Therapy and Counseling, Treatment For Anxiety
Treatment for Anxiety
Treatment for anxiety takes many forms, there are generally three main agreed upon and clinically verified methods to manage and reduce symptoms of anxiety. Counseling or Therapy with a licensed counselor or therapist is the first treatment route. The treatment route for this form of help can vary from short term, brief solution-focused counseling interventions as well as long term treatment including cognitive behavioral therapy and even existential therapy. Only you and your counselor or therapist can determine which method will be best for you.
Other ways to manage symptoms related to anxiety are to enhance total wellness, this includes integrative medicine, nutrition counseling, acupuncture, fitness, meditation, and mindfulness. Some people experiencing anxiety find that a holistic approach suites their lifestyle best, in turn they explore clinical herbalism and integrative interventions to learn how this can support positive emotional health and wellness. Holistic therapy is best utilized along with counseling or psychotherapy from a licensed counselor which is therapy which will focus on finding triggers and changing the cognitive response to anxiety. The final way to treat anxiety is to use medication therapy. Medication has many different options including SSRI’s which must be taken for several weeks before taking effect and then other anxiolytic medication which is more short acting, talk with your psychiatrist or prescribing PCP to explore which form of medication therapy is the best for you to treat your anxiety. Medication often works best to diminish anxiety when it is paired with counseling and therapy which can change the thought patterns, discover underlying causes of anxiety and mange the full way in which it effects quality of life.
Remember that the worst way to manage your anxiety is by doing nothing at all in the hope that your symptoms will disappear. Managing anxiety is done best when we treat it early and completely with solid medical and therapeutic interventions.
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What is Nutrition Counseling?
What is Nutrition Counseling? Liz Mckinney, Certified Nutrition Counselor in Pittsburgh and Monroeville explains a little bit about how this works to enhance your health and wellness.
What to expect:
- One on one individualized nutrition counseling based on your goals and health complaints
- Detailed analysis
- Goal setting, coaching and working through barriers to change
- A clear cut program including diet, lifestyle and supplement therapy specific to your needs
- Existing lab report analysis and/or future recommended lab work either through a third party lab or through your primary health care provider
- Email support as needed between sessions
In your first session, we will:
- Go over your client intake form and three day diet diary
- Discuss your primary goals and current barriers to change
- Complete a nutrition focused physical exam
- Analyze any existing lab work you’ve had completed within the last year
- Set a program for you consisting of dietary, lifestyle and supplement therapy
Jessica DeGore RD LDN CDE CHWC
Jessica DeGore RD LDN CDE CHWC is a licensed dietitian/nutritionist and wellness coach. She will be seeing clients at the Counseling and Wellness Center of Pittsburgh in both the North Side and Wexford’s locations. Jessica is here to help clients achieve their health and wellness goals by providing nutrition counseling and coaching. Nutrition is not one size fits all, so she takes an individualized approach to help clients find a balanced diet and healthy relationship with food. Jessica earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Applied Nutrition Sciences at Pennsylvania State University. After her undergraduate studies, she completed her ACEND-accredited Dietetic Internship at University of Maryland. The internship included 1,200 hours of supervised practice, as well as additional nutrition coursework. During this time, she also obtained a Graduate Certificate in dietetics. After passing the national board registration examination, she became a Registered Dietitian in 2010. Jessica decided to pursue a career that would allow her to gain a broad spectrum of skills and experience by providing nutrition education counseling in various settings, including acute care, long-term rehabilitation hospitals, and outpatient clinics.
In addition to yearly continuing education to maintain licensure, Jessica became a Certified Health and Wellness Coach through Wellcoaches® to expand her counseling skills. Wellcoaches® is an 18-week course designed for credentialed health professionals who wish to use coaching skills in working with clients to improve their health and wellbeing. The curriculum includes applying self-determination theory and motivational interviewing techniques to help clients uncover autonomous motivation, elicit mindful self-awareness, and develop self-efficacy to meet their goals.
She also recently became a Certified Diabetes Educator to help people with diabetes obtain positive outcomes through self-management. By becoming board certified in diabetes she offers a standard of excellence in the delivery of quality diabetes education. In her diabetes education work over the past two years she was able to lower HgA1c by an average of 1-2% over a twelve-month period. She also demonstrated significant improvement in other clinical outcomes such as blood pressure and lipids.
Jessica also specializes in disordered eating and sports nutrition. After working with an endurance coaching company to offer evidence-based recommendations to help clients properly fuel their bodies, she found many athletes lacked a healthy relationship with food. She discovered and adopted an intuitive eating approach to help guide her clients to find a healthy balance between eating and exercise. Her nutrition philosophy is that true health comes from cultivating behaviors to enhance physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing- it is not a specific size or weight. As a true non-diet dietitian, she wants to help create a balanced relationship between body and mind through food freedom. Jessica also provides educational presentations, nutrition consulting for brands and businesses, cooking demos, and recipe development.
After living in Philadelphia, the past six years, Jess returned to Pittsburgh, her hometown, in 2017 to be closer to her family. She lives in the North Hills with her husband. Her passion for overall health has also led to a huge commitment to fitness. She is both a triathlete and runner, tackling a Half Ironman and marathon distance races again this year. Jessica also enjoys traveling and exploring the local foodie scene. Jessica is a regular contributor for The Counseling and Wellness Center’s Blog and additionally she also enjoys blogging and providing nutrition tips at https://www.dietitianjess.com She enjoys sharing her adventures in eating and connecting with others on Instagram @dietitianjess.
Jessica welcomes clients of all ages, sizes, and levels of motivation. Nutrition is such an important component to healthy living, and she wants to help clients find complete wellness by empowering individuals to meet their goals.
For an appointment with Jessica DeGore RD LDN CDE CHWC please contact us at 412-322-2129
Counseling and Wellness Center of Pittsburgh
Counseling and Wellness Center of Pittsburgh Wexford
Counseling and Wellness Center of Pittsburgh Monroeville
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