Therapy for Depression 
Therapy for Anxiety
in Newtown, PA and
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Beyond Therapy and Nutrition Center can support you

if you're looking for therapy depression, anxiety,

and other mood concerns!

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What are mood disorders? 

 

Mood disorders is a broad term that encompasses depressive and bipolar disorders. A mood disorder is characterized by symptoms related to low mood or changes in mood that include mood swings from one extreme to another. While everyone experiences sadness and variation in mood, symptoms of mood disorders include more intense feelings of sadness and hopelessness and more drastic changes in mood from opposite extremes. Individuals with mood disorders may display symptoms that would not be expected of their current life circumstances; however, experiencing stressors, loss, or difficult times may also contribute to or exacerbate symptoms. 

 

There are two types of mood disorders: Depressive disorders and Bipolar disorders. Depressive disorders include low mood, feelings of intense sadness, hopelessness, and low energy that impact a person’s ability to function in different areas of life. Bipolar disorders are characterized by mood swings including periods of depression and mania. Symptoms of each type will be explored further below. 

 

Mood disorders can affect daily functioning in many ways. Because mood disorders can cause constant feelings of depression or mood swings from high to low mood, people with mood disorders can experience difficulties in their personal relationships, occupational functioning, and daily tasks, including chores, errands, and personal care. 

 

Treatment of mood disorders can include therapy, medication, social support, and self-care habits. 

 

What are anxiety disorders? 

 

Anxiety disorders are a category of mental health conditions characterized by feelings of intense and excessive worry or fear, somatic complaints, avoidance of situations, people, or objects associated with anxiety, panic attacks, and specific phobias or intense fears. Everyone experiences anxiety sometimes; however, anxiety disorders may include levels of anxiety or perceived threat that are in excess of the actual threat and cause significant disruption to an individual’s daily functioning. People with anxiety disorders tend to display high levels of avoidance that can impact their relationships, ability to engage in leisure activities, affect their job performance, or otherwise cause the individual to feel limited due to their anxiety. 

 

There are several different anxiety disorders. Anxiety disorders can include worries specific to specific situations, such as separation from attachment figures or social situations, or general anxiety. They also include specific phobias. Phobias are intense fears that may be irrational or cause excessive worry and cause impediment of an individual’s ability to function, avoidance of certain situations, or facing unavoidable situations with intense levels of anxiety. Examples of phobias include heights, flying, receiving injections, or specific animals. Symptoms of other anxiety disorders will be explored further below. 

 

Anxiety is not considered a mood disorder but can often co-occur with or precede a mood disorder. Anxiety can also be a symptom that occurs in mood disorder, even if an anxiety disorder is not present. 

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Who do mood and anxiety disorders affect?

 

Mood and anxiety disorders can occur for children, teens, and adults. In children, the symptoms of a mood or anxiety disorder may look different due to their inability to express their emotions. Children tend to display more irritability when experiencing mood disorders and anxiety disorders often manifest as somatic complaints in children. Certain mood disorders develop in childhood, including disruptive mood dysregulation disorder. Persistent depressive disorder tends to develop in childhood, adolescence, or early adulthood and persist into adulthood. Mood disorder symptoms can fluctuate throughout an individual’s lifespan and during different developmental stages. Separation anxiety is an anxiety disorder experienced by children and adolescents that includes excessive worry when away from caregivers or primary attachment figures and persistent worry about losing their loved ones or something bad happening to their caregiver that would cause separation. Selective mutism is also a condition that typically develops before the age of 5 and involves consistent failure to speak in social situations despite the child having full language capabilities. 

Although both male and female identifying individuals can have mood disorders, they occur more commonly in women. Furthermore, some women experience premenstrual dysphoric disorder, which includes a depressed mood and other emotional and behavioral symptoms about one to two weeks before menstruation or around time of ovulation and typically resolves a few days after the start of menstruation. Similarly, women also have higher reported rates of anxiety disorders. 

 

Mood disorders can increase risk of suicide. If you or a loved one is experiencing thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 for support. You can also call 1-888-628-9454 for suicide or crisis help in English or Spanish language. 

 

What are risk factors for developing a mood or anxiety disorder?

 

Both mood and anxiety disorders have genetic components, so a family history of depression, bipolar disorders, or other mood or anxiety disorders can increase an individual’s likelihood of having a mood-related disorder. Mood disorders are also more common in women. Anxiety disorders tend to include both genetic and environmental components. Temperament is also a contributing factor, and shyness or nervousness in childhood is a risk factor for developing an anxiety disorder. 

 

Stress and other triggering events can cause an episode of mood disturbance to first appear or increase symptoms experienced by an individual with a mood disorder. Furthermore, experiencing stressful life events and/or trauma, especially in childhood, can increase the chances of developing a mood or anxiety disorder. 

 

Some medications and substances can cause symptoms of depression and anxiety, which can increase chances of developing a mood or anxiety disorder. Talk with your prescribing doctor if you believe a medication you are prescribed is causing changes to your mood. Depression is common in certain medical conditions, such as neurological disorders and brain injuries. Furthermore, depression is linked with chronic pain and chronic illness. 

 

How do I know if I’m experiencing a mood or anxiety disorder?

 

There are two types of mood disorders: Depressive disorders and Bipolar disorders. There are many types of anxiety disorders, including generalized anxiety, social anxiety, panic disorder, and specific phobias. We’ll look at symptoms of each type that may be warning signs of a mood disorder below. 

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Anxiety Disorders

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Anxiety disorders include generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, separation anxiety disorder, selective mutism, social anxiety disorder, agoraphobia, specific phobias, substance/medication-induced anxiety disorder, and anxiety disorder due to another medical condition. 

 

Symptoms of anxiety/panic:

 

• Frequent feelings of worry

• Worrying about many different things

• Racing thoughts and feeling like you can’t turn your mind off

• Feeling on edge or wound up

• Restlessness or fidgeting

• Difficulty concentrating

• Trouble falling asleep or staying asleep

• Irritability 

• Otherwise unexplained headaches, stomach aches, or pain

• Racing heart, sweating, muscle tension

• Feeling like something bad is going to happen

• Worrying about when the next panic attack will occur

• Avoidance of situation, people, or objects that cause anxiety, fear, or panic

 

How can therapy help? 

 

If you have a mood or anxiety disorder, working with a mental health professional can help. Goals of therapy for mood and anxiety disorders might include:

 

• Addressing immediate needs for safety, shelter, and food

• Education about mood disorders and anxiety

• Learning about symptoms and their impact on functioning

• Identification of triggers and creating plans to address them

• Increasing coping skills to manage symptoms of depression, anxiety, or mood swings

• Creating safety plans for suicidal ideation

• Increasing social support or accessing support groups

• Managing tasks of daily living or executive functioning that is impacted by symptoms

• Finding ways to manage symptoms’ impact on relationships and occupational functioning

• Increasing self-regulation and mindfulness

• Trauma healing, if appropriate and desired

 

Building a therapeutic relationship with a therapist who empathizes with your symptoms and experiences can start paving the way to relief. Your therapist will work with you to create therapeutic goals that meet your needs and desired outcomes for treatment. If you’d like to learn more about mood or anxiety disorders or symptoms you’re experiencing and see how we can help, contact us at-.

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