It’s that time of year again – the intense time after spring break and just before summer, where school testing is in full swing, meanwhile students and teachers are eagerly counting down the days until summer break. I’m hearing all about it from teachers, parents, and students, all of whom are reporting that this time of year is stressful and exhausting no matter your role.
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Eating disorders have the second highest mortality rate of all mental health disorders, only surpassed by opioid addiction (1). Over 10,000 deaths each year are the direct result of eating disorders, that is one eating disorder death every 52 minutes (2). 81% of 10-year-old children are afraid of being fat, with 1 in 4 having attempted to lose weight (3). These alarming statistics are only just a few picked out to highlight the eating disorder epidemic.
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My first response in learning that Merriam-Webster chose this word as their 2022 Word of the Year was “less than surprised.” I thought, “Hmmm. I can see that.” After all, it was constantly being used in media coverage of politics, but it has also been a phenomenon that many mental health professionals have focused on in their writings and media posts.
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Therapy can seem uncomfortable; You have a total stranger asking questions about your personal life and encouraging you to share information that you would rather keep private. What could be uncomfortable than therapy with one stranger? Some might say therapy with multiple strangers- aka group therapy. So why does group therapy exist?
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Mental health continues to be more understood and respected in our society, but not without challenge. Between different theories, styles, and approaches it can often be overwhelming on what to trust is the “right” answer to life’s problems. The real question to ask yourself, though, is what is the healthiest choice for me?
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Self-care has become such a buzz word in the media that we can barely go a day without hearing it marketed to us from all directions.
Whether it is to buy the latest skin care item or yoga class, self-care has become the marketing catch all used by everyone from big businesses to healthcare, but what is self-care? And will of its promises really bring us a better quality of life?
Very rarely have I heard a story of someone successfully sticking with their New Year’s resolutions. I have heard plenty of stories of people not making it through January before calling a quits. It seems to me that more and more people are abandoning this age old tradition in its entirety simply…
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Oh boy, back to school! How exciting and terrifying. As a general statement, I think it’s safe to say that most of us are ready for more of a routine and the school year is the best time for that. But we don’t know what we don’t know. If the last year and a half has taught us anything, it’s that
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One of the hardest parts as a therapist is to watch a client struggle. In the work I do, a good majority of my clients are facing the devastation of a betrayal trauma. Betrayal trauma is what it sounds like – feeling traumatized by the experience of betrayal. It is most often, but not always, associated with relational infidelity and sex addiction. This type of pain has often been described to me as one of the most painful experiences one will have in a lifetime. I also see it in the tears, questions, and tormented eyes of most of my clients.
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The first time I heard about self-care, I laughed. I really thought it was a joke. Now, years later, I am so glad that my graduate program emphasized its importance and that the world at large has come to understand how crucial self-care is to our overall well-being. Ultimately, I define self-care as being able to say yes and no, to both ourselves and others, as we need to. While I like to think I was pretty good at self-care, 2020 put that to the test. Somehow I don’t think I’m alone in that.
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