A Case of Chronic Pain Marina is a 30-year-old woman who played tennis on her high school team and continued to play recreationally until a lower back injury sidelined her from the courts. One day, she was lifting some boxes in preparation for a move and felt something give out. The pain was excruciating. AndContinue reading Pain Reprocessing Therapy
Childhood Trauma and the Body: Pain, Autoimmune Functioning, and More
Have you ever wondered why people who were exposed to extreme stress early in life tend to suffer from physical ailments more than the general population? The ACEs study, a large-scale research endeavor, showed that those who were subjected to childhood trauma were, as expected, significantly more likely to develop mental health symptoms, such asContinue reading Childhood Trauma and the Body: Pain, Autoimmune Functioning, and More
Cultivating Self-Compassion
One of the things that comes up consistently in therapy, regardless of demographics or diagnoses, is difficulties with self-compassion. Let’s take a look at this concept here, as well as how folks can cultivate this important way of being in their lives. The word “compassion” is derived from the Latin com (with) passion (suffering). Self-compassionContinue reading Cultivating Self-Compassion
Polyvagal Theory
Polyvagal theory is an approach to understanding the mind and body that highlights the autonomic nervous system. As background, our autonomic nervous systems are composed of two parts, the sympathetic nervous system (responsible for our fight-or-flight response) and the parasympathetic nervous system (responsible for calming us/slowing us down, or in life-threatening situations, the freeze response).Continue reading Polyvagal Theory
Shame Resilience: A DBT Approach
Shame can be one of the most uncomfortable emotions we experience. It can be triggered by a host of events or internal experiences, including rejection (or fear of rejection); being belittled, made fun of, criticized, or betrayed; comparing ourselves to others, or just thinking that we’re not good enough. When we experience shame, we mightContinue reading Shame Resilience: A DBT Approach
Therapeutic Benefits of Creativity
Introduction In a world that often feels chaotic and demanding, it is common to seek solace and respite from the stresses of daily life. For many, a highly relieving factor lies in creativity. Engaging in creative endeavors, through any form of self expression, can be profoundly healing. This blog post delves into the ways inContinue reading Therapeutic Benefits of Creativity
Options for Solving Any Problem – DBT in Action
If you think about it, the human condition offers us of an almost infinite number of problems – issues with relationships, jobs, money, health, managing our homes, etc. Despite the wide range of problems we might encounter, there are a limited number of options for solving them. According to DBT, there are four possibilities forContinue reading Options for Solving Any Problem – DBT in Action
