Where does anxiety begin – How do you treat it in therapy?

How are you doing? Most of you have probably seen the recent post that went viral from Elmo asking the question “How are you doing?”… It is no surprise the number of responses the post attracted. This is one of the many ways Sesame Street seems to often understand what the world needs more than we often acknowledge! Why were …

Counseling services Orlando: Anxious Thinking

We all know the sensation of being caught in a spiral of negative thoughts, unable to break away. The name for this kind of intrusive and repetitive thinking pattern is called perseverative cognition;  this post takes a look at ways in which this particular thinking pattern contributes to anxiety and how we can effectively manage it. Counseling services Orlando Choosing …

Breathing into Winter

Well, here we are. Another chapter ending and a new year beginning in linear time – all the while the earth in the northern hemisphere quiets. The tension in these rhythms is palpable to me as I practice surrendering into wintering while the world rages. – Current Practice: With this chapter of the moon, in the daily practice, we are …

Five Reasons Emotions Are Important

Emotions can play an important role in how you think and behave. The emotions you feel each day can compel you to take action and influence the decisions you make about your life, both large and small. Emotions can be short-lived, such as a flash of annoyance at a co-worker, or long-lasting, such as enduring sadness over the loss of …

Understanding and Managing Anguish

Anguish is an intense and complex emotional state caused by mental or physical suffering. When people experience anguish, they often feel extreme distress, sadness, torment, turmoil, and inner pain. While such feelings are often associated with losses or trauma, other overwhelming life challenges can also trigger this emotional state. Anguish feels like deep sorrow and pain and it can lead …

Introducing Austin Texas Counselor Carolyn Maurin, LPC, LCDC, MA

Austin Texas Counselor Carolyn Maurin is now offering Online counseling. Online counseling has revolutionized the accessibility of making positive changes in your life. As a Texas-based online counselor, I witness my clients thriving and conquering challenges while receiving therapy from various locations, such as the comfort of their homes, during work breaks, between classes, or even while on vacation. The …

Getting Through Grief

Getting Through Grief and Letting Go Letting go of grief is no easy task. Grief is something you might be holding tight to—a reminder of your loved one or a connection to their memory. Loosening your grip and ultimately surrendering your grief can seem like a scary and daunting task but it’s a necessary process you must go through to …

Shifting red flags to green flags: how to avoid the “situationship”

By: Alison Printz, LSW Swipe right on a picture of a cute stranger. Match with them. They message you. Go out on a few dates. A few dates turn into a couple months of dating. They’ve met your friends, they spend Sunday mornings with you having bagels, they’re best friends with your dog. Then when it’s time to define the …

Does Self Help Help?

Self-help books and resources can provide valuable insights and strategies for personal development and growth. They often encourage us to “Eat the Frog” or “Do Hard Things” as a means to overcome challenges and achieve our goals. While these principles are helpful, many of us find that there are deeper reasons why we struggle to implement them in our lives. …

Why EFT tapping is a great form of therapy

The daily grind sometimes seems to just build up and build up over time. We often don’t realize how much we are carrying or how much pressure we are experiencing until something minute tips the scale. When that happens, we may become increasingly aware of the discomfort, emotional or physical, that is present for us. Sometimes just the ability to …

Open Letter – Learning to Connect

The following is part of an email thread between a client and myself. I thought I would post it as there is value here for everyone feeling the effects of what I call “parenting anomalies”. “Q: How can I fix my childhood neglect? A: The problem is there is no one magic thing that anyone can say, that will immediately …

Carving Your Riverbed

Creating boundaries Looking back through an old journal, I read a reflection on the function of boundaries during a time I was feeling the impact of a lack of them in my life. Our boundaries exist in us. Even if we aren’t aware of them, we feel when they are crossed. There’s an emotional cost that, over time, can become …

