Understanding Depression and Its Impact

Your feelings are valid. Your story matters. Let’s explore what you might be carrying and how healing can begin.

Depression shows up in many ways. Sometimes it feels like a heavy fog you can’t push through. Other times, it’s a quiet numbness or a persistent low that just won’t lift. Whatever it looks like for you, we want you to know that you’re not alone and that what you’re feelings are real.

At Holistically Divine Counseling (HDC), we recognize that depression exists on a continuum. It doesn’t always follow a textbook pattern. Whether it’s a short season or something that’s been lingering for years, we’re here to help you make sense of it and to support you in moving forward with compassion and clarity.

Different Types of Depression

The Deep Lows

This type of depression may feel intense and overwhelming. It can make even the simplest tasks, like getting out of bed or responding to a text, feel like too much. You might notice a loss of interest in things you used to enjoy, a drop in energy, changes in sleep or appetite, or feeling like you’re moving through life on autopilot.

Naming the Experience Clinically

Also known simply as “clinical depression,” Major Depressive Disorder is one of the most common and severe forms of depression. It can interfere significantly with your daily life, impacting your work, relationships, energy, and sense of purpose.

Common signs include:

• Feeling sad, hopeless, or empty most of the day
• Loss of interest in activities you used to enjoy
• Changes in appetite or sleep
• Difficulty concentrating
• Fatigue or lack of motivation
• Thoughts of death or suicide

We hold space for the heaviness. And we walk with you as you rebuild, reconnect, and find yourself again.

The Lingering Cloud

For some, depression isn’t loud, it’s subtle but constant. You might describe it as feeling “off,” like you’re functioning but not really living. It’s easy to miss or dismiss this kind of depression, especially if you’ve felt this way for so long it’s become your “normal.”
We help you recognize these patterns with kindness, not judgment, and support you in shifting out of survival mode and into a space of restoration.

Seasonal Shifts

As the seasons shift, so can your energy, mood, and motivation. That’s not something to fix, it’s something to honor. You may feel more tired in the winter months, crave warm comfort foods, or find yourself needing more rest and quiet. This isn’t about being lazy or unmotivated, it’s your body responding to changes in daylight and temperature, preparing for a slower rhythm, much like hibernation in nature.

At HDC, we hold space for this natural response with compassion and understanding. Your body is wise. Rather than pushing through, we help you find supportive ways to adjust, restore, and care for yourself during the colder seasons.

Naming the Experience Clinically

This seasonal pattern is known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), a form of depression identified in the clinical field as Major Depressive Disorder with Seasonal Pattern. It commonly arises in the fall and winter, when there is less sunlight, and symptoms typically ease as spring returns.

Changes in sunlight can affect your internal clock (circadian rhythm), mood-regulating neurotransmitters like serotonin, and sleep-related hormones like melatonin—all of which can contribute to feelings of heaviness, fatigue, and emotional disconnection.

Common Symptoms May Include:

• Low or persistently sad mood
• Sleeping more than usual but still feeling exhausted
• Craving carbs or experiencing changes in appetite
• Withdrawing from friends or usual activities
• Difficulty concentrating or staying motivated
• Feelings of hopelessness or guilt
• In more severe cases, thoughts of death or suicide

Depression After Birth or During Parenthood

The journey into parenthood is both sacred and stretching. It brings love, change, and responsibility, but it doesn’t always bring joy right away. If you’ve felt overwhelmed, anxious, irritable, disconnected from your baby, or even from yourself, you’re not broken. You’re human, and you’re not alone.

These emotions can show up during pregnancy, after giving birth, or even months later. Sometimes it feels like you’re going through the motions but struggling to feel present. Sometimes you might wonder, “Shouldn’t I be happier?”

At HDC, we create a safe, nurturing space where your mental health is honored alongside your physical recovery. We know that showing up as a parent starts with tending to you. Your identity, your healing, and your peace matter just as much as your child’s well-being.

Naming the Experience Clinically

This experience is often referred to as Postpartum Depression (PPD), a common and treatable mood disorder that affects individuals during or after pregnancy. It’s more than the “baby blues.” PPD involves persistent and intense symptoms that may interfere with daily functioning and the ability to bond with your baby.

PPD can develop any time within the first year after childbirth, and in some cases, even during pregnancy (known as perinatal depression). Contributing factors can include hormonal changes, sleep deprivation, identity shifts, past trauma, or lack of support.

Common Symptoms of Postpartum Depression Include:

• Feeling persistently sad, tearful, or emotionally numb
• Trouble bonding with your baby or feeling disconnected
• Excessive worry, irritability, or feelings of failure
• Sleep disturbances beyond what’s typical with a newborn
• Loss of interest in things you once enjoyed
• Feelings of guilt or shame around parenting
• Difficulty concentrating or making decisions
• In severe cases, thoughts of harming yourself or your baby

Mood Struggles Tied to Hormonal Cycles

If you’ve ever felt like a different version of yourself before your period—more emotional, more irritable, more withdrawn—you’re not imagining it. Hormonal shifts throughout your menstrual cycle can have a powerful impact on your mood, energy, and clarity. And while some changes are expected, feeling emotionally overwhelmed or deeply low isn’t something you have to accept as “just part of being a woman.”

