Blog Post

Teens & Stress The daily challenges that teens meet today are very different than those teens faced even just 15 years ago. One coping pattern teens are using to deal with school and social stressors is avoidance. There’s a number of reasons why the frequency of avoidance seems to be increasing in the teen population […]

Stuck It’s happening again. You’ve done this fight with your partner a thousand times and you know what’s coming next—blame, criticism, and self-defensive moves. It’s so familiar, you could do this argument with your eyes closed. It’s as if you’re having the same fight with your partner over and over again. Maybe you’ve made attempts

In a previous post about loneliness, I explored the impacts of loneliness and how the stories we tell ourselves can impact whether or not we feel worthy of connection with others.  But what can we do to help ourselves deal with these feelings and even move beyond feeling lonely? Here are a few tips to help

Have you ever been to an event, around friends, or with family members, and still felt alone? If we don’t feel known, loved, or accepted, we can also end up feeling lonely. Studies have demonstrated that an increasing percentage of the population is experiencing perceived social isolation (in other words, loneliness). So, how do we

In such troubled political times, there’s an obvious need for civil discourse. Just glance at your social media page you’ll see how uncivil our discourse has become. As I reflect on how to improve the ways we talk to one another, I realize that many of the concepts I work on in couples counseling apply

Becoming a parent changes our lives in an instant. It is a beautiful privilege that comes with challenges and big questions. Questions, like, “Am I making the right decision?” or, “Am I a good parent?”. Most of the time, we’re left to our own thoughts to try to answer that question. Some days we may not

Anyone who has experienced anxiety knows how scary and consuming it can feel. Spinning thoughts accelerate out of control. Waves of fear and doubt run rampant. All of it leaves us feeling exhausted. Anxiety disorders are one of the most prevalent mental health issues today, affecting as many as 1 in 5 people over the

When talking with parents, I often get questions about social media. How much is too much? What boundaries should I set? Am I just being overly concerned? With so much technology and so many opinions, these questions can be difficult to answer. Earlier this year, BBC Future posted an article that highlights several studies that explore the impacts of social media on mental health. The consensus of

Within the last decade, survey results have shown that our country is experiencing a rise of depression in teens. Our fast-paced lives, our increasing expectations of our teens, and evolving societal pressures may all play a role in contributing to this. The good news is that with increasing awareness about mental health concerns, our society has access to more knowledge than ever before about how to help teens who are dealing with depression. Staying informed about depression and suicide is one

Grief is a natural response to loss, whether it be the death of a loved one, or the loss of relationship, job, home, or even health. What often gets overlooked in the process of recovery is self-care. Self-care is an important part of the grief recovery process. It may be difficult to think in terms