Melanie Mahanger, MA, LPC

Licensed Professional Counselor

Isolation

Loneliness

Depression

Lack of genuine social connection

Alone or Lonely?

Loneliness, a complicated emotion that typically occurs when one’s needs for social contact are not met, may be described as a feeling of emptiness. A person may be lonely when alone, but the state of being alone does not create loneliness.

With loneliness a person may have the belief that one has no choice in the matter and their feelings will never change. When one’s social needs and desires go consistently unfulfilled, feelings of loneliness may become chronic and debilitating and lead to a decline in mental health.

Depression, anxiety, low self-esteem and substance dependency are found to be a common outcome of unaddressed loneliness. In our current social environment we can isolate each other with our dependency on technology.

Therapy is a way to challenge and modify any thought patterns or perceptions that are associated with or contribute to loneliness, such as a perceived lack of control over life or social situations. We can acknowledge that all humans need social contact and learn to show compassion for ourselves and others that struggle.

Melanie Mahanger, MA, LPC

Psychotherapist

In 2006, I graduated with my B.S. in Psychology at Loyola University New Orleans. In 2011, I completed my M.A. in Professional Counseling at Texas State University. In July of 2018, I received my license as a LPC and I now practice in Austin, Texas.

People that come to me find that I am kind and use my humor to create a calm and relaxed space. I encourage them to simply tell their story and I listen with empathy and concern. I make sure goals are set so we can identify successes that lead to completion of counseling. I often reference family systems theory because I believe we all learn patterns in our life based on interactions in our family. Using person-centered techniques and mindfulness give me the opportunity to work with people in life transitions, people with relationship issues, anxiety, and depression. (Previous name: Melanie Rabalais, MA, LPC)