Clinical Psychologist Bloemfontein
Lerina van der Westhuizen
Lerina van der Westhuizen is a clinical psychologist in Bloemfontein.
The field of psychology gives us a better understanding of our behaviour and the relationship of our thoughts to our actions and general well-being.
I truly believe that every person on this earth is capable of living a wonderful life!
Lerina van der Westhuizen is a clinical psychologist in Bloemfontein.
The field of psychology gives us a better understanding of our behaviour and the relationship of our thoughts to our actions and general well-being.
I truly believe that every person on this earth is capable of living a wonderful life!
I truly believe that every person on this earth is capable of living a wonderful life!
Speciality areas
Lerina believes that a lot of therapy happens in the safe, confidential, accepting, and non-judgemental relationship between therapist and patient.
Mood disorders, including major depression and bipolar
01.
Major depression
Major depression is a mood disorder where you have a depressed mood most of the day, nearly every day. There is a markedly diminished interest or pleasure in things you previously enjoyed. You could experience changes in sleep and eating patterns and might experience irritability, short temperedness, or lack of motivation. Patients experience feelings of guilt or worthlessness and cognitive functions, including focus, concentration, attention, and short-term memory, might be impaired.
02.
Bipolar
Bipolar mood disorder is a mood disorder where several of the above symptoms might be present but fluctuate between extremes of happiness and depression. The person will, for example, experience amplified energy and partake in extreme involvement in pleasurable activities (often leading to financial expenses or sexual indiscretions). The person may be more talkative than usual, and experience decreased need for sleep. They will feel ‘on top of the world’. This however very soon then fluctuates to depression again.
03.
Anxiety disorders
Many disorders including panic attacks, phobias, obsessive compulsive disorders, posttraumatic stress disorder and general anxiety fall in this category. The person may experience anxiety on and emotional level, such as always worrying, feeling tense or anticipating the worst possible case scenario. The person can also experience physical symptoms, such as heart palpitations, sweating, sensations of shortness of breath, chest pains, fear of dying, and so on.
04.
Work stress
People feel work stress as an emotional experience of work overload or underload. Work stress is also a result of complicated work relations to the extent that it causes extreme emotion or physical symptoms.
05.
Trauma
An emotional response to a traumatic event (often but not limited to a near-death experience). A person who has been in a car accident, experienced an armed robbery or sexual distress are examples of trauma.
06.
Relationship difficulties
Relationship difficulties often include marital dysfunction as a result of lack of trust, destructive communication, commitment issues or emotional or physical abuse within a relationship. These difficulties cause emotional distress.
07.
COVID trauma
Those experiencing COVID trauma feel an emotional response to lockdown complications. These may include financial stress and trauma of hospitalization or illness of the self or significant others. Trauma is often amplified when there is a limited capacity to support or be there for others. Persons additionally experience Covid trauma from social isolation as a result of covid restrictions and experiencing of loss of connectedness.
08.
Complicated bereavement
This may follow the death of a significant other. Persons find returning to occupational or social functioning difficult due to their inability to deal with the loss.
09.
Coming to terms with illness
Patients may experience difficulty coming to terms with illness, such as stroke, cancer, HIV, multiple sclerosis, and epilepsy. Patients often have difficulty accepting these diagnoses and experience anger or fear relating to their condition. Moreover, the patient generally feels loss of control when physical things happen to the body which are outside of their control. This leads to further anger and fear of dying. The patients must also often come to terms with adjustments to their lifestyle.
10.
Substance abuse
Substance abuse is the dependency and misuse of substances including alcohol, medication or another drug. The patient may also misuse substances as a means of coping with other difficulties.
Therapy takes place in a multi-disciplinary practice.
Other Services
Patient Admissions
When it is necessary, Lerina admits stress and trauma patients to psychiatric hospitals and healing centres such as Bloemcare, Optima, Nurture Hillandale Hospital and Galino House.
Specialised Therapies
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Solution-Focused Therapy (SFT).
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is a type of therapy in which negative patterns of thought about yourself and the world around you are identified and challenged in order to change unwanted behaviour or to treat destructive emotions.
Solution-focused Therapy is a type of therapy where emphasis is given to the act of doing things differently. There is no sense in trying to merely understand where the issues are coming from and what the dynamics are. Focus is therefore on what needs to be done and not only being empathetic.
Lerina is a clinical psychologist in Bloemfontein who primarily works with adults and teenagers with focus on short-term therapy in a safe and non-judgemental environment.