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By Dr. Larry Berkelhammer To help you understand how living by choice works in practice, here are a few examples of how I do it myself. When I sit down at my desk, I choose to breathe diaphragmatically and slowly. Normally, without consciously making that mindful, intentional choice, my respiration would automatically become shallow and […]

Contributed by Mary Bradley, LSCSW, LCSW For some, just getting out of bed in the morning takes courage. Depression, for example, can be debilitating and make it difficult to get out of your head and into your daily life. For many others, most days seem easy. Many optimistic people appear to sail through their days, taking stressors in stride, remaining positive, and

By GoodTherapy.org Staff People generally want to be accepted. For many, this means fitting in with the crowd. In order to do that, you may feel pressure to think and behave a certain way. The trouble is that when you try so hard to be what someone else considers normal, you may lose a part

By Pinky Jangra “You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love & affection.” ~Buddha Someone asked me a couple of years ago, out of ten how much to did I love myself? I said four. I had to give my immediate, intuitive answer, as this was the honest truth. Four! That

By Suzette Bray, Topic Expert Contributor Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) combines cognitive and behavioral therapies with Eastern mindfulness practices. Developed by psychologist Marsha M. Linehan, DBT is useful in treating individuals with a wide variety of issues, including depression, anxiety, bipolar, self-injury, eating disorders, substance abuse, and relationship conflict. The goal is for clients to learn to manage their emotions and develop healthier coping

Contributed by Tara Guest Arnold, PhD, LCSW Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is an offspring of cognitive behavior therapy that incorporates Eastern meditative practices. The dialectic comes from the synthesis of opposites, particularly acceptance and change, that is a tenet core to the DBT philosophy. We accept ourselves as good enough, and we recognize the need for all of us to

By Suzette Bray, MFT, Dialectical Behavior Therapy. Topic Expert Contributor Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) distress tolerance skills address the tendency of some individuals to experience negative emotions as overwhelming and unbearable. People with a low tolerance for distress can become overwhelmed at relatively mild levels of stress, and may react with negative behaviors. Many traditional treatment approaches

By Amy Morin LCSW Mental strength requires a three-pronged approach—managing our thoughts, regulating our emotions, and behaving productively despite our circumstances. While all three areas can be a struggle, it’s often our thoughts that make it most difficult to be mentally strong.  As we go about our daily routines, our internal monologue narrates our experience. Our self-talk

Contributed by Julie Hanson, MS, LMFT It would be nice if life presented itself as a clear-cut path with well-defined signs to clearly state what we should do (or not) at each fork in the road. The weather would always be beautiful. We’d always be enjoying our favorite foods while talking to our perfect families

By Sarah Noel, MS, LMHC, Person Centered / Rogerian Psychotherapy Topic Expert Contributor Imagine your best friend comes to you deeply distraught—her father died six months ago, and her mother’s health is rapidly deteriorating. Over the past year, she has been consumed with managing care and legal issues, making funeral preparations, and grieving. Naturally, some things at work and at home