Move - Move your body, with intensity if possible. Dance, jump, air-punch, high-knees, or try big stretching movements. Theoretically, movement with higher intensity and a longer period (like 20-60 minutes) is an ideal way to cue your body that the stress cycle is...
When your soul is overwhelmed by the chaos of the world and noisy with its griefs, the yearning for quiet and ache for stillness can be palpable. Lately, life has been pressing in with tumultuous interactions and heavy conversations: important and valuable, but...
Simple Ways to Increase Romance 1. Compliment effectively - the more specific the compliment, the more believable it is. “You look great!” is nice to hear, but “You have the most gorgeous eyes. And I love it when you wear your hair like that” tends to carry a lot more...
6 Ways to Get the Most Bang for Your Buck in Therapy 1. Like your therapist - multiple studies have shown that the most impactful element of therapy is the connection between the therapist and the client, even over things like the therapist’s qualifications, years of...
Simply Being “Now is the time to simply be” the words gently urged. And while the voice was admittedly somewhat annoying, the message resonated with something deep inside; an exhaustion, weariness, and pressure that urgently needed soothing. I was in a demanding...
4 Assumptions Not to Make in Your Relationship 1. Assume you understood - Because of the emotions involved, we hear our partners through very biased lenses. SO much can be gained from the practice of reflective listening. Next time try this script: “I hear/heard you...
Six Things I Wish My Marriage Therapy Clients Knew As a clinician, I care about you and your relationship way more than you think I do. I’m invested and truly want the best for you. Both of you. My job isn’t to tell you who’s right and wrong. Or to referee fights....
“Why can’t we agree? We see things so differently! How can we make this work when we disagree on SO many things!” It’s a common refrain from couples, yet the Gottman Research Institute has found that even in the most successful relationships, sixty-nine percent of...
Today was a good day. Tiring, but good. Sitting with clients in the spaces they bring into the room: war-torn and discouraged by marriage, angry and somewhat desperate, grieving and weary, intentional and invested. I ping-pong all over the gamete of emotions...
Being a therapist is a weird, weird gig. We step into our offices and gather ourselves to gently enter into the most sacred, private, and intimate parts of people’s worlds. We sit with them in some of their heaviest moments. We cheer them on as they set boundaries or...