Quick Tips to Manage Stress We all encounter stress in our lives and to varying degrees. In some cases, stress can be beneficial as it can help us prepare or perform or the “fight or flight” response when faced with a life-threatening situation. Stress that is negative can have harmful effects on your emotional, mental and physical health. This typically occurs in the following situations: work, overextending yourself, going through transitions like divorce, a break-up, a death, a traumatic stress/event or having [...]

Have you ever had moments of being self-critical and self-judgmental?  If you have, you are not alone. The thing is, sometimes we are aware of our self-criticism while other times we are not.  These thoughts can be automatic which is why increasing our awareness of this self-criticism, belittling and self-judgment can be so impactful.  The thoughts of “I’m not good enough,” “I can't do this” or “I'm a failure” whether we are aware of it or not can leave us feeling anxious, [...]

Emotional hygiene is a practice of daily care for your psychological health.  Just as you take care of your physical health. This can mean making time to exercise, drink enough water, brush your teeth, get enough sleep and eating your greens. It’s also important to take care of your emotional health. By not practicing emotional hygiene the body/mind can experience stress, anxiety, irritability, depression, loneliness, pain, and other strong emotions.  Your body responds to these emotions which can negatively impact your health.  These [...]

What is Mindfulness? Mindfulness is choosing to pay attention deliberately without judgment and being fully present at the moment, in the here and now. Break the daily routine and take a moment to be completely present.   Try this exercise next time you eat your favorite meal, take the time to smell it, see it, touch it, taste it and notice the sound it makes as you chew it. Enjoy your meal consciously using all of your senses. Notice how you ate [...]

  Besides being free,  journaling is available 24/7 with therapeutic benefits. Think of it as your companion and friend. 1) Reduces the intensity of your emotions by writing about your anger, sadness or painful emotions. 2) Reduces stress - by writing down your anxious/worry feelings it creates a structure and reduces stress and the physical impact on your body.  Once you have identified the problem you can then work on a plan to overcome the problem and in turn, reduce and/or eliminate [...]