At HDC, we believe you deserve to feel grounded, supported, and emotionally steady throughout your cycle. We help you tune into your emotional rhythms and create a plan that supports your nervous system, relationships, and overall well-being without shame, dismissal, or judgment.

Naming the Experience Clinically

When emotional, psychological and physical distress symptoms significantly disrupt daily life in the days leading up to your period, it may be more than typical PMS. In clinical terms, this may be recognized as Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD), a severe and treatable condition related to hormonal sensitivity.

PMDD is marked by intense mood shifts such as:

• Severe irritability, sadness, or anger
• Increased conflict in relationships
• Feeling overwhelmed or out of control
• Depressive thoughts or hopelessness
• Fatigue, low motivation, or brain fog
• Changes in sleep and appetite

These symptoms typically occur during the luteal phase (the two weeks before menstruation) and often improve shortly after your period begins.

It’s essential to recognize that PMDD is not merely “bad PMS.” It affects emotional regulation in ways that are often misunderstood or dismissed, and many individuals suffer in silence without realizing support is available.

The Impact of Untreated Depression on Daily Life

When depression goes unacknowledged or untreated, it can quietly begin to erode your daily rhythm. What once felt manageable starts to feel heavy. You might pull away from friends, lose interest in things that once brought you joy, or feel like you’re simply “getting through” each day. Left unchecked, depression can affect your physical health, relationships, work, and sense of self-worth.

At HDC, we believe that healing doesn’t start with “fixing,” it starts with being seen. Once seen, we provide you with tangible tools and strategies to being your healing journey.

Exploring Different Types of Depression Therapy

There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to healing. Depression can be deeply personal, so your care should be too. We offer a variety of therapeutic paths that are all grounded in compassion, respect, and alignment with your unique journey. Our focus is on what supports you best, not just what fits a clinical label.

Psychotherapy

Talk therapy creates space for reflection, clarity, and connection. It’s where you can safely bring your thoughts, fears, and emotions and begin to make sense of them with a guide who’s walking beside you, not in front of you.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

At HDC, we practice trauma-informed CBT, which means we don’t just help you manage thoughts, we also explore where those thoughts come from. We recognize that many of the beliefs we carry about ourselves—our worth, safety, or potential—are shaped by past experiences, including trauma, family dynamics, and cultural messages.

CBT helps you notice the stories you tell yourself and gently challenge the ones that no longer serve you. We work with you to identify patterns that may have once helped you survive, but now hold you back. This approach offers powerful, compassionate tools to shift out of stuck thought loops and into more self-affirming, life-giving ways of thinking.

Our goal isn’t just symptom relief, it’s transformation from the inside out.

Interpersonal Therapy (IPT)

Depression often affects the way we show up in relationships. Sometimes, it’s our relationships that amplify emotional pain. We use Interpersonal Therapy (IPT) to help you navigate the connection between your mood and your relationships.

We support individuals in developing healthier and more fulfilling relationships by improving communication skills, building emotional awareness, and strengthening their support systems. Whether you’re struggling with grief, conflict, role transitions, or isolation, IPT offers tools to deepen connection and increase your sense of belonging.

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)

MBCT blends the wisdom of mindfulness with the structure of CBT, helping you become more aware of your thoughts without becoming overwhelmed by them. It supports emotional balance, nervous system regulation, and a return to the present moment.

Behavioral Activation

When depression leaves you feeling stuck or disengaged, this approach helps you reconnect with meaningful, life-giving activities even before the motivation returns. It’s about taking small, empowering steps toward wholeness.

Alternative and Complementary Therapies for Depression

Healing includes the mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual. At HDC, we honor holistic wellness and integrate practices that nourish the whole you.

We also encourage and promote the integration of the Eight Dimensions of Wellness, helping you find alignment and fulfillment across every part of your life.

The Eight Dimensions of Wellness

1. Emotional Wellness: Understanding and managing your feelings with compassion
2. Physical Wellness: Honoring your body through movement, rest, nutrition, and medical care
3. Spiritual Wellness: Connecting to meaning, purpose, faith, or a higher sense of self
4. Intellectual Wellness: Stimulating your mind through growth, learning, and curiosity
5. Social Wellness: Building nourishing, reciprocal relationships
6. Occupational Wellness: Finding satisfaction, value, and alignment in your work
7. Environmental Wellness: Creating spaces that support peace, health, and safety
8. Financial Wellness: Feeling secure and informed in your financial life

These dimensions are interconnected, and when we tend to them intentionally, they become powerful tools in our journey through depression and toward sustainable healing.

