Author Archives: Lisa Jane

Lido Wellness Center Blog

I’m Having Suicidal Thoughts: What Is Suicidal Ideation?

June 8, 2023

The hope is that we can live with purpose. We can find joy, and we can look forward to another day. But it is just not always the case. Some people have not had joy or happiness in so long that they feel like maybe it isn’t even a possibility. And it might even get to the point that they decide that there is so much pain; it is just better to try to stop it all. Suicidal thoughts, or contemplating suicide, is a serious mental health concern. It’s scary for the person having them and those who love them.

Understanding suicidal thoughts is a difficult prospect. But there are some ways you can reflect and inspect to find out where they might be coming from and recognize when they might become dangerous. As well as where to get help when things feel like they are at their worst.

*Please note: If you are thinking, “I have Suicidal Thoughts,” we want to help. But If you are experiencing suicidal ideation, reaching out to mental health professionals or trusted individuals in your life is crucial. Use crisis resources like the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (dial 988 on your phone) or Crisis Text Line if immediate help is needed. Remember, it’s not a sign of weakness to seek help but a brave step toward healing.

Understanding Suicidal Thoughts

Suicidal ideation is another way to talk about suicidal thoughts. It refers to thinking about self-harm, ranging from fleeting considerations to detailed plans.

There could be lots of reasons for a person to consider suicide. Some of the most common stem from chronic depression or anxiety. These conditions are overwhelming, and it seems like there is no way out or any hope. Stressful life events also may play a part, such as losing a job or a loved one. Trauma is also extremely painful and can impact a person daily, making someone feel trapped in a cage of their past.

Ultimately thoughts of suicide occur when despair, hopelessness, or unbearable pain feel like they are never going away. There is no way to cope with what is happening or what has happened, and the person feels they have no other options to alleviate their suffering.

Recognizing Suicide Danger

Suicidal ideation becomes more dangerous when passive thoughts become active plans or actions. Is there a plan in place? As well, have they lost or had protection removed? Protective measures are people who care about them or a safe environment to find the ability to self-soothe.

There are some other signs to look for:

Crisis: has there been a loss in their life or a traumatic event?

Previous attempts: previous attempts are a clear sign—especially if they were recent.

Mental health: are there other mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, substance use disorders, or personality disorders?

Access: do they have access to lethal means, e.g., Firearms or medications?

Help for Someone Who Says, “I’m Having Suicidal Thoughts”

Identifying signs of suicidal ideation in loved ones can be challenging. Look for changes in behavior, expressions of hopelessness, or references to death or suicide. Look for the above signs and notice if they spend their time in isolation.

But the most important is that they feel safe to talk to you. If you fear for someone’s life, ask them. Hiding from it or pretending it is not there creates more pain.

What do you ask? Keep it straightforward:

Ask: “Are you thinking about killing yourself?”

Approaching a loved one who is experiencing suicidal thoughts requires compassion and care. Be ready to listen and offer nonjudgmental support. Make sure you have some resources available and options for professional help.

Treatment Options for Suicidal Ideation

Numerous treatment options exist for managing suicidal ideation. Psychotherapy, including cognitive-behavioral therapy and dialectical behavior therapy, can help people build the skills to learn how to cope with these thoughts. Medications, particularly antidepressants, can be helpful for various mental health disorders.

In acute cases, an intervention may be necessary. This might include hospitalization or residential treatment programs. These provide a safe environment and intensive treatment to navigate the crisis.

Support networks such as family or friends that love the person are crucial. While mental health professionals offer necessary therapeutic interventions and support groups provide a space to share experiences and learn from others who’ve faced similar struggles, loved ones offer ongoing support, reminding the individual they are not alone.

Getting Help With Suicidal Thoughts

When someone is thinking of suicide or is afraid of their thoughts, it is time to take action. It is always a big deal and should be considered an emergency. Understanding when it is most dangerous is important, but even more, understanding the options for yourself or your loved one is vital. At Lido Wellness, we have professionals that can help. Again, if you are thinking of harming yourself right now, call 911 or the 988. But if you are scared of the underlying factors or see your despair getting deeper and deeper, please call Lido Wellness today. Recovery is possible. There is hope. Our team can help you find the path toward a life worth living with joy and purpose.

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Lido Wellness Center Blog

BPD and Emotional Dysregulation: What’s the Connection?

May 29, 2023

Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is a relatively common mental health condition that produces symptoms of impulsive behavior, cognitive distortions, and intense relationships with others. In addition to these symptoms, people with BPD also struggle with emotional dysregulation, which makes it challenging to manage their emotions and feelings when exposed to particular triggers.