Grief Counseling Redbank, NJ

Getting Through Grief and Letting Go Letting go of grief is no easy task. Grief is something you might be holding tight to—a reminder of your loved one or a connection to their memory. Loosening your grip and ultimately surrendering your grief can seem like a scary and daunting task but it’s a necessary process you must go through to …

How to Channel Your Mind’s Inner Chatter

How to Channel Your Mind’s Inner Chatter As naturally as we breathe, we “decouple” from the here and now, our brains transporting us to past events, imagined scenarios, and other internal musings. This tendency is so fundamental it has a name: our “default state.” It is the activity our brain automatically reverts to when not otherwise engaged, and often even …

Anxiety Therapy Los Gatos: Researchers Reveal How Trauma Changes The Brain

Researchers are learning more about how traumatic events may physically change our brains and how anxiety therapy can help. Neurologists have revealed changes to a brain mechanism used for learning and survival may play a role in how someone responds to a threat following a traumatic experience. Another study found that another mechanism responsible for emotion and memory is impacted …

About Seasonal Depression

Depressed again for no apparent reason? Do you or someone you know consistently feel depressed as we head into fall and winter? Seasonal Depression, also known as Seasonal Affective Disorder, is a type of depression that recurs for some individuals during the same time each year. SAD usually starts during adulthood and is rare for individuals under the age of …

What causes insomnia and what is sleep therapy?

What are the Causes of Insomnia? Insomnia is a sleep disorder that affects as many as 35% of adults. It is marked by problems getting to sleep, staying asleep through the night, and sleeping as long as you would like into the morning. It can have serious effects, leading to excessive daytime sleepiness, a higher risk of auto accidents, and …

Breathing for Calm

Our breath is a something we always have with us (hopefully), and it can be accessed and utilized in diverse ways to achieve different mental and physiological states. There is a myriad of different breathing techniques available out there to try. Box-breathing, Alternate-Nostril breathing, Sama Vritti and even the “Tummo” method recently popularized by “The Iceman” Wim Hof to increase …

Parenting Advice From D. H. Lawrence, Don’t Smother Your Children With Love.

Children Are More Sagacious Than You Think As parents, we are assailed by injunctions to protect our children, to engage with them creatively, athletically and intellectually, to feed them nutritious food and make them floss their teeth. Even when not being given direct advice, we listen out, comparing ourselves with others, wondering what we’re getting right or wrong. Usually, I …

What are the ways to reduce the impact of childhood trauma and how do we forgive?

Children who experience trauma tend to have health problems later in life. Dr. Nadine Burke Harris explains why—and how we can help heal those wounds. Patrice Hooke, LMFT offers Couples counseling Costa Mesa Newport Beach Orange county California working with Individuals, Couples, Adults, and Adolescents. Specialties: Depression Grief Loss Relationship Dating Issues Stress/Life Transitions Anxiety Mid-life fertility Issues. When Dr. …

The Ridiculously Awesome Practice of Surrendering

Every day in this world is a shaky, uncertain, constantly changing landscape — and that causes us to try to get control. Anxiety and Depression Counseling Chicago Jana Fuchs, LCPC Owner and Founder of JF Counseling and Consulting specializes in therapy anxiety counseling for depression. My goal as a therapist is to help you find solutions that work for you …

Are You Stuck in Constant Self-Judgment?

Depression Treatment Raleigh Do you feel down? Have you lost interest in things you used to enjoy? Are you critical and judgmental towards yourself? We can help you find the Inner Path that can lead you out of your depression. Therapist near me 144 Wind Chime CT. #1 Raleigh NC 27615-6433 Are you a good enough friend, employee, partner, or …

Anxiety and Depression – How To Help Your Partner And Yourself

Living with anxiety and Depression can be tough. Your thoughts might race, you might dread tasks others find simple (like driving to work) and your worries might feel inescapable. But loving someone with anxiety can be hard too. You might feel powerless to help or overwhelmed by how your partner’s feelings affect your daily life. If so, you’re not alone: …

Why Letting Go of Control Can Help You Enjoy Life

Feeling the need to be in control is natural. It’s something we all inherently want, and we feel best when we know exactly what is going on in all the different areas of our lives. It’s important to realize, though, that we can never control everything. Trying to do that leads to many different negative emotions when things don’t go …

What Is Breathwork and is it Beneficial?

