It's pretty hard, maybe even impossible, to go where you want to go right now. There are ways, though; there are ways.
Read MoreFeeling exhausted?
This time, right now, is one of the hardest in generations. It’s normal, you are normal, for feeling incredibly tired. As women during Covid, we are tasked with more and more of the heavy lifting.
Read MoreStomach in Knots?
If you get a tight stomach even thinking about attending seasonal family reunions, here are some tips to loosen the knots.
Arrive well rested and well fed
It’s harder to manage your emotions when you’re tired and hungry. Even though the gathering might center around food, don’t starve yourself thinking you can eat with everyone else. Eat something hearty and nutritious, like a cheese sandwich, a bean soup, or even veggie sticks dipped in hummus, before you leave your house.
Have a support person
Read MoreThe 10 most common questions I get asked about counseling
Is there something wrong with me? The short answer is no. There is likely nothing “wrong” with you.
How do I know if counseling will work? If you want to learn, change, or practice something about yourself, it will work.
How do I know if it’s working? A good therapist will work with you to set goals.
Read MoreWhen feelings feel physical
Does my kid have anxiety? (And if so, what can I do?)
If you have a child who cries often, is easily frustrated or sullen or angry, has trouble falling asleep or getting up, refuses to engage, or is obstinate, they may have anxiety.
Read MoreHow to manage change (with less anxiety)
We are creatures of habit. We have our comfort zone established and even extroverts want that space to return to. So change is understandably hard for most of us, often causing stress or anxiety. I recently moved to a new city, both my family and my counseling practice. Along the way, I learned some things I want to remember, to help me with the next change. Maybe they’ll help you too.
Read MoreWhy am I so angry?!?!
Irritation, frustration, and anger are normal emotions - neither positive or negative. Anger is likely one of two things: a messenger or a symptom.
Read MoreIs it Stress or Anxiety? And what can you do?
Stress and anxiety have lots of similarities. Both can keep you up at night. Both can cause headaches, stomach aches, and other body sensations. Both can make you quick to anger, yell at your kids, or long to veg out in front of the TV or your Facebook news feed.
Read More5 Short Steps to Help Yourself Feel Better
Think back to the past week. Think about the positive, negative, and neutral events that happened. Did you have a bad day? Did you feel abandoned or panicked when the person you turned to wasn’t available? Do you want to feel better when it happens again? Because you will feel let down, disappointed, or abandoned again someday. We can control of our feelings of sadness, abandonment, grief, rage, and anxiety by changing our thoughts with a simple activity called cognitive restructuring.
Read MoreFinding the Right Therapist (Anywhere)
Seattle is a lovely vibrant city, with the requisite attractions like the Space Needle, Pike Place Market, and the Troll under the bridge. It’s also very hustle bustle and, some say, is known for a phenomenon called the Seattle Freeze. If you experience loneliness, isolation, or sadness, you may benefit from working with a counselor in Seattle.
Read MoreEMD What? FAQs about EMDR
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy (EMDR) is one of the great counseling techniques to lessen the triggers and flooding that can come with anxiety. It works on the stuck memories that come out with physical sensations when you are confronted with smells, sights, people, places, or sounds that are similar to trauma, pain, or fear you experienced in the past.
Read MoreWant to find the real you? The you before your trauma?
"We are affected by our past, but we are not prisoners of our pasts." ~Robin Custer, MSW, LICSWA When we have trauma, we can feel stuck, mentally, at the age the trauma first occurred. While we can't go back and redo our childhoods, we CAN use tools help get unstuck. One simple technique you can do at home is to write with your right (or dominant) hand on one side of an open notebook. Write to your early you.
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