Emotional dysregulation refers to a person’s inability to manage or control their emotional responses to different situations. This might involve experiencing extreme fluctuations in mood or having emotional reactions that are disproportionate to the situation at hand. Emotional dysregulation can be characterized by frequent, intense mood swings, impulsivity triggered by emotional events, and difficulty calming down when upset.

BPD and Dysregulation: What’s the Difference?

Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) and emotional dysregulation are different in that BPD is a specific, diagnosable psychiatric disorder, while emotional dysregulation is a symptom or a psychological phenomenon that can occur in various mental health conditions, including but not limited to BPD.

People with BPD often have a pattern of instability in interpersonal relationships, self-image, and affect (emotions), along with marked impulsivity.

Emotional dysregulation – the inability to manage or control emotional responses – is one key characteristics of BPD. However, BPD also involves other symptoms, such as fear of abandonment, identity disturbances, chronic feelings of emptiness, and recurrent suicidal behavior or self-harming.

Emotional dysregulation is not a diagnosis in itself. It is an issue that can be present in many different mental health conditions, including BPD, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), among others.

It’s essentially a difficulty in managing, processing, or responding to emotional experiences.

Causes of Emotional Dysregulation?

Childhood Trauma

Unfortunately, childhood trauma often leads to psychological impairments in adulthood, such as emotional dysregulation. This issue is generally because this early-stage trauma can often interrupt our development of self-control and emotional liability, making it more challenging to control our emotions in the future.

Insecure Attachment Styles

Insecure attachment is a behavioral pattern defined by distrust in our relationships. Today, leading research has shown that those struggling with insecure attachment styles often struggle to create healthy interpersonal relationships with others, due to an inability to control their emotions.

Enhancing the Difficulties

Here’s why this combination of BPD and emotional dysregulation is particularly challenging:

  1. Persistent and intense emotions: People with BPD often experience emotional dysregulation, which means their emotions are more intense, fluctuate more frequently, and last longer than those without BPD. This can make it extremely difficult for them to manage daily life and maintain stable relationships.
  2. Impulsive behaviors: The emotional instability can lead to impulsive, risky behaviors. Substance abuse, reckless driving, binge eating, or self-harm as a way to cope with overwhelming emotions can all become a problem for a person with BPD and emotional dysregulation.
  3. Interpersonal relationships: The combination of BPD and emotional dysregulation can lead to a pattern of unstable relationships. Intense emotions can trigger fear of abandonment or rejection, leading to conflict and frequent changes in feelings towards others.
  4. Mental health risks: This combination significantly increases the risk of other mental health disorders such as depression, anxiety disorders, eating disorders, and substance use disorders. It also increases the risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviors.
  5. Challenges in treatment: BPD and emotional dysregulation can make it difficult for people to engage in and benefit from treatment. They may have a hard time trusting therapists, maintaining the motivation for treatment, or applying the coping skills they learn in therapy.
  6. Chronic feelings of emptiness: Individuals with BPD often report chronic feelings of emptiness or boredom, which can be a source of great distress.

Treatment for BPD and Emotional Dysregulation

While living life with emotional dysregulation can be tremendously challenging, you must understand that there will always be a glimmer of hope if you are willing to take it. Today, treatments, such as Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT), are tremendously effective at treating several conditions, including BPD and emotional dysregulation.

This modern treatment is a form of talk therapy that practitioners have specially adapted for individuals currently struggling with intense and powerful emotions. One of the core ways that DBT stands out is that it places its core focus on helping people understand the reality of their feelings and behaviors. After this period of acceptance, they can work with their therapist to manage these uncontrollable emotions, leading to a better quality of life.

With DBT, you no longer have to live a life where you take a back seat to emotional outbursts, aggression, or avoidance. Instead, you can learn to understand your triggers and work on developing new skills that make it much easier to regulate your emotions.

Getting Help for BPD in Newport Beach

If you want to talk to someone about your options for IOP treatment in Newport Beach for BPD or to get guidance for yourself or a loved one, call Lido Wellness today. Our experienced team is ready to help you understand your options and give you the help you need for the next step in your journey.

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Lido Wellness Center Blog

Navigating the Complexities of Major Depressive Disorder

May 23, 2023

What Is Major Depressive Disorder?

Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is a tremendously complex mental health condition that often impacts the quality of a person’s social interactions and daily life. This disorder, also known as clinical depression, often includes long bouts of sadness, a loss of interest in general quality of life, fatigue, feelings of worthlessness and guilt, and can even contribute to thoughts of self-harm.

Depression is serious. It causes people to lose themselves without even knowing it. Slowly their life dwindles away, and there is little memory of joy and relief. All that exists is a blanket of sadness covering their days. It’s hard to experience and nearly as difficult to watch a loved one go through it.

But there is hope. Various therapies have proven effective in helping people manage MDD, and in some cases medications can help people effectively maintain control of their diagnosis and find fulfillment and happiness in life once again.

