As a father, and former child myself, I’ve been exposed to many animated movies. Some stand out for their entertainment value, while others stand out for their accurate, and oftentimes humorous portrayal of reality. Of the latter, one such movie stands out above the others...
The two biggest factors that influence your present day relationship patterns are: How you experienced conflict in your family of origin. How/if you received comfort in your family of origin. Let me illustrate with two versions of the same story, with different endings: Version 1:...
I grew up in a culture where opening up emotionally, or being vulnerable, was seen as weakness. It was for the gullible and naive - not the courageous. Men were discouraged from ever showing sadness or fear. If they did, they were called names and...
"I didn’t mean to hit them! I just got really mad all of the sudden.” “I can’t concentrate on anything right now!” “I wasn’t trying to distract the class, I was just feeling kind of hyper.” “I planned to go home to finish that project...next...
Five and a half months of living with COVID-19 has been exhausting. I’m feeling it and I’m sure that you are as well! We’ve quarantined, we’ve adjusted to wearing masks and we’ve all navigated the weekly, daily and hourly changes that this crisis has forced...
It's been an... interesting week. If you had told me last week Tuesday or Wednesday that, here in Michigan, all schools would be shut down, businesses closed, events canceled, and people confined to their houses until further notice, I would not have believed you. This...
As the New Year rolls around, many of us are reflecting on the past year and considering what we want to focus on during this next trip around the sun. As I’ve spoken with clients and thought about my own goals, the topic of holistic,...
For someone who’s never been in therapy, trying to find out what makes a good therapist can feel harder than finding a good doctor. After all, who wants to go into a room and strip one’s emotional clothing, not to mention spend money, on someone...
Situations arise that we feel we don’t have control over. Sometimes it is positive, but most of the time it is the negative experiences that gets us flustered and responding poorly. It is these experiences that are the building blocks of our lives that we...
When I was 23, I had an exceptionally difficult year. If you want to know more about what happened, come talk to me… but suffice it to say I was in rough shape, mentally and emotionally. I recently came across some writing (in the form...