Say No. One of my favorite authors is Dr. Henry Cloud and his series of books dealing with setting boundaries with other people. Growing up I did not really feel I had a voice since my opinions or thoughts were dismissed. Also, being raised in Charlotte, NC being part...
OCD? The term “I am feeling OCD today” has become much more common that part of me cringes when I hear this. There are myths of what someone may think is actual Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and there are also definite behaviors that deserve closer attention. At what...
I “inherited” Noel two years ago from another counselor in the agency that I work with left to start her own practice. Noel’s folder which contains weekly session notes, treatment plans and input from other doctors must have been an inch and half thick. Noel had been...
Exercising, working out more and/or getting more cardio in has to be in the top five of New Year’s resolutions. While fulfilling a New Year’s resolution or any kind of resolution is definitely possible to fulfill, many seem to lose the reasoning and motivation they...
Ownership. I am part of a group on Facebook called “Becoming a more effective therapist.” Someone had asked what some good books are to read that would be applicable to a mental health practice. One suggestion is a book called Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willnk who...
When good becomes bad. There are so many good parts of a person’s life such as their family, job, a new house for the family or even looking forward to a week’s vacation. What happens when those things take a turn for the worse and become bad? I watched a sermon over...
Catastrophizing. A Cognitive Distortion is a thought or series or thoughts that causes to the mind to think certain things are going to happen such as thinking the world is going to end on Arbor Day which is really not true. There are several cognitive distortions...
Angus is most likely one of the nicest people you will meet. Angus has Autism Spectrum Disorder where his goal in treatment has been to express his feelings more freely and develop social skills. I have been meeting with Angus for about a year and a half. Progress has...
Wayne has been a client of mine for the past few months. Growing up Wayne had a speech impediment causing him to stutter incessantly. When Wayne was a teenager, he started to get a better handle on his stuttering but still the scars remained of classmates and family...
Lessons in counseling. When I first started counseling full-time in 2016, I was asked many times, “How do you know what to say?’ One answer would be to name some of the theories I have learned in graduate school such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy or Person-Centered...
