Depression counselling

A rough patch lifts when the cause does. Depression stays after the cause has passed, or arrives without one. The signs people notice first are usually not sadness: it is exhaustion that sleep does not fix, no interest in things that used to matter, being short with everyone, and a sense of moving through the day at a distance. If that has been going for weeks rather than days, it is worth bringing in.

No, to both. You can book directly and describe it in your own words. Advance Minds does not diagnose depression; that sits with a GP, psychologist or psychiatrist. It is worth seeing your GP anyway at some point, because thyroid problems, low iron, sleep disorders and some medications produce very similar symptoms and are worth ruling out.

No. Only a doctor can. If you are already taking medication, counselling runs alongside it perfectly well, and for many people the combination works better than either on its own. Nobody here will tell you to stop taking something your doctor has prescribed.

That is the cruel part of it: the illness attacks the exact capacity you need to do something about the illness. Which is why the early work is deliberately small. Not a plan to overhaul your life, but one or two things that are genuinely achievable this week, because momentum in depression is built from very small pieces. Online sessions exist partly for this reason, since getting to a waiting room can be the whole obstacle.

Early on, understanding the shape of it: when it started, what it is attached to, what makes a better day different from a worse one. Alongside that, practical work on activity, sleep and the things that have dropped away, because in depression action tends to come before motivation rather than after it. Then the slower work on what is underneath, which is often grief, anger with nowhere to go, or years of carrying something alone.

Yes, and please do. Thoughts like that are more common than people believe and they are not a reason to be turned away. Say it in the first session; it will not shock anybody and it changes how the work is set up rather than ending it. But counselling is not an emergency service. If you are thinking about acting on it, or you do not feel safe right now, call 000, or Lifeline on 13 11 14, or the Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467. Those lines are staffed around the clock, and that is what they are for.

Nobody can promise a number honestly. Depression that has followed a specific event often moves faster than depression that has been running quietly for years. It gets reviewed with you as you go rather than sold as a package up front.

Yes, by secure video anywhere in Australia. In-person sessions are available in Bankstown. On the days when leaving the house is the hardest part, being able to keep the appointment from home is often what keeps the work going.