Welcome to Our Mental Health & Wellness Blog
Our blog provides articles on mental health, therapy, emotional wellness, stress management, relationships, anxiety, depression, trauma, and personal growth. Our goal is to offer educational resources that help you better understand your mental health and support your overall well-being.
The information shared on this website is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended to replace medical advice, diagnosis, psychotherapy, counseling, or treatment from a licensed healthcare professional. Reading this blog does not create a therapist-client relationship.
If you are experiencing a mental health crisis or emergency, please call 911 or visit your nearest hospital or emergency department immediately.
If you are considering therapy or would like professional support for your mental health, we invite you to contact us to schedule a free phone consultation and learn more about our counseling services.
Working Through Shame and Embracing Self-Compassion
YOUR FEELING ARE VALID!
Our emotions guide us through life and when we learn to trust our emotions we have a better sense of self and we are better able to navigate challenges. It is an important skill to learn to validate our own emotions, and this is something that so many people have a hard time with. Think about a time you told yourself that you were overacting or that your being “silly” for getting upset or angry. We often berate ourselves and put ourselves down when we experience challenging and distressing emotions. We can also invalidate positive emotions, which tends to happen when we have a core belief that we do not deserve to feel good or we are not worthy of positive things.
POST THERAPY SELF-CARE
Guess what? Your therapist goes to therapy. I’ve recently started going to therapy again and I’ve started experiencing a familiar feeling that I hadn’t in a while. The post therapy hangover. What is that you ask? Well let’s talk about it
PURPOSEFUL JOY
Living through a pandemic is going to have lasting effects on the collective mental health of the world’s population. It was a heavy year last year, and we still have a long way to go before getting to the other side of this. Sometimes it can be hard to remember times when we were not steeped in uncertainty. It can be hard to let go of our stress and we can often find ourselves drifting in our thoughts even when you are trying to relax. It can help to try and make space for both emotions.
SELF-FORGIVENESS AND SELF-COMPASSION
Forgiveness is a complicated subject and it is something many people struggle with. It can be hard to let go of a past hurt and to start working towards building trust with the other person who caused the hurt. What’s interesting is that we are often quicker to forgive others then ourselves. We can hold on to anger, frustration, and resentment towards ourselves much longer then we do when it comes to others who have caused us pain. Why is it so hard to give ourselves kindness and compassion? I know that for myself that it can be hard to allow my heart to open up and give compassion and kindness to myself, so self-forgiveness can sometimes feel impossible.
CHALLENGING YOUR INNER CRITIC
We all have that cruel voice in our head whose sole purpose seems to be telling us how stupid we are. “No one likes me” “I am such a loser” “I never do anything right” “Of course I would screw up, it’s the only thing I am good at”. We are so harsh to ourselves, the things we say to our inner self we wouldn’t dare say to anyone else.
I'LL DO IT LATER
From the time we are young and into adulthood, we learn about the importance of routine, structure, and organization. We divide up our days to make sure that we are able to accomplish the necessary tasks of the day and keep on top of projects that we need to complete. Always striving to be on top of our responsibilities so we don’t fall behind because we know that could have negative consequences, and yet there are days where we are sitting on the couch and think to ourselves, “I can do that later”. This is a moment that every human has had at least once in their life (or in my case several times a week). Heck, I even thought that before writing this post. We justify this delay in many ways, either by doing another task (e.g. cleaning your pantry, organizing your closet, or cooking an elaborate and heathy dinner), this way we feel justified in our choice. We may say to ourselves “I have enough time tomorrow” or “I’ll work better under pressure anyways” (I tell myself the second one all the time).
HOW TO SHIFT YOUR SELF-CARE ROUTINE WHEN YOU’RE SOCIAL DISTANCING/SELF-ISOLATING
We are living through unprecedented times, and it’s been a real struggle to cope with this pandemic. For many people this lack of control has them feeling significantly elevated levels of stress, and this is normal. Often negative feelings give us a lot of good information about what we are experiencing and it is important to tune in and listen to ourselves and what we need in those moments. It may not seem like it however this is likely going to result in many people experiencing trauma for the first time in their life.
KEEPING AN INNER SCORE CARD
A common theme that comes up in sessions with many of my clients is comparisons. So many people are quick to measure themselves against the successes and failures of others, usually to the detriment of their own mental well-being. There is a fear that people have about falling behind, or not being good enough and being viewed a weak or pathetic.
HOW TO DEAL WITH BURNOUT
Last week we talked about what the signs and symptoms of burnout look like. People can experience burn out in any area of their lives. It often occurs when you feel overwhelmed, emotionally drained, and unable to keep up with expectation and demands, your professional role or in your personal life. Generally, burnout starts at work but as I have said before anyone can feel overworked, from a doctor working long overnight shifts at the ER to a stay-at-home parent who has to tend to kids, daily housework, and an aging parent.
BODY IMAGE AND SELF-ESTEEM
“I’m too fat”
“If I lose 10lbs I’ll be perfect”
“My lips are too thin”
“My stomach is so flabby, why can’t I have a flat stomach. I won’t ever look good. I hate the way I look.”
LOOKING AFTER OUR MENTAL HEALTH DURING THE COLD WINTER MONTHS
With the arrival of snow and cold weather in the Toronto area a lot of people begin to stay inside. They may see their friends less often and choose to stay inside and veg out watching T.V. instead of heading to the gym. If this behaviour becomes a pattern it has the potential to have a negative effect on our mental health. Isolation combined with a lack of physical activity can lead to an increase in depressive and anxious symptoms, especially for those who are susceptible to mental health disorders.