Therapy for chronic illness in Denver, Co

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Do you experience high health anxiety and live in fear of a symptom flare-up?
Do you feel disconnected from your body because it is an uncomfortable place to be?
Have you lost trust in your body and feel like it has turned against you?
Do you feel alone and misunderstood because of your condition?
Are you experiencing grief or an identity crisis due to new, unwanted limitations?
Are you aware that stress makes things worse, but can’t seem to de-stress?

are you struggling with the many challenges of life with chronic illness?

Over 60% of American adults live with a chronic disease, and 40% live with two or more (CDC, 2022).

“Chronic illness” refers to the personal experience of living with the afflictions that often accompany chronic disease, and can also arise from autoimmunity and other syndromes and disorders - some with medical labels and some without. 

Chronic illness is a silent and invisible epidemic that is picking up speed at an alarming rate and can take a toll on seemingly every single area of life. It can be an invisible, isolating, and scary experience.

Chronic illness lives in the shadows of our society - it is often untouched, undiscussed, and misunderstood - and we would love to bring this into the light with you.




What is chronic illness?

If you’ve been navigating the medical system with a chronic illness, you know how overwhelming, frustrating, hopeless this experience can be. The lived experience of having a chronic illness, whether you were born with one or developed one later is one that is all too often dismissed and misunderstood. 

Chronic illness brings with it invisible suffering and pain. Symptoms may be irregular or inconsistent leading to more confusion of your experience to the outside world. 

People with chronic illness may experience heightened anxiety, depression, suicidal thoughts, agitation, anger, despair, hopelessness, helplessness, worthlessness and feeling burdensome. With a developing and progressive chronic illness, grief and loss surface and a longing for the life that once was can be an ever present distraction. 

Medical professionals often dismiss many diagnoses and label them as untreatable or something "in your head" to be "fixed" in therapy for anxiety. People with chronic illness experiencing gaslighting from medical professionals all the time. Being told that their symptoms are not as bad or that what the person intuitively knows about their own body is wrong. 

All this to say, living with chronic illness has a tremendous impact on ones mental health and well-being. Finding a therapist who understand the experience of chronic illness is important to prevent future harm in seeking support. 


understanding the impact of chronic illness on mental health

nervous system dysregulation

chronic stress

catastrophic thoughts related to health

feeling disconnected from your body

health anxiety 

feeling unsafe in your body

common challenges faced by individuals with chronic illness

medical gaslighting

internalized gaslighting

ableism & internalized ableism

grief and loss of "old self"

lack of purpose & existential crisis

relationship challenges

social isolation

sense of hopelessness & helplessness

At DMC, counseling for chronic illness includes bringing your full self into the realm of “mental” health, and includes awareness of the mind-body connection and mind-body oneness.

Therapy goals are frequently related to reclaiming a sense of safety in the body, coming out of chronic fight/flight, unearthing stuck traumas, finding equanimity through challenge, and reclaiming a healthy sense of self, among many others. 

This requires a mind-body orientation, tending to the full system, where we use both “bottom-up” (body-based) and “top-down” (brain-based) therapies.

This can look like learning breathwork and many other body-based practices, mindfulness meditation, Polyvagal Theory and how to navigate your nervous system, and engaging in parts work, Acceptance & Commitment Therapy, narrative therapy, EMDR therapy, and much more.


Counseling for Chronic illness in denver

You may have heard that traumatic experiences impact your health; this has been explored scientifically and is now backed up in the research literature.

The 1998 ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experience Survey) study (Felitti, et al, 1998) was a watershed moment for the understanding of the impact that childhood trauma specifically can have on lifelong physical health.

The study concluded that one, there is a relationship between childhood trauma and health outcomes where the higher the trauma, the worse the health outcomes. And two, high doses of childhood trauma are associated with negatively affected immune systems, hormonal systems, and how our DNA expresses.

Since the original ACEs study, more research has been conducted specifically around the connection between childhood trauma and autoimmunity which concluded that (Dube, et al, 2009):

- Risk for the 80 or more types of autoimmune diseases increases as ACE (childhood trauma) scores rise
- For every increase in the ACE score of 1 point, risk for developing an autoimmune disease goes up by 20%
- An ACE score of only 2 increases the chances of being hospitalized for an autoimmune disease by 70 to 80%

Both stress & trauma have an impact on the brain and impact not just our physical health, but also how we feel walking through the world, how we regulate emotion, store memories, perceive ourselves, and choose to act and relate to others.

Because of this science, some medical centers and medical doctors are now requiring counseling and trauma work for their patients with chronic illness and autoimmunity, but it is extremely rare to find. 

Counseling for chronic illness can help. Our chronic illness therapists can help.



adverse childhood experiences, trauma and chronic illness

how does counseling for chronic illness help?

Our Denver therapists help by providing a nurturing space for people with chronic illness to fully express their emotions and whole experiences related to their chronic illness.

We help you navigate relationship challenges with friends, loved ones, and others in your life.

We provide body-based therapies, trauma therapy, and other values-based therapeutic approaches to help you manage feelings and symptoms you experience.

We provide a space for you to fully express frustrations, pain, suffering, hopelessness, helplessness and despair and work with you to find meaning and purpose while living with chronic illness.  

With many chronic illnesses, there is no cure. We get that. We work with you to process this in a supportive way without jumping to fix-it solutions or advice givings. 

We believe you are the expert of your body and experience. Through chronic illness counseling, we help you build trust in your intuitive knowing and honor the wisdom you hold within. 

Counseling for chronic illness helps someone with chronic illness learn to be fully in touch with their own wisdom, find helpful ways of managing symptoms and emotions, provides guidance on navigating tough conversations and building supportive relationships and community.

Therapy can help you feel not so alone in an often very isolating experience, without judgment, doubt, or dismissal of your experience.  


What to Expect from Our chronic illnes Therapists in Denver

At the end of the first meeting you and your therapist will know your therapy goals and establish a method to achieve them.

Ongoing sessions are 50-minutes and vary in cost based on clinician and certifications. During these sessions, you will share more of your story and learn tools along the way to help manage your anxiety symptoms and learn to thrive with less anxiety.

Create therapy goals

4.

Should you choose to work with one of our anxiety therapists, you will schedule an initial 90-minute intake appointment.

During this first session, we want to get to know more about you and your anxiety. We are careful not to make this too overwhelming and won’t get into anything too deep this first meeting.


Schedule your intake appointment

3.

We will help you decide who might be the best fit for your anxiety needs and schedule a consultation between you and one of our anxiety therapists.

Therapists are matched based on a variety of factors to ensure that you receive the most effective care possible and that you feel comfortable working with the therapist for your specific and unique needs.


Choose your therapist

2.

Reaching out for help, in itself, can increase anxiety. We understand this and strive to make this process as easy as possible.

Schedule a complimentary 20-minute consult to discuss your concerns with a specialized therapist. She will walk you through the process of getting onboarded and scheduling your first appointment.


SCHEDULE A CONSULT

1.

COming soon: read more about managing chronic illness

Please type your name below to acknowledge that Denver Metro Counseling is a private paid practice so we do not directly bill health insurance and are is a Medicaid provider.

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Thank you!

We want you to feel confident in your decision to work with Denver Metro Counseling. That is why we offer a complimentary 20-minute consultation with one of our therapists so that you can have all your questions answered and experience what it is like to work with us first hand. 

To book your complimentary consultation, call our office using the call button below and take the first step towards better mental health today. 

Contact us today to book a 20-minute consult

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