CHRONIC ILLNESS

Do you feel misunderstood and alone in your illness?

• Are you grieving the life you had before you became sick?

• Are you having Lyme related depression, anxiety derealization or psychosis?

• Are you struggling with memory loss or inability to manage day to day tasks?

• Do you have trouble gaining control of your moods?

• Have you suffered from personality changes related to your illness?

• Are you a busy professional struggling to recover from chronic health issues?

• Have you lost relationships or had to stop working as a result of your illness?

• Are you looking for online therapy in New York State?

Having a chronic health issue can be one of the most isolating experiences anyone can go through. The emotional, financial, and often spiritual strain an illness takes can at times feel unbearable.

Struggling to recover from the disabling impact of an illness is an experience few understand unless they have experienced it themselves. It is natural to feel overwhelmed. Changes in personality and emotional instability are not uncommon. You have likely been to multiple physicians and have possibly even been misdiagnosed. Perhaps you have been dismissed by healthcare providers and have had difficulty trusting that anyone can really understand you.

Additionally, you may have had to give up your career or face the idea that you could not participate in your family the way you had in the past. Whatever your unique experience, you do not have to overcome the challenges of recovery alone.

We understand.

We understand that the average person may have to see multiple health practitioners just to get the correct diagnosis. We also understand you might not yet have answers to your medical questions.

How We Can Help

Our style of therapy is affirming, supportive and solution-focused. We are not afraid to help you explore medical providers, to help you prepare for medical appointments, and to help you advocate for yourself throughout your healing process.

Mental health care for chronic illness can be a deeply transformational experience and can be the strategic support you need to make the best decisions about your care.

Research points to the impact of past trauma on those with chronic illness. Our therapy sessions aim to help support all aspects of your health including PTSD/trauma treatment, pain management, relationship counseling, and problem solving.

Individuals with chronic illness also have a higher likelihood of anxiety and depression than the general population. Our clinicians use evidence-based tools to measure depression and anxiety at the beginning of your treatment. We then follow up with those tools to help track progress. We aim to help you get symptom reduction from anxiety and depression as soon as possible from the time you start treatment.

Many clients with chronic illness come to us saying “I no longer know who I am.” Chronic illness can cause personality changes and rob us of our identity. Compassionate therapy techniques including expressive therapies like art and writing as well as Internal Family Systems Therapy can help clients regain a sense of identity and purpose.

Chronic illness can also impact our cognitive abilities including memory, reading comprehension and the ability to perform at our jobs. Our clinicians can help support you through feelings of grief and loss that may come with a change in cognitive abilities.

Chronic pain is a large part of some health conditions. Your session can include a number of different interventions for chronic pain including hypnotherapy, cognitive therapy and expressive arts therapies.

So many aspects of being sick can make us angry. Whether it’s being dismissed by medical professionals, frustration toward ourselves, or anger toward the illness itself, our anger needs an outlet. Your therapy session can be a safe space to express and process intense emotions such as anger.

There are some people that find their illnesses to be a path to deep internal transformation and spiritual growth. Our clinicians are available to explore issues of spirituality and meaning during your sessions.

Common Questions

How do I know therapy will be helpful? I have tried therapy before and it hasn’t helped.
We understand that finding a therapist is hard. We offer free 15-minute phone consultations with all of our therapists to help determine that we are the right person for you. Additionally, we develop a treatment plan together and check in weekly and monthly regarding progress to make sure we are going in the right direction.

I have already spent so much on treatment, I don't know if the cost of therapy is worth it.
Many medical procedures for chronic conditions are out of pocket. We know these costs can really add up.  We aim to provide affordable psychotherapy treatment. We also recommend the Better App to assist with out of network reimbursement. Cost should not be a barrier to treatment, and we will do our best to assist you in getting the care you can afford.

I am often too sick to make it too appointments. How can I get mental health support?
We offer online therapy in New York State through a HIPAA compliant online portal. You can access therapy sessions from the comfort of your home if/when you cannot make it to the office. We also offer a flexible rescheduling system that allows you to reschedule within the same week if needed. Additionally, we waive one missed session fee per year due to medical reasons.