People Can Pull Us Through It: Secondary Traumatic Stress

Overheard at a party: What do you do for a living? Oh, social work? That’s so hard.” Conversation ends. The stories social workers (and other caregivers) have can be buzzkills at parties. Our work is tough, and most folks don’t want to hear about it. This isn’t to paint us all as saints. We knew it was tough when we chose our line of work. But it can be very lonely to sit with our experiences, especially when you get secondary traumatic stress (STS). STS is the Post Traumatic Stress [...]

2023-04-18T12:05:59-04:00May 1st, 2023|Mental Health, Stress, Trauma|

Beleaf it or not: Plants make you happy! The effects of nature on mental health

Have you noticed a difference in your energy and mood after interacting with nature? How about going for a walk through your favorite park or smelling your favorite flower? Do you leave feeling more relaxed? Calm? Have a smile on your face? If you tried any of those activities and noticed a positive and uplifting shift in your energy and mood, your mental health likely was positively impacted by nature.  Nature and mental health are more closely connected than you may think. Did you know spending time in nature outdoors [...]

2023-04-30T09:41:17-04:00May 1st, 2023|Mental Health, Self-Help, Stress|

No Feeling Is Final

Imagine you are at your doctor’s office. The nurse takes you back to see the doctor – what do they do next?  “Let me get your temperature, blood pressure, check your height and weight.” A process we are all used to: checking vital signs  Imagine you’re a client of mine now (I’m a psychotherapist, or simply, a therapist). You come into my office. I’ll check your mental health vital signs: How are you sleeping? How's your appetite? Your mood? Are you having fun? Are you hanging out with people?  So [...]

2022-08-22T20:45:40-04:00September 12th, 2022|Anxiety, Depression, Mental Health, Stress, Suicide Prevention|

Signs of Corporate Burnout & What You Can Do

Working takes up, at a minimum, one-third of our life, and half of our waking hours. Naturally, workplaces have a significant impact on their employees’ mental health and well-being. Whether you work remotely or in-person, full-time or part-time, it is important to pay attention to wellness in the workplace.  Warning Signs of Poor Workplace Wellness Experiencing ongoing feelings of helplessness/hopelessness Chronic exhaustion and fatigue Identity becomes centered around work (e.g. this work will not continue without my presence) Difficulty concentrating or focusing on tasks Daily avoidance of tasks – can occur at work [...]

2022-06-06T22:55:45-04:00June 27th, 2022|Mental Health, Stress, Workplace Mental Health|
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