Depression Therapy in Cincinnati
For the heaviness that won't lift, the flatness that won't break, and the days that all start to look the same.
If you've been moving through your life feeling muted, tired in a way that sleep doesn't fix, disconnected from things that used to matter, or carrying a quiet sense that something is wrong even when nothing obvious is, you're in the right place.
Depression doesn't always look like sadness. Sometimes it looks like emptiness. Sometimes it looks like irritability you can't explain. Sometimes it looks like going through the motions perfectly while feeling almost nothing inside. Whatever shape it's taking for you, it isn't laziness, and it isn't weakness, and it isn't who you are. It's a signal that something underneath needs attention.
You don't have to keep pushing through this on your own.
What Depression Actually Looks Like
Most people picture depression as crying, staying in bed, and being unable to function. That picture is real for some people, but it leaves out a lot. Many of the clients we work with at Lumenso don't recognize what they're experiencing as depression because they're still showing up, still meeting deadlines, still parenting, still being the reliable one. The depression is quieter than that, and that's exactly why it goes untreated for so long.
Depression can look like:
A flatness that's been there so long it feels like personality. The sense that you're going through life behind glass. Losing interest in things that used to bring you joy and not being sure when that happened. Sleeping too much or too little, eating too much or too little, never quite landing in your own body. A heavy fatigue that no amount of rest seems to touch. Irritability that catches you off guard, or a short fuse with the people you love most. A relentless inner voice that says you're failing, falling behind, or letting people down. Difficulty concentrating, making decisions, or finishing things that used to feel easy. A sense of hopelessness about the future, or about yourself. Quiet thoughts that life would be easier if you weren't here, even when you don't actually want to die.
If any of this is familiar, what you're carrying has a name. And it can shift.
Our Approach to Depression Therapy
We don't believe depression is something you just learn to manage on the surface, and we don't believe in approaches that focus only on changing your thoughts while ignoring everything underneath them. At Lumenso, we work with the whole person, mind, body, and the deeper patterns that shape how you've been moving through the world.
Our therapists draw from several evidence-based modalities, integrated to fit your particular system:
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Depression often shows up as a part of you that has gone quiet, withdrawn, or shut down to protect you from something that felt unbearable. IFS helps you build a relationship with that part with curiosity and compassion, rather than fighting it or trying to push past it. When you understand what the depression has been protecting, often a younger, more vulnerable part carrying grief, hopelessness, or shame, the system begins to move.
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When depression is rooted in past experiences, loss, betrayal, prolonged stress, early wounds that taught your nervous system to brace or shut down, EMDR helps your brain reprocess those experiences so they stop running in the background. The depressive response calms at its source, not just on the surface.
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ACT helps you move toward the things that matter to you even when depression is present, rather than waiting for the heaviness to lift before you re-engage with your life. It's about reconnecting with your values and rebuilding a sense of meaning, gradually and sustainably.
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Jungian approaches understand depression as something more than a symptom to be eliminated. Sometimes the heaviness is the psyche asking for attention, signaling unmet needs, unlived parts of the self, or a turning point that hasn't yet been recognized. This work invites a deeper relationship with the inner world and the meaning underneath the mood.
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Real, practical work to reconnect with the body, with present moments, and with the small textures of daily life that depression dulls. Not a fix, but a steady rebuilding of contact with yourself.
The right combination depends on you. We'll figure it out together.
Who We Help
Depression shows up differently for different people. We work with adults navigating:
High-functioning depression. You're still showing up, still doing the things, still meeting expectations. But underneath the performance, you feel hollow, exhausted, or like you're watching your own life from a distance.
Persistent low mood and emptiness. The flatness that's been there so long it feels like part of you, even when nothing in your life is obviously wrong.
Depression after loss or major change. Grief, divorce, identity shifts, career endings, the loss of a relationship or a version of yourself. The mood that settles in after the shape of your life changes.
Burnout that's tipped into depression. When chronic overwork, caregiving, or pressure has emptied you out so completely that rest alone no longer restores you.
Postpartum and perinatal depression. The depression that arrives during pregnancy or after, when everyone expects joy and you're carrying something else entirely.
Depression rooted in earlier experiences. Childhood emotional neglect, attachment wounds, or chronic invalidation that shaped a nervous system to run on a quieter, more depleted setting from very early on.
Depression in LGBTQ+ individuals. When minority stress, internalized shame, family rejection, or religious harm settles into the body as heaviness, hopelessness, or numbness.
Existential depression. The kind that arrives with questions about meaning, purpose, or whether the life you've built is actually yours. Often midlife. Often quiet. Often misread as something to push through rather than listen to.
We also work with the depression that doesn't fit neatly into a category, the low-grade fog that colors everything without ever fully announcing itself.
What to Expect
Starting therapy when you're depressed can feel like its own obstacle. The energy it takes to make the call, send the email, or sit through a first session can feel impossible when even getting through the day is heavy. We know that, and we hold the work accordingly.
Your first session is a conversation, not an interrogation. We'll talk about what brought you here, what you're experiencing, and what you're hoping for. There's no pressure to articulate it perfectly. There's no right way to describe depression. You don't need a diagnosis. You don't need to be in crisis. You just need to be willing to start.
From there, we build a plan together based on your needs and your pace. Some clients start with stabilization, rebuilding energy, sleep, and basic capacity, before going deeper. Others are ready to begin processing the roots right away. We follow what your system can hold.
Sessions are available in-office at our Cincinnati location or virtually across Ohio, Kentucky, Minnesota, and Arizona.
Drew Simri, LPCC-S, LICDC-CS
Yvette Nepper, LPCC
Sara Krueger, LPC
Frequently Asked Questions
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Individual sessions at Lumenso Wellness range from $125 to $175 depending on your provider. We are an out-of-network practice and can provide a superbill for you to submit to your insurance for potential reimbursement. For more details, visit our Rates and Payment page.
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We are out-of-network with all insurance providers. Many clients receive partial reimbursement through their insurance's out-of-network benefits. We are happy to provide a superbill so you can pursue reimbursement directly with your insurer.
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It depends on you, your history, your goals, and what's underneath the depression. Some people experience meaningful relief within a few months. Others, especially those whose depression is rooted in earlier experiences or chronic patterns, choose to go deeper over a longer period. We check in regularly and adjust together.
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No. Some clients find medication helpful alongside therapy, others do not, and that decision is between you and a prescriber. We do not require medication, and we do not pressure clients in either direction. If you're interested in exploring medication, we can refer you to trusted prescribers in the Cincinnati area.
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Sadness is usually tied to something specific and tends to move through. Burnout is often a response to ongoing demands and tends to lift with sustained rest and change. Depression is more persistent, more pervasive, and often shows up without an obvious cause, or settles in long after the original cause has passed. If your low mood has lasted for weeks or months, doesn't lift with rest, or is affecting your ability to function, sleep, eat, or feel pleasure, therapy can help.
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Depression isn't always something that gets cured like an infection. But it can shift, often significantly. Many of our clients reach a point where the heaviness lifts, where they reconnect with their own life, and where the patterns underneath the depression no longer hold the same grip. That kind of change is real, and it's possible.
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At Lumenso, we tailor our approach to what you're actually dealing with. When depression is the primary concern, we draw from modalities that go beyond surface-level mood management: IFS, EMDR, ACT, Jungian approaches, and somatic work, depending on what fits you. The framework adapts to the person.
You don't have to keep pretending you're fine.
Depression isn't something you have to outsmart, outwork, or wait out. It responds to the right kind of care. You don't need to have it all figured out. You don't need to have the right words. You just need to be ready for something to feel different.