In this article, we look at substance use disorders in more depth, explaining the types of SUD, their signs and symptoms, and how they can be treated.
After a year of internalizing the message, “Stay at home. Do not socialize. Keep 6-feet apart. Wear a mask,” how do we suddenly become comfortable re-adjusting again to a more familiar, integrated way of life?
The Strengths and Limitations of DiagnosesNumerous people have asked me about their diagnosis during the course of therapy. Sometimes it’s very direct: “So, what’s wrong with me?” Other times, less so: “Well, a lot of my friends and family say that I’m a narcissist; that I’m selfish – I mean, I don’t think I am, but what do you think?”
For many of us, winter is the time in which our seasonal depression presents a cold, sweaty hand to that of our more perennial depression. Vitamin D and sun lamp at the ready: Here we go again.
When I first heard the phrase ‘you are not working from home, you are home working through a pandemic,’ I felt a weight lift from my chest. My breathing deepened, slowed, and calmed.
Recently, I have spoken with a number of people who reached out seeking therapy for the first time. We all have coping skills for dealing with life’s day to day stressors,
Imagine an alien accidentally teleported to your neighborhood and started exploring your favorite stomping grounds. What would they…see?…hear?…smell?…taste?…feel?What conclusions would they draw about their new environment?
Let’s be real, a lot of us are feeling super stressed right now. During our everyday lives, we handle stress and anxiety in different ways. However, on an anxiety scale of 1-10, a lot of us start around a 2 or a 3 on most days rather than a 6 or a 7. Right now, with the amount of added stressors due to COVID-19, a lot of us feel like our stress and anxiety is closer to a 6 on the regular.
Over the last decade, therapy has become more common and less stigmatized in popular culture. Millennials and Gen Z are talking more openly than their parents’ and grandparents’ generations did about their experiences with depression, anxiety, and other mental illnesses. This destigmatization has certainly saved lives.
Since the call to social distance began over a month ago, I have been working remotely with a number of my partnered LGBTQIA+ (hereafter queer) patients, most of whom are isolating with their significant others. In some instances, this has been a fairly smooth transition, with both partners
Earth has compelled us into our corners right now, on a time-out, and from there we each have to decide whether to turn left back onto the path we have mindlessly trotted down for years, the path that brought us here, or turn right and chart a new path. Left is the past, and with it a relentless need for more, a comfort in speaking with our thumbs instead of our voices,
Research shows that laughter provides physical, mental, social, emotional, and spiritual benefits, which can increase resilience. As we approach our fourth week of quarantine and social distancing, it is important to recognize how humor unites people by strengthening our relationships as we navigate the challenges around the pandemic.
In these uncertain times, it is easy to feel intensely anxious and stressed. Will I lose my job? Are grocery stores safe? Will my relationships suffer? What if I get sick? Some find themselves projecting their fears far into the future and assuming the worst.
Regular shame vs. core shame. Everyone experiences shame. It’s the excruciating feeling that signals we fell short of who or what we wanted to be in the eyes of another.
Pain is a given in life. We lose people, become disappointed, and encounter rejection. Yet there is something to be learned in all these situations that makes us stronger.
Pain is a given in life. We lose people, become disappointed, and encounter rejection. Yet there is something to be learned in all these situations that makes us stronger. Unlike pain, which is inevitable
