• February 17, 20223 min

    The Power of Self-Affirmations

    Imagine you are playing a video game or board game with a friend, and the instructions clearly give each of you a role to play in the game: your friend is the proverbial “good guy”, and [...]

  • February 1, 20223 min

    Loving Yourself Doesn’t Have To Be Hard

    I don’t like the way my belly looks in the mirror when I’m getting dressed in the morning. I hate it when I speak too quickly during conflict and say something stupid. I can’t stand [...]

  • January 18, 20223 min

    So You Broke Your New Year’s Resolution Already, Now What?

    First things first, please know that you are not alone! One of my own new year’s resolutions was to exercise more. So far, I am averaging only 3 times per week or so. It’s better [...]

  • January 3, 20223 min

    Realistic Hope for 2022

    I’ve been accused a time or two of being unrealistically optimistic. My accusers may be right! However, my optimism comes not from a place of vanity or blissful ignorance, but rather from a deeper place [...]

  • December 9, 20212 min

    Generosity and Your Mental Health

    ‘Tis the season to be jolly! Or, so they sing. Many of us, however, do not feel so jolly as we prepare for the upcoming holiday season. In fact, we may feel downright depressed or [...]

  • December 6, 20212 min

    Gratitude and Your Mental Health

    I love the late Autumn and early Winter. It brings us cooler wind, warmer drinks, more colorful trees, and fonder get-togethers with family. It truly is one of my favorite times of year, perhaps even [...]

  • November 22, 20213 min

    How to Tell Your Drinking is Becoming Problematic

    It’s Friday afternoon, and you just finished a long workweek. You’ve worked hard! It’s time to put your feet up, turn on the TV, and…have a drink. Right? Many of our Friday afternoons look like [...]

  • November 3, 20212 min

    Resilience: What It Is and What It Isn’t

    Oxford dictionaries define the word resilience as, “the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness.” This definition seems well enough on a surface-level reading. However, when the word is considered in the context of our [...]

  • October 7, 20213 min

    Fight-Flight-Freeze: Stress and the Brain

    Imagine you are hiking in the Smokey Mountains in Tennessee. As you round the corner on the path, you see an adorable black-bear cub scamper across into the bushes 10 yards ahead of you. Then, [...]

  • September 16, 20212 min

    Recovery Awareness Month 2021

    What is “recovery”? Recovery is…..more than sobriety. Recovery is…..more than wiser choices. Recovery is…..more than mental wellness. Recovery is…..more than healthier relationships. Recovery is…..more than better activities. So, we ask again, what is “recovery”? Of [...]

  • August 23, 20213 min

    3 Easy Nature Moments that Benefit Your Mental Health

    Although many students are lamenting the end of their summer break, for most of us (adults), summer was just another season of the daily “8 to 5 grind.” Perhaps you have felt it too, that [...]

  • July 26, 20213 min

    Generational Myths that Stigmatize Mental Health

    According to Mental Health America, 46% of adults in the US will experience symptoms of mental illness at some point in their lifetime. This year alone, nearly 1 in 5 adults in the US will [...]