Mental Health Treatment in St. George, Ut.

ADHD - Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

ADHD is an acronym for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. It is considered a neurodevelopmental disorder that affects the lives of a significant number of children and teens. Although ADHD is one of the most researched childhood disorders, the exact cause is still uncertain. The symptoms of ADHD can cause difficulty and sometimes failure in school, social settings, and family life as well as cause low self-esteem, anxiety, depression and substance use. Medication has long been the traditional treatment for this disorder and can be extremely effective for some, but many factors contribute to the fact that after a year of starting medication, only 33-50% are still taking it. At ABC Counseling Services, Jamie Christiansen provides appropriate psychoeducation about the neurobiology of ADHD, teaches mindfulness skills, assists children to create a positive self-esteem and narrative, assists parents in addressing their children’s sleep patterns and nutrition which are unique markers to the ADHD brain, and provides parenting skills specific to ADHD symptoms.

Anxiety

Anxiety like Depression is a mood disorder and many times occurs simultaneously with depression. Causes for anxiety vary but include genetics, environment, personality, trauma, substance abuse or a combination of each of these. Symptoms include racing thoughts, racing heart, difficulty breathing, hot and/or cold sweats, shakiness, nausea and in severe cases panic attacks. Because the causes of anxiety can vary, the treatment methods may also vary. Adjusting diet is helpful, learning deep breathing, mindfulness and meditative skills is helpful, neuro and bio feedback may help alleviate symptoms and trauma work is especially helpful when anxiety symptoms developed after a traumatic experience. At ABC Counseling Services, we approach anxiety along with other mood disorders from the experience of the body and mind using the treatment methods listed above as well as experiential and mindfulness methods to help you reduce or eliminate the symptoms and experience of anxiety.

Depression

Depression is a mood disorder. It can occur along with its counterpart Anxiety. Depression is an experience that most people will have in one form or another during their lifetime. It can be something that briefly arises out of challenging circumstances or be a severely debilitating and long-lasting experience that makes each day seem like torture. The causes of depression can be as simple as a dietary deficiency to as complicated an issue as repeated trauma. Medication is generally prescribed for persisting and severe depression and is an excellent treatment option for taking the edge off, but it is not a cure and of course has side effects that may or may not add to the already uncomfortable symptoms. At ABC Counseling Services, we approach mood disorders from the experience of the body and mind using experiential and mindfulness methods to help you reduce or eliminate the symptoms and experience of depression.

Oppositional defiant disorder

(ODD) is a type of behavior disorder. Children with ODD are uncooperative, defiant, and hostile toward peers, parents, teachers, and other authority figures. They are more troubling to others than they are to themselves.

Obsessive and compulsive disorder

(OCD) s a condition that causes kids to have unwanted thoughts, feelings, and fears. These are called obsessions, and they can make kids feel anxious. To relieve the obsessions and anxiety, OCD leads kids to do behaviors called compulsions (also called rituals).

Trauma

Trauma is a primarily non-verbal experience and is more of a physiological experience. It is a term used to define the emotional, mental, physical and spiritual pain experienced from the unexpected, repeated and hurtful actions, behaviors, experiences and words of people in our life such as emotional, physical and/or sexual abuse. Trauma does not look like nor is experienced in the same way for everyone. What one person considers traumatic may not be traumatic to another person. How one person experiences trauma may not be the same way another person experiences trauma. Trauma can be the outcome of a single event or it can be the result of repetitive events over time.

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