Be Your Own Sunshine: Make changes

"You cannot expect to meet new goals or move beyond your present circumstances unless you change." Les Brown Sometimes you have to be your own sunshine. We can't fully control our environment and what's going on around us, but we can change what's going on within us. Ugly weather, pandemic, dealing with grief, loss, depression, … Continue reading Be Your Own Sunshine: Make changes

How I Overcame My Fear of Trail Running After Encountering a Cougar

Fastest Known Time, Unsupported, Women's Record We all experience scary events, some are traumatic, terrifying, and shake us to our core. If it was a traumatic event, it literally reshapes both body and brain.  A small way to address this reaction is to change your relationship or the way that you think about the traumatic event. … Continue reading How I Overcame My Fear of Trail Running After Encountering a Cougar

Spinning Your Wheels? Ask for Help When You’re Stuck

We don't always like to ask for help, a lot of times we'll wait until we're feeling completely overwhelmed by emotions and stress. While there are multiple reasons that we might behave this way, such as fear of failure or rejection, for example... however, this article isn't about the whys. Let's get right to the … Continue reading Spinning Your Wheels? Ask for Help When You’re Stuck

Are You Feeling Distressed?: Rate your level of distress

Use this distress scale to help you become more aware of how you are doing. The scale is 0 to 10, where 0 is that you feel at peace and are completely calm, and 10 is distress that is so unbearable that you cannot function. Refer to the scale, as-needed. If you find yourself rated … Continue reading Are You Feeling Distressed?: Rate your level of distress

What People Think Therapy is vs What it Actually is

What people think it is: • Talking to a therapist about problems. What it actually is: • Talking to a therapist about problems. • Making changes to thoughts and behaviors. • Psychoeducation. • Building awareness of thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. • Between session work. • Learning and practicing coping strategies. • Working on becoming less … Continue reading What People Think Therapy is vs What it Actually is

IMPROVE Skill (Distress Tolerance from DBT)

DBT Card Deck by Lane Pederson, PsyD, LP, DBTC - PESI Publishing and Media IMPROVE IMPROVE the Moment. The acronym IMPROVE makes life a little bit better when it is not going so well.During a crisis, you have two options. You can sink into the distress or invest in behaviors that might improve how you … Continue reading IMPROVE Skill (Distress Tolerance from DBT)