Therapy for depression in Maryland and Washington, DC

Depression is often described as sadness, but it can also feel like flatness, exhaustion, irritability, or a distance from your own life. Interest in things you used to care about may fade, and everyday tasks can feel heavy.

In my work, depression is often connected to a gap between the life a person wants and the life they are living. Using ACT and existential approaches alongside insight-oriented and mindfulness-based methods, we look at that gap honestly: what has been lost or put off, what matters most to you, and what steps toward it are possible now, including small ones. We also work on gradually increasing engagement and activity, even when motivation is low and it feels like a struggle. This is often called behavioral activation, and it is one of the best-supported approaches to depression. It targets the cycle of withdrawal and inactivity that tends to keep low mood in place.

If you are in crisis, call or text 988 or go to your nearest emergency room. I see adults and adolescents.