What are the Factors that Contribute to Major Depressive Disorder?

Genetics

With research from leading health bodies stating that up to 50% of depression cases are hereditary, it’s safe to say genetics play a role in the development of MDD. This intricate link between MDD and genetics often means that individuals with family members that have MDD are up to 3x more likely to develop this condition than people without any hereditary links. If it runs in your family, you are are at risk of developing some degree of depression.

Environmental Factors

Environmental factors such as childhood trauma, excessive stress, and losing a loved one can also lead to the onset of MDD. While some of these adverse environmental factors may seem small and insignificant, they often have a domino effect that leads to impactful changes in our lives.

Brain Chemistry

Our brain is teeming with various neurotransmitters that play a crucial role in helping us control our feelings and mood. As an illustration, serotonin is a powerful neurotransmitter that aids in managing bodily functions like sleep and mood. So, individuals with lower serotonin levels are more likely to develop MDD than those with high serotonin levels.

What Types of Major Depressive Disorder?

Major depressive disorder (MDD) can manifest in different ways, and clinicians may categorize it into various types based on specific features or patterns of symptoms. Here are some types of major depressive disorder:

  1. Melancholic Depression: This type of depression is characterized by severe symptoms such as a loss of pleasure in almost all activities (anhedonia), significant weight loss or loss of appetite, excessive guilt, early morning awakenings, and a general feeling of being emotionally or physically agitated.
  2. Atypical Depression: Atypical depression expresses itself in mood reactivity, meaning that individuals may experience temporary improvements in mood in response to positive events or situations. Other symptoms include increased appetite or weight gain, excessive sleep or fatigue, a heavy feeling in the limbs, and heightened sensitivity to rejection.
  3. Psychotic Depression: Psychotic depression typically includes hallucinations (perceiving things that aren’t real) or delusions (having false beliefs). These hallucinations or delusions are typically consistent with depressive themes such as guilt, personal inadequacy, or worthlessness.
  4. Postpartum Depression: Postpartum depression occurs in women after childbirth. Women may feel extreme sadness, anxiety, and exhaustion that can make it challenging to care for oneself or the baby. Hormonal changes, sleep deprivation, and psychosocial factors contribute to its development.
  5. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD): SAD is a type of depression that occurs in a seasonal pattern, typically during the fall and winter months when there is less natural sunlight. Symptoms include low mood, lethargy, increased sleep, weight gain, and carbohydrate cravings. Symptoms tend to improve in the spring and summer.
  6. Catatonic Depression: Catatonia can be identified by motor abnormalities, and when it occurs in the context of depression, it is called catatonic depression. Symptoms may include immobility or excessive, purposeless motor activity, mutism (inability or refusal to speak), and peculiar postures or repetitive movements.

Are there any Treatments for Major Depressive Disorder?

If you have received an MDD diagnosis, it can be natural to feel like the world is closing in on you. However, this could not be further from the case, as there are various proven MDD treatments available today, including:

Antidepressant Medication

Antidepressant medication is an effective way to treat MDD. These medications aid in reducing the symptoms of your diagnosis, making it easier to go through your daily life and engage in social interactions.

Psychotherapy

Psychotherapeutic treatments, such as CBT and interpersonal therapy, have remained one of the most successful ways to treat MDD. This medically proven solution often works by diving into the root cause of your MDD and teaching you new ways to cope with your depression.

IOP for Major Depressive Disorder

Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) is a type of treatment service and support program used primarily to treat depression, personality disorders, anxiety, and other mental health disorders. The idea behind IOPs is that they provide a high level of care, but the patient still lives at home, allowing for a balance between intensive treatment and normal life activities.

IOP can be a particularly good option for Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) for several reasons:

  1. Intensity of treatment: IOPs generally involve multiple treatment sessions per week, which can include individual therapy, group therapy, and medication management. This high intensity of treatment can be very helpful for managing the symptoms of MDD.
  2. Supportive environment: Group therapy sessions, which are often a part of IOPs, can provide a supportive and understanding environment. This can be helpful for people with MDD who often feel isolated and misunderstood.
  3. Holistic approach: IOPs often include components of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), and other types of therapy. This multi-faceted approach can address a variety of issues related to MDD, including cognitive distortions, emotional regulation, and unhealthy coping mechanisms.

Getting Help With GDD in Newport Beach

One of the most crucial things to understand about MDD is that each diagnosis is tremendously unique, and there is no one-size-fits-all solution. So, if you are considering treating this condition, we often suggest seeking a health practice that offers personalized treatment plans.

The core benefit of individualized treatment is that it always considers your unique needs and experiences, leading to a more effective treatment plan.

Remember, getting help for depression disorders is a process, and it may take time to find the right treatment for you. If you want to talk to someone about an IOP option for general depressive disorder, call Lido Wellness Center today.

