Join the Authentic Movement event with Dr Hillary McBride on Friday, October 18, 7:30pm, at Elgin Hall in South Surrey.
If you’ve landed on this page, it may be because you or someone you care about has been feeling low for a long time. Not the kind of overwhelming sadness that stops everything in its tracks, but more like a quiet heaviness that never seems to lift. Maybe you’ve gotten used to going through the motions: getting out of bed, going to work, showing up for your family—but without much joy, energy, or sense of purpose. You may find yourself thinking, “I guess this is just how I am.” But what if it doesn’t have to be?
At Love This Therapy, we see you. We understand how exhausting it is to carry a constant undercurrent of sadness, self-doubt, and disconnection. We want you to know you’re not lazy, broken, or failing at life. You might be living with dysthymia, also known as Persistent Depressive Disorder (PDD), and there is support, relief, and healing available.
Schedule your free intake call to ensure we're a good fit!
Dysthymia is a form of chronic depression that lasts for two years or more in adults (or one year for children and teens). It often flies under the radar because it’s less intense than major depressive disorder (MDD), but more long-lasting. People with dysthymia may not always feel acutely depressed, but instead experience a steady, low-grade sense of sadness or emptiness, often accompanied by fatigue, low self-esteem, and hopelessness.
The key differences between dysthymia and major depression are duration and severity. While major depressive episodes can feel more extreme and come in waves, dysthymia tends to be more subtle but persistent. Many people with dysthymia describe it as a kind of emotional “numbness” or feeling like they’re going through life in grayscale instead of colour.
Because dysthymia often starts early in life and becomes a “new normal,” people may not even recognize they’re struggling with a treatable condition. But just because something has become familiar doesn’t mean it’s unchangeable.
Dysthymia can look different for everyone, but common symptoms include:
Because these symptoms tend to be more subtle than those of major depression, they often get brushed off as personality traits or “just life.” But when left untreated, dysthymia can affect every area of life, such as relationships, career, physical health, and sense of self.
You don’t have to face dysthymia alone—or try to “snap out of it” by sheer willpower. Therapy offers a safe, compassionate space to begin understanding where your chronic low mood may be coming from and how to start shifting it.
Counselling can help by:
Such as unresolved trauma, chronic stress, childhood emotional neglect, or unhelpful thought patterns
Into how long-term sadness has shaped your beliefs, behaviours, and sense of self
And helping you develop more realistic and self-compassionate perspectives
So that life doesn’t just feel like something to get through
To engage in meaningful activities, relationships, and personal growth
Working with a therapist can also provide accountability, encouragement, and new tools to manage your mental health more effectively. Over time, what once felt dull and heavy can begin to shift and colour can return to your world.
At Love This Therapy, we draw from a range of evidence-based modalities that have been shown to support healing from persistent depressive symptoms:
CBT helps you identify and challenge unhelpful thought patterns and behaviours that keep low mood in place. Together with your therapist, you’ll learn practical strategies to shift your thinking, experiment with new behaviours, and build a more balanced, empowering mindset.
EFT supports you in reconnecting with emotions that may have been suppressed, ignored, or misunderstood. By safely experiencing and processing these emotions in therapy, you can release long-held tension, better understand yourself, and create new ways of relating to your feelings.
EMDR is especially useful if your dysthymia is connected to unresolved trauma or early emotional injuries. Through guided eye movements or other forms of bilateral stimulation, EMDR helps the brain reprocess distressing memories, reducing their emotional impact and opening the door to healing.
Psychodynamic therapy looks beneath the surface to explore unconscious patterns, early life experiences, and relational dynamics that shape how you see yourself and the world. This insight-oriented approach can help you untangle long-standing emotional knots and create space for new patterns to emerge.
MBCT integrates mindfulness practices with cognitive therapy techniques to break the cycle of negative thinking. By cultivating present-moment awareness, you can notice unhelpful thought loops before they take over and respond to yourself with greater compassion and clarity.
IFS helps you explore and heal your “inner family” of different emotional parts—such as the inner critic, the protector, or the wounded child. By befriending and integrating these parts, you can access a grounded, compassionate inner self that leads the way in your healing journey.
Your therapist will tailor the approach based on your preferences, history, and goals. There’s no one-size-fits-all path. We walk alongside you at your pace.
Your therapist will tailor the approach based on your preferences, history, and goals. There’s no one-size-fits-all path. We walk alongside you at your pace.
We know reaching out for therapy—especially when you already feel low on energy—can feel overwhelming. So, we make it as easy and gentle as possible.
Through this process, many clients find not just symptom relief, but also a renewed connection to who they really are—and what makes life worth living.
At Love This Therapy, we’re more than a counselling clinic, we’re a community of compassionate professionals who believe in meeting people with heart and skill.
Here’s what makes us different:
We see the whole person behind the pain. We honour your story, your culture, and your strength, even if you can’t see it yet.
Our therapists use evidence-based approaches, but we also value authenticity, warmth, and human connection as part of the healing process.
Whether you're ready to dive deep or need to start slowly, we adapt to your pace.
Our team is trauma-informed, LGBTQ2S+ affirming, and culturally responsive.
Dysthymia can begin early in life. We offer age-appropriate counselling for children, youth, and adults.
Our South Surrey clinic is welcoming and warm—but we also offer secure virtual therapy across BC for those who prefer remote sessions. Our admin are trained to do direct billing for all the extended medical companies that allow it in BC.
Most importantly, we believe healing is possible—not by pretending to be okay, but by allowing yourself to be truly seen and supported in the parts that aren’t.
If you’ve been feeling low for what seems like forever. If the world feels heavy, grey, or just flat, it might be time to talk to someone who truly understands. Life doesn’t have to feel this way forever.
Reach out to us at Love This Therapy for a free, compassionate intake call. Our admin team will help you get matched with the therapist who feels right for you, and if it feels like a good fit, you can start with a free discovery call. 604.229.4887
You’ve already carried so much on your own. Let’s carry this together.
Schedule your free intake call to ensure we're a good fit!
