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How We Talk to Ourselves Matters

October 20, 2020

By: Emily Brennan, MA, LAC, NCC You have probably heard the phrase, “It’s nice to be nice.” An accurate statement, indeed. What about being nice to ourselves? It may sound cheesy, but how “nice” we are to ourselves and our ‘self-talk’ in general is more important than we think. Self-talk is our inner dialogue and it can sound harsh and critical or tender and loving. For many of us, it is much easier to be self- critical…

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The Anatomy of Gratitude

October 14, 2020

By: Bridgette W. Gottwald, LPC, NCC “Today is a wonderful day…I haven’t seen this one before” – Maya Angelou  Recently, I listened to an insightful podcast titled “The Anatomy of Gratitude” with David Steindl-Rast, a ninety-three-year-old Benedictine monk and teacher on the subject of gratitude. He makes useful distinctions about experiences that are “life-giving” and “resilience-making.” He shares interesting perspectives on the ideas of gratefulness, joy and anxiety. If you haven’t listened to it yet, I highly…

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The SWOT Analysis

October 12, 2020

By Eric Dean JD MBA MA MA LPC CADC To create plans for how we are going to achieve our goals, we need to know our starting point. SWOT Analysis, which stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats, is a tool used by organizations and people to evaluate their current positions. SWOT analysis can help elucidate information that would otherwise be hard to uncover and provide a baseline assessment for evaluating progress. Here are a small sample…

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How to Find Joy When Life Gets Tough

October 8, 2020

It is no secret that life is a little strange right now. The world as we know it has been turned upside down and people are running into hardships they may not have encountered otherwise. In an uncertain environment, how do we find joy in our daily lives? It’s helpful to understand what the definition of joy actually is. Joy is a strong, long-term state “… that results in feelings of inner peace and contentment.” Those who…

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Drying Out: Alcohol’s Effects on the Body

October 4, 2020

Bridgette W. Gotwald, LPC, NCC Alcohol. That’s a word that will quickly grab the attention of many members of our society. It’s hard to believe that we’re already half way through 2020, and the year has quickly gotten away from us. In countless of my clients’ first sessions of the new year, numerous people were thrilled to tell me that they are engaging in dry January. A new year starts, people are inspired and ready for new…

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Coping With a World in Crisis

October 2, 2020

Hannah Hopper, LPC Exhausted, frazzled, overwhelmed, and burnt out. If any of these words describe how you’ve been feeling lately, you’re not alone. Many of my clients have used some variation of these words to describe what they’ve been going through over the past several months, and at times it may feel like there is no end in sight. When our world is in a state of crisis, it’s hard to escape feeling overwhelmed. Below are several…

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Managing Anxiety in an Ongoing Global Pandemic

October 1, 2020

As we approach August, it’s becoming clear the COVID-19 pandemic is not ending anytime soon. Adjusting to our new normal can be incredibly difficult leading to increased levels of anxiety and difficulty maintaining focus. For individuals in a position of power or leadership, within their companies or homes, this can cause difficulty dealing with the ongoing changes as a result of COVID-19 and the normal day-to-day changes. The longer we remain in a heightened state of stress/anxiety,…

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Yes, You Can Feel Multiple Feelings at Once

September 30, 2020

Matthew Cuddeback LCSW We often believe our thoughts and feelings need to neatly fit together however; it is usually not so simple. We often try to fight or deny it, but the fact is that we often feel many different things at once, and often these feelings can seemingly conflict as well. It is important to understand this experience and take meaningful action to get more comfortable with it. This struggle often occurs when something happens, and…

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Back to the Basics with DBT

September 25, 2020

By Eric Dean JD, MBA, MA, MA, LPC, CADC What can I do to feel better? This is a common question that I hear from clients. DBT provides some helpful guidance on this matter. Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) is a widely utilized modality that is comprised of four components: Distress Tolerance, Interpersonal Effectiveness, Mindfulness, and Emotional Regulation. Each component consists of acronyms that represent skills and ideas helpful for the respective topics. Here I will be describing…

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Recognizing Your Triggers Part II

September 24, 2020

By Eric Dean JD, MBA, MA, MA, LPC, CADC In the first part of this series, I laid out some common triggers for those in recovery from substance abuse. In this post, I will describe some additional triggers and explain the differences and relationships between internal and external triggers. Another acronym for triggers is BIRD: BIRD stands for: Bored: Feeling bored is common in early recovery. Getting alcohol, using alcohol, and recovering from the effects of alcohol…

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