Our mental health services in Newport Beach are designed to help individuals with depression, anxiety, and other disorders that affect millions of people across the country.

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Lido Wellness Center Blog

Confronting Anxiety Disorder Stigma

May 7, 2023

Anxiety is commonly associated with feelings of helplessness. Fear and the constant analyzing of life and its circumstances, even choosing to stop engaging with activities and people, are all common with anxiety. People struggling with anxiety can feel like they can’t control their feelings and emotions.

Anxiety is pervasive. One in four people in the US has some form of anxiety. But very few people with anxiety disorders actually get mental health treatment for anxiety.

One reason? People think you should toughen up. Or you should “Just calm down and stop being so dramatic.” Maybe you have heard them too? “You’re too sensitive.” “It’s all in your head.”

Whatever it is you have heard or even said, anxiety stigma exists. And it is important to confront it.

When there is an anxiety disorder stigma, it can make matters worse. If being singled out and made to feel abnormal triggers panic attacks, the fear of being stigmatized can create a cycle of anxiety that perpetuates increasingly worse, intense feelings.

What Is Anxiety Disorder Stigma?

First, we should take a second to understand what stigmatization is. A stigma is something that people perceive as a mark of shame. Stigmas, as they relate to mental health, are generally categorized in three ways:

  1.  Social Stigmas:These social norms cause individuals to discriminate against those they feel are disgraceful in some capacity. This can be split into two categories:
  • Actual: What people actually believe about a disorder
  • Perceived: What a person believes others think about their disorders
  1.  Structural Stigmas:These are the social norms as they relate to systems of power, the actual laws, rules, and regulations that may affect the day-to-day lives of stigmatized groups. These are generally the leading factors that deny stigmatized individuals and groups the services, resources, and opportunities they may need.
  2.  Self Stigmas:Relating to Perceived Social Stigmas, this is the negative self-awareness that stigmatized individuals may have about themselves, the person’s own beliefs in how their disorder is a sign of their failures rather than a consequence of a treatable disorder.

Consequences of Anxiety Disorder Stigma

Even though there are numerous treatments and therapies for anxiety, and despite anxiety being one of the most common psychological disorders, only around 36% of those suffering from an anxiety disorder receive treatment.

This is likely due to the high rate of individuals with the Perceived Stigma that anxiety disorders don’t exist. Many individuals perceive anxiety as a personal weakness, something they must ‘deal with’ as opposed to something that must be treated.

This is particularly troublesome when people with anxiety disorders are 6 times as likely to be hospitalized than those without anxiety for psychiatric disorders. Untreated anxiety can also be a pipeline to depression and increases the likelihood of suicidal thoughts. Those with anxiety who suffer from stigmatization are likely to perceive themselves as weak and suffer from low-self esteem, doubt, and internalized shame.

The Importance of Anxiety Education

Anxiety is the most common psychiatric disorder and is treatable through therapy and medication. Still, as long as stigmas against anxiety disorders exist, people will continue to feel isolated and ashamed and won’t seek readily available help that is out there.

Common Treatments of Anxiety Disorders:

  1. Exercise: Regular exercise is an effective way to manage anxiety. It helps reduce stress and releases endorphins, improving mood and reducing anxiety.
  2. Relaxation techniques: Relaxation techniques, such as deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, and guided imagery, can help you manage anxiety by reducing tension and promoting relaxation.
  3. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT): CBT is a type of psychotherapy that focuses on identifying and changing negative thought patterns and behaviors contributing to anxiety. It’s a highly effective treatment for anxiety and can be done in an outpatient mental health program.
  4. Psychotherapy: Psychotherapy is a type of talk therapy that involves meeting with a mental health professional to discuss your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. It can be an effective way to treat anxiety because it helps you identify and change negative thought patterns and behaviors contributing to your anxiety.

Getting Help for Anxiety in Newport Beach

It is important that people understand that suffering from an anxiety disorder is not a sign of weakness or a personal failure but rather a mental health issue that is not only common but treatable. The more people are educated on the facts of anxiety disorders, the more likely we are to see an increase in treatment and an improvement in the overall quality of people’s lives.

Lido Wellness Center offers a complete treatment program for anxiety disorders in Newport Beach. If you or someone you know is struggling with anxiety, it’s important to remember that help is available.

The first step is understanding that anxiety is a common and treatable mental health issue. Don’t let the stigma surrounding anxiety prevent you from seeking the treatment you need. The next step is to seek help from a mental health professional who can provide the support and guidance you need to manage your symptoms and improve your quality of life.

At Lido Wellness Center in Newport Beach, we offer a full treatment program for anxiety disorders. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you or your loved one confront the stigma of anxiety and begin the journey toward healing and recovery.

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