Perinatal Support for Moms
Struggling doesn’t mean you aren’t grateful. It doesn’t mean you don’t love your child enough. It doesn’t mean you’re doing motherhood wrong. What I know is how much it matters to have a place where you can be honest about it all—the love, the anxiety, the anger, the guilt, the loneliness, the identity shifts, and everything that might feel hard to say out loud.
Beyond the Mind: How My Nutrition Background Shapes My Approach to Therapy
Long before I became a therapist, I was interested in how our physical and emotional health are connected. That interest led me to study Clinical Nutrition at UC Davis alongside Psychology, and later to work in behavioral nutrition and become a personal trainer. Here are five ways my background informs my therapeutic approach.
Heartbreak, Relational Transitions, and Growth
In giving grief room to stretch out—and meeting it with curiosity rather than judgment—we can begin to reconnect with our values, our relationships, our sense of self, and ultimately, the person we are becoming. There is immense power in moving through heartbreak while keeping the heart open. Little by little, as we allow ourselves to feel our grief without turning away or hardening against it, we create space not only to understand what we have lost, but also to intentionally step into the potency of who we are becoming.
Perfectionism and Anxiety
So what is this relationship between perfectionism and anxiety? Basically, it's complicated... The pursuit of perfection becomes a maladaptive way of coping with the stress of anxiety, and perfectionism itself further fuels the anxiety.
Rest. Pt 2
I believe that our culture makes a lasting impact on our relationship to rest in 3 ways:
1. Many Americans feel guilt associated with not being constantly productive
2. People genuinely feel that they are too busy to rest
3. There is still a stigma attached to talking about and/or prioritizing ones emotional and mental health needs over the "need" to be productive
My response:
1. You are not what you "do"
2. Simplify, Simplify, Simplify
3. Be Brave
Rest. Pt 1
First the definition of rest:
v. to cease work or movement in order to relax, refresh oneself, or recover strength.
n. an instance or period of relaxing or ceasing to engage in strenuous or stressful activity.
Accepting Anxiety
One great metaphor for how this works is the Finger Trap metaphor. Remember that toy from when we were kids? The more you try to pull away, the tighter it gets... but move toward, accept and embrace... it loosens and you have your freedom.
A Case for Your Nervous System
I'm going to share one way that I help clients understand how to begin to manage their anxiety in a preventative way - with nervous system awareness and regulation. This is also relevant if you get stressed or overwhelmed regularly.
May is Mental Health Awareness Month
Many people struggle with anxiety, depression and/or other mental health diagnoses. These are invisible ailments that often aren't treated with the same level of compassion as physical ones. We've come a long way against the stigma of mental health issues and therapy, but not far enough.
Is Now the Time for Therapy?
If finding a therapist is something you've been putting off there's no better time to get on it. Often people wait until they are in moments of crisis to begin searching for a therapist. The process can be daunting, using insurance tricky... Waiting until a moment of emotional distress can often yield mediocre results.