Why Isn’t Counseling Working: 4 Questions to Ask Yourself
If you find yourself questioning whether counseling is working, spending time thinking through these questions may be a worthwhile endeavor.
Tag: mental health
7 Strategies for Back to School Anxiety
Believe it or not, a new school year is upon us. The return to school has always caused a wide
10-Day Forecasts, Daily Bread, and Worry
In ways, fear and anxiety are like wanting to know the 10-day forecast so that you can make plans well in advance and know what to expect. The thing about 10-day forecasts, though, is that they are rarely right. The voice of fear tells us that if we can plan out and answer all of the questions rolling around in our minds we will feel like we are in control and the stress will go away. But control is elusive – especially in light of a pandemic.
Maintaining Mental Health During COVID-19 with Intentionality
The mental health impacts of COVID-19 remain to be seen, and I anticipate there will be some significant fallout. This list is not meant to be an exhaustive approach to boosting your mental health as there are a lot of ways to improve your mental well-being, but as I think about spending more time at home than I might be used to, these were strategies that came to mind that I will be intentional to practice over the next several weeks. We are in this pandemic together. Let’s be intentional about encouraging one another to take care of ourselves physically AND emotionally.
Coronavirus and Worried Kids: 6 Emotional Health Tips from a Mental Health Counselor
Coronavirus. COVID-19. Pandemic. Shelter-in-place. These have been the hot topic words over the past week and a half and understandably so.
There has been a lot of talk about how to keep families and kids physically safe and healthy during this COVID-19 pandemic, but from my perspective, health also includes emotional well-being. So what are parents to do?
The Comparison Game
As I scroll through my Instagram feed, my mind often starts to feel dissatisfied with what I have been given in this world. The questions make my mind wander. “Why can’t I have that?” “What am I doing wrong?” “Why me?!”
When this happens, I have become a victim of the comparison game.
More Than One Way to Use a Torque Wrench
Anger is designed to be a tool of precision—judiciously and with the right amount of torque. Overpowering breaks and destroys at worst, irritates and annoys at best.
Worry and the Birds
God graciously included instructions for His people to look at the birds of the air (and the lilies of the field if you continue reading in Matthew 6) as a tangible reminder of his provision and care. I don’t have to scan the sky for long before I notice a bird flying overhead. How often have I read the words “Do not worry” and mindlessly filled in the rest of the sentence—“look at the birds of the air” without actually stopping to consider the birds of the air or what this verse is trying to teach? What if each time I saw a bird, I reminded myself of God’s care for me.
Revealing Family Secrets
So how do you decide when or how to discuss family secrets? Here are three factors you should consider before “letting the cat out of the bag”.
Dysfunctional Self-Care Repeats Itself
Ask anyone who uses porn or smokes weed or some other life-controlling behavior how they feel soon after his or her latest use and the common answer is ashamed, embarrassed, fearful or worthless. Those specific feelings: shame, embarrassment, fear or worthlessness are among our most painful feelings.
Heritage Counseling Center Blog 