Blog
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Managing Grief at Holiday Time
We often hold an image at the end of the year of gatherings of family and friends, laughter and sharing, warmth and love. While these images may hold true for some families, for those with a recent loss the holiday season can be especially painful. The holiday season is not always full of joy and
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How to Avoid Past Relationship Mistakes
It is rare to find a couple who connect quickly and carry on with a healthy, happy relationship. Most of us carry some baggage from childhood, family relationships, or past romantic relationships which can affect how we show up in a new relationship. That baggage is both neurological and emotional. Current research seems to indicate
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The Adverse Childhood Experiences Study
Last month I wrote about the effects of childhood trauma on the autoimmune system. This month, I will go a bit more in-depth and look at the results of a major study of more than 17,000 people, beginning in 1995, to study reasons why obese patients found it challenging to lose weight – the results
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A Link Between Trauma and Autoimmune Disorders
A recent New York Times article explores a study on a link between Lupus and stress. One of the authors of the study, Andrea Roberts, is a research scientist at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Roberts explains, “There is a lot of research showing that mental health, stress and trauma affect physical
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Don’t Let Fear Win – How to Stand Strong
It can be tempting to turn away when faced with seemingly overwhelming challenges. But there is great power and transformation when you find the courage to stand strong in the face of fear and anxiety. I am not referring to the kind of immediate fear generated by a crisis, but instead of the kind of
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How to Silence Your Inner Critic
We all know that there is a great deal of discord between individuals with different lifestyles and beliefs. It is easy to become stuck in our perspectives about the world and how we and others should live our lives. In doing so, we lose our connections with a greater truth, and how we can be
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Breathing Practices for Calm
No matter how stable or grounded you are, there will no doubt be times in your life when you feel stressed, anxious, or upset. At times like this, your breathing becomes shallow (or you may even unconsciously hold your breath), and there is an increased release of stress hormones in the body. Your chest may
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Life with an Addict – Letting Go
Setting healthy boundaries can be a challenge in any family, but in the case of addiction, it can be very difficult. You want the best for your children and your spouse, but it helps nobody to attempt to rescue or control their behavior related to substance abuse or other addictive behaviors. When you are in
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Finding Safety in Everyday Life
For some people, the need for personal safety can get in the way of living life to the fullest. Those who have been physically, emotionally or mentally wounded may find that those scars, those fears, take on more power than they would like. The sexually abused may fear intimacy. An assault victim may fear sudden
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Building Bridges Across Differences
Throughout history, humans have argued about all kinds of perceived differences – generational, spiritual, political, financial, educational, racial, class. Is there a way to build a bridge between individuals regardless of their differences? Absolutely, one person at a time. The first step is to release judgment and expectation about who or what you believe about
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What Can You Hear in the Silence?
In our busy and noisy electronic age, it is rare to find true silence. In this context, I am not referring to silence as the absence of sound, but as the absence of input, chatter, the hums and beeps of technology, and repetitious and useless thoughts. We may rebel against silence, where we are confronted
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A Best Practice for a Peaceful Life
“Mindfulness,” a technique in which you are focused on and deeply aware of your experience in the present moment, has been studied for decades as a path to well-being. This practice is a valuable tool for living a peaceful life. When you learn to be aware of the present moment, your relationship with your thoughts