Remember back in March and early April when the shut-down still had a slightly exciting and very temporary feel to it? It was stressful, frustrating and sad but it was also strangely exhilarating. That’s because we were all operating (and sometimes thriving) using our emergency stress response that humans turn to during a crisis. It’s a surge of mental and ...READ MORE »
Back-to-School can be a stressful and emotional period for both children and parents. This can be true for all families, but if there was a recent separation or divorce in your family, you are likely starting the school year with a ton of new logistics and feelings to consider. Children can be especially anxious at this time. What will they ...READ MORE »
Divorced parents need to rely on email to communicate the logistics of running a two home family. Unfortunately, in my work counseling divorced parents, I witness fighting over email more than you would expect! Email arguments are rarely productive because someone can always come up with another counter argument. This serves to fuel conflict and will eventually spill over to ...READ MORE »
I recently spent time on a trip with an old friend who introduced me to Animal Spirit cards, which are basically Tarot cards with animals. I must admit I was skeptical. I thought it might be a fun activity but wouldn’t be particularly meaningful to my life. She asked me to think of a challenge I had been dealing with recently ...READ MORE »
I recently went to see the documentary Won’t You Be My Neighbor? the story of Mr. Rogers. I was brought to tears multiple times during the movie. Those tears, and the messages of Mr. Rogers, left me with some reflections about my own journey as a parent and my clinical work as a child and family therapist in Washington, DC. Children ...READ MORE »
In my work with college students, I have witnessed wide-eyed 18-year-olds show up at school ready to jump in feeling excited and confident–only to fall flat emotionally in two weeks. In contrast, I’ve seen many anxious, shy, homesick kids work through lots of rough emotions during the hardest weeks of their lives and come out pretty strong in the end. ...READ MORE »
As we know, many teenagers heading into college can become anxious and emotional. It seems to be a prime time of life for their developing brains to have some emotional hiccups. While most college-bound teens teenagers will only deal with mild to moderate transitional issues, some may experience significant and debilitating symptoms that require extensive interventions. As a psychotherapist in ...READ MORE »
For many children going through a divorce, they suddenly find their world in pieces, their foundation uprooted and their parents consumed by a tug of war. Divorce is not easy and co-parenting post-divorce is never simple and smooth. But the biggest indicator of successful divorce recovery for children is whether their parents can manage and minimize their conflicts AND ...READ MORE »