Little t Trauma: The Cumulative Effect of Everyday Distress
Little t trauma, as opposed to big T trauma, refers to an accumulation of smaller distressing events or circumstances that can profoundly impact an individual’s mental health. Recognizing and fully processing little t trauma can help loosen its hold.
Late ADHD Diagnosis in Adults: Challenges and Treatment Options
Receiving a first-time ADHD diagnosis as an adult poses a unique set of potential challenges. Among them is determining appropriate treatment beyond (or in place of) medication. Therapy provides a safe space for adults to holistically view their ADHD and learn to manage its symptoms.
The Link Between Food Addiction and Body Image
Do you often feel like food controls you—versus the other way around? If you struggle with overeating, emotional eating, or wafting from diet to diet, you may believe that you have a food addiction. However, these symptoms can actually result from an eating disorder. Understanding the relationship between self-perceived food addiction, body image, and disordered eating is key to choosing a treatment option that’s right for you.
Understanding Failure to Launch Syndrome in Young Adults: Causes, Impacts, and Solutions
“Failure to Launch,” the title of a popular comedy from the mid-2000s, has become a prevalent syndrome today. Many factors contribute to Failure to Launch Syndrome, an often frustrating time for young adults and their families. Fortunately, there are many ways for parents to support young adults as they embark on their journey toward independence.
Stuck in Negative Thought Patterns? Mindfulness Can Help You Break Free
Negative thoughts can have a ripple effect, often resulting in self-fulfilling prophecies. It’s easy to get caught in negative, unproductive thought traps, but by harnessing the power of mindfulness, you can learn to control them, rather than the other way around.
Feeling Depressed? It Could Be Transitional Grief
Because depression and transitional grief can have a deceivingly similar appearance, it’s sometimes hard to tell which you’re experiencing—until you begin to explore the changes in your life and untangle your feelings. The sting of missing what once was is known as transitional grief. Recognizing it is the first step toward healing.
Why Do You Procrastinate? (and How to Manage It)
Procrastination can elicit feelings of disappointment, frustration or shame, triggering a spiral of nonproductivity. But what if you were to look at procrastination through a lens of curiosity rather than shame? The insights you gain could help you break the cycle … and start or resume the project you’ve been avoiding.
Dreams and Psychotherapy, Then and Now
Dreams played an integral part in the making of psychotherapy. But what about now? How does the relationship between dreams and psychotherapy stand today? This post delves into how some contemporary practitioners have developed Freud’s initial approach to dreams by foregrounding, among other things, the lived experience of the dreamer and the diverse modes of listening to dreams.
Experiencing the Holiday Blues—or Something More Serious?
If you’re not feeling the holiday cheer this year, it could be a case of the holiday blues. It could also signal something more serious. How can you manage the holiday blues ... and differentiate them from clinical depression?
A Poignant Case Study in Childhood Trauma: “I’m Glad My Mom Died”
Jennette McCurdy’s memoir, I’m Glad my Mom Died is an incredible, emotion-packed account of one woman’s struggle to manage—and overcome—childhood trauma triggered by a volatile relationship with her mother. Through the lens of a psychodynamic therapist, the tale goes even deeper.
Why Teens Are Compelled to Rebel—and What You Can Do About It
Teen rebellion is one of the leading causes of conflict between parents and their adolescent children. Some degree of rebellion is “normal and expected” during adolescence. Understanding and knowing how to handle this developmental phase is key to preserving your relationship with your teen.
I'm Not Okay: Roe Overturned and Its Effects on Mental Health
Anger is an emotion that we feel when boundaries have been crossed. And did they ever when Roe v. Wade was overturned. As a therapist, I’m not immune to the intense emotions triggered by this decision, which will have a direct impact on women’s mental health. It’s time to channel our anger into positive action.
Dreams and the Making of Psychotherapy
The study of dreams furnished psychodynamic therapy with its distinctive model of the unconscious mind and its signature technique of free association.
In-Person vs Virtual Therapy: Which Is Right for You?
“Should I come back to in-person therapy, or is it okay to continue with virtual sessions?” As we collectively find our post-pandemic footing, many patients wonder whether it’s time to return to the therapist’s office.
How Psychotherapy Reveals — and Treats — the Roots of Anxiety
What does it really mean to “work on” anxiety in therapy? Learning to follow the signs of anxiety to the sources of one’s distress is a crucial step toward meaningful change.
The Most Wonderful Time of Year? Co-Parenting During the Holidays
Holidays can be a time of great joy — and stress, especially if you’re co-parenting in the wake of a recent separation or divorce. These tips can help you and your family enjoy the season.
Climate Change, Politics and the Pandemic ... Oh My!
Anxiety is on the rise in the wake of increasingly unsettling news. While solutions to global issues may appear elusive, you can reduce your anxiety by taking action.
Quick and Easy Ways to Manage Stress and Anxiety Between Therapy Appointments
Feeling stressed or anxious between therapy appointments? These in-the-moment tools and strategies can help ease the pressure.
Emerging Adulthood: The Struggle Is Real (but Manageable)
Early adulthood is a period of exploration, as young people individuate and become adults on their own terms. Achieving their own identity often involves experimental — and sometimes risky — behaviors well into their 20s.
Revising the Script: Making Changes in “Couples Therapy”
As depicted in Showtime’s docuseries “Couples Therapy,” one of the primary goals of treatment is to help couples revise the story of their relationship.