Do you struggle with grief especially around the holidays?

The holidays are filled with memories and traditions which often magnify the loss of a loved one.

In this month's Therapy Moment, Maggie, Zofkie, LPC, NCC provides some great tips on how to get through the holiday season when you are feeling sadness from grief.

Do you struggle with setting healthy boundaries?

In this month’s Therapy Moment, Robyn Ashbaugh, LMFT shares with us a tip on how to create effective boundaries with those around you to help protect your peace!

Do you struggle relaxing and managing your stress levels?

In this month’s Therapy Moment, Victoria Mahoney, ALMFT shares with us a tool to help increase feelings of relaxation and to better manage stress!

Life is a journey of navigating emotional landscapes, where understanding our internal processes can make a significant difference in our well-being. 

Two common ways people handle challenging situations are rumination and processing. 

While these terms might sound similar, they represent fundamentally different approaches to dealing with our thoughts and emotions. Understanding the distinction between rumination and processing can be crucial in fostering mental health and emotional resilience. 

Do you struggle with signing off from work once the day is over?

Does your family notice that you aren’t fully present with them during your time off work?

With access to email and phone calls wherever you go, it is common for people to struggle with turning off “work-mode” and spending quality time being fully present with their family.

In this month’s Therapy Moment, Sarah Davidson, MFT, LPC provides tips to provide a better work/life balance!

When you lay your head down at night do you ever find yourself wondering what your purpose or meaning is in life?

Maybe your life path didn’t go as planned or you find yourself no longer passionate about the same things you once did when you were younger.

Finding purpose and meaning in life is not just about grand revelations or cosmic alignments. It’s about rolling up your sleeves, diving into what makes you tick and having a little fun along the way. 

Do you shut down, get defensive or struggle when dealing with conflict?

If so; you aren’t alone! Many people don’t think clearly when they are dealing with an argument or something that triggers them.

In this month’s Therapy Moment, Kevin Saurer, LPC, NCC provides the D.D.D. tool that can help you best handle conflict without regret.

Do you ever feel caught up in the chaos of your busy schedule?

Do you find yourself constantly going to events or making time for activities that maybe are not very important to you? Or do you find yourself overwhelmed by the thoughts and opinions of others?

Are you often wondering, am I doing this because I want to do it or am I doing it for other people?

If so; you aren’t alone! There are a lot of people that feel the same way!

Something that can help to take a step back and reset can be identifying your values.

Do you ever have a bad day and struggle with how to not let your mood effect everyone you come into contact with?

Maybe you feel scared, anxious, depressed or even angry over something that happened and struggle with how to overcome those negative emotions.

In this month’s Therapy Moment, Robyn Ashbaugh, LMFT provides a tool on how to implement self care into your daily routine which can help especially when you are experiencing a difficult day!

When facing any situation in life, there will be various kinds of barriers that hold people back and various advantages that will propel people forward. 

Can you relate?

I know I certainly can!

Some of the factors that determine barriers or advantages are external to people, such as geographical location, socioeconomic status, and access to readily available resources. 

However, a big determining factor in barriers or advantages comes down to the mindset one has when facing any situation. 

Do you have an untold story that you feel is holding you back from living your best life? Maybe it’s trauma you’ve experienced, pain or shame that you’ve been afraid to talk to with other people.

In this month’s Therapy Moment, Victoria Meeks, ALMFT reminds us that therapy is an excellent place where you can come tell your untold story to someone who won’t judge and who will listen and help encourage you to find new freedom from what you may be fearing.

Growth is a personal journey, a unique expedition for each of us. Within the context of your  life, it can look like a changed behavior, new actions, or increased insight. 

But growth isn’t always a linear progression along a neat and tidy path. Often, it requires us to step into discomfort, to confront the unfamiliar, and to challenge the status quo of our lives. 

Yet, within that discomfort lies the potential for transformative growth, leading us to discoveries that leave us feeling more fulfilled and alive than ever before.

Mindfulness is a hot topic currently! Have you been confused or need clarification on what this means? 

By definition, mindfulness can be best summarized as, “a mental state achieved by focusing one’s mind and awareness on/in the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting one’s feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations. It is used as a therapeutic technique” 

Now, how do you “do” or achieve this state of mindfulness?

While reflecting on the past year I am sure that there are things we all wish we could improve on such as being more active, eating healthier, building stronger relationships; the list goes on.

Starting the New Year off with fresh motivation often prompts us to want to achieve things that we have not previously accomplished. Despite this being a tremendous source of inspiration, the challenge often occurs when we are trying to put these goals into practice.

Do you find yourself easily stressed out or annoyed by common every day mishaps?

Maybe; your friend ran late to meet you for dinner or it took your partner longer than usual to reply to your latest text message.

These are all examples of things that can cause stress but did you know that you can control how you react to them?

In this month’s Therapy Moment, Kevin Saurer, LPC, NCC shares with us some ways to reduce the impact that events have on us to better manage our stress!

Are you currently experiencing drama with your family this holiday season?

If so; you aren't alone! A lot of people feel pressure, stress and anxiety leading up to the many family gatherings during the holidays!

Maybe there are conversations you don't want to have, maybe certain family members don't understand your likes/dislikes or disapprove of the path you are taking in life.

Do you find yourself mindlessly scrolling through social media when you are bored? 

Does your partner ever point out how you are glued to your phone rather than spending quality time with them?

Have you ever felt the need to compare yourself to those on social media as a way to validate your self-worth? Or maybe your recent social media post didn’t generate as many “likes” as you had wanted and now you are left feeling upset and angry.

These are all common things that happen when we prioritize social media into our daily lives.

If you search for tips on mental toughness, you will most assuredly find information regarding winning, managing grief, military experiences, business doctrines, and parenting tips.

These are all concepts commonly associated with mental toughness and resilience, but is there an actual definition of this term, and if so, why does it become so contorted and misconstrued at times, specifically by men?

The reality is that mental toughness should probably be renamed mental equilibrium or balance, and reference to toughness only serves to misguide most people, specifically many of the male clients that I have worked with in my career.

Being mentally tough does not require us to “take the pain” and suppress our feelings.

Quite the contrary, actual mental toughness does require the highest level of emotional awareness and deepest levels of vulnerability.