The term “trigger’ in psychology has been around for a long time. While there has been a more popular culture explosion of the term, with both positive and negative effects on the original meaning, we still conceptualize triggers as things that can cause intense negative emotions because they remind us of a previous trauma. Post-Traumatic […]

I love to stand up for others, especially when it comes to matters of social justice. It is relatively easy for me to verbalize when I feel someone is being mistreated for the color of their skin, their gender, their sexuality or their social class. But when it comes to myself and those closest to […]

Sometimes when I work with kids (and even adults) who struggle to express their feelings or ask for what they need or want I will say, “You know you best.” Or, “You know yourself better than anyone else.” In other words, “speak up for what you think, feel or need because you know what you […]

Our lives today are ruled by our habits, how we react to things, the way we get to work, how in shape we are, what we believe are all examples of different habits that people have. Habits define who we are as people. So, if we want to improve our lives and change our habits […]

The idea that there are far more types of relationships these days as compared to the past is a bit misleading. We have labels now to communicate relationship styles like open relationships, casual relationships, traditional relationships, etc. These different relationships have been around forever as any even quick dive into history will show, but now […]

I cannot tell you how many individuals have sat in my office and bared their souls about the pain they have experienced as the result of an affair. Affairs damage people and relationships and they are hard to bounce back from. And, yet, it is possible to learn, grow and heal from the experience—however painful. […]

Did the title of this blog get your attention? I hope it did, but I must start this piece with a full disclosure. There is NO way to 100% affair proof your marriage or relationship…just like there is no way to 100% baby proof your home. Life is messy and human beings are complicated. Having […]

To often we get caught up in the “what if’s” of life. What if I had done this instead of that? What if I had gone this way instead of that way? What if I had called this person instead of ignoring them? What if I had stayed calm during the argument instead of blowing […]

When working with addiction, the term relapse is thrown around all the time. It can refer to a slip up of using substances one time, or a full-blown return to the behaviors and patterns that were prominent at the height of addiction. Relapses are common in that world but the process of relapse can also […]

While listening to a podcast recently, the narrator talked about “comfort words.” He started his talk listing comfort foods—foods we eat to make us feel better when we are down, stressed or even bored. He then moved on to “comfort words.” He described comfort words as phrases we tell ourselves that comfort us—some of which […]