 
• Feelings of guilt or shame 

Physical symptoms of trauma: 

• Panic attacks 
• Fatigue 
• Poor concentration 
• Sensitivity to sounds and noises 
• Increase in risk-taking behaviors 
• Difficulty sleeping 
• Change in appetite 

An eating disorder is a serious mental illness characterized by disturbances to thoughts, behaviors and attitudes to food and eating. For some, this extends to pre-occupation with exercise and body weight/shape. Many people with an eating disorder do not realize they have a problem, or if they do, they may go to extraordinary lengths to hide the signs of their behavior. Eating disorders often co-occur with other psychiatric disorders most commonly mood and anxiety disorders, obsessive compulsive disorder and alcohol and drug abuse problems.

Signs you may have disordered eating habits:

• Preoccupation with weight, food, calories, carbohydrates, fat grams, and dieting
• Frequent dieting
• Dramatic weight gain/loss
• Feelings of guilt, depression after eating or overeating
• Self-esteem overly related to body image
• Extreme concern with body size and shape

The following are common eating disorders we treat:

• Anorexia Nervosa
• Bulimia Nervosa
• Binge Eating Disorder
• Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (AFRID)
• Other Eating Disorders

Addiction can interfere with your day-to-day life due to your brain continually seeking and craving a “reward” despite any consequences.  Addiction can be many things: substances, sex, gambling, technology to name a few.  When the ability to control “reward” seeking behavior becomes difficult, there are many treatment options available to help. 

Signs and symptoms of Addiction: 

• Personality changes
• Secrecy related to addiction 
• Increased anxiety and/or depression 
• Blaming other people or factors for problems  
• Difficulty sleeping or insomnia 
• Increased risk taking behavior to obtain “reward”
• Unable to stop or gain control over “reward” 

Being a child or teenager in today’s world comes with many challenges from normal, everyday stresses to more opportunities than ever to be exposed to age inappropriate material/experiences and traumatic events to social media pressures and bullying.  If you are concerned about your child’s overall well-being or specific behaviors, behavioral health counseling can provide help through resources, coping strategies, skill building, strengthening families, and more.   

Signs your child or teen may need help: 

• Problems in school or with attendance 
• Noticeable anxiety and/or depression 
• More withdrawn than usual 
• Self-harm (unexplained cuts, scratches or injuries) 
• Extreme anger or rage 
• Other concerning behaviors that seem out of the ordinary