Breathwork is about being able to control how you breathe and it has many health benefits for your mind and body. But what exactly is is breathwork? Is it the same as meditation? How do they differ, and what benefits do you get from breathwork? Let’s find out! What Is Breathwork? Breathwork is a breathing exercise or technique performed to …

Why Perfectionism Stops Us from Creating New Habits

When we decide to create a new habit — exercise, healthy eating, meditation, writing — we can get excited and optimistic, and have an idea of how it will go perfectly. This is such a hopeful time! Unfortunately, reality has other plans. Our perfect idea of how our new habit will go is pretty much never how it actually goes. …

How To Tell Your Friends You’re Depressed

Deciding to tell the people you love that you’re struggling with depression is a big step. Not only is it challenging to find the energy to reach out to people, but there are naturally worries about how the news of your diagnosis will be received. Unfortunately, there are too many misconceptions about mental health and what it means and the …

Can Counseling Help With Depression?

Depression is a serious mood disorder. with an estimated 16 million American adults having at least one major depressive episode in the past year.1 It can affect how you think, feel, interact with people, and handle daily life. It can cause feelings of sadness and a loss of interest or pleasure in things you once enjoyed. Anyone can be affected …

Therapist near me: the reasons why your ADHD brain needs more sleep

As a therapist I’m usually a good sleeper. In fact, sleep and I have a bit of a thing going on. But last night? We weren’t friends at all. I was tossing and turning, my body ached, and my mind raced. I tried all my tricks, but it just wasn’t happening. And my alarm went off after I managed maybe …

Anxiety Treatment & Anxiety Disorder

Anxiety Disorder Occasional anxiety is an expected part of life. You might feel anxious when faced with a problem at work, before taking a test, or before making an important decision. But anxiety disorders involve more than temporary worry or fear. For a person with an anxiety disorder, the anxiety does not go away and can get worse over time. …

THE ADHD ADVANTAGE: The 10 greatest benefits of ADHD brains

Is ADHD a gift? Yes. No. Kinda. Sorta. Maybe. It depends. And everything in between. ADHD brains are different. And with difference comes great strength and great struggle. There are some indisputable advantages to ADHD brains- they work in some unique and marvelous ways. But living with a brain that works differently than much of the rest of the world? …

Choosing to Live Your Life over Anxiety

Remember that anxiety list you keep? It might not be a literal list, but it is a list somewhere in your psyche. I am referring specifically to that list that gets added to every time you say “no” to your desires. Whether you are aware of the painful “no moment” when it comes up, a little part of you sulks …

Effective Therapy for Distressed Couples

Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) is a short-term (8 – 20 sessions) and structured approach to couples’ therapy developed by Drs. Sue Johnson and Les Greenberg in the 1980’s. It is grounded in research while focusing on negative communication patterns and love as an attachment bond. Attachment Theory in Couples Therapy “Attachment” between people typically provides a safe haven: a retreat …

The Guilt of Not Working More, When We’re Done for the Day

At the end of a day of work, there can be a simple practice of wrapping things up and shutting down for the day. Boca Raton Therapy Christiane Blanco-Oilar, Ph.D., ABPP is a Board Certified Counseling Psychologist, specializing in Boca Raton Therapy. Dr. Blanco-Oilar has expertise in helping you through life transitions, grief and loss, intimacy issues, relationship difficulties – Couples …

How To Experience More Wow

Awe might seem an unobtainable luxury to many but, with the right approach, you can enjoy it daily – no mountain required. On a crisp, clear day in January about four years ago, my children and I joined a few thousand Rhode Islanders in a protest march against a recent change in law that restricted the number of refugees who …

