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Embracing Ourselves

Embracing Ourselves

Many of us are in desperate need of embracing ourselves.  Because we know ourselves so well, we don’t think we measure up and our self-esteem and self-appreciation is low.

Instead of being our own best friend, we become victims of a paralyzing fear.  We’re fearful of our need to always be right, of our drive for power, or our need to manipulate others to get what we want.  And our past mistakes make us fearful about what we might say or do under pressure.  If we treated our friends the way we treat ourselves, putting down strengths and emphasizing mistakes, we wouldn’t have any friends left...

Comparison vs. Perspective

Comparison vs. Perspective

Let’s talk about social media for a minute. Every now and then I need the reminder that social media is everyone’s “highlight reel” and nowhere close to real life. It’s so easy to get caught up scrolling through your newsfeed consciously or subconsciously creating our own opinions of ourselves and maybe even seeing how we measure up to others.

What are some steps we can take to evaluate the impact of social media on our lives?

Time to Decide

Time to Decide

Did you know the average person makes over 35,000 decisions both consciously and subconsciously each and every day. With so many decisions to be made the power of pre-decision could can come in quiet useful.

You may be asking yourself right now what exactly is a “pre-decision”, a pre-decision is a choice you make between two different choices. It’s the question, do I go that way or do I go this way, do I eat that or this, do I watch this show or that show.

Straight Talk about Self-Talk

Straight Talk about Self-Talk

You’ve got an inner voice that has a running dialogue about life that can determine if you feel positive or negative.

Called self-talk, this is the inner voice that has opinions about everything, and those opinions can make a big difference in how you view life. You have an average of about 6,000 thoughts a day, most of which you habitually repeat to yourself.  In many cases, you learned to think these thoughts from experiences with your primary caregivers in childhood, and have been repeating them from that time.  As you can imagine, many of these thoughts no longer serve you.

The Mindful Christian

The Mindful Christian

I know what you may be thinking.. “Mindfulness? Isn’t that practiced in Buddhism?” or “is practicing mindfulness considered a Christian practice?” Before I begin I think its best we define mindfulness and “being mindful”.

Mindfulness is about bringing awareness to what we are doing, thinking and feeling at the moment you are doing, thinking and feeling it. As Christians we so long to stay connected and focused to God and God’s kingdom, but we can agree and recognize that our fears, anxieties, insecurities and the negativity in this world often times interfere with this focus and our ability to stay present.

Velcro

Velcro

Ever wonder why that one bad interaction sticks with you all day? Or why the one bad play you made at your rec softball game discounts the fine job you did throughout the whole game? Or remember when you may have gotten all A’s on your report card but that one C stuck out like a sore thumb and made the whole marking period a wash? What is with us and negativity?

So, You're single?

So, You're single?

As a woman, and a Christian woman, I’m beginning to feel as if the topic of singleness surrounds me on a daily basis and lingers around most corners of discussion. Between my clients and single friends, I consistently see this area of people’s lives being talked about and viewed in multiple ways.

5 THINGS TO BE AWARE OF WHEN CHOOSING COUPLES COUNSELING

5 THINGS TO BE AWARE OF WHEN CHOOSING COUPLES COUNSELING

Starting the process of choosing to enter into couples counseling, as well as, choosing who to do it with can be an overwhelming task. In fact, studies show that couples consider making that first appointment for a minimum of four years before actually going. There are many reasons for this, but some of that is the just not knowing.  Considering this is the most important relationship, you can never be too careful. This guide can better help you understand some of the things that will make you a well- informed client while you make an educated decision.

What’s Up with My Kid?

What’s Up with My Kid?

Whether it’s a random temper tantrum, a child’s new obsessive behavior, or a once bubbly teenager turned quiet and withdrawn…at some point, parents will experience bewilderment and concern regarding their child’s behavior. Such concerning behaviors can certainly create stress, worry, frustration, and/or a number of negative emotions. In turn, many find themselves losing patience, sleep, or at times, sanity! Fortunately, several simple, yet insightful tips can facilitate a better understanding of such distressing behaviors which will hopefully lead to more productive responses.

My Story

My Story

I often get asked “what caused you to want to be a counselor?” or “why addictions?” Often in this field one has either “been through the ringer themselves” or has personally experienced seeing someone they love struggle.  This is my story:

The day I met Kyle (Dec 16,2007) forever changed my life. We met at a bar, shocker! His roommate was the first to approach me and his arrogance immediately turned me off. He must have noticed he was losing my attention because immediately he stated “did you meet my roommates?”. That was when I met Kyle.