4 Ways to Fight Depression

Posted on August 30, 2017 by Raffi Bilek

If you’ve been feeling down a lot lately, always tired, not in the mood to do much of anything, you may be suffering from depression. Depression is different from just feeling sad, and it is a medical condition that should not go ignored. While medical interventions such as psychiatric medication may be helpful or even necessary to treat depression, there are a number of options you can try on your own to improve the situation. If nothing seems to help, or if at any point you find yourself thinking about harming yourself, please seek professional help immediately. Exercise It is well-known ...

Depression vs. Sadness and What You Can Do About It

Posted on April 10, 2017 by Raffi Bilek

We're taking a break from our regularly scheduled posts on the Five Love Languages to bring you this exclusive special in which I was invited to a local TV station to do a short bit on depression. Here's the clip with a brief discussion, with some further elaboration to follow: Depression vs. Sadness One of the questions the producers asked me about was the difference between depression and sadness. The whole interview was fairly short, so I want to revisit some of these important points. Sadness is a normal part of the ups and downs everyone experiences. If you're down for a whil...

How Do I Find a Therapist?

Posted on November 15, 2016 by Raffi Bilek

So you’re looking for a therapist in Baltimore. Maybe you typed “Baltimore therapist” into Google and it sent you here. But how do you find the right “Baltimore therapist” for you? What goes in to choosing a good therapist – and not just a good therapist, but a good therapist for you? That’s an important distinction to take note of. Research shows that virtually all modes of therapy depend more on the relationship between the client and the therapist than on any other factor, including how many degrees the therapist has, how many years s/he’s been in practice, how many Twitter follower...

Therapy for Women

Posted on April 18, 2016June 22, 2016 by Caitlin Chana Hill

Why a post on therapy for women? Is therapy somehow different for women than for men? Do they face different issues? The answer is yes and no. Certainly the problems we help clients with are universal: anxiety, depression, loneliness, heartbreak, self-control, self-esteem, and more. But often these manifest differently in men and women, just as recent research has shown that physical ailments, such as heart attacks, manifest differently in men and women. Our psyches are no less different than our bodies. For instance, Terry Real has written extensively about how men often experience de...

Bariatric Surgery and Therapy

Posted on March 21, 2016March 21, 2016 by Raffi Bilek

So what’s the connection between bariatric surgery and therapy? If you’ve gotten the operation done or are considering it, you are probably aware that you have to do a psychological evaluation before going through with it. (Yes, we offer these, and we explain what this is all about here.) But what about after the surgery is over? Sometimes, apart from clearing a patient for the surgery, we will recommend or require that a patient undergo therapy before, during, or after the operation. Here are some of the issues that may come up around bariatric surgery that can affect a person’s mental hea...

Counseling, Time, and Change

Posted on March 14, 2016March 18, 2016 by Raffi Bilek

Every now and then I hear about a “great new therapy” that promises fast results and lasting change (often after a single session or treatment). I am highly skeptical of such approaches and I encourage you to do some due diligence before signing up for one. The process of human change is not nearly as mysterious as we may think. It has in fact been studied at length and there is a good deal of research that informs the way agents of change – therapists, in this case – ought to be working. In short, change does not happen overnight. In the evidence-based Stages of Change model, the “action pha...

The Benefit of Gratitude

Posted on November 25, 2015 by Raffi Bilek

With Thanksgiving around the corner, a post on gratitude seems apropos. Gratitude occupies an important position in the positive psychology literature. Positive psychology is a branch of psychology that focuses not on pulling people out of negative mindsets, emotions, and situations, but on helping us reach positive ones. Its goal is to study and promulgate that which enhances the experience of life for everyman – not just for those who have mental illnesses, relationship problems, or other challenging circumstances. The benefit of gratitude has accumulated an extensive base of research. In...

The Deal with Insurance and Marriage Counseling

Posted on August 23, 2015December 23, 2016 by Raffi Bilek

At the Baltimore Therapy Center we frequently get calls that begin like this: “Hi, I’m looking for marriage counseling. Do you take Blue Cross Blue Shield?” While the short answer is yes, there’s unfortunately a lot more that needs to be said on this topic. The reality is that almost no insurance company will pay for marriage counseling. This is because they will tell you that marital or relationship problems are not a medical issue, and therefore it’s not something they cover. Sadly, in this case they happen to be right. Marital problems are not a medical issue. (What if one of you actuall...

A Dog Named Depression

Posted on October 26, 2014February 26, 2015 by Raffi Bilek

This short video offers an excellent perspective on what it's like to be depressed. Depression does tremendous damage to relationships. If you or someone you love is suffering from depression, don't hesitate to reach out for help. It can turn your relationships around 180 degrees. Learn more about our counseling and therapy services here.

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