Calgary Counselling Services

1. Anxiety Disorders

• Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD): Characterized by excessive and persistent worry about everyday things, even when there’s no apparent reason to worry. Symptoms can include restlessness, fatigue, and difficulty concentrating.

• Panic Disorder: Involves recurring panic attacks, which are intense episodes of fear or discomfort that peak within minutes and include symptoms like a racing heart, sweating, and trembling.

• Specific Phobia: An intense, irrational fear of a specific object, situation, or activity that poses little to no actual danger.

• Social Anxiety Disorder (Social Phobia): Characterized by a persistent and excessive fear of social or performance situations in which the person is exposed to possible scrutiny by others.

• Agoraphobia: Involves fear or anxiety about being in public places, crowds, or situations where escape might be difficult or embarrassing, or where help may not be available in the event of having a panic attack.

• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD): Characterized by recurring, intrusive thoughts (obsessions) and repetitive behaviours (compulsions) that the person feels driven to perform.

• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): Develops after a person experiences a traumatic event, such as combat, assault, or natural disaster, and is characterized by symptoms like flashbacks, nightmares, and avoidance of triggers.

2. Mood Disorders

• Major Depressive Disorder: Characterized by persistent feelings of sadness, hopelessness, and a lack of interest in activities, which can impair daily functioning.

• Bipolar Disorder: Involves periods of abnormally elevated mood (mania or hypomania) alternating with episodes of depression.

• Persistent Depressive Disorder (Dysthymia): A type of depression that lasts for two years or more, with symptoms that are less severe than those of major depressive disorder but can still interfere with daily life.

• Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD): A type of depression that occurs at the same time every year, typically during the winter months when there is less sunlight.

3. Eating Disorders

• Anorexia Nervosa: Characterized by a distorted body image and an intense fear of gaining weight, which leads to restricted eating habits and significant weight loss.

• Bulimia Nervosa: Involves recurring episodes of binge eating followed by purging or other compensatory behaviours, such as self-induced vomiting, laxatives, or excessive exercise.

• Binge Eating Disorder (BED): Characterized by recurring episodes of binge eating, which can lead to feelings of guilt, shame, and weight gain.

4. Substance-Related Disorders

• Alcohol Use Disorder: Characterized by a pattern of alcohol use that leads to significant impairment or distress.

• Drug / Opioid Use Disorder: Involves a pattern of drug / opioid use that leads to significant impairment or distress.
• Pornography Use Disorder: Characterized by a pattern of pornography use that leads to significant impairment or distress, often manifested in negative impacts on relationships, daily life, and mental health.
• Gaming Disorder: Involves a pattern of gaming behaviour characterized by impaired control, increasing priority given to gaming over other activities, and continuation or escalation of gaming despite negative consequences.

• Gambling Disorder: Characterized by a pattern of gambling behaviour that leads to significant impairment or distress, often manifested in chasing losses, deception about the extent of gambling, and jeopardized relationships or vocational pursuits due to gambling.

6. Sleep Disorders

• Insomnia: Characterized by difficulty initiating or maintaining sleep, or both, despite adequate opportunities to sleep.

• Sleep Apnea: A condition in which a person stops breathing for short periods during sleep.

7. Somatic Symptom Disorder

• Somatic Symptom Disorder: Characterized by one or more chronic physical symptoms (e.g., pain, fatigue) that are distressing and result in significant disruption of daily life.

8. Acute Stress Disorder

• Acute Stress Disorder: Develops after a person experiences a traumatic event and is characterized by symptoms like dissociation, anxiety, and avoidance of triggers.