With Gayle Van Horn, CPSS, LISW, LCSW, Monarch Therapist
Sandy DeOliveira vividly remembers feeling utterly alone when she first started to experience depression. Moving to the Charlotte area from New York in 2014, DeOliveira worked a series of small jobs, struggling to find the right fit like her job in the financial sector back in New York.
With no stable employment, no family support and in the process of ending an abusive relationship, DeOliveira felt her mental health begin to deteriorate.
“When I look back on that time,” DeOliveira shares, “It really felt like my mind was not cooperating.”
Her hope was if she could find someone who could listen and understand what she was experiencing, she could get the appropriate help. She threw out a lifeline by calling a suicide helpline every week for three weeks.
“While you are sick, you feel as though you are alone on an island,” DeOliveira describes. “I knew I needed help to feel less alone, and I was looking for it.”
Monarch was DeOliveira’s Ultimate Lifeline
After receiving initial services at Charlotte area agencies, DeOliveira was referred to Monarch’s Mecklenburg Behavioral Health Outpatient Office where she truly started to turn her mental health around. DeOliveira began meeting with a mental health nurse practitioner at Monarch who was able to properly diagnose her depression. She then was referred to her therapist Gayle Van Horn, whom she continues to see for individual and group psychological therapy.
“In many ways, Monarch was the guiding force that brought me back to life,” DeOliveira shares.
Van Horn, who finds reward in helping people supported in times of crisis, served as a calming presence as DeOliveira took her first steps after receiving mental health diagnoses.
“She has been a stabilizing voice when my anxiety was overwhelming and my mind was scattered all over the place. She brought me back to the moment, kept me calm and brought me back to Earth,” explains DeOliveira. “She is wonderful in every way — a real professional.”
Monarch Provides DeOliveira with Housing, Employment and Mental Health Resources
Now that Monarch has helped DeOliveira to stabilize her depression, she is able to focus on the future. Monarch is still playing a vital role in this, helping her look for full-time employment, stable housing, and providing the confidence as she continues on her healing journey. Future goals include going back to school, something that seemed unimaginable before she sought support at Monarch.
A key part of DeOliveira’s confidence comes from her position experience with medication. Monarch helped DeOliveira access a medication that helps keep her post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression and anxiety at bay. She benefits from one-on-one therapy with Van Horn as well as the supportive and reassuring shoulders she leans on through group therapy with women who share similar mental health diagnoses and life experiences.
Group and Other Types of Therapy Helpful in Creating a Community of Recovery
DeOliveira’s therapist, Van Horn, sees many positives of group therapy for the people Monarch supports.
“In group therapy, people that are going through struggles help support others going through the same thing,” Van Horn points out. “Just to know that you are not alone and can express your feelings in an open way helps other people to heal.”
DeOliveira enjoys being part of group therapy and finds solace in knowing there are others who share the same experiences.
“In group therapy, I no longer feel I am alone on an island,” DeOliveira emphasizes. “I found my tribe who sustains me in moments of weakness. That is worth everything.”
To people in similar situations, DeOliveira has an important message: there is still hope, and there is help out there.
To those reluctant to seek help for their mental health, DeOliveira emphasizes that reaching out for help is the first step in healing.
“Monarch has saved my life in a way that nobody has been able to — no family or anyone else,” DeOliveira adds. “I was feeling despondent because I was trying to save myself, by myself. When you are sick you need help.”
If you’re looking for a lifeline, find out more about Monarch’s types of therapy and telehealth therapy services by watching these YouTube videos:
Monarch services are available to anyone who needs help. Call (866) 272-7826 for information and appointment.