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Steven Topper, LCPC On any given day we’ll be asked one question that, for the most part, afford only three acceptable answers. When I get asked, “How are you?” I know that I can say: I’m great; I’m good; or I’m alright (though for that last one, make sure there’s a bit of cheer and smile in my voice!). It’s all well meaning, people don’t want to bother others, often we’re only being asked because the asker…
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Steven Topper, LCPC Many of us have a clear idea of what therapy is going to look like. We’ve grown up with images of a stoic and mysterious figure in a large chair while the patient is totally vulnerable. For anyone who has been to therapy, it’s typically quite a different experience than they were expecting. And as our understanding of mental illness has grown and evolved, so has our understanding of how to conduct effective therapy.…
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The human brain is a complex organ that serves many functions. However, there are times when our brain and its thought-processing function do not serve us in the most productive way. Our mind can sometimes play tricks on us, and it can emotionally and mentally wear us out to the point of exhaustion if we let it. We oftentimes fall into the negative thought trap, where we start having one negative thought and then it transitions into…
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I work with many clients who are frustrated with a lack of fulfillment in their life, whether it is in their personal or professional life. For some clients, they are hoping to find clarity of what their passions are, and then to implement them in their personal, professional, or for some lucky people, like myself, they are able to implement them in both. As a clinical therapist, I have always been passionate about connecting to people and…
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Work: we have a love-hate relationship with it. Many of us believe in the importance of hard work and search for passion in our careers. The first question out of our mouths when we meet someone new is typically, “What do you do for a living?” School preps us to be thinking throughout our whole childhoods about what we want to do when we grow up. Our work can give great meaning to our lives — many…
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How did you develop the way that you think about the world around you? Did you learn it from your parents, from school, or from your job? I recently read an article titled “The 2 Mental Shifts Highly Successful People Make” by Benjamin P. Hardy. Hardy discusses two major changes in thinking people make that ultimately lead to a higher likelihood of success. To begin this process, we must unlearn the way we think about the world…
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I work with many clients who struggle with anxiety and depression whether it is related to their personal or professional life, or for some, perhaps both. My job as their clinical therapist is to help the client identify reasons/triggers/stressors that are contributing to their anxiety, and then helping them to find possible coping strategies to help reduce the symptoms. One strategy I often suggest is aromatherapy in conjunction with deep breathing/meditation exercises. I also typically have lavender…
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Madissyn Fredericks, Licensed Professional Counselor Life can throw us some curve balls and complaining can feel like an effective way to get through them. While it can feel good to complain about the situation, it is also not the best thing to do for our mental health. Complaining includes judging yourself or others, looking at the negative side of things, being hard on yourself, and sitting in the hard stuff rather than pushing through it. Over time,…
Read MoreMadissyn Fredericks, Licensed Professional Counselor Anger is an emotion that we have all felt at some point in our lives. While we have all experienced it, many don’t realize anger is considered a secondary emotion. A secondary emotion is defined as an emotional reaction we have to a primary emotion such as sadness, hurt, rejection, trapped, humiliation, etc. When we react with anger it feels automatic and sometimes uncontrollable, but we do it to protect ourselves from…
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Breakups are difficult for many reasons, and often times during the breakup, we do not know how to handle it in a healthy and beneficial way. We tend to focus on the negatives of the relationship and also for the day and a few days after feeling anger and wondering why the relationship not work out. If you are the one who is doing the break-up or have been broken-up with, follow these tips to help you…
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