The Unstoppable Power of Letting Go
Letting go can make you unstoppable. Jill recounts her story of love, loss and new life. Through the challenges of an uncommitted boyfriend, her fear of letting go, and becoming comfortable with the ramifications of letting go. Jill shares the 5 Steps she took to change what didn’t work and make welcome what she desired in her life and relationships. Jill is an award-winning journalist and communications leader who can trace every success in her career (and love life) to le
Dealing with Deep Sadness During the Holidays
Holidays aren’t always joyful, blissful, nor magical. Instead, they can mark a season of not just situational stress and sadness — but one of deep melancholy. There are many reasons that can contribute to holiday depression. Some factors include dysfunctional family dynamics (which are often thrown in one’s face more often during holiday get-togethers), unrealistic expectations of holiday merriment, financial issues, the loss of a loved one, and the year’s-end introspection a
To Those Fearing the Thanksgiving Table…
You are not alone. You are not alone in wondering why—or how, rather—your friends and family enjoy Thanksgiving with such abandon. You are not the only one who sees this Thursday as the first trial of a long holiday series, the first of many get-togethers where you feel extra eyes on you and your plate. You are not the only one just trying to survive. Others will pull up chairs to Thanksgiving tables with similar worry, self-doubt, and guilt. They’ll feel equally distressed b
Loving Kindness Meditation to Develop Mindfulness and Compassion
This is a Loving Kindness Meditation that will help you develop mindfulness and compassion for your self and others. Loving Kindness Meditation is proven to relieve anxiety and stress and to increase feelings of wellbeing. I hope you enjoy this meditation. Download a free guided mindfulness meditation at https://www.wisemindbody.com/
Staying Strong, Sober and Sane on Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving marks the official beginning of the ever-stressful holiday season. It’s a challenging time of year for everyone, and especially for people in recovery. Family events—both large and small—can be stressful, complicated, and triggering for people struggling with substance use disorder. Add a global pandemic to the mix, and the usual holiday stress expands tenfold. For people who completed a treatment program and stay active in a 12-step community, they likely have t
What's In My Cup?
I love this analogy! You are holding a cup of coffee when someone comes along and bumps into you or shakes your arm, making you spill your coffee everywhere. Why did you spill the coffee? "Well because someone bumped into me, of course!" Wrong answer. You spilled the coffee because there was coffee in your cup. Had there been tea in the cup, you would have spilled tea. *Whatever is inside the cup, is what will spill out.* Therefore, when life comes along and shakes you (which
Celebrating Excellence in the Transgender Community
Learn about gc2b, a Black and Latinx trans-owned business. What does it mean when your gender identity is not aligned with your body? For many transgender and gender nonconforming (GNC) people, this feeling of incongruence (sometimes called “gender dysphoria”) can be a daily reality compromising a person’s well-being, comfort, and safety. There is a freedom that comes when your inside and your outside align. Chest binders, garments used to flatten the chest, are a critical wa
Boundaries and the Butterfly: I Do This Because I Love You
Setting boundaries is one of the hardest things for someone to do. It requires inner strength to watch someone you love struggle. When I think of the topic of boundary setting, I think of a story that you may be familiar with. It involves a man who came across the cocoon of a butterfly. One day during a walk, a man came upon a cocoon. Out of curiosity, the man decided to watch what happened next. A small opening appeared in the cocoon. After a few hours of the butterfly
How to Support Veterans With Loving Conversations
The do's and don'ts of talking with veterans about military experiences. Over the past 15 years, in my role as a clinical psychologist at various VA medical centers across the U.S., I've worked with thousands of veterans and their families and have witnessed firsthand how many struggle to have conversations about the veteran's military experiences. Often family members are afraid of saying the wrong thing, pushing too hard, or worry that starting this conversation will open a
