My anxiety has been especially challenging over the past month. In this post, I’m going to share the various coping and calming strategies I’ve been using to free my mind from the symptoms of anxiety. I resonate deeply with the song, “Free Mind” by Tems, so I’ll include some relevant lyrics throughout the post as well. Exercise My favorite form...[ read more ]
A Visible Man by Edward Enninful was one of a few memoirs that I finished in December. The book is different from most of the memoirs I choose because I had no prior knowledge of who the author was; rather, Audible kept recommending it to me. I'm glad I gave his book a chance and I look forward to sharing...[ read more ]
While I'm no Oprah, her annual list of "Favorite Things" inspired this post. I began to level up my self-care in the last quarter of 2021 after a few bouts of burnout. Today, I'd like to share a few of the things that I've been doing in 2021 or plan to start doing in 2022 to foster self-care for my...[ read more ]
It's obvious that the COVID-19 pandemic has changed many aspects of our lives and that our concept of "normal" continues to evolve. Though I've written previously on work-life balance and remote schooling/working, today I'd like to talk about how our concept of work is evolving. I'll cover the pros, cons, and provide tips on how to find balance in this...[ read more ]
I realize this is my third post on the topic of technology/ social media in the past week but I had to share what I learned from an article* in today's newspaper. The headline was, "Parents, Here are Teen Girls' Rules for Instagram." As a therapist working primarily with adolescents, this immediately caught my attention; more so, I was blown...[ read more ]
When I was in college, I took all of the developmental psychology courses. Why? Because learning about the various life stages has always fascinated me. At the time, I found it odd when I read how famous psychologists like Piaget conducted research on their own children! Now that I'm the parent of a toddler, it makes more sense. With that...[ read more ]
As the world continues to adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic, the past year and a half has pushed most of us into a more virtual existence. With that in mind, I thought I'd share some insights on the impact of technology on mental health using insights gained from the audiobook, Finding Balance in a Digital World, by Doreen Dodgen-Magee**. Research...[ read more ]
I have a confession to make. Though I've written and spoken extensively about mindfulness, meditation is not my cup of tea... But here's my actual cup of tea! Though I occasionally use meditation apps in sessions with my therapy clients, it isn't my preferred method to check in with myself. So I've coined a new term, mindful...ish. Below are some of...[ read more ]
Boundaries are definitely the most common challenge that I see in my therapy sessions with clients, doesn't matter if they're facing anxiety, life transitions, addiction, etc. But what are boundaries? Boundaries are expectations that we set in interpersonal relationships to optimize our quality of life. What are the types of boundaries? Harper (2020) describes boundaries in seven categories: Physical boundaries- These...[ read more ]
I have never been more excited to press "publish" on a blog post than I have been today. Mariah Carey is on my short list of musicians that have changed my life (right next to THE Ms. Lauryn Hill) so obviously, I pre-ordered The Meaning of Mariah Carey when it was first announced. Today, I'm excited to share some mental health...[ read more ]