Reading 8 Keys to Mental Health Through Exercise can help you get motivated, build self-esteem, and heal your mind and body. I was recently given a copy of 8 Keys to Mental Health Through Exercise by Christina Hibbert. I was immediately excited to see it’s full of reflection questions, writing prompts, and action items. I’m a real self-help book junkie. I […]
Tag Archives: san jose counseling
12 Tell-Tale Signs That You’re a People-Pleaser
Are you a people-pleaser? Being kind, generous, and flexible are wonderful qualities. But sometimes we’re too accommodating, too eager to please, and too afraid of saying “no”. There is a price to be paid for being “too nice”. Ryan is a classic people-pleaser. He’s been dating Jessie for two years and hopes to marry her. From the beginning, Jessie has been […]
Parenting Teens: 5 Ways to Cope with Your Teenager’s Drug Use
I recently had the privilege to write an article for the Stop Medicine Abuse campaign. Their mission is to prevent abuse of over the counter medications, especially cough medicines containing DXM. I decided to write a piece for parents about how to cope if your concern about your teen’s substance use. My tips apply whether your concern is OTC drugs, […]
Parenting Teens: Don’t Forget Their Strengths
It’s so very easy to focus on all the challenges of parenting teenagers. Even the research shows that teens are often moody, impulsive, and have poor judgment and planning. We all know that those teenage years are stressful and awkward beyond belief for both teens and parents. Teens often get a bad rap. After recently writing a post about how to cope if […]
Rediscovering Yourself
Do you have a clear sense of who you are? We all want to understand ourselves, to have purpose, fulfillment, and belong. Teens and young adults wrestle with “finding themselves”. It is common to revisit these themes in middle age. I see many clients in their 40’s, 50’s, and 60’s who have lost themselves over the years of work and […]
The Steepest Hike: How Struggle Can Bring Us Together
A few days ago I went on the steepest hike with my family. Was it really the steepest hike? Of course not. It may not have even been the steepest hike I’ve ever been on. It just felt like it. We really hadn’t planned on doing this hike. It was getting late in the afternoon. It was warm. I desperately needed a […]
What is Codependency?
Codependents often grew up in dysfunctional families (often plagued by abuse, addiction, mental illness). Many find a spouse/partner or have a child or other family member that is very troubled and becomes the focus on the codependent’s life.
Are You Sleep Deprived?
Sleep is an essential part of physical and mental health. I routinely see clients who are sleep deprived to some extent. It seems they fall into two categories: 1) Those that have insomnia and can’t fall or stay asleep and 2) those that don’t prioritize sleep in their schedule.I fall into the second category. Like many of you, I am […]