Signs Your Therapy Is Working

Making the decision to go and see a therapist is a big step. After making such a big step, you will find yourself wondering, is seeing a therapist paying off? Every week you go and see your therapist, and some days you may feel good and other days not so much, but regardless of how you feel on a given day of therapy, there are certain signs that you can look for to identify whether your therapy is really working. If you have noticed any of the following signs, then you are on the right track. You look forward to going to your therapy appointments The first few weeks of therapy will feel overwhelming. Opening up and talking to someone about your innermost issues and feelings is extremely difficult. If you have found yourself reaching a place where opening up feels good, or at least comfortable, then you are definitely making progress. Looking forward to going to your sessions means that subconsciously you know it is helping. You are taking better care of yourself If you have noticed that you are taking better care of yourself and making that self-care routine more of a priority, it is a sign that…

Continue Reading

Why Self-Care Is So Important

We often are very good at taking care of our family, our friends, and sometimes even strangers, but so often we forget that we need to also take care of ourselves. When we get caught up in life, work, or family, we sometimes neglect important actions of self-care. We put the to-do’s that involve taking care of ourselves at the bottom of our list and prioritize other things that we think need to get done first. The problem with this is that if you aren’t taking care of yourself, you won’t be able to go on taking care of other things because you won’t be your best self. Very often, it takes a very impactful event for us to wake up and realize that we have been neglecting ourselves. Often the world goes by so fast around us and society pushes us to focus too much of our attention on things in life that don’t benefit our own health. Making self-care a priority is extremely important for your mental, emotional, and physical health; and to live a happy and full life, you must practice it. Following these few tips for self-care can help you get there… Know your worth and…

Continue Reading

Why Communication Is Key in All Relationships

Relationships can be difficult, and they require commitment. A commitment to another person means a commitment to put in the effort. Regardless of the type of relationship, whether it is a husband, wife, girlfriend, boyfriend, best friend, family member, etc., good communication is key in a relationship. Where things go wrong in communication Two large faults that we make as humans is forgetting that not everyone thinks like we do, and that people can’t read our minds. Remember that we each are different and unique, while you might be sensitive to some things, the other person may not be, and vice versa. Proper communication has to come from both ends, and that means explaining to someone how you feel and why, as well as listening to how they feel and why. A very common mistake made in communication attempts is forgetting to truly listen to what the other person is saying, don’t spend the time that they are talking, thinking about what you are going to say next but rather by actually listening. Remember, it’s a two-way street and you both must be putting in the effort. Many times, communication goes wrong because both people aren’t implementing proper communicative tactics….

Continue Reading

8 Ways to Ease Loneliness

Everyone goes through stages of loneliness, some of us more than others. Loneliness can be an empty and defeating feeling that drains you and can leave you with low self-esteem, feeling worthless, or unloved. Different people suffer from varied severities of loneliness and different people deal with it in different ways. We as human beings are made to interact with other humans and have meaningful relationships, it is how we get by. Although, the conflicting part of it is that even sometimes when we have people around us, somehow, we still feel lonely. Fortunately, there are ways to deal with it. If you are feeling lonely, keep reading to learn how to ease that loneliness. #1 Identify why you are feeling lonely The first thing you should do is identify why you are feeling lonely. The only way you will be able to mend your feelings of sadness is to identify where they are coming from. Say you have a lot of friends, but maybe you have so many friends that you don’t have any truly deep and meaningful relationships with any of those particular people. It is possible to have relationships that not only don’t cure your loneliness but…

Continue Reading

When is it ok to get back together with an ex?

Relationships are difficult. Sometimes our relationships don’t work out because they were bad timing, because we weren’t ready, or because the other person wasn’t in a good space, etc. Whatever the reason, it is true and sad that some really special relationships come to an end. Getting back together with an ex is a difficult decision and it can be complicated. You have to remember that you broke up for a reason, and you shouldn’t let nostalgia and emotions cloud your better judgement if you know that reason remains. However, many couples do work things out and get back together and end up happy and in healthy relationships, so it is possible. There are of course certain stipulations to be considered and the approach you take will be a big deciding factor in terms of success. Whether or not this rekindling is possible for you and your ex is highly dependent on multiple subjective factors. Probably the most important thing you have to remember is to not let your emotions cloud your better judgement throughout this whole process. Before making the decision to get back together, you need to set aside some time to think. You should also set aside…

Continue Reading

How To Balance Work And Family  

Balance is key in life, and that pertains to just about every aspect of it. Finding and maintaining that balance can be quite difficult. There are certain things that we need to prioritize when it comes to our effort and time management. Things like diet and exercise are important aspects of a healthy life that require balance, but the most important and most commonly detrimental is the act of balancing work and family. People are social beings, we desire connection, companionship, and contact with other people by nature. An expert or any wise person will tell you that your relationships with others are one of the most important means of feeling purpose and happiness in your life. With relationships being so vital to our mental and emotional health and well-being, it puts it into perspective just how important those relationships are with those closest to us, such as our family members. While we must work to live, we shouldn’t live to work, and we must remember to prioritize and cherish those relationships that we have closest to us like our family. Conflict between work and family is actually one of the most common stressors amongst working adults. Finding that balance…

Continue Reading

How to talk to kids about divorce?

Divorce can be extremely hard on children. As a parent, having to tell your children that you are getting a divorce will likely be one of the most difficult things you will do. It is important to remember that even if the divorce doesn’t seem like it would come as a surprise – for example, if you are already separated or have been arguing a lot – your child is likely clinging onto hope and the shock can still be just as severe as if the child had no clue this was in the cards. How you talk to your children about the divorce is of immense importance. Experts state that almost all children remember this conversation vividly for the rest of their lives. Unfortunately, because of the shock and trauma a child feels during the moment they are told, many go on to experience pain when the conversation is recalled, and this pain is said to never dull in some children. Because this moment can be so traumatic for a child, it is very important to ensure that you take all measures to have the conversation in the best way you can. Present the situation from equal standpoints As…

Continue Reading

Back to School Tips: Preparing Your Child For The New School Year

Summer is coming to an end and it is time to start getting your children ready for the new school year. Going from summer break with all the fun, games, and playtime to the daily school routine can be a difficult transition for kids. While you may be getting the back-to-school shopping list ready for supplies, clothes, etc., you should also be taking a few other steps to prepare your child for the new school year. Whether your child is starting at a new school or even just going into a new grade, it can be stressful and a bit overwhelming, especially for certain children. Follow these back-to-school tips that can help you in preparing your child for the new school year. Get back on a schedule While summer days, usually mean late nights and lazy mornings, the difference in schedule is usually the first and most difficult adjustment for your child when the new school year starts. Avoid the rough mornings and bed-time debates at night by starting your child back on a schedule about one to two weeks before school starts. It doesn’t need to be a cold-turkey transition, but try starting by first implementing a bedtime and…

Continue Reading

How Your Childhood Impacts Your Relationships

It is often difficult for us to see ourselves from an outside perspective. It is for this reason that sometimes we don’t realize how experiences from our childhood are affecting our adult relationships, and more often than not, affecting them negatively. The most common ways that childhood impacts our adult relationships is via the relationship that we had with our parents growing up. Whether it is trauma that we experience as a child or how our parents showed affection or didn’t, there is no denying that the correlation exists in regards to our adult relationships. To be more specific, how our caregivers act towards us as children carries over into the attachment style that we display in our adult relationships. Generally, people who have grown up in stable homes with happy and healthy childhood relationships with their caregivers develop secure-attachment styles. If your caregivers were emotionally available to you and responsive to your needs as a child then you will likely carry these healthy traits onwards into your adult relationships. Your attachment style will likely be balanced and you will not display clingy tendencies nor push others away. However, not everyone grows up in a healthy and happy home. So,…

Continue Reading

The Numbers are Rising in Children Attempting Suicide

Over the past ten years or so, there has been a significant increase in children and young teens having suicidal thoughts. Doctors are seeing more and more of these children and young teenagers in emergency rooms showing up for anxiety attacks, depressive episodes, and suicidal thoughts, feelings, and attempts. This is even more common during the school year as the kids are feeling the pressure of school as well as suffering from issues related to social anxiety, bullying, peer pressure, and more. There was a study recently published by the American Academy of Pediatrics found that from 2008 to 2015 children ages 5 years old to 17 years old are being admitted to children’s hospitals for reasons relating to suicide, either suicidal thoughts, feelings, or attempts. It was found by researchers at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt that girls are more often attempting suicide than boys are. It was also found that the suicide numbers were higher during the school year and lower during the summer months. Depression in children should never be taken lightly or dismissed One of the issues that kids face is that many parents don’t take depression and anxiety in their children seriously. They…

Continue Reading
Contact Us
close slider

Start The Conversation

  • We want you to live life well in all aspects of your life: individually and relationally; at work, at home, and at play.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.