Depression Therapy & Treatment NYC

Depression can make you feel like there’s no hope. Therapy for depression can help you lighten the burden you’re carrying and learn how to engage more confidently and effectively in your life.

Therapy for Depression in NYC

Depression doesn’t have to hold you back from what is most meaningful to you.

Depression is very real to anyone experiencing it. If you or a loved one are currently depressed, then you certainly understand the pain and struggle it takes to make it through the day.

The good news is that you can find plenty help in New York City.  And if that professional help is using best practices, there is good reason to believe your (or your loved one’s) symptoms can begin to improve within weeks not years.

How Our NYC Therapists Can Help Depression

New York Behavioral Health professionals use best practices. Since we use scientifically supported treatments for anxiety, there is good reason to believe your (or your loved one’s) anxiety symptoms can begin to improve very soon.

  • Understand why certain thoughts, places, or situations influence your depression

  • Apply effective coping skills for minimizing stress and depressive symptoms

  • Develop strategies to replace avoidance behaviors with activities that will produce pleasure or feelings of accomplishment.

  • Learn to recognize automatic thoughts when they occur and to pay attention to their mood following the thoughts

  • Challenge negative automatic thoughts when they occur

  • Learn to focus on the present moment and commit to making choices that are in line with what’s important to you

Types of Therapy for Depression

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) is the approach our NYC therapists seek to reduce the intensity and frequency of a client’s emotional pain, suffering, and self-defeating behaviors. CBT can help clients to cultivate skills leading to goal achievement and life satisfaction by assessing and treating:

  • Cognitions what we think
  • Behaviors what we do and say
  • Emotions how we feel
  • Relationships how we interact with others

Dialectical Behavior Therapy

Dialectical Behavior Therapy was originally developed by Marsha Linehan for the treatment of individuals diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), but has since been shown to be effective therapy for many concerns.

DBT contains four treatment modes that aim to address five functions. The four treatment modes are individual therapy, group skills training, phone coaching on an as-needed basis, and therapist consultation meetings.

The five functions of treatment include:

  1. Increasing the client’s motivation to change
  2. Enhancing the client’s capabilities
  3. Generalizing gains to the client’s larger environment
  4. Structuring the environment to reinforce the client’s gains
  5. Increasing therapist motivation and competence (Linehan, 1993a).

Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy

Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) is a form of Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT).  It has been applied to various mental disorders, e.g., anxiety, anger, depression, personality disorders, eating disorders, etc. REBT was created by Dr. Albert Ellis. Al Ellis was originally trained as a psychoanalyst and began practicing psychoanalysis in New York City. After working with his patients for some time, he became dissatisfied with the lack of progress they were making. At this point he decided to return to his long-term passion, philosophy, to see if the wisdom there could benefit clients.

He developed the ABC model of emotional disturbance largely based on the work of philosophers who emphasized the role of beliefs and thinking in influencing emotional states.  The REBT ABC model is an acronym that stands for Activating Events, Beliefs, and Consequences. Consequences include both emotional consequences and behavioral consequences. REBT therefore conceptualizes emotional disturbances like anxiety, as a result of the combination of  an activating event and one’s beliefs about the activating event, the self, life and the future.

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) is pretty much exactly what it sounds like. This is a cognitive therapy that has integrated mindfulness. Clients learn how to identify depressive thoughts they connect with in a way that cause problems. They then learn exercises that enable them to get distance from these thoughts and help them to shed feelings of depression.

New York Behavioral Health practices all three of these therapies as well as traditional behavior therapy, all of which can help you become less depressed.

We have staff members who have conducted research on REBT and MBCT, and have taught ACT at the graduate level. So our staff are well equipped to help you with depression.

Treatment should be determined by a professional, e.g., licensed psychologist, psychiatrist, licensed social worker, or licensed mental health counselor.  Depression has been successfully treated by cognitive behavioral therapies (CBT), psychopharmacological treatments, interpersonal psychotherapy, and physical exercise.  It is important for an accurate diagnosis and treatment plan to be developed with a clinician, not through self-treatment.

The majority of depressed people begin to “feel better” within a few meetings with a properly trained psychologist and may have symptom reduction in as little as eight to 12 weeks.  There is evidence that relapse rates may be reduced by particular kinds of treatment.

What is Depression?

Depression is a condition that makes a person feel very much of the time. It affects a depressed person’s feelings, thoughts, and behaviors.

Depression symptoms can look very different for New Yorkers or anyone working hard to get ahead, who doesn’t have time for a sick day. Sadness and apathy are often associated with depression. And those are clearly common symptoms. But many people with depression in NYC may just push through those.

In New York City, if you are suffering from depression, you might relate to a few of these experiences:

  • You feel alone in a crowded metropolis, and feel alone in the middle of the crowd.
  • You (or a depressed loved one) might want to spend less time with friends, even though there are lots of places and events you could visit or attend in NYC with friends.
  • You may have no motivation to go to such places, even though there are numerous theaters and shows on Broadway or cultural events at Lincoln Center.
  • You might feel like you would rather escape from people by spending time alone in your apartment.
  • Waking up to work may be overwhelming and just getting out of bed may be a struggle.
  • Showering may feel like an arduous task.
  • In the workplace in one of the buildings in Manhattan, you might not have the energy to do your work well.
  • You might even find it boring and pointless, and just an 8 – 5 grind.
    Commuting in the New York City subway may also make you feel all alone.
    At home in your apartment, you may feel like crying all the time, especially at night.Even if you live in the biggest, most culture-rich, and liveliest city in the world, nothing feels good.

What Causes Depression in NYC?

Evidence suggests that there are biological causes to Major Depression.  It is more common in close relatives, even when controlling for a child might learn or pick up from their parents.

Many biological factors are related to depression. Insufficient amounts of neurotransmitters like serotonin or dopamine in various brain regions, or too much cortisol, cytokines, or other related stress-related hormones are all related to depression.

Cognitive Behavioral (learned) theories have also been used to explain the origins of depression. Aaron T. Beck, a psychiatrist believes there are three kinds of negative distorted thoughts that cause depression, and he calls them the Cognitive Triad.

What is the Cognitive Triad?

Negative thoughts about the:

1. Self,
2. World, and the
3. Future  

Albert Ellis’ theory of emotional disturbance holds that global evaluations of worth, such as “I am a failure,” or “Life is miserable,” may be the root cause of depression. These two theories are closely related. And both lead therapists to help depressed clients learn to identify problematic depression causing thoughts and cultivate thoughts that lift depression.

Martin Seligman’s depressive explanation focuses on how a negative event or many of them can lead a person to believe he or she is helpless. His theory focuses on how people can believe that no matter what they do, their circumstances, their feelings, their relationships, and their future will be the same—dreary. So, why even try to make things better. Doesn’t this sound just like depression some times feels?

Common Symptoms of Depression

  • Feelings of Emptiness
  • Fatigue
  • Inability to Concentrate
  • Heavy Arms & Legs
  • Feelings of Worthlessness
  • Changes in Sex Drive
  • Anger & Irritability
  • Hopelessness
  • Changes in Appetite & Weight

Depression Specialists

Meet Our Team

Chief Operating Officer

How Therapy for Depression Works

Step one

Connect with your therapist by either completing our matching form or reaching out to our care coordinators over the phone.

Step two

Attend a 45 minute intake session, where you will get to know your chosen therapist. The point of this visit is to learn what brought you to therapy and how we can help.

Step three

In each ongoing session, you and your therapist will use trusted therapy approaches to help you develop and reach your goals. Collaboratively, you’ll connect in a safe, comfortable space to help you engage in your life in the way you want.

Contemporary care

Empathetic Experts

Our therapists and coaches have combined decades of experience and are specially trained to provide high quality, compassionate support for your health and wellbeing.

Goal oriented

We’re dedicated to using evidence-based methods to ensure you receive the most effective treatment and meet your goals.

Here to support you

personalized matching

We know that having a better relationship with your therapist leads to better outcomes, so we carefully match you with the right therapist to fit your unique needs.

compassionate care

It’s important to our therapists that you feel safe, seen, and understood in therapy. Our offices are judgment-free spaces.

Depression doesn't have to take hold of your life any longer.

Depression may have had a grip on your life for as long as you can remember. Even if this is true, our expert NYC therapists can still help. Cognitive Behavior Therapy has been proven to effectively treat depression. We know it is not easy to get started, but we can help you through every step of the way, so you can reduce your suffering.