Perhaps one of the hardest relationships to navigate is that of an ex. In today’s world it can be nearly impossible to completely cut ties with someone you once loved. Even in the case of divorce, you can no longer expect that you will not have any contact with your ex. Ending any relationship is hard. A break up causing anxiety or depression is a common reason that someone will seek individual counseling. Feeling confused or feeling sad after a breakup, can make it difficult to focus on the future. Turning to friends or family might provide short-term support, but in the end will make it hard to see things objectively. That is why many people dealing with sadness after a breakup reach out to an individual counselor. There are many strategies that individual counseling will teach for how to handle a break up better.
Social media, co-mingled friend groups, shared children, common work places, etc. can make it hard to avoid contact with an ex. You might find that social media reminds you of how and what they are doing which triggers negative feelings. Many people struggle with feeling guilty about establishing boundaries or putting rules for contact in place for an ex. A therapist will help you understand the benefit of boundaries, why they are important for your self-care and how to set them. This helps you foster healing and improves your self-worth.
One major down-side to being in a toxic relationship, or dealing with a traumatic break-up, is that self-care often gets put aside. The dysfunction in the relationship becomes the focal point. Anxiety, depression, sadness, and a sense of despair begins to become prominent. This leads way to individuals neglecting their needs and using all their energy to try to save the relationship. After a break-up, self-care needs to be practiced and reintroduced into a person’s daily routine. Having the right support for this and creating an action plan is very helpful for restoring balance again.
In any relationship, it can be easy to lose sight of your own needs, desires, and sense of self. This can be even more true in a co-dependent relationship that is toxic. Learning to do things on your own again, finding out who you are without the other person, and building a life alone can be hard. Individual counseling provides a safe place to rediscover who you are after feeling all alone after a break-up. This is a time to re-evaluate what you wish had been different in your relationship and what you want for your future connections. Talking things out with an objective resource and receiving feedback helps you gain self-awareness.
The biggest battle after any break-up leaves emotional scars is learning how to let go and move on without lingering feelings. Even if you are good at moving on, it might not mean that you are good at letting go. Harboring negative emotions such as anger for your ex, resentment about how things ended, or guilt or shame, will only come up again if you don’t process it in healthy ways. Grieving the loss of a relationship is also important. The goal for individual counseling after a break-up would be to truly let go so that you can move on into the future without looking in the rear-view mirror.
The best thing you can do for yourself after a break-up causes anxiety, pain, heartache, or sadness, is to set a goal to put yourself first. You can reach out to a professional individual counselor and start individual counseling in Orlando. It is there that you will find the support you need to let go, set healthy boundaries, and learn what it means to take care of you. Orlando Thrive Therapy specializes in individual counseling after break-ups, or for individuals having relationship issues. Call 407-592-8997 to find out how we can help.
Heather Oller is the owner and founder of Orlando Thrive Therapy, Coaching, and Counseling. She is a licensed counselor and a family mediator who has over 23 years of dedicated work as a professional in the mental health field. Through her company's mission, she continues to pave the way for future therapists, and their clients, who want a higher quality of life....and who want to thrive, rather than just survive. You can contact Orlando Thrive Therapy at (407) 592-8997 for more information.