As the seasons change, it’s essential to be aware of how this shift may affect your mental health. Recognizing the signs and symptoms of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) can empower you to take proactive steps to care for yourself. Whether it’s through staying active, or seeking professional support, you don’t have to navigate this seasonal challenge alone.
What can you expect from your therapist when discussing politics? Therapists enter the counseling room with a goal of complete acceptance of who you are as the client. Your therapist will likely validate your feelings as they do on any topic you bring to counseling. However, expect your therapist to refrain from getting into a discussion or debate about candidates or policy. Instead, your therapist will get curious about what emotions come up for you when you discuss or read about politics and how these emotions impact your daily life.
ACT challenges the common belief that happiness is the norm and that something is wrong with us if we are not happy.
The goal of ACT is not to eliminate difficult feelings, as this has been shown to be harmful and nearly impossible. Instead, it focuses on accepting challenging emotions and thoughts and learning how to live a more meaningful life.
Studies have shown that individuals who received greater support after psychedelic therapy had greater positive behavioral changes.
Providing a safe space for Ketamine integration aligns with Ignite’s whole-hearted approach to counseling. As clinicians, we are dedicated to meeting our clients where they are, and providing them with a unique and compassionate experience. With the legalization of Ketamine therapy in Colorado, Ignite is working to fill a much-needed void of psychotherapeutic support, and providing a space for group work further de-stigmatizes what it is to be human through connection.
Photo credit: David Clode on Unsplash
Neuroception is a fundamental aspect of our nervous system that influences how we perceive and respond to the world around us. In somatic therapy, understanding neuroception is essential for creating safe therapeutic environments, regulating the nervous system, and facilitating healing from trauma and emotional challenges. By integrating practices that promote embodied awareness and regulation, somatic therapy offers a holistic approach to mental and emotional well-being.
Some practical somatic applications to try….
For many, the holiday season presents a challenge to be, well, festive and merry. There is something about the holiday season – less hours of daylight, more time indoors, expectations of being social – that has a way of increasing depression symptoms.
I would like to suggest a gentle, self-compassionate approach. Here are some ideas to do so:
I think it is safe to say, we all struggle with shame at times and the ‘shadow’ parts of our lives that we may not like to show to others, for fear of judgement and condemnation.
If we each commit to speaking freely about our concerns, reach out for help, normalize and empathize with others’ experiences -- We can advance. We can heal. We can make meaningful impact on the lives of others. We can change the course of history! The Shaming Culture does not need to be our legacy.
A traumatic experience can be processed and stored in the brain in different places. If the event is stored in the pre-frontal cortex, the area responsible for rational adult thinking, the experience is unlikely to cause persistent trauma or injury. Problems occur when the traumatic experience is process and stored in the amygdala, the survival part of the brain responsible for fight-flight-freeze responses. When that happens, a seemingly mundane event like a firecracker on the 4th of July can trigger an overreactive response that is rooted in a past traumatic event, such as a landmine detonating. Or, you might experience a significant anxiety response in your body when anticipating a situation at work or argument with someone.
Beyond the therapeutic effect of EMDR, there are many added benefits that result from an overall increase in mindfulness and the mind-body connection. The reason for this is that EMDR treatment works at the level of mind/body connection: the client thinks of an experience (mind) and integrates a bilateral body movement such as eye movement or tapping (body). This is where the healing begins, at the intersection of mind and body. Repeated exposure to EMDR results in an overall increase in mindfulness and the inner peace that mindfulness brings.
Every brain is equipped with a genetic threshold that can trigger addiction. The reason why some people can use drugs and alcohol without becoming addicted is that the genetic threshold is different for everyone. Once this threshold has been crossed, the neurochemistry in the brain changes, creating a “new normal,” or homeostasis. The brain essentially rewires itself for dependence on the substance.
Trauma and OCD Specialists | We are proud to serve the Denver Metro and surrounding areas | telehealth offered to clients in the state of Colorado | Individual and Group Therapies
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