Michael Bricker (he/him/his)

Depression can come in many forms and may be harder to recognize since we may think of it only when we see depictions of chronic tearfulness or feelings of hopelessness or worthlessness. Depression often looks different for everyone and many individuals who seek therapy have depression but are still able to maintain a job, as well as social and romantic relationships. Those same individuals, though, may often feel trapped inside, and stuck in these feelings.

While stress and anxiety can be a part of daily life and can sometimes help motivate us to make changes or take action, these emotions can also become so overwhelming that they begin to interfere with our happiness, relationships, and ability to take control of our life. Anxiety can also result when our old ways of coping no longer work in the face of new challenges, which can be brought on by a job change, relationship, relocation, or other negative or positive transitions in our life.

Relationships we hold dearest to us are often intertwined with our strongest emotions, including anger, deep hurt, and pain. Oftentimes, challenges in these relationships can leave us feeling ungrounded, with little clarity or direction on how to make things better. Further, when communication breaks down or becomes stuck in an endless pattern of anger, attack, or withdrawing/isolating, we can become hopeless and confused about what to do next.

EFT involves a therapeutic style that combines both following and guiding the client’s experiential process, emphasizing the importance of both relationship and intervention skills. It views emotion as the fundamental datum of human experience while recognizing the importance of meaning making, and views emotion and cognition as inextricably intertwined.

DBT is an evidence-based treatment for individuals with difficulties managing their emotions. In DBT, there are four sets of skills that are the focus – mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness.

Emotions are connected to our most essential needs. They rapidly alert us to situations important to our well-being. They also prepare and guide us to take action towards meeting our needs. Individuals and couples benefit from therapy with the help of an empathically attuned relationship with their therapist, who seeks to help them to better identify, experience, explore, make sense of, transform, and more flexibly manage their emotions.