Exercise and Physical Activity

Movement, whether it’s a walk, a dance class, or gentle stretching, can help regulate mood and reduce stress by releasing endorphins and increasing body awareness.

Mindfulness and Meditation

Mindfulness helps bring you back to center. It invites you to slow down, observe your emotions, and reconnect with the present moment without judgment.

Yoga and Tai Chi

These practices combine physical movement with emotional grounding, supporting mind-body balance and offering relief from emotional tension.

Supplements

In partnership with your medical provider, we may explore how natural supplements like Vitamin D or Omega-3s can support brain health and emotional stability.

Finding the Right Depression Therapy for You

You deserve care that aligns with your values, your pace, and your story. Whether you’re new to therapy or looking to return after a break, we’ll work with you to find the support that feels most nourishing.

Online vs. In-Person Therapy

We offer both virtual and in-person therapy options so that support can fit into your life, not the other way around.

Finding a Therapist

Think about what’s important to you in a healing space. Do you want someone who shares your cultural background? Someone who integrates faith? Ask about their approach and how they adapt care to your needs.

Questions to Ask a Potential Therapist

• How do you tailor therapy to the individual?
• What’s your approach to depression or emotional fatigue?
• Are you open to integrating faith, values, or spirituality in our work?
• How do you define healing?

The Importance of Building a Strong Therapeutic Relationship

Healing happens through relationship. At HDC, we prioritize building trust, creating emotional safety, and walking with you, not ahead of you, toward healing and growth.

Self-Care Strategies for Managing Depression

Therapy is just one piece of your wellness plan. We also support you in building daily rhythms that promote peace and presence.

Building a Support System

At HDC, we believe healing happens in connection. We’re here to help you build a circle of support that feels safe, nourishing, and aligned with your values.

We’ll help you strengthen your circle, whether that’s family, friends, a support group, or chosen community. Connection is medicine.

We also support you in building a care team that works together on your behalf. Whether you’re working with a medical provider, nutritionist, or herbalist, we can help coordinate care, share insights (with your consent), and make sure your mental health support aligns with the rest of your wellness journey.

Healthy Lifestyle Choices

We explore how everyday habits like eating well, sleeping soundly, and moving mindfully can help create a foundation of emotional steadiness.

Managing Stress

We offer practices to help calm your nervous system, such as grounding techniques, breath work, and other tools that align with how you want to feel.

Resources for Depression Support and Information

National Helplines and Crisis Hotlines

Dial 9-8-8 for support when experiencing a mental health crisis

Dial 2-1-1 to access community resources/support

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255)
Support and crisis resources for yourself or someone else.

Crisis Textline
Text NAMI to 741741
24-hour text message support for those in crisis.

CARES
1-800-345-9049
Crisis hotline, mental health evaluation, and other services for youth and adults with Medicaid.

The National Maternal Mental Health Hotline
1-833-TLC-MAMA (1-833-852-6262)

Illinois Warmline – Illinois Mental Health Collaborative
(866) 359-7953
Hours: Monday – Saturday from 8 am to 8 pm CT
Available to Illinois callers only
A warmline is a phone number you call to have a conversation with someone who can provide support during hard times. Whether you’re in crisis or just need someone to talk to, a warmline can help.

Online Mental Health Resources and Communities

Mental Health America of Illinois (MHAI)
Promotes mental health education and advocates for strong legislation and services for the people and organizations of Illinois. ​Mental Health Americ

NAMI Chicago
Provides mental health education, advocacy, and support services to individuals and families in the Chicago area. ​NAMI Chicago

Local Mental Health Organizations and Services

Thresholds
Offers home, health, and hope for thousands of people in Illinois each year who are living with mental illness and substance use disorders. ​Thresholds

Mutual Ground
Located in Aurora, Mutual Ground provides comprehensive services for individuals and families impacted by domestic violence, sexual violence, and substance use. Their offerings include 24-hour hotlines for immediate support:

Sexual Violence: 630-897-8383

Shelter for Adults

A Little Bit of Heaven
1-773-264-5332
11321 S Wentworth Ave, Chicago, IL 60628

Franciscan Outreach
2715 W Harrison St, Chicago, IL 60612

Olive Branch Mission
773-476-6200
6310 S Claremont Ave, Chicago, IL 60636

Pacific Garden Mission
312-492-9410
1458 S Canal St, Chicago, IL 60607

Shelter for Youth

La Casa Norte
773-276-4900
Back of the Yards: 1736 W 47th St, Chicago, IL 60609
Logan Square: 1940 N California Ave, Chicago, IL 60647

“The Crib” at The Night Ministry
877-286-2523
835 W Addison St, Chicago, IL 60657

A Safe Haven
773-435-8300
2750 W Roosevelt Rd, Chicago, IL 60608