Depression Counseling in Greenville, SC

Depression counseling session in Greenville SC with John Kilgo LPC"

Depression rarely announces itself. It usually arrives quietly — a creeping flatness where things you used to enjoy stop landing. The mornings get harder to start. The energy you used to have isn’t there, and the things you’ve accomplished feel hollow rather than satisfying. People tell you what you have to be grateful for, and you nod, and you mean it, and somehow it doesn’t help.
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If that resonates, you may have started wondering whether what you’re feeling is just a phase, or whether something deeper is going on. The honest answer is: the line between “I’m just going through a hard time” and “I’m depressed” isn’t always clear, even for therapists. What I can tell you is this — if it’s been weighing on you long enough that you’re searching for help, that’s reason enough to talk to someone, regardless of what label fits.
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At Olive Tree Counseling & Consultation, I work with adults across Greenville, SC who are navigating depression in its various forms. Some come during a season of acute loss; some have been quietly carrying low-grade heaviness for months or years; some look perfectly fine on the outside but feel empty on the inside. The work looks different for each, but the core is the same: making room for what you’re feeling, understanding what it’s connected to, and finding a path toward more genuine aliveness on the other side.

The kinds of depression I work with

Situational depression. Sometimes depression is a response to something specific — a job loss, a divorce, a move that hasn’t worked out, a change in your circumstances that has left you grieving the life you thought you’d be living. Situational depression doesn’t mean you’re broken; it means you’re responding to something hard with the natural human response of slowing down. The work here often involves processing the loss honestly while also helping you find your footing again.

Grief-related depression. Grief can look a lot like depression, and sometimes the two are intertwined. Whether you’ve lost a parent, a spouse, a child, a friendship, or a version of yourself you didn’t get to keep, grief deserves space — not a deadline. I won’t try to move you through it on a schedule. We’ll let it be what it is, and we’ll work together so the weight of it doesn’t have to be carried alone.

High-functioning depression. Some of the people I see have careers, families, and outward lives that look enviable from the outside. They’re competent. They show up. They haven’t missed work. But underneath, the pleasure has gone out of things. They feel disconnected from the people they love, vaguely numb most days, and haven’t truly enjoyed anything in longer than they can remember. High-functioning depression can be especially hard to address because nothing has obviously broken, so reaching out for help can feel unwarranted. It isn’t.

My approach

​I draw primarily from two evidence-based approaches when working with depression, and I move between them based on what each person needs.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) helps us look at the thought patterns depression tends to reinforce — the all-or-nothing thinking, the harsh self-judgment, the sense that things have always been this way and always will be. CBT gives us tools to gently challenge those patterns and rebuild a more accurate, more compassionate inner voice. It’s structured and practical; you’ll usually leave sessions with something concrete to work on between meetings.

Internal Family Systems (IFS) treats depression not as something wrong with you, but as a part of you — usually a part that’s carrying something heavy on your behalf. Sometimes that part has been protecting you from feelings you weren’t ready to feel; sometimes it’s holding grief or anger or shame that hasn’t had anywhere else to go. IFS gives us a way to meet that part with curiosity rather than trying to push it away. What we usually find is that depression isn’t your enemy — it’s been doing a job, and once we understand the job, it doesn’t have to keep doing it the same way.

Most clients benefit from a combination: CBT to address the day-to-day patterns and rebuild momentum, IFS for the deeper work of understanding what your depression has been holding for you.

Faith, when it fits

​If faith is part of how you make sense of your life, we can integrate it into the work. Depression can shake your sense of God, your sense of meaning, your sense of whether your prayers are being heard. We can hold those questions honestly without needing to resolve them quickly.

I have a B.A. in Religion from Wofford College and am comfortable working from a Christian framework when it’s meaningful to you.
​If faith isn’t part of your story — or if it’s complicated right now in ways you’re not sure what to do with — that’s also fine. The therapeutic work is just as effective without a faith framework, and I’ll always follow your lead.

What sessions look like

​Sessions are 50 minutes long and typically run weekly to start. Depression often responds slowly — momentum builds gradually rather than dramatically — so most clients I work with for depression are in therapy for at least a few months. Some find what they need in 8–12 sessions; others continue longer. We’ll check in regularly about how the work is feeling and what’s helping.

I offer in-person sessions at my Greenville office at 156 Milestone Way, and HIPAA-compliant virtual sessions for clients anywhere in South Carolina. For depression in particular, the lower barrier of doing therapy from home can be a meaningful help when motivation is low — many clients prefer virtual at first.

Fees and insurance

​Individual sessions are $120 per clinical hour. I’m in-network with Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna (Evernorth), UnitedHealthcare, and Aetna. For other insurance, I provide a superbill you can submit for potential reimbursement.
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I offer a free 15-minute phone consultation so we can talk about what’s been going on and whether I’m the right fit. There’s no pressure on the call.

Ready to talk?

​Depression often makes the act of reaching out feel disproportionately hard — and yet reaching out is almost always the first thing that starts to shift it. You don’t need to have it all figured out before you call. You don’t need to be sure your depression is “bad enough.” If you’ve gotten this far down the page, that itself is worth paying attention to.

Schedule a Free Consultation

or call (864) 881-2329

A note on crisis

If you’re in crisis right now, in danger of harming yourself, or experiencing a mental health emergency, please don’t wait for a counseling appointment. Call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, or go directly to your nearest emergency room. You can also reach out to me at (864) 881-2329 — but in an active crisis, 988 and your local ER are faster and better equipped to keep you safe.

Depression Counseling FAQ

Honestly — the line isn’t always clear, even for therapists. Sadness and depression can look similar from the outside. What tends to distinguish depression is its persistence: a flatness or heaviness that doesn’t lift after a few days, that shows up even when things are technically going okay, and that starts to affect your ability to function or enjoy your life. But here’s what I’d say: if you’ve been carrying something heavy long enough that you’re searching for help, that’s reason enough to talk to someone. You don’t need to meet a clinical threshold to deserve support.

I work with several presentations of depression, including situational depression — depression connected to a specific loss, life change, or circumstance; grief-related depression, where loss and depression have become intertwined; and high-functioning depression, which is what many of my clients experience. High-functioning depression is particularly tricky because nothing has obviously broken — people are still showing up at work, still managing — but the pleasure has gone out of things, and they feel quietly disconnected from their own lives. If that last one sounds familiar, you’re not alone, and reaching out is not an overreaction.

I draw primarily from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Internal Family Systems (IFS). CBT helps us look at the thought patterns depression tends to reinforce — the all-or-nothing thinking, the harsh self-judgment, the sense that things have always been this way and always will be — and gives us practical tools for gently challenging them. IFS approaches depression differently: rather than treating it as something wrong with you, we treat it as a part of you that’s been carrying something heavy. Understanding what your depression has been doing on your behalf — what it’s been protecting you from — tends to produce more durable change than trying to push it away. Most clients benefit from a combination of both.

Depression often responds more gradually than anxiety — momentum builds slowly rather than in sudden shifts. Most clients I work with for depression are in therapy for at least a few months. Some find what they need in 8 to 12 sessions; others continue longer, particularly those navigating grief or longer-standing depression. The pace is always something we talk about openly, and I’ll never keep you in therapy longer than is genuinely useful.

That depends on what’s going on for you. Counselors provide talk therapy; psychiatrists are medical doctors who can prescribe medication. For many people with depression, therapy alone is highly effective. For moderate to severe depression, a combination of therapy and medication often produces the best outcomes. If medication seems relevant, I’ll say so — and I’m happy to coordinate with your prescribing provider if you’re already working with one. You don’t have to figure out which path is right before reaching out; we can talk through it together.

Absolutely — and the research consistently supports the combination. Medication can stabilize mood enough for therapy to be effective, while therapy addresses the underlying patterns and builds the skills that medication alone doesn’t provide. Many of my clients are on antidepressants when we start working together, and I’m comfortable coordinating with prescribing providers when that’s helpful. You don’t need to choose one or the other.


Yes. I offer HIPAA-compliant virtual sessions for clients anywhere in South Carolina, as well as in-person sessions at my Greenville office at 156 Milestone Way. For depression in particular, the lower barrier of therapy from home can be genuinely meaningful — when motivation is low, getting in the car and driving somewhere can feel like a much bigger lift than it sounds. Virtual is a full option, not a lesser alternative.

Individual sessions are $120 per clinical hour. I’m in-network with Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna (Evernorth), UnitedHealthcare, and Aetna. For other insurance plans, I provide a superbill you can submit for potential out-of-network reimbursement. I also offer a free 15-minute phone consultation — no pressure, just a chance to talk about what’s going on and whether I’m the right fit.

That uncertainty itself is worth paying attention to. Depression has a way of making the idea of reaching out feel disproportionately hard — and of convincing you that what you’re experiencing isn’t serious enough to deserve help. If you’ve gotten to the point of searching for a counselor, something in you has already decided it’s worth exploring. Most people I work with wish they’d reached out sooner. The free consultation exists for exactly this reason — you can ask questions, get a sense of what therapy might look like, and decide from there with no obligation.

How do I know if what I’m feeling is depression or just going through a hard time?

Honestly — the line isn’t always clear, even for therapists. Sadness and depression can look similar from the outside. What tends to distinguish depression is its persistence: a flatness or heaviness that doesn’t lift after a few days, that shows up even when things are technically going okay, and that starts to affect your ability to function or enjoy your life. But here’s what I’d say: if you’ve been carrying something heavy long enough that you’re searching for help, that’s reason enough to talk to someone. You don’t need to meet a clinical threshold to deserve support.

What kinds of depression do you work with in Greenville, SC?

I work with several presentations of depression, including situational depression — depression connected to a specific loss, life change, or circumstance; grief-related depression, where loss and depression have become intertwined; and high-functioning depression, which is what many of my clients experience. High-functioning depression is particularly tricky because nothing has obviously broken — people are still showing up at work, still managing — but the pleasure has gone out of things, and they feel quietly disconnected from their own lives. If that last one sounds familiar, you’re not alone, and reaching out is not an overreaction.

What therapy approaches do you use for depression?

I draw primarily from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Internal Family Systems (IFS). CBT helps us look at the thought patterns depression tends to reinforce — the all-or-nothing thinking, the harsh self-judgment, the sense that things have always been this way and always will be — and gives us practical tools for gently challenging them. IFS approaches depression differently: rather than treating it as something wrong with you, we treat it as a part of you that’s been carrying something heavy. Understanding what your depression has been doing on your behalf — what it’s been protecting you from — tends to produce more durable change than trying to push it away. Most clients benefit from a combination of both.


How long does depression counseling take?

Depression often responds more gradually than anxiety — momentum builds slowly rather than in sudden shifts. Most clients I work with for depression are in therapy for at least a few months. Some find what they need in 8 to 12 sessions; others continue longer, particularly those navigating grief or longer-standing depression. The pace is always something we talk about openly, and I’ll never keep you in therapy longer than is genuinely useful.

Should I see a counselor or a psychiatrist for depression?

That depends on what’s going on for you. Counselors provide talk therapy; psychiatrists are medical doctors who can prescribe medication. For many people with depression, therapy alone is highly effective. For moderate to severe depression, a combination of therapy and medication often produces the best outcomes. If medication seems relevant, I’ll say so — and I’m happy to coordinate with your prescribing provider if you’re already working with one. You don’t have to figure out which path is right before reaching out; we can talk through it together.

Can I do counseling if I’m already taking antidepressants?

Absolutely — and the research consistently supports the combination. Medication can stabilize mood enough for therapy to be effective, while therapy addresses the underlying patterns and builds the skills that medication alone doesn’t provide. Many of my clients are on antidepressants when we start working together, and I’m comfortable coordinating with prescribing providers when that’s helpful. You don’t need to choose one or the other.

Do you offer virtual sessions for depression counseling?

Yes. I offer HIPAA-compliant virtual sessions for clients anywhere in South Carolina, as well as in-person sessions at my Greenville office at 156 Milestone Way. For depression in particular, the lower barrier of therapy from home can be genuinely meaningful — when motivation is low, getting in the car and driving somewhere can feel like a much bigger lift than it sounds. Virtual is a full option, not a lesser alternative.

What does depression counseling cost, and do you take insurance?

Individual sessions are $120 per clinical hour. I’m in-network with Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna (Evernorth), UnitedHealthcare, and Aetna. For other insurance plans, I provide a superbill you can submit for potential out-of-network reimbursement. I also offer a free 15-minute phone consultation — no pressure, just a chance to talk about what’s going on and whether I’m the right fit.

What if I’m not sure my depression is bad enough to warrant therapy?

That uncertainty itself is worth paying attention to. Depression has a way of making the idea of reaching out feel disproportionately hard — and of convincing you that what you’re experiencing isn’t serious enough to deserve help. If you’ve gotten to the point of searching for a counselor, something in you has already decided it’s worth exploring. Most people I work with wish they’d reached out sooner. The free consultation exists for exactly this reason — you can ask questions, get a sense of what therapy might look like, and decide from there with no obligation.