After reading about the tragic attack and death of Nex Benedict, a 16 year old non-binary student in Oklahoma, I sat down to write another blog post about why we need to take care of our gender diverse community and how to support our gender diverse teens at a time
In 1990 I was a couple of years out of college, trying to support myself with multiple jobs, and navigating a relationship with a partner who could best be described as “non-committal”. I was also working in a domestic violence shelter and observing how often fear of being alone and
It goes without saying that technology and interconnectedness has brought immense benefits to our lives, but it has also introduced new challenges, particularly for our seniors. One of the most prevalent and concerning issues faced by older adults is the threat of fraud. Seniors are often targeted due to perceived
After a significant loss in high school, I was invited to join our school counselor’s student grief group. One day the counselor gave us each a mix-tape CD. As I listened, each song made me cry, in a really good way. This was my introduction to music as a compliment
The look. Anyone who has experienced a loss knows the look I am talking about. That flat smile of lips closed together. A sigh, sad eyes and tilted head. If you’ve recently experienced a death, that look greets you everywhere you go. Someone grieving recently told me it'd be nice
October 10th is World Mental Health Day. For 2023, the World Health Organization has chosen the campaign theme: Mental health is a universal human right. Per their statement: This includes the right to be protected from mental health risks, the right to available, accessible, acceptable, and good quality care, and
This year I am teaching a series of parenting classes called “Planful Parenting.” The goal of these classes is to give parents an opportunity to take a step back from the day-to-day challenges of parenting to think about their philosophy of parenting, their values related to parenting and how parenting your
Recently my manager, Dana Aderhold, shared this Psychology Today post that tackles myths of workplace mental health. She highlighted this sentence on the concept of managers serving as brokers of supportive resources: “You do not need to be a therapist to your team—a best practice is to be a broker
This weekend I was in the car with my son and his spouse, and they were listening to one of their new favorite bands. When they got to a song I liked, I asked my son to add it to my playlist. His spouse had never heard of this playlist
This July I'm refreshing the previous Strengthening Your Relationship email series from 2021. The email series offers quick ideas and information within three categories: research and insight, questions for closeness, and weekend activity ideas. As I revisit this content I was reminded of the weekly meeting practice I wrote about