Active Listening – Online Counseling New Jersey

When communicating in counseling It can be easy to focus more on what we are saying than how we are listening. If we are not truly hearing what someone is saying to us, then communication is not successful and misunderstandings occur. While listening may seem straight forward, there are many ways to practice poor listening skills that you may not …

Menstrual Cycle and Mood

The menstrual cycle is composed of four different phases, which vary in duration from woman to woman, and may fluctuate in length. The phases are menstrual, follicular, ovulation, and luteal. While the length of a menstrual cycle varies from woman to woman, many experience a cycle that lasts 28 days. During the fluctuations of a cycle, key hormones – testosterone, …

Cortisol, Stress, and Overall Nutrition Health

Cortisol is our body’s primary stress hormone. Our levels of cortisol fluctuate throughout the day, with morning typically being when we have our highest levels of cortisol with a decrease throughout the rest of the day. The changes in our cortisol levels throughout the day is known as diurnal cortisol slopes.1 What is the function of cortisol in the body? …

Staying at the Edge of Uncertainty & Anxiety

When we get into a situation that feels uncertain, most of us will immediately try to get to a place of certainty. Instead of writing a blog post, I’ll find myself wanting to check emails or my favorite websites. Instead of having a difficult conversation, we’ll stay in a crappy situation for longer than we need to. Instead of putting …

12 Ideas for Establishing a Calming Routine

One of the most rewarding changes in your life can be finding peace with a morning routine. I’ve made it a habit to wake before most of the world, at about 4:30 a.m., and just enjoy the quiet and solitude. It has made all the difference in the world. I sit quietly with a cup of coffee, and enjoy the …

How to Do the Thing You’re Avoiding

Most of us have something on our task list we’re avoiding or a project we’ve been putting off. Think for a moment: what’s the task or project you’ve been avoiding lately? Some possibilities: That report you don’t want to write Your book or blog you’ve been meaning to write The business you’ve been wanting to create for years Your garage …

Healing from Narcissistic Abuse

If you’ve decided to read this article, it’s perhaps because you, or someone you know, is trying to heal in the aftermath of a toxic relationship. Or maybe you have been wondering how to leave a toxic relationship and how you will be able to heal. Whatever drew you to read this article, I want you to know that you …

Trauma Therapy, how does it work?

A therapeutic approach in treatment planning has focused on the initial healing of individuals who have survived Post-Traumatic injury. A consultation, and comprehensive assessment of the client can direct that individual to an improved and motivated quality of life journey. Though the integration of theory, intervention, insight and to multi-cultural awareness, my goal emphasis has been on clients who are …

What is a website builder?

Looking for a therapist website builder? Website builders are tools that typically allow the construction of websites without manual code editing. They fall into two categories: online proprietary tools provided by web hosting companies. These are typically intended for users to build their private site. Some companies allow the site owner to install alternative tools (commercial or open-source) — the …

Unstuck: Create a New Path for Yourself

Sometimes it can feel like we’re stuck in life, doing the same things we’re unhappy with, over and over again. Maybe you’ve been procrastinating on your meaningful work, or getting stuck in indecision or perfectionism. Maybe you’ve been putting off exercise or meditation, getting your finances in good shape, or making some other important change in your life. Depression Treatment …

The Effect of Oxidative Stress on Mental Health

Understanding oxidative stress is important because we are exposed to many environmental and dietary stressors that can contribute to an imbalance in our body that impacts overall health. Oxidative stress is defined as “a disturbance in the balance between the production of reactive oxygen species (free radicals) and antioxidant defenses.” 1 Oxidative stress occurs when your body has an imbalance …

Anxiety treatment NYC: How To Help A Child Struggling With Anxiety

Childhood anxiety treatment is one of the most important mental health challenges of our time. One in five children will experience some kind of clinical-level anxiety by the time they reach adolescence, according to Danny Pine, a child and adolescent psychiatrist at the National Institute of Mental Health and one of the world’s top anxiety researchers. Pine says that for …

A Guide to the Basic Anxiety and Depression of Life

Underlying much of what we do is an uncertainty, an anxiety, a fear, doubts, dissatisfaction, and ultimately depression. And we react to these anxieties, dissatisfaction and uncertainty in so many unhelpful ways: we seek distraction, we eat unhealthy food, we procrastinate, we get caught in a cycle of anxiety and unhappiness, we lash out at others, we dwell in our …

Are You Sabotaging Your Relationships?

