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How ‘small t’ Traumas are Affecting Your Daily Life

September 30th, 2018
In: Trauma

Do you ever feel anxious, or embarrassed when meeting a new person? How about when you drive over a bridge, or go on a plane, or when you sit in the passenger seat of a car – do you get a bit nervous? ALL of these experiences originate in a trauma! And more often than not, they are what we refer to as a ‘small t’ trauma (as opposed to a ‘big T’ trauma).

IBD and Mental Health

September 28th, 2018

Championing IBD Hand washing is not exactly the activity you'd picture indulging in if you wanted to win a gold medal at the Olympics. Yet, that's exactly what the British Cycling Team did at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. They hired a surgeon to teach the athletes to properly wash their hands, avoiding illnesses during competition. The team staff were utterly fastidious about food preparation. They even brought their own mattresses and pillows, so that the athletes could sleep in a familiar posture every night. 

Emotional Eating During The Holidays

July 30th, 2018

Most emotional eaters dread the holiday season with its treats, food focused social events and hyper buffets. That’s because food is the socially acceptable addiction, compulsion and even obsession. For emotional eaters, this can make the holidays a time of self-loathing, complexity and strain. We hope these few tips can help you more successfully negotiate this seasonal food-fest: 1. Plan, Plan, Plan! And write down your danger zones.

TIPS FOR PARENTING YOUR CHILD WITH ADHD

July 23rd, 2018

Attention-Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common mental health conditions in children according to Statistics Canada. It is characterized by inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity, although these symptoms vary. ADHD usually arises in the preschool years but is typically identified in the elementary school grades. Drop out rates for these kids are higher.

10 Tips On Mindful Separation: How To Tell Your Children

July 19th, 2018

You have decided to make the difficult step to separate. You’ve decided to be mindful and collaborative in your separation. Now, how do you tell your children? Here are some sound guidelines to follow when speaking with your children about your separation. 

Is there hope for me?

April 15th, 2016
In: Anxiety

When you’ve been struggling with anxiety or depression for awhile it can be hard to feel that there is any hope for things to change. Added to how stuck you might be feeling is the constant reinforcement in our culture of the idea of a quick fix. It's the "Here, just do this one thing and you will feel better indefinitely" kind of attitude. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all about people getting relief as quickly as possible. It’s just that this kind of attitude can be a setup when what is needed is patience, time, and realistic, achievable goals.

Show me Happiness!

March 29th, 2016

I regularly hear from people that they desire to have more happiness. An understandable desire! But if someone is experiencing flatness the next step isn’t to feel happy, it’s to feel. And rarely (although I can’t say never) do I hear someone say, “Can you help me to feel more sadness, more anger, more fear?” along with their request for more happiness. Also understandable! We all have a history that has shaped our relationship to emotion. Often that history hasn’t included healthy models for how to be with feeling and how to express feeling.

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