What spoken and unspoken rules did you grow up with that determined your acceptability and sense of belonging? Here are a few of mine: As a child, if we follow the family rules, we are accepted and loved, and there …
What to Expect In Your First EMDR Session
Have you heard Prince Harry talking about EMDR and how amazing it is? In this episode, I explore what might happen in your EMDR therapy sessions. Although this will differ with every therapist, my aim is to give you an …
Identifying Emotional Exhaustion
Emotional exhaustion can appear in various ways through your body, mind and spirit. In your BODY, it might show up as: In your MIND, it might show up as: In your SPIRIT, it might show up as: When I’m emotionally …
What a ‘No’ Feels Like In Your Body
A few years ago, I watched my kids as toddlers start to distinguish between the bodily felt sense of ‘I’m hungry, and I’m sleepy’. It made me smile to see my daughter fast asleep with a sandwich literally hanging out …
Grieving Your Childhood
Many people carry a burden of grief related to their childhood experiences. You might mourn your early years if you were burdened with responsibilities beyond your age, faced bullying from a sibling, witnessed frequent violence, endured constant yelling and fighting, …
The Anxious-Avoidant Dynamic – Can it work?
This is one of the main dynamics that brings couples into therapy. It is the Anxious-Avoidant Cycle. So, what exactly is the Anxious-Avoidant Cycle, how does it work, and how do we perpetuate it? We also tackle the big question: …
Gabor Maté Quote
This resonates deeply with Richard Schwatz’s work, in that Internal Family Systems (IFS) finds there are NO BAD PARTS.Gabor Mate nailed it here. The part that reaches for the alcohol or the drugs hopes to find something. Often, it is …
9 Signs You Grew Up Chronically Lonely
Ongoing loneliness as a child impacts us in many different ways as adults. How has this impacted you? Let me know in the comments.
I’m Trying To Make Them Understand
Have you ever found yourself repeating yourself and trying to say the same thing in a hundred different ways to be understood? I know I have.
5 Tips for the 5 Stages of a Relationship
One common myth about great relationships is that there are no arguments or disagreements. The Gottman’s, fantastic relationship experts who have done lots of research in this area, disagree. It is NORMAL to have conflict in a relationship; the issue …