Warning signs that you might be sabotaging a good thing You meet someone new and happily date for a little while. The connection is great, there is chemistry, and sex is fun. You start spending more and more time together and begin considering becoming a couple. But then, you stop replying to their texts right away. You cancel dates. You …

Finding Mindfulness in an Age of Depression & Anxiety

We live in uncertain times. Actually, things have always felt uncertain to the people who live in those times, but these days it might feel even more heightened, with the hyperconnectivity of the internet, social media and constant messaging, comparing ourselves to everyone else, and a very tense, divisive political situation (not just in the U.S., but in many countries). …

For Men Only – Men’s Mental Health

At A New Day Family Counseling, we understand the challenges men face today to improve their mental health. Men typically engage in fewer health-promoting behaviors, have fewer social supports, possess less effective behavioral responses to stress, and use fewer health care services than women. Men are 4 times more likely than females to die from suicide attempts (Centers for Disease …

Understanding Alcoholic Neuropathy – Addiction Counseling Westwood New Jersey

Alcoholic neuropathy is one of the most common and least recognizable consequences of heavy alcohol use. People with a long history of alcohol misuse might experience pain, tingling, weakness, numbness, or loss of balance as a result of alcoholic neuropathy. Signs and Symptoms of Alcoholic Neuropathy Signs and symptoms of alcoholic neuropathy can progress gradually, and they are usually subtle …

What America Can Learn from Couples Therapy

The principles of good communication for Couples Therapy Palo Alto could also apply to divided Americans. At family gatherings, in bars and restaurants, relatives and friends are shouting at each other instead of engaging in what used to be called political discussions. These high-volume, emotionally charged exchanges are also increasingly the norm in venues ranging from local governments to national …

Online Counseling for Work Stress New York City

Online Counseling for Work Stress New York City What does your reflection reveal? There are times when we see parts of our character we don’t like. The moments are often fleeting, yet can be haunting. Did I snap too harshly on the person again? Was I too passive in the meeting as usual? Am I too smothering to my child …

Online Counseling in Texas

The Pros of Online Therapy Are you considering Online Counseling in Texas? The internet has opened up new avenues for mental health treatment, but there are some pros and cons you should consider before you decide if e-therapy, also known as teletherapy,1 is right for you. In the face of the social distancing measures required in our COVID-19 crisis, many …

Online therapy in Texas

online therapy Texas Online counseling is the provision of professional mental health counseling services through the Internet. Services are typically offered via email, real-time chat, and video conferencing. Some clients use online counseling in conjunction with traditional psychotherapy, or nutritional counseling, and a growing number of clients are using online counseling as a replacement for office visits. While some form …

Online Counseling

Depression Treatment Raleigh Do you feel down? Have you lost interest in things you used to enjoy? Are you critical and judgmental towards yourself? We can help you find the Inner Path that can lead you out of your depression. Therapist near me 144 Wind Chime CT. #1 Raleigh NC 27615-6433 Relating in Isolation As depicted in the graphic above, …

Psychologist Chapel Hill N.C. – Telehealth

Recent developments in the COVID-19 pandemic have motivated me to transition to an entirely virtual practice. I believe firmly that social distancing is the safest and most ethical way to ensure the well-being for everyone and protect my clients. I use a HIPAA-compliant platform that can be accessed by phone, iPad, or computer. No set-up needed; you simply click a …

Social Media and Suicide Among Teens

Digital media, including social media, became a centerpiece of day to day life at a seemingly exponential rate. Before I graduated high school in 2006, I remember many evenings spent on ICQ (used to chat with friends), making simple websites with shout outs to my friends which included obnoxious lists of inside jokes, and playing The Sims Online. I whiled …

Couples Therapy Palo Alto: Relationships in the Tech World.

