Relationships are complicated enough in today’s world but throw in the wrench of emotional abandonment wounds from a parent and we’ve hit the ultimate learning curve. Identifying unhealthy dynamics such as negative communication and emotional regulation skills can be frustrating but such a rewarding endeavor....
Taming the Thought Spiral: A Pathway for Quieting Your Mind As a counselor, one of the most common complaints I hear is the challenge of thought spiraling. We experience something hard, we feel big feelings, and our mind tries to fix them or escape from...
It is a humid, hot, sticky day and I am in the middle of rural Uganda living with a host family for five days. Can you say culture shock? The hut, and yes, I do mean an actual hut made of cow pies, has three...
Forgiveness is a cornerstone of healthy relationships, yet it is often one of the hardest acts to perform. Understanding why forgiveness is challenging and recognizing its profound benefits can help individuals and couples navigate the complexities of their relationships with greater empathy and resilience. Why...
What do you value? What is most important to you? So often we can feel a dissonance within ourselves. We can struggle to identify what we want or need which can lead to difficulty making decisions. By learning to answer the questions above, we can...
We often focus on the negative. What don’t we have? What is still lacking? What if it never gets better? There are times we should focus on what’s wrong. Ignoring it isn’t going to help anything. A life without reflection is likely one without learning...
I have a nine year old son who loves to read. Before bed, we’ll often grab a classic tale to read together. As I’m writing this, we’re deep into Treasure Island, enjoying the harrowing tale of a young boy named Jim Hawkins who winds up...
You are sitting on a bench at your local playground. It’s sunny (despite Michigan’s temperamental weather). Your gaze begins to wander and settles on children climbing. They are climbing everywhere. It’s amazing, actually, how many things children can climb on. You further notice how they...
Turning off endless thoughts and rumination can be a difficult task for many people (in fact, 6.8 million people across the US). So, it should not be shocking that we all may experience similar instances, or even times of day when we find it difficult...
For years I often heard people say that you have to go through grief and pain, you can’t go around it, you can’t go above it, you have to go through it. For years I didn’t understand what that meant. We live in an incredibly...