In-person in Duluth, GA & online throughout the US
Therapy For Chronic Illness In Duluth, GA
You are more than your diagnosis.
Do you feel like your life is controlled by your chronic illness?
You're tired of having to constantly advocate for yourself when dealing with doctors who invalidate your experience.
You're stressed out by everything you have to do to take care of yourself.
You're worrying about what your diagnosis means for you in the long term.
You find yourself paralyzed with anxiety every time you have a flare up.
Your life has been turned upside down by your diagnosis, and it feels like so much has been taken away from you.
You feel like a burden for needing so much help from the people in your life.
You've experienced medical trauma from having to go through difficult and painful medical procedures on a regular basis.
Chronic illness can affect every part of your life, causing you to:
Try to keep up with work, home, and school obligations, knowing it might trigger a flare-up
Deal with the medical establishment on a regular basis and feel like a professional patient
Lose friends and acquaintances because of your inability to show up the way you want to in relationships
Feel isolated and alone because the people around you don't truly understand what you are going through
Not want to ask for help from your spouse or partner even when it's needed because you're afraid of being seen as a burden
How Therapy For Chronic Illness Can Help You
Living with a chronic illness can turn your whole world upside down. Therapy can help you start to feel more like yourself again. You can feel less overwhelmed by the emotional weight of your diagnosis, more confident in speaking up for yourself, and less alone in dealing with your experience. You don't have to navigate this perfectly or by yourself. Together, we'll process both the practical and emotional sides of living with chronic illness, while you receive active feedback and practical tools tailored to your specific situation.
In therapy you’ll learn to:
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Finally getting an accurate diagnosis to explain your symptoms can be both a relief and can feel extremely overwhelming. It may answer some questions, but open up a whole bunch of other ones. Therapy will help you adjust to your diagnosis and help you learn to advocate for yourself within the medical system when it comes to receiving treatment.
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Although flare-ups can occur out of the blue, it has been shown that for many illnesses, stress can play a role in the frequency and severity of flare-ups. In therapy, we will work on stress management and relaxation techniques. This will decrease the frequency of your flare-ups and make them less severe when they do occur.
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One of the hardest adjustments after being diagnosed with a chronic illness is getting used to having to ask for help from other people. If you were a pretty independent person before, this is particularly difficult. In therapy, we will work on strategies for asking for help without feeling guilty or as if you are burden on others, and how to accept help gracefully.
Here’s what’s possible for you:
Feel more in control of your day-to-day life
Trust your own experience and advocate for yourself
Process the grief of your diagnosis
Reach out to others when help is needed without doubting yourself or feeling guilty
Decrease stress-induced flare-ups
You don’t have to face this alone.
Common questions about chronic illness therapy
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Not at all. I often work with people who are struggling to get a diagnosis and have been living with unexplained or hard-to-diagnose symptoms for a long time. You don't need an official diagnosis to start therapy.
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What you are physically experiencing is definitely real and is not just all in your head. However, having to deal with a chronic illness can often lead to other problems such as anxiety and depression. Therapy can help you cope with the emotional difficulties that having a chronic illness can cause. Participating in therapy can also reduce the chances that emotional problems will cause your physical symptoms to get worse.
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Flexibility is important when working with chronic illness, and I'll adjust sessions based on what you're experiencing that day. For example, if you're too exhausted to make it to the office, we can switch to a virtual session instead.
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Yes. Medical trauma often accompanies chronic illness, and I have experience helping clients process it—including using EMDR, when appropriate, to work through traumatic medical experiences. I also help clients learn how to cope with doctors who don't believe their symptoms, both by processing those difficult experiences and by building the skills to become a stronger self-advocate.
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Absolutely. I often help clients process the grief that comes with a chronic illness diagnosis, along with the losses that can come with it. Therapy can be a valuable space to work through those feelings.
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Yes, I can consult with members of your care team—physicians, dietitians, physical therapists, and others—to make sure we're addressing all the important aspects of your care.
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I have personal experience living with chronic illness myself, including chronic migraines, so I understand firsthand how much illness can affect your daily life, relationships, plans, and sense of well-being. I know what it's like to have an illness that doesn't simply go away and to have to navigate the uncertainty and limitations that can come with it.
At the same time, I bring my professional experience as a psychologist to help you work through the emotional challenges that can accompany chronic illness. My goal is to help you cope with the stress, anxiety, grief, frustration, and changes that illness can bring while finding ways to live a meaningful life alongside your health challenges.
Begin therapy for chronic illness in Duluth, GA
You don’t have to keep dealing with your chronic illness on your own. Therapy can provide you with support and coping skills to deal with the effects of your illness. As a chronic illness therapist, I specialize in helping individuals with chronic illness to live their best lives. To start your therapy journey, follow these simple steps:
Click below
Click the Schedule Free Consultation button below.
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book consultation
Book a free, 15 minute video consultation with me to talk more about what you are looking for from therapy and to ask me any questions you have for me about the process.
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schedule your session
Schedule your first therapy session to start learning how you can reduce flare ups and improve your outlook on your situation.
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Other services available from Ginny Kington, Psy.D.
Therapy for chronic illness isn’t the only mental health service I provide. Oftentimes, if you are struggling with a chronic illness, it is going to bring on feelings of anxiety or lead to burnout at work. Therapeutic services are available in both of these areas, as well as in the area of people pleasing. I am able to provide these services in my office in Duluth, Georgia or online in the following states: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Washington DC, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
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