Art and Practice of Psychotherapy

Wired for connection, baby daughter looks into her mother’s eyes needing to see delight reflected back to her. What if, instead, baby’s gaze is met with emotional emptiness? Lights ... Read More

Shame has a bad reputation. Let’s face it: it doesn’t feel good. I mean, who really wants to feel shame? It’s uncomfortable, even downright painful at times. Here is something to ... Read More

Being close to someone who is suffering because of trauma can be a difficult, bewildering experience. Trauma symptoms may appear suddenly, sometimes surfacing many years after a traumatic ... Read More

Where do you feel safe? For me, it is not in my husband’s arms, it is in his heart. It is in a deep knowing that he will hold me there and that he feels me there even when I am not immediately ... Read More

Have you ever felt like your emotions are so overwhelming they will never stabilize? Maybe you have an intense urge to return to unhealthy or risky behaviors to make yourself feel better. ... Read More

Many therapists have dreams of one day starting their own private practice. Following through on these aspirations, however, requires taking a number of things into consideration. There ... Read More

It isn’t uncommon for us to move away from certain feelings. We have all kinds of methods to help us numb out our emotions. Many times we do this without even being conscious of it. As ... Read More

One of my favorite books is Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist. It’s a story about a shepherd boy who journeys in search of a treasure about which he has dreamed. What I love about the story ... Read More

When you find yourself between jobs and under pressure to find a new one as quickly as possible, depression and anxiety are real risks. Attending interview after interview and receiving ... Read More

“Ending a therapy session is a hostile act.” This was said to me by my therapist once after we discussed how, regardless of whether I had a “good” session or a frustrating one, ... Read More

Anxiety can manifest in a variety of ways in the human body. It can make us tense in our large, voluntary muscles, activate the involuntary muscles of our internal organs, and even cause ... Read More

“When you know better, you do better.” —Maya Angelou Have you ever met someone who was great at making decisions? Their decisions may not always work out flawlessly, but the ... Read More