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Looking back at the start of the pandemic, I witnessed two things. Shutting down- disengaging and stopping normal activities. Alternatively, doing too much- hoarding toilet paper, fighting people over cleaning wipes, and stocking up on food. Reading the news, it looked like everyone was losing their minds… me included. Understanding the polyvagal theory is helpful in understanding why people function the way they do in times of stress, and also why we as a society, have had a hard time regulating our emotions and behaviors again. [More]

While the COVID-19 virus will not have the same impact as the plague, there are things we can learn from the nursery rhyme. Many children are listening to the news, they are hearing people talk about the “scary Corona virus” and maybe even hearing that we can die from it. These things can increase anxiety for children (and adults). Parents need to initiate the conversation with their children and be direct in order to reduce the anxiety and fear. [More]

I happen to be a therapist who believes we could all benefit from therapy at some point in our lives. Therapy is a place to work on values, define purpose, strengthen relationships, learn coping skills, have a safe place to process emotions, and help with mood. Basically, if we need support, are struggling, or need a strength-based approach, counseling can help us. However, most people do not know where to start when searching for the right fit in a counselor. [More]

I’m not a huge basketball fan, but when the alert that Kobe Bryant died suddenly in a helicopter crash came on my screen, I immediately felt shock. I felt this sense of sadness and tried to make sense of how someone so known and famous, could be taken so suddenly. I have felt similar emotions when other famous actors or athletes passed. It is completely normal to feel sadness or grief when someone famous dies. There are several reasons we might feel these intense emotions. [More]

Exercise, meditation, yoga, breath work, it does not take therapy or a therapy blog for you to know that these practices help with stress. What many people do not yet know is the WHY behind the practice. [More]

15 years in practice, 6 years of graduate school, three professional licenses, countless continuing [More]

As a child counselor, one of the most common questions I have received the past few years has been about video games and childhood mental health. With the recent increase in school shootings, we look for a reason to understand the unthinkable events. Inevitably, the news will discuss video games as a potential cause of each school shooting. [More]

There are many different modalities of play therapy. While there are different types, all of the forms use play as the main form of communication. Play is thought to be a child’s natural language, so toys are an ordinary way for a child to communicate. Much research suggests that children 9 years and below can benefit from play therapy. [More]

Compassion fatigue is often described as a loss of caring about clients, often to a degree of feeling irritated by their problems (Brown, 2017). A person-centered approach is often noted as the foundation for any therapeutic relationship. A person-centered approach includes having unconditional positive regard, empathy, and congruence for a client. Compassion fatigue and person-centered therapy simply cannot go together. In fact, most experts would agree that the therapeutic relationship is the most important indicator for the likelihood of success in treatment. The question becomes how can therapists continue to practice to earn a living while also making themselves susceptible to compassion fatigue? [More]

We all do it! We read an article and think “that’s controversial; I’m going to rea [More]