Clinical Therapist & Writer
TO STOP WORKPLACE VIOLENCE, WE HAVE TO LEARN TO LISTEN FOR IT.
“I refuse to be singled out for mistreatment,” he told me.
I was sitting in the backroom of a maximum-security facility that housed violent offenders, doing my best to understand where my client was coming from.
PERFECTIONISM CAN BE MANAGED THROUGH REVISING UNHEALTHY BELIEFS, PRACTICING MINDFULNESS, AND SETTING REALISTIC GOALS.
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Perfectionism can feel like a relentless pursuit of a goal that’s always out of reach. This constant striving for flawlessness can trap us in a cycle of fear, self-criticism, and unmet goals.
COUNSELORS CAN HELP CLIENTS WHO HAVE EXPERIENCED CHILDHOOD ABUSE REMEMBER THAT THERE'S STRENGTH IN CHOOSING TO SURVIVE.
Like many who've experienced childhood abuse, James was frustrated with himself. He didn't understand his response to his grandpa, or rather his lack of response. "I just accepted it," he said. "I didn't even raise my voice."
Deploying Therapeutic Airbags to Enhance Clinical Outcome
THERAPY CARRIES INHERENT RISK, AND EVENTUALLY WE'LL GET INTO ACCIDENTS, BUT WHAT IF WE ABANDON THE "DO NO HARM CREED" AND BUILD STRATEGIES INTO THERAPY FOR DAMAGE-REDUCTION?
Jessica (an amalgam) was 30 years old when she came to our clinical team. Her health was complicated and so I attended a consultation to discuss the details.
Sidestepping the Dependency Dance in Pyschotherapy
FOUR STEPS MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONALS CAN USE TO DIRECTLY ADDRESS CLIENT DEPENDENCY IN THIS DIGITAL AGE AND SET THE STAGE FOR POSITIVE THERAPEUTIC OUTCOMES.
We’ve all had someone text us a single question mark after not responding to them within the timeframe they expect. You know the one.
Suicidal Debates with Clients in Psychotherapy
A CLINICIAN LEARNS FIVE INVALUABLE TRUTHS ABOUT DEPRESSION FROM HIS CLIENTS ON THE ROAD TO HELPING THEM AVOID THE DARK ALLEY OF SUICIDE.
When I started working as a therapist, the prospect of a client dying from suicide terrified me. I worried I would miss the warning signs, and that my negligence would have deadly consequences. There was a dangerous side of therapy, and I worried that eventually, there would be no avoiding it.
The Disconnection of Depression: How to Restore Attachment Using Cognitive Interventions
PARADOXICAL COGNITIVE INTERVENTIONS IN THERAPY CAN HELP FREE DEPRESSED CLIENTS OF SELF-DESTRUCTIVE RUMINATIONS AND BEHAVIORAL HABITS.
“I don’t want to be a burden,” she told me. It’s a phrase that I’d heard many times, and it often came from my aging or depressed clients. Her words came from a selfless place.
Avoiding Burnout Traps: Managing the Conflict between Empathy and Exhaustion
A SEASONED CLINICIAN EXPLORES HOW CARING TOO MUCH CAN LEAD TO EXHAUSTION, AND OFFERS SUGGESTIONS FOR AVOIDING COMMON BURNOUT TRAPS.
As a beginning therapist, my first five years were spent in uncomfortable places. Maximum security facilities, county crisis centers, and emergency rooms.
The Dismissal of Divorce Advice
A THERAPIST REJECTS COMMON ADVICE GIVEN TO NEWLY DIVORCED PARENTS AND PROPOSES NEW SOLUTIONS TO HEAL RELATIONSHIPS
It’s a distressing reality, but advice for the newly divorced might be as common as advice for the newly married. Advice for the newly divorced often centers around protecting any children who might be involved because although parents get divorced from each other, children become divorced from the only life they have ever known.
