A Small Reflection, No. 2
But do not stress yourself with imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, Be gentle with yourself. –Max Ehrmann
read moreImportant Questions To Ask In A Relationship, pt. 2
Hello, families! The first installment of this series talked about understanding and communicating what your needs are in a relationship. This second part deals with trust and flexibility in your relationship. Are you willing to make the changes I need? Am I willing to make the changes you need? This question comes from the pre-marital checklist from Integrated Therapeutic Solutions. A relationship requires an ability to change. Relationship expert John Gottman writes in his book, What Makes Love Last, that the foundation of relationships is...
read moreImportant Questions To Ask In Relationships, pt. 1
Hello Families! Here’s a story about relationships: A couple came to a pre-marital counseling session. They had been talking about marriage and how they felt closer to taking this step in their lives. They had been together for several years. They both said they felt safe and happy together. They wanted to do their marriage right, not repeat some of the painful things they saw their parents and friends do in their marriages. When they were asked to describe what they saw their parents do, one of them said that they saw alot of stress...
read moreA Small Reflection
Yet, taught by time, my heart has learned to glow for other’s good, and melt with other’s woe. –Homer
read moreHitting a Goal
Hello, world! I recently hit a professional goal that I had set in the beginning of the year. I had set this goal as a benchmark in the development of my business. I hit my goal on the timeframe I set. It feels GREAT to have accomplished it! This may be the best thing about goals–you get so much out of the process. So what did I learn? Goals are challenging. Working towards your goals requires effort in directions that you might not expect or want to go. Call it being out of your comfort zone. Call it taking risks. Call it putting...
read moreSelf-Criticism: A Cycle Of Procrastination And Perfectionism
Hello, Families! How often do you put off what you need to do? Shelve it. Avoid it. Out of sight, out of mind. Procrastination is an everyday occurance. We put off things that we just can’t commit immediate attention to. Like credit, we will delay payment until the end of the month! It is a psychological strategy. Procrastination serves as a coping mechanism for avoiding stress and anxiety due to overcommitting one’s self. Procrastination also serves as a way of avoiding self-critical thinking. But procrastination is like a...
read moreLove In the Time of Information (pt. 1)
Hello, Families! “Words that are strictly true seem to be paradoxical.” –Lao-tse. That sounds like love to me! “To love something you must set it free.” Yep, a paradox. Webster’s Dictionary defines paradox as “a statement that is seemingly contradictory or opposed to common sense and yet is perhaps true.” How do you deal with the problems in your relationships? Do you escape the problems by immersing in the internet, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc.? Everyone needs a break, certainly. But I...
read moreIn Rememberance of Loss
Hello, Families! There are losses that we experience in our lives both big and small. There are ideas and hopes that somehow don’t work out. There are choices, decisions, and risks that don’t materialize. These are losses that we experience nearly every day, and these losses are important to recognize and grieve. Through grieving, these losses have lessons that we can learn from which will make you smarter, stronger, and more resilient. But some losses are tragic and catastrophic, like the loss of a family member. We can accept...
read moreFaith And Believing In Yourself
Hello, Families! “Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve.” –Napoleon Hill What does faith mean to you? How often do you think of the faith that you have? “Seeing is believing” is a pragmatic approach to life. We tend to trust the tangible things in our lives. From a self-help perspective, most of us rely on accomplishment, success, or validation from others to reinforce our positive self-image. “Proof is in the pudding,” as the saying goes. But what about faith in yourself? Faith...
read moreImagination: A Key To Fear And Peace
Hello, Families! Stress, fear and imagination. What do these three things have in common? These are all constructs of our minds and bodies that interact together. Stress is the body’s response when we are in need of resources we do not have. Our bodies move into a stress response in order to move into action. What typically happens though is that this response system becomes hyperactive–we use it too much! Instead of our bodies relaxing and restoring themselves to homeostasis after a stressful event, we continue to stress. This...
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