Insights

Completing the Stress Cycle

Five Quick Tools to Alleviate Stress at Work

In today’s fast-paced work environment, it’s crucial to have quick and effective strategies to alleviate stress. Below are five tools you can use in around ten minutes to improve your mental health during a work break, starting with STOP,...

Preparing for Finals

As finals are approaching, it is a common time where students might get overly stressed and burnt out. Here are some tips to help prevent burnout and reduce stress. Since this is a higher-pressure time, it’s unreasonable to think...

Resiliency for Adults

Resiliency can be a buzzword for many. What does it mean? Well, Webster defines resiliency as “an ability to recover from or adjust easily to adversity or change.” In counseling, we look at things like resiliency factors for our...

The Tyranny of “Shoulds”

Shoulds abound in our lives. We hear them everywhere: from both outside of ourselves (family, friends, culture) and inside our own heads. “I really should do…” Or “I should have done…” or “you shouldn’t.…” “Should” is a tyrant, a...

Burnout: Maintaining a Healthy Work Life Amidst Pandemic-Level Stress

One result of the ongoing pandemic is an increase in the number of workers reporting burnout. It’s not just the frontline doctors and nurses who are reporting increased levels of burnout at work; it’s teachers, school counselors, restaurant workers,...

Stress vs. Anxiety

Many people in their daily lives deal with both stress and anxiety, but what is the difference between the two? Stress is generally a response to an external issue, such as taking an exam or having a busy-scheduled day....

Stress on Kids During the Pandemic

The coronavirus pandemic took the world by surprise in March 2020. It was a new journey for everyone. Parents had to wear many hats during this time- full-time parent, teacher, and employee. We had nationwide lockdowns, schools became virtual,...

School and Anxiety During a Pandemic

Since March of 2020, families and children have had to make major adjustments in their lives due to the pandemic, especially when it is related to school. Many parents were left at home trying to figure out the best...

Coping With Back-to-School Anxiety: Back to School Checklist for Parents

Going back to school can be anxiety provoking for many children. These 12 steps can help with reducing feelings of anxiety and help your child feel prepared and less anxious about starting the school year. One week before school...

Managing Stress: Part 2 – Know Your Limits

Today’s society seems to value being busy, sometimes even overwhelmingly so. Do you know someone who tells you about all the places they had to go in one day? All the errands they ran, going back and forth because...

Managing Stress: Part 1 – Getting Organized

Stress can be difficult to manage. We try to make time for things we enjoy, like hobbies, spending time with friends and family, or traveling. But even those activities can be stressful when our schedules are already packed. Sometimes...

Perfection

Perfection. We desire to be the perfect friend, perfect parent, perfect student, perfect athlete, and the list continues through different roles and environments we engage in. Perfection, though, is just as unattainable as it is tempting. That being said,...

The Importance of Giving

During the year, we have had many ups and downs. Throughout the months, we have been focused on survival and how to take care of our own household. This is understandable, we have to help ourselves before we are...

My Plate is Too Full – How to Manage Stress and Anxiety

Right about now, Covid fatigue is setting in.  According to Dr. Kotwicki of Skyland Trail in Atlanta, statistics from his psychiatric facility are showing an increase in anxiety-related admissions (2020).  Many people are being admitted for physical manifestations of...

Managing Stress & Anxiety

As I am sure we have all felt, the past months have brought on multiple stressors. In dealing with the global pandemic, working from home, your child’s school schedule changing, an economic depression, racial injustice, and many more, it...

Why Self-Care?

Are you worn out? Stressed? Overwhelmed by the day-to-day schedules and to-do lists? In our society today, it can be hard to slow down and take time for yourself. Culture says do more and get after it! However, if...

The Path to Reconciliation

“I’m sorry. I was wrong. Please forgive me.” These words are often cited as facilitating the process of forgiveness. While helpful, they are woefully inadequate when attempting a reconciliation in the face of serious wounding and betrayal, such as...

What Happens When it Feels Like the House is on Fire!

Human beings are magnificently designed. When we are in a life-threatening situation our body reacts while shutting down our prefrontal cortex where planning, analyzing and problem solving occur. This process allows us to react immediately without wasting time. If,...

The Trouble with Transition: Life After College

During my time as a therapist, I have noticed various trends and patterns. I have picked up on when the busy seasons are; what life stressors are universal; and what type of client I may have in session with...