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Gulf Coast residents cope with triple the stress this holiday season
By MARY ANN HELLINGHAUSEN
Therapists at the Carole & Ronald Krist Samaritan Center are working a record number of hours this year to help clients deal with the psychological effects of Hurricane Ike, plus the bad economic climate.
Factor in anxiety often caused by the holiday season, and some Gulf Coast residents have a triple whammy of stress to handle.
“All of us are impacted by the level of stress around us,’’ said Rev. Gerald J. DeSobe, Ph.D., executive director of the Samaritan Center in Clear Lake who also is a licensed psychologist and Methodist minister.
“We have little ability to impact the world in which we live, which leads to an increase in feelings of learned helplessness,’’ he said. “And that can lead to depression.’’
One way to combat feelings of helplessness is to take more control in certain areas of your life - and, ironically, the holidays are something you have control over, he said.
“What you do over the holidays, how much money you spend, who you spend the holidays with, your emotional focus during the holidays - you have control over those things,’’ DeSobe said.
He suggests recapturing the emotional and spiritual meaning of the season. “Don’t get so caught up in the commercialism,’’ he said. “Don’t do what you don’t want to do. Don’t be with people you don’t want to be with. If you don’t want to go to your crazy aunt’s, don’t go.’’
Also, take a realistic view of the economic climate, but don’t “catastrophize’’ it, he said. “We tend to make catastrophies out of bad experiences. This is not the Depression,’’ he said. “We’re not even close to a Depression.’’
Make a realistic assessment of your situation and don’t get overloaded by the hype, he said.
For example, you may have lost 40 percent of your 401K, but that doesn’t mean you’ve lost 40 percent of your home value or other assets. If you’re afraid of losing your job, don’t live as though it’s already happened.
“It’s important to stay focused on what’s real,’’ he said. “You do have a job. You can put food on the table. Your spouse is still with you. Your kids aren’t in jail.’’
If you are stressed or depressed to the point that you have trouble sleeping, have experienced a change in appetite and can’t feel normal excitement or joy in the holiday season, it may be time to seek professional help.
“All the data shows that therapy and medication can help a high percentage of people in a relatively short amount of time,’’ DeSobe said.
The Samaritan Center is a faith-based, ecumenical counseling center with 20 offices around the Houston area. Payment is on a sliding-fee scale and/or through insurance. Established in 1986, the Clear Lake center employs 25 therapists. For more information, call 281-480-7554 or go to
www.samaritanhouston.org.
Factor in anxiety often caused by the holiday season, and some Gulf Coast residents have a triple whammy of stress to handle.
“All of us are impacted by the level of stress around us,’’ said Rev. Gerald J. DeSobe, Ph.D., executive director of the Samaritan Center in Clear Lake who also is a licensed psychologist and Methodist minister.
“We have little ability to impact the world in which we live, which leads to an increase in feelings of learned helplessness,’’ he said. “And that can lead to depression.’’
One way to combat feelings of helplessness is to take more control in certain areas of your life - and, ironically, the holidays are something you have control over, he said.
“What you do over the holidays, how much money you spend, who you spend the holidays with, your emotional focus during the holidays - you have control over those things,’’ DeSobe said.
He suggests recapturing the emotional and spiritual meaning of the season. “Don’t get so caught up in the commercialism,’’ he said. “Don’t do what you don’t want to do. Don’t be with people you don’t want to be with. If you don’t want to go to your crazy aunt’s, don’t go.’’
Also, take a realistic view of the economic climate, but don’t “catastrophize’’ it, he said. “We tend to make catastrophies out of bad experiences. This is not the Depression,’’ he said. “We’re not even close to a Depression.’’
Make a realistic assessment of your situation and don’t get overloaded by the hype, he said.
For example, you may have lost 40 percent of your 401K, but that doesn’t mean you’ve lost 40 percent of your home value or other assets. If you’re afraid of losing your job, don’t live as though it’s already happened.
“It’s important to stay focused on what’s real,’’ he said. “You do have a job. You can put food on the table. Your spouse is still with you. Your kids aren’t in jail.’’
If you are stressed or depressed to the point that you have trouble sleeping, have experienced a change in appetite and can’t feel normal excitement or joy in the holiday season, it may be time to seek professional help.
“All the data shows that therapy and medication can help a high percentage of people in a relatively short amount of time,’’ DeSobe said.
The Samaritan Center is a faith-based, ecumenical counseling center with 20 offices around the Houston area. Payment is on a sliding-fee scale and/or through insurance. Established in 1986, the Clear Lake center employs 25 therapists. For more information, call 281-480-7554 or go to
www.samaritanhouston.org.
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