Confessions of a Counselor Part 3 How aware are you of your self-talk and the words you use with yourself and others?  It’s time again to share another hidden treasure of therapy, which at first can seem really annoying, but over time becomes a tremendous asset. That hidden treasure: awareness of the actual words you use with yourself and others....[ read more ]

Welcome back to our holiday survival guide! Last week, we explored how gaining awareness of ourselves and those around us is crucial in not only surviving the holidays, but thriving.  This week, we explore the next three guideposts in surviving the holidays.   Guidepost 3: Time to evaluate There are two main questions for this guidepost: Was this Thanksgiving break...[ read more ]

Welcome one and all to our guide on surviving the holidays! (Part 1) If you are one of those rare individuals who do not have family drama, conflict, or a long lost relative that chooses to reappear during the holiday season, that's wonderful. For the majority of the population, the holidays seem to bring something out of those around us...[ read more ]

I guess I am going to turn this into a mini-series (check back to last week’s blog post). Except, I am not going to a Catholic Priest to confess and then do my penance. I have done that twice in my life though. I was a child and had no idea what I was doing. Had I been going to...[ read more ]

Have you ever wondered what some of the hidden benefits or struggles are with therapy? Have you ever wondered how you came into therapy wanting to reduce anxiety, and a few months later you are grieving losses from your childhood, and seeing the world differently? You see, here at Phenix, we have a strong belief in transformational work, which is...[ read more ]

How do you combat despair?How do you keep worries in perspective?   I'm here to propose an answer to you. There is a power in remembering the good, no matter the situation we are in.  Today's topic and answer to combatting despair, living a life of anti-misery, is gratefulness. What comes to your mind when you hear the word "grateful"?...[ read more ]

Have you wondered why excellent therapy can seem expensive? Do you want to get the most out of the therapy process? By the time a new therapist graduates from their masters program, they have spent more than 600 hours in graduate level classrooms taking courses dedicated to the art of helping people with life problems.  They have sweated almost 2000...[ read more ]

That's an aggressive title, isn't it? With the world as it currently stands though, the way we recover from the daily chaos, stress, and unknowns has to be aggressive. It has to be unstoppable. We have to force through the circumstances of life to find time to take care of ourselves. We desperately need it. A common theme in therapy...[ read more ]

Do you wish there was an instant switch from insight to doing life differently?  Have you ever been stuck in the transition between dysfunction and learning how to live in a new way?  Back in 2015, I heard Jeff Manion speak on his new book, The Land Between.  I purchased the book at that conference and have referred to his...[ read more ]

So this post will be different from my others. Here at Phenix, we strive to live by authenticity. Which means we live out what we challenge each of you to do each session. Usually, my posts are written after I’ve processed something, after I have learned a new concept, one that I have had time to put into motion. This