Therapy and Counseling Articles

Unconditional giving is a state that we all aspire to. We hope to be a giving person without any agendas from the perspective of why we give or what we want in return. Yet, frequently there are emotions at work that we are not aware of that motivate us to over-give to others, be it with our time, money, energy, etc. This is the type of giving that is referred to throughout this article. This topic has multiple issues when you look under the surface.

If you are like most people these days, your life is full of things that need to be done. No matter how much you do, there is always more to be done. There are chores around the house and yard, cooking and cleaning, chauffeuring the kids to their activities, helping them get their homework done, going to work, and on and on. Even friends who are retired tell me they are so busy they wonder how they ever had time to work. So how do you take care of yourself and rest?

Most couples spend more time planning their weddings than their marriages! With divorce rates at an all time high, it seems that couples are facing more challenges than ever in preserving their relationship stability. In my relationship counseling work as a Marriage and Family Therapist, I’ve ...

Most couples spend more time planning their weddings than their marriages! With divorce rates at an all time high, it seems that couples are facing more challenges than ever in preserving their relationship stability. In my relationship counseling work as a Marriage and Family Therapist, I’ve ...

Stuff is everywhere. There are papers piled up on the desk, books next to the bed, and scraps of paper with "to do's" and reminder notes everywhere. But where are my keys?!!! If this situation is something you can relate to, fear not, there is help. Many people with attention deficit disorder (ADHD) are easily overwhelmed. They not only lose track of time, but lose things. A man, very successful in his industry, reported that he lost two cell phones in less than a month. His keys also seem to have legs since they never seem to be where he thinks he may have put them.

Each of us has a mixture of feelings toward those people we’re intimate with, and learning how to tolerate ambivalence is a part of growing up. Small children sometimes scream “I hate you!” when frustrated by their parents though they may be loving and affectionate an hour later. Such hostility can be so powerful that for the moment, it obliterates awareness of every other feeling. Very small children believe that what they are feeling right now is the only reality and they can’t remember they had other, loving feelings not long before.

Cognitive-behavioral therapy is currently receiving a significant degree of attention as the treatment of choice for individuals needing assistance with a variety of psychological disorders. It is a structured, pragmatic approach to dealing with problems and is appealing to those seeking ...

Male Menopausee (or Andropause) is a multi-dimensional change of life with hormonal, physical, psychological, interpersonal, social, sexual, and spiritual aspects. All men go through Male Menopause, usually between the ages of 40 and 55, though it can occur as early as 35 or as late as 65. It signals the end of the first part of a man’s life, and gets him ready for the second half. Like adolescence it is the transitional phase between childhood and adulthood, Male Menopause is the passage between first adulthood and second adulthood.r

Dick B. Address to Assn of Christian Alcohol and Drug Counselors, Palm Springsr By aioarticles on September 29, 2011 | From aioarticles.com The Dick B. Address on October 2, 2011 © 2011 Anonymous, All rights reserved - The Growing Christian Recovery Movement and the Role ACADC Institute can play The opportunity for our pervasive, informative, Christian Recovery Movement is now! International Christian Recovery Coalition is adding daily the participants who, at no cost to t

FOREWORD – ABOUT THE MIND BRAIN BALANCE TEAM “The Center for Mind Brain Balance” was established to bridge the gap between a person’s psychological and emotional needs versus their brain-based or physical imbalances that are so often overlooked.

This time of year can be joyous but it can also be rife with stress. Stress brings with it innumerable ways to cope. Some people drink too much while others will spend too much. Then there are the yellers and steering wheel pounders, but what about this season's hidden emotional danger? What Causes Emotional Overeating?

One of the great breakthrough discoveries of modern times was Freud’s discovery of the unconscious mind and the idea that much of what drives us is outside our awareness. He considered dreams to be “the royal road to the unconscious.” Unlike Freud, his colleague, C.G. Jung, thought the ...

Think for a moment of a time when you felt truly connected to yourself – you were on purpose, knew what you needed, had a plan to get it, and felt passionate about doing so. Although many of us have experienced times when we felt we were acting from our true selves, aligned with our interests and passions, they seem few and far between. So why is this and what can we do about it?

Becoming parents and getting older can bring on a fair amount of stress and anxiety. Some anxiety is normal. Everyone experiences anxiety on a daily basis on some level. Just managing the household finances, the laundry, feeding the kids, juggling work and family life.... the things that all ...

If you or somebody you know is suffering from alcohol dependency, then it may be time to check out the alcohol treatment options that will be most effective for the individual's chosen lifestyle and preferences. Addiction to alcohol treatment comes in a variety of forms; however, not all alcohol addiction treatments are the same. Some treatment options may be much better than others for a certain situation. This article will| help guide you through selecting the appropriate alcohol addiction treatment depending on a person's particular desires.

When you feel at your lowest point, food becomes your best friend. Food makes you feel better from the hurtful comment that you heard a stranger say about your weight. Food comforts you when no one else can. Food numbs any pain that you don’t want to feel.

"Pregnancy is the physical epiphany and miracle of coming into existence. The miracle of pregnancy and birth, along with the inevitability of death, join us all. It is our task to make our birth a blessing." --Suzanne Kyra, Welcome Home to Yourself Where our existence comes from is unknown, ...

From the threat of lay-off to balancing work and family life, today’s work-related problems are increasingly complicated and stressful. Job-related stresses frequently lead to a great deal of frustration and discontentment. Fortunately, there are many ways you can create a more enjoyable work ...

I've written a lot about healthy relationships and what aspects successful couples have that make them unique. As I continue my couples therapy work I continue to gather more information about relationships, the importance of good couples communication, their most significant sticking points - ...

Browse the self-help aisle at the bookstore, or comb through the online material about self-esteem, and you'll mostly find advice on how to take "conscious control of your self-talk," to stop negative self-statements and replace them with affirmations, to love yourself, to conquer this or that experience, etc. In an earlier post, I discussed why such verbal techniques don't work, but even for those people who do find them valuable, I'd like to suggest a different way of approaching this issue.

THINKIATRY & THE 5 PRINCIPLES Posted on Wednesday, January 12th, 2011 at 3:07 pmr THINKIATRY & THE 5 PRINCIPLES PLEASE CLICK THIS LINK TO VIEW VIDEO. Thinkiatry is a new word, created to define the Principles and a resulting new Self-Therapy Process to help virtually eliminate the negative thinking emotions our habitual thought systems have caused throughout our lives. These negative thoughts serve no useful purpose. In fact, our negative thoughts are at the root of all known human emotional dysfunction.

As some of you know I was injured this winter. The Cliff notes version of what happened is that someone collided with me on the ski slopes which caused a concussion (and yes I was wearing my helmet) and a hole in the lining of my carotid artery wall which closed off the artery and then led to a small stroke. The doctor told me that of three people he knows of that had this same carotid artery tear, one is ok, one is a vegetable, and one is dead. Are you beginning to understand why I am so happy and grateful to be here?

Mindfulness skills saved the day! The first time I ever experienced claustrophobia took me by surprise. My doctor sent me for an MRI many years ago to find out why my jaw hurt. I didn't know what to expect but I had no reason to worry about the small confines of an MRI machine because I had never experienced any signs of claustrophobia. When the MRI technician positioned me on the table and then slid me backwards all the way into the 'tube' I suddenly wanted to flail my arms and get out of there as fast as possible. My heart pounded and I felt panicky for the first time in my life.

Well, if you have made it into the 35 plus club you can testify to having travelled a journey. Most of us have probably experienced multiple jobs, have married and created the nuclear 2.3 child family. Yet what is it for the majority of males that they feel a sense of emptiness or seem like we ...

"No one ever achieved greatness by playing it safe." Harry Gray When we think of releasing--oftentimes it is about releasing the past, releasing limiting beliefs--essentially letting go of something negative. But what about releasing something inside of us that needs to be brought forward and expressed? One definition of "releasing" is to 'set free from confinement or bondage'.

The psychotherapy process requires the deliberate joining of two human beings, mainly orchestrated by one, and requiring heartfelt collaboration by both. Breaches in the relationship are plumbed for the information they provide, the two continually surprised and inspired as they move to new, ...

Growing pains are just that… painful. I’m not talking about physical growth spurts when you were younger and your body ached for days. No… I’m talking about growing pains that stem from personal growth. These growing pains manifest when you make changes in your life and feel emotional discomfort or pain. Sometimes growth can be quite exciting, but as humans, we are built to be creatures of habit and comfort.

Am I blue or depressed? By Dr Ed Feraco Have you ever wondered if you have depression or if it isrnsimply the "blues"/sadness? Most people have experienced the "blues"/sadness sometime in their lives and perhaps many times; however, when is the blues really clinical depression? Clinical depression can actually become a serious medical condition that requires intervention either from a psychotherapist and/or a psychiatrist. The blues / sadness is a transient feeling, perhaps with ther

Are you conce ed that you or someone you love might be suffering from an eating disorder? Eating disorders are serious and lengthly debilitating illnesses. Studies in Australia found that the average duration of bulimia is 5 years, and 8 years for anorexia. The quicker that one gets help for their eating disorder the better their chances of making a full recovery.

Who Am I Meant to Be? Few people dare to dream. To live their lives striving to achieve their potential and become the person they were meant to be. Most people live in survival, as though they have to constantly protect themselves from unseen dangers, even though they don’t exist. Sadly, those who do dare to dream rarely ever see their dreams and ambitions fulfilled as they are not prepared to take risks and move out of their comfort zone. Some research suggests that the figure is as low as one per cent of the population who are becoming the person they were meant to be.

Awareness, mindfulness and observing are words referring to the same experience. There is a profound difference between being immersed in white-water rapids, tumbling downstream, out of control, with all kinds of debris, and then spotting a tree branch hanging over the water, grabbing the branch, pulling yourself out and sitting on the bank, watching it all go by. When we enter the state of awareness or mindfulness, we create a necessary space between the observing Self and

"Maturing is for the courageous and lighthearted. To age with wholesomeness and health, we need to be scrupulous about laughing, loving, exercising, healthy eating, and being mentally stimulated." --Suzanne Kyra In the big picture, our time on Earth is brief. Avoiding this awareness is avoiding ...

If you are like most people you want to keep your brain as healthy as possible for as long as possible. It is sobering to hear that a British study found that our brain's ability to reason and remember starts to decline as early as age 45. The good news is that we can take steps to protect our brain from decline and to maintain peak performance. It turns out that the same lifestyle habits that protect our heart also protect our brain from developing dementia.

A client told me about a sexual trauma that she had last year. "But I don't feel anything about it", she said to me insistently, and was almost unwilling to do tapping on it. When I asked her to check with her inner eye, she could imagine a rusty U-shaped metal shield placed around her heart. I asked if it was alright for us to accept this "dont feel anything" feeling and yet still proceed with the therapy. When we explored further and did more tapping, WOAH... everything

Counteracting Depression People who suffer from depression tend to be introspective. They attribute all failures to their own shortcomings/inadequacies and all successes are attributed exte ally. By this, I mean that they often do not give themselves credit for any success in their life, explaining it away as “luck”, or “because someone else made it possible”. This ends up in self-defeating thinking, a “no-win” situation with neither thought process serving one’s self esteem in a positively reinforcing way.

The mind/body conundrum has been solved. It’s all one system, not the body with some disembodied mind or spirit hovering around it, but one whole system. The psychoneuroimmunologists have discovered and isolated the neuropeptide “molecule of emotion” as a biological carrier of emotionally charged memories and information embedded throughout the human body. We each possess within us a vast fluid network of these dynamically encoded molecules that chu out non-stop images, feelings, warnings, attractions, beliefs, etc.

In the current Western world dieting and weight are topics of great popularity -you only need look at the magazine stands of any supermarket to find that most front covers are permeated with dieting tricks, weight loss plans, celebrities who have gained or lost weight; many people find themselves caught up in a culture of dieting, going from one diet to another, and so on.

"What we give our children is as potent as what we do not give them. Our children are those who live and do not live in our community. We have a responsibility to them all. May we always choose wisely." --Suzanne Kyra I see childhood as the spring of the Natural World’s seasons. Like spring, ...

When a couple decides their marriage is over, a tremendous sense of grief and relief are felt. A recently divorced person will feel grief over the loss of their marriage and the loss of their partner in life. But there is also a sense of relief that the pain and anguish is now over and their ...

Mindfulness is that quality of conscious awareness of whatever arises in our present experience in which there is an attitude of engaged-presence.

Here are two universal truths about self-esteem: Building your self-esteem is essential for confidence and success, and it all begins with you. People with a healthy self-esteem are able to define their worth, value and achievements.r

Beat the Feelings of Inferiority

Think for a moment of a time when you felt truly connected to yourself – you were on purpose, knew what you needed, had a plan to get it, and felt passionate about doing so. Although many of us have experienced times when we felt we were acting from our true selves, aligned with our interests and passions, they seem few and far between. So why is this and what can we do about it?

Children who are easily frightened are scared of more than the boogey man in the closet or the three-eyed monster under the bed. These monsters are “projections” of emotions that children hold about themselves and the world--emotions that children are scared to feel. These scary feelings are the fuel that creates the fantasy of scary monsters. We all have the capacity for scary feelings such as anger, envy, shame and sadness. Often, because these emotions are frightening, we push them deep down into ourselves. These feelings become part of our internal “shadow”.

It was the week before I presented a workshop to employees of a major automobile corporation. Nerves had gained a foothold. A glance at my calendar compounded the stress. Fifteen counseling clients … intern supervision … resident counselor meetings … a visit from my college-aged son. By week’s end, I was overwhelmed. This was more than a simple case of over-scheduling, I thought, feeling drained and discontented. What was wrong? I shared my dilemma with a girlfriend over coffee. She asked just one question: “How is your time with God going?”

In our current culture, so much “doing” and outer accomplishment is expected of us, that many people feel they have lost touch with any source or spark that once kept them going. We have become all too efficient in our technological world, and must learn again how to nurture and encourage the ...

Although all of us would like to feel content and fulfilled all of the time, many people suffer with emotional difficulties that interfere with enjoying a positive and productive life. Problems are often life-long, self-defeating patterns developed in childhood. These patterns create many ...

Hypnosis is the principle method used to regress someone to a past life. As a result, clients often express conce s about the safety of both hypnosis and the regression process. It is therefore necessary to dispel any misconceptions or apprehensions about hypnosis before one can deal with the question of whether or not past life regression is safe. Many year ago, I was asked to be on a phone-in radio program dealing with past life regression. I recall one caller who asked if I knew that hypnosis was a tool of the Devil.

©2007 Andy Be ay-Romanr

Maybe you’re not sure if drinking is a problem in your family. Alcohol can be in our lives without it being a problem. But can you tell when it goes from “no problem” to “problem”? What’s the Cat in the Hat got to do with warning signs of problem drinking? I remember when the ‘Cat in the Hat’ ...