Anxiety and Depression

ADAA (Anxiety and Depression Association of America) reports that 40 million Americans have been diagnosed with some form of anxiety disorder. They have also found that 21.4 million Americans have suffered at least one major depressive episode. While these numbers are staggering, they are not an accurate representation of how many individuals struggle with anxiety and depression. These numbers are based on self-reports and diagnosis; it does not take into account individuals who suffer in silence. While women are 2x more likely than men to have an anxiety disorder, this number is estimated to be vastly incorrect due to the societal pressure men endure surrounding mental health. Men are often told to “buck up and get over it”, and they are not given the space to express their feelings. This explanation helps us to understand why suicide rates are higher in men, due to the taboo nature of discussing internal conflict and emotions. Here at the Toolbox, we want to be that space for you to finally discuss your mental health struggles.

Traditional therapy practices can often lead with questions like “how do you feel about that?” This can cause frustrations for clients because usually the answer to that question is “if I knew that, I wouldn’t be paying you” or “I know how I feel, but I don’t know what to do about it.” We don’t ask questions like that here, instead, we work to identify your emotions, understand what they are trying to tell you, and work with you to find the best solution to your situation. All emotions want something from you, they serve a purpose to identify needs we are often unaware of. Once you are given the tools to understand the needs of your emotions, we will equip you to be able to deal with those emotions and address your needs.

Studies have shown that opening up to someone about anxiety and depression can reduce stress symptoms by 30% after a month. While this is a great place to start, we want to give you tools and coping skills to decrease that number even more. We have tools to help with day-to-day stressors and tools to help with life’s greater challenges. You might feel like things are good and I don’t need to talk to anybody, if things are in a good place, often that is the best time to seek help. Getting counseling/ coaching before the crisis comes is like building the roof on your house first before you decorate the inside.