Couples Therapy Palo Alto

Being a Marriage and Family Therapist in the Bay Area specializing in Couples Therapy Palo Alto, means I have the privilege to meet clients from very diverse backgrounds. One of them is the Silicon Valley background which is a culture in and of itself. Clients and couples with this background share some distinct characteristics: high achieving, hard working, intelligent, ambitious, …

Family Stress Test

Counseling Plainfield Illinois

Family Stress Test Stress is a natural and normal “by-product” of every family’s life. In fact, family stress can bring out the best of us: as we stretch to meet the challenges we face, we become better parents, our children blossom and our families grow. But too much stress can spiral our families in the other direction. Take this Thriving …

Disorganized Attachment

Mary Ainsworth’s work on attachment identified three attachment categories (secure, insecure avoidant, and insecure ambivalent/resistant). The development of the disorganized/disoriented classification evolved as a part of Mary Main’s doctoral research in which she noticed that approximately 10% of infants in Ainsworth’s Strange Situation Procedure were difficult to classify.1 Disorganized attachment is an additional attachment category that was identified in 1986 …

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is the most widely used evidence-based treatment for depression and anxiety. In CBT, the focus is on thoughts, and how they directly affect emotions, and behaviors. If you are having a lot of negative thoughts, you are likely to have a lot of negative feelings. During cognitive behavioral treatment, you and your therapist will work together …

How Well Are You Listening to Your Children and Others?

When our children come to us with a problem, we usually want to help them. So we console, interpret, advise, distract or praise. Other times, we feel we must teach our children, and so we interrogate, lecture, moralize or order. And probably more often than we’d like, we respond angrily—blaming, criticizing, ridiculing, shaming or withdrawing. However, all of these responses …

A therapist near me offering online counseling

Your Reaction to “The New Normal”: Are My Thoughts And Feelings Normal? How Are You? No, Really, How are you? The answer to this question is often a resounding, “Eh.” As therapists, we see the silver lining in this: emotional honesty (we can see your eye roll). We have found that because we are in a difficult common experience, we …

Understanding Anxiety

Anxiety and fear are a normal part of human experience. We all face feelings of fear and anxiety in situations like starting a new job or public speaking, or we may experience fear if we are in a dangerous situation. Anxiety can motivate us to make sure we are prepared for challenges, and fear can be protective by letting us …

Couples Therapy After Infidelity

Infidelity can often feel like the end of your relationship. However, it doesn’t always have to mean that the relationship is over. Couples can and do work through infidelity. It’s not an easy process. However, with the help of therapy, it can be done. In fact, you may discover that coming together after infidelity actually strengthens your marriage, despite the …

Albert Ellis’ ABC Model in the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Spotlight

Albert Ellis’s ABC Model is a major part of his rational-emotive behavior therapy (REBT). REBT served as a sort of precursor to cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), and the ABC Model is now a treatment commonly used in CBT interventions. This article will cover what the ABC Model is, how it and REBT relate to CBT, and finally the ways in which …

How to Be Happy You Loved, More than You’re Sorry You Lost

Can you make the old adage work for you? You know how the adage goes, you’re just not sure if it’s the wisest thing someone has ever said about love, or complete nonsense. “‘Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.” — Alfred Lord Tennyson You might not know much about life and love, …

Marketing in the Mental Health Services Industry is it Ethical?

The Ethics of Therapist Marketing Exploring therapists’ resistance to marketing themselves based on a cultural taboo that they perceive. Therapist Website Design and Marketing Explained Steve Jobs once said “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the …

Carl Jung and AA: is a Theistic Psychopathology Feasible?

In a letter to Carl Jung that was recently made public on the Web, Bill Wilson, founder of A.A., reminds Jung of a conversation that Jung had 30 years before with one of his patients who was an alcoholic: “That conversation between you was to become the first link in the chain of events that led to the founding of …

Oedipus Complex

The Oedipus complex, or Oedipal complex, is one of Freud’s most famous theories. Even if you don’t know anything else about the psychologist, you’ve probably heard it mentioned. And yet, chances are, you aren’t quite sure what it means. It has something weird to do with desiring your mother, right? Kind of, but not exactly. Freud’s theory is nuanced and …

Modern technology is akin to the metaphysics of Vedanta

You might think that digital technologies, often considered a product of ‘the West’, would hasten the divergence of Eastern and Western philosophies. But within the study of Vedanta, an ancient Indian school of thought, I see the opposite effect at work. Thanks to our growing familiarity with computing, virtual reality (VR) and artificial intelligence (AI), ‘modern’ societies are now better …

Treatment for PTSD Trauma Therapy

The main treatments for people with PTSD are psychotherapy, medication, or a combination of the two. Everyone is different, so a treatment that works for one person may not work for another. Some people may need to try different treatments to find what works best for their symptoms. Regardless of what treatment option you chose, it is important for anyone …

Medical Marijuana for Depression: CBD and THC

Medical marijuana has many different benefits. It has been found to help people with nausea, chronic pain, and anxiety. It is also a treatment option for people with depression. If you are considering medical marijuana for depression, then it is important to understand the roles of both THC and CBD. Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and Cannabinol (CBD) are the two active components …

The History of Ketamine Infusion Therapy for Depression

Many people who have heard of ketamine have negative associations with the drug. It is a derivative of the hallucinogenic drug PCP, and for awhile it was a very popular club drug. However, that’s not how the story of the drug began, nor is it where the story should end. In the right doses, ketamine is a very useful drug …

16 Things Everybody Should Stop Doing In Order To Be Successful

Often in life, to be successful it doesn’t require doing more. It requires you to stop. To eliminate the waste in your life. In a culture hardwired to “do it all”, it can be counterintuitive to do less. It goes against everything we’ve been told to do. Try harder, do more. One man that lived nearly 2,000 years ago learned …

How Antisocial Personality Disorder Is Diagnosed

Antisocial personality disorder is diagnosed based on meeting criteria described in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual on Mental Disorders, the book that mental health professionals use to assess patients. Although the fifth edition (DSM-5) was published in 2012, some clinicians continue to use the fourth edition (DSM-IV) in making diagnoses. To assess a person for antisocial personality disorder, a mental …

To Be Resilient, Face Tragedy With Humor and Flexibility

People who are resilient tend to be flexible – flexible in the way that they think about challenges, and flexible in the way that they react emotionally to stress. They are not wedded to a specific style of coping. Instead, they shift from one coping strategy to another depending upon the circumstances. Many are able to accept what they cannot …

Why Great Success Can Bring Out the Worst of Our Personalities

By any measure, Elon Musk is exceptionally successful. Having cofounded and sold PayPal, he quickly moved on to launching a range of ventures with world-changing aspirations for how we generate energy, transport ourselves and our goods, interface with machines, and explore our solar system. These ventures are unified in their vision — really more of an obsessive quest — for …

Nutrition Coaching: What is it and how can it help me?

Can proper nutrition improve my mental health? When fighting anxiety, stress, or depression you need to have a secure support network and reliable people in your corner. An understanding therapist and trustworthy friends and family are definitely on the top of the list. Someone you may not think about adding to your team is a knowledgeable nutrition coach. It may …

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy

Is it for you? What you need to know about this useful and practical therapy style. Do you often deny your feelings, avoid issues, or struggle with your inner emotions? Often think that your hardships are “unfair” or that you always get the short end of the stick? Want to learn how to face concerns head-on and move forward in …

The Game of Life

Has Life Changed that Much in the Last 150 years? If we go back in time to pre-Civil War era United States, we would see a country that is a 180 degrees different than the United States in 2008. The powerful, upper crust of society was dominated by the large plantation owners and slavery was a legal and accepted practice. …

The Case of the Disappearing Gender

I’ve been doing a lot of research lately on the effects of xenoestrogens, so the headline from the Globe and Mail wasn’t that shocking. Humanity at Risk, it shouts: Are the Males Going First? The answer, like a bizarre take on the movie Children of Men (where the human race stops having children), is a cautious but disturbing affirmative. The …

Borderline Personality Disorder

“In a game of give and get,” the PhysOrg.com reporter emphasizes: “The brains of people with borderline personality disorder often don’t get it.” The interactive game to which he is referring was developed at the Baylor University College of Medicine and uses money to evaluate levels of trust between the players, according to a recent article which also appeared in …

Understanding Why You Have Obsessive Thoughts, and Where They Come From

There’s a big difference between being interested in something, and being ‘obsessed’ with it. We may not often recognize obsessive behaviors at first. However, they are often linked to different areas of anxiety. With that in mind, it’s important to understand why you might have obsessive thoughts, and where they come from. Once you know what triggers these thoughts within …

Keeping Your Identity When You Become a Parent

Becoming a parent is one of the most incredible experiences of anyone’s life. It completely changes things, and that’s more than just an old saying. It can alter the way you think about yourself, your partner, and life in general! While it can be a wonderful change, sometimes parenting can become overwhelming. Whether you’re a new parent, or you’ve been …

Fear of Failure

The fear of failure can be an intense feeling that can make it difficult to achieve your goals. The “what if” can stop even the most motivated person in their tracks and cause them to not reach their full potential. The fear of failure can come about any time we’re unsure of the outcome of a situation and can affect …

What Is Attachment Theory?

Being a parent isn’t easy. You’re expected to excel in a career and juggle the stressors of daily life, all while caring for a child that has little or no ability to care for themselves. It’s impossible to do it all. The laundry doesn’t get done, or you eat take out for dinner a few too many nights in a …

Knowing When It’s Over

People reason with themselves and others when it comes to staying in a relationship. It may have been magical and perfect when you first got together. But over time, things started to fall apart. You may be making excuses for yourself, or your partner at this point, but the bottom line is; you know the relationship isn’t where it once …

How to Recognize Anxiety and Depression in Older Adults

For some reason, most people don’t associate depression and anxiety with geriatric people as much as they do during other phases of life. No one can be blamed for this, really. It can be harder to identify these disorders in older adults for a variety of reasons. The biggest reason the disorders are so difficult to identify, though, are because …

How Walking in Nature Can Be Therapeutic

Humans were made to live in harmony with nature. Unfortunately, this relationship has deteriorated due to rapid damage to the environment, obsession with technology and the fear of the unknown, which makes people avoid outdoors. Scientific research over the years has shown incredible positive effects of taking a nature walk. Listed below are some therapeutic effects: Reducing inflammation Inflammation is …

Relationship Between Depression and Sleep Deprivation

If you find that you are restless the night before a big event and if you’re having difficulty falling asleep – not to worry. Your mind (and body) are preparing you for something important. However if your inability to sleep soundly occurs night after night for an extended period of time, you might begin to notice a performance decline at …

Searching For A Soulmate – In All The Wrong Places

We’re either taught from a young age, or we pick up from movies, TV, etc., that our ‘soulmate’ is out there, somewhere. Unfortunately, more often than not, it’s the guy we’re swooning over on TV that we think will end up being that soulmate of ours. It’s easy to be quickly reminded of late 1990’s ‘boy band’ groups when we’re …

Art Therapy, What is it?

According to arttherapy.org Art Therapy is defined this way… Art therapy is a mental health profession in which clients, facilitated by the art therapist, use art media, the creative process, and the resulting artwork to explore their feelings, reconcile emotional conflicts, foster self-awareness, manage behavior and addictions, develop social skills, improve reality orientation, reduce anxiety, and increase self-esteem. A goal in …