{"id":4687,"date":"2020-09-28T15:14:55","date_gmt":"2020-09-28T15:14:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.olneycounseling.com\/?p=4687"},"modified":"2020-09-28T16:23:01","modified_gmt":"2020-09-28T16:23:01","slug":"how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Support Someone Struggling with Depression"},"content":{"rendered":"

Just as it is hard to be an individual struggling with the heaviness of depression, it is often hard to know how to support someone struggling with depression. As a therapist, I work with adolescents and adults struggling with depression, which can be long term (often called Dysthymia), or shorter-term (often called Major Depressive Disorder). Depression can flare up due to biological factors, social factors, and psychological factors, often leading to extreme sadness and\/or hopelessness, loss of interest in usual hobbies or activities, and negative thoughts about themselves, others, or the world.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>Here are my 5 most recommended tips to help someone struggling with depression.<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Validate and make sure they are safe- <\/i><\/b>Acknowledge that you recognize they are struggling and let them know that you want them to be safe. Simply say, \u201cI care about you and want to ensure that you are feeling safe right now, both to yourself and others?\u201d If they express imminent concerns for the safety of themselves or others, help them to get emergency intervention \u2013 contact your local crisis center, call 911, or get them to the nearest hospital emergency room.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
      \n
    1. Be Present- <\/i><\/b>Although it is difficult to do sometimes, put away all the distractions, including technology, and truly be present with the person who is struggling with depression. Ask \u201cHow can I support you?\u201d. Sometimes they may just need you to listen, sometimes they may need physical touch, or sometimes they may just want you to sit and \u201cbe\u201d with them, even if it is in silence. Letting the person know, \u201cI want to be present with you during this difficult time. How can I support you?\u201d can go a very long way and show this person the love and care that they likely need.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
        \n
      1. Be an engaged listener- <\/i><\/b>If the person you are supporting does want to talk about their experience, be an active listener. Although you may not be able to help them through their issue, listening and being compassionate can make a world of difference. As renowned author Lori Gottlieb states, \u201cPeople start to heal the moment they feel heard\u201d. You do not need to solve their problem, just be there to listen.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
          \n
        1. Encourage them to receive professional help- <\/i><\/b>People struggling with short- or long-term depression can often benefit from seeking professional support with a trained psychotherapist and\/or medication prescriber (Psychiatrist, PNP, Primary Care). Some of the symptoms of depression may hold a person back from being motivated and following through with seeking help.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          If they already have a therapist or other mental health professional, encourage them to reach out to schedule an appointment<\/a>.\u00a0 Let them know that although you are here to listen, a trained and licensed professional is better equipped to help with effective and evidence-based therapeutic techniques.<\/span>\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

          If they do not already have a therapist or mental health professional, encourage them to sit with you and find someone who may be a good fit for them. I often recommend the website <\/span>www.psychologytoday.com<\/span><\/a>, which allows you to filter out clinicians based on insurance, location, specialty, etc. and learn a bit about them. Sending the first email or making the first call is often the hardest part, especially for someone who is actively struggling.<\/span><\/p>\n

            \n
          1. Participate in an activity together- <\/i><\/b>When feeling depressed, it is common to \u201cshut down\u201d and want to lay low. Find a common interest or activity you can do together and encourage the person to do that with you. Oftentimes, even taking a short walk can help to release endorphins leading to increased Serotonin, which helps us to feel content and happy. There are many other activities you can do together that are just as helpful!\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

            If you know someone who is struggling with depression, contact Olney Counseling today.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

            Just as it is hard to be an individual struggling with the heaviness of depression, it is often hard to know how to support someone struggling with depression. As a therapist, I work with adolescents and adults struggling with depression, which can be long term (often called Dysthymia), or shorter-term (often called Major Depressive Disorder). […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":4692,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4687","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nHow to Support Someone Struggling with Depression - OCC<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"How to Support Someone Struggling with Depression - No matter what the cause, Olney Counseling Center is here to help. Call us!\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How to Support Someone Struggling with Depression - OCC\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"How to Support Someone Struggling with Depression - No matter what the cause, Olney Counseling Center is here to help. Call us!\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"OCC\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-09-28T15:14:55+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2020-09-28T16:23:01+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/clasped-hands-sky.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"260\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"400\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Rose Bleiweis\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Rose Bleiweis\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Rose Bleiweis\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/#\/schema\/person\/a94f3b495734a67e73a76367679a1a49\"},\"headline\":\"How to Support Someone Struggling with Depression\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-09-28T15:14:55+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2020-09-28T16:23:01+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/\"},\"wordCount\":631,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/clasped-hands-sky.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"blog\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/\",\"name\":\"How to Support Someone Struggling with Depression - OCC\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/clasped-hands-sky.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-09-28T15:14:55+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2020-09-28T16:23:01+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/#\/schema\/person\/a94f3b495734a67e73a76367679a1a49\"},\"description\":\"How to Support Someone Struggling with Depression - No matter what the cause, Olney Counseling Center is here to help. Call us!\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/clasped-hands-sky.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/clasped-hands-sky.jpg\",\"width\":260,\"height\":400,\"caption\":\"how to support someone struggling with depression\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"How to Support Someone Struggling with Depression\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/\",\"name\":\"OCC\",\"description\":\"Providing help and hope for those in need\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/#\/schema\/person\/a94f3b495734a67e73a76367679a1a49\",\"name\":\"Rose Bleiweis\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a8c42b7c5a456c45ea2d6cb8f57161fedf72c4a349542c38f1d894504414c53e?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a8c42b7c5a456c45ea2d6cb8f57161fedf72c4a349542c38f1d894504414c53e?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Rose Bleiweis\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/author\/rosebleiweis\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"How to Support Someone Struggling with Depression - OCC","description":"How to Support Someone Struggling with Depression - No matter what the cause, Olney Counseling Center is here to help. Call us!","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"How to Support Someone Struggling with Depression - OCC","og_description":"How to Support Someone Struggling with Depression - No matter what the cause, Olney Counseling Center is here to help. Call us!","og_url":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/","og_site_name":"OCC","article_published_time":"2020-09-28T15:14:55+00:00","article_modified_time":"2020-09-28T16:23:01+00:00","og_image":[{"width":260,"height":400,"url":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/clasped-hands-sky.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Rose Bleiweis","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Rose Bleiweis","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/"},"author":{"name":"Rose Bleiweis","@id":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/#\/schema\/person\/a94f3b495734a67e73a76367679a1a49"},"headline":"How to Support Someone Struggling with Depression","datePublished":"2020-09-28T15:14:55+00:00","dateModified":"2020-09-28T16:23:01+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/"},"wordCount":631,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/clasped-hands-sky.jpg","articleSection":["blog"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/","url":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/","name":"How to Support Someone Struggling with Depression - OCC","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/clasped-hands-sky.jpg","datePublished":"2020-09-28T15:14:55+00:00","dateModified":"2020-09-28T16:23:01+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/#\/schema\/person\/a94f3b495734a67e73a76367679a1a49"},"description":"How to Support Someone Struggling with Depression - No matter what the cause, Olney Counseling Center is here to help. Call us!","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/clasped-hands-sky.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/clasped-hands-sky.jpg","width":260,"height":400,"caption":"how to support someone struggling with depression"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/how-to-support-someone-struggling-with-depression\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"How to Support Someone Struggling with Depression"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/","name":"OCC","description":"Providing help and hope for those in need","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/#\/schema\/person\/a94f3b495734a67e73a76367679a1a49","name":"Rose Bleiweis","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a8c42b7c5a456c45ea2d6cb8f57161fedf72c4a349542c38f1d894504414c53e?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a8c42b7c5a456c45ea2d6cb8f57161fedf72c4a349542c38f1d894504414c53e?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Rose Bleiweis"},"url":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/author\/rosebleiweis\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4687","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4687"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4687\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5603,"href":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4687\/revisions\/5603"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4692"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4687"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4687"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/olneycounseling.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4687"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}