“Life’s hard. It’s supposed to be. If we didn’t suffer, we’d never learn anything.” Ethan Hawke So much of our efforts and ruminations center around making our lives easier. And why wouldn’t they? You would be hard pressed to find a single person who didn’t want their lives to be easier. That said, this desire, […]
We have to prepare the child for the path, not the path for the child Tim Elmore Preparing vs protecting. This has been described as the greatest paradox of parenting. Not only are these the two essential tasks involved in parenting, but they have a strange relationship to each other. At times, protecting a child […]
“Being human is not about being any one particular way; it is about being as life creates you—with your own particular strengths and weaknesses, gifts and challenges, quirks and oddities.” Kristin Neff “Remember, you have been criticizing yourself for years and it hasn’t worked. Try approving of yourself and see what happens.” Louise L. Hay […]
“When little people are overwhelmed by big emotions, it’s our job to share our calm, not join their chaos.” L.R. Knost At the outset it is important to understand what happens in the body when we experience anxiety. In part one, we talked about how anxiety evolved to keep us safe. Part of that evolutionary […]
Anxiety, especially among adolescents, is at an all-time high. For parents and young adults, understanding how anxiety functions, and strategies to address it, are the first steps to a less anxious future. The first thing to understand is that anxiety is a natural psychological and physiological phenomenon. Anxiety evolved to keep us safe from danger. […]
“I define a good person as somebody who is fully conscious of their own limitations.” John Bradshaw “All you can really do is try to be a good person and try to make good decisions and try to survive.” Barrett Wilbert Weed Feeling that you’re not a good person, or consistently doubting that you are, […]
“The brain is like Velcro for negative experiences and Teflon for positives ones.” Dr. Rick Hansen Do you find that you tend to focus on the negative aspects of life? Whether it’s negative aspects of yourself, others, situations, or even negative versions of the future, you’re not alone. In fact, research has shown that, as […]
“The chains of habit are too weak to be felt until they are too strong to be broken.” – Samuel Johnson As promised here are some more tips for establishing whatever positive habit you’re looking to integrate in your life. Remember, these habits don’t just have to be lifestyle related (exercise, eating well), in fact, […]
From ancient thinkers like Aristotle and the Buddha to modern self-help gurus, the power of habits has been recognized for a long time as important to who we are and how we feel. This idea not only speaks to the power of tiny acts to create big changes over time, but also to the power […]
By Dr. Amanda Stoner It seriously is for me, the most wonderful time of the year. I love Christmas! And this year, I am feeling especially grateful for the gift of family. I am so excited to travel to Ontario where my family lives, where we will celebrate Christmas together. However, I realize that this […]