Be an overcomer at upcoming anxiety and depression workshop

A local professional is hosting a workshop for the public, and tailored for individuals who are dealing with anxiety and depression. The session, and presented by local counselor Carla Cain, is an opportunity for attendees to learn special techniques to help themselves along their journey, and to eventually overcome personal mental-health related struggles.

Cain shared that she wants to help others because she knows first-hand the impact mental health struggles have on daily life. Additionally, she commented that she believes that individuals should learn skills to help themselves, rather than focusing on someone or something else to blame.

Cain, a Northeast Pennsylvania resident, graduated from Canton High School and later achieved an M.A. Degree in Counseling from Liberty University. She is a retired counselor who held sessions via a private practice for 18 years. She brings to the table varied experience, including work at the Elmira Psychiatric Center, as an Adjunct Professor of Psychology, and has also penned articles for several publications.

The Anxiety & Depression Workshop is scheduled for Saturday, April 22, in the Williamsburg Room of the Quality Inn & Suites located at 1100 State Rte. 17C in Owego.

Registration is $30, and begins at 12:30 p.m. The workshop runs from 1 p.m. until 4:30 p.m. The program is open to adults and youth ages 13-plus. Supporters, such as family members, guardians or friends, are encouraged to accompany attendees. 

The program description states, in part, “Don’t go another day missing out on life due to anxiety and/or depression. At this workshop you will learn skills to help you become an overcomer.”  

Cain views herself as an “overcomer,” or one who has succeeded in dealing with or gaining control of anxiety and depression, and remarked, “In my early thirties I struggled with anxiety and depression, and by utilizing the skills I teach I was able to overcome.”

She further cited that part of her personal journey was dealing with depression, which entailed ongoing panic attacks and phobias, and periods of not eating or the ability to perform regular daily functions. Through that experience she realized that medications were not the answer for her specific journey. Cain plans to share her testimony at the workshop.  

Cain said she promotes the non-use of medications, and instead, “Cognitive behavioral training and ways to change thinking, along with coping skills, and how to acknowledge issues and apply the tools and skills learned, and then to effectively use them on a daily basis.”

A part of the process, too, Cain said, is for individuals to realize that “to overcome” takes ongoing hard work, commitment, and discipline.

The workshop will dive into the underlying causes of anxiety and depression, and which, Cain said, can stem from distancing yourself from the past or repressing certain situations. The workshop will also offer instruction on various treatment types, as well as how to identify triggers and then challenge them.     

A workbook will be distributed, and where attendees can follow along with Cain’s Power Point presentation. Workshop participation is encouraged, and group activities are also a highlight of the session. 

Cain remarked, “It’s up to each individual about how much they share during the workshop, but my goal is to inspire each person to walk away with the tools and methods needed to be an ‘overcomer.’”

Two other Anxiety & Depression Workshops are also scheduled. A May 15 workshop will be held at the Inspire S-VE Community & Fitness Center, located at 57 E. Tioga St. in Spencer, N.Y.; and then on Sept. 23, Cain will present at the Fairfield by Marriott, located at 1248 Golden Mile Rd. in Towanda, Pa. 

You can find the Owego location workshop listed on Facebook as an event page. You can learn more about Carla Cain by visiting www.balmsforthesoulpodcast.com/.