I can't tell from this response, but it sounds like what might be happening is either that you or the counselor are avoiding the abuse issues and instead focusing on the symptoms of the depression. Kind of like treating the symptoms of an infection but not bothering about the anitibiotics.
I don't have the same kind of background of specifically sexual trauma as you, but I do have PTSD, and I found that until I specifically sought out a therapist who has experience and knowledge about trauma issues and trauma survivors, therapy for me went much the same way yours did. Oh, I'm sad. How do I deal with that right now? No one wanted to really deal with how the trauma affected me. Some therapists even said to my face when I told them I thought I needed someone more knowledgable in that area that "personalities are complex" so one has to "treat the whole."
Unfortunately in my personal experience, treating the "whole" meant ignoring the pink elephant in the room. It meant talking about my parents and my friends instead of my abuse. It meant writing off my panic attacks and other such things as difficulties or as needs for meds, instead of as PTSD.
Basically it meant never handling the real problem and assuming all causes and forms of depression have the same history and manifest in the same way.
If you're happy with your current therapist, or I'm misinterpreting, don't bother listening to me. But if you're looking for one kind of care, relating to your history, and getting a sort of generic care that isn't helping, you might want to look into people who specialize in trauma/abuse/PTSD type issues.
no subject
I don't have the same kind of background of specifically sexual trauma as you, but I do have PTSD, and I found that until I specifically sought out a therapist who has experience and knowledge about trauma issues and trauma survivors, therapy for me went much the same way yours did. Oh, I'm sad. How do I deal with that right now? No one wanted to really deal with how the trauma affected me. Some therapists even said to my face when I told them I thought I needed someone more knowledgable in that area that "personalities are complex" so one has to "treat the whole."
Unfortunately in my personal experience, treating the "whole" meant ignoring the pink elephant in the room. It meant talking about my parents and my friends instead of my abuse. It meant writing off my panic attacks and other such things as difficulties or as needs for meds, instead of as PTSD.
Basically it meant never handling the real problem and assuming all causes and forms of depression have the same history and manifest in the same way.
If you're happy with your current therapist, or I'm misinterpreting, don't bother listening to me. But if you're looking for one kind of care, relating to your history, and getting a sort of generic care that isn't helping, you might want to look into people who specialize in trauma/abuse/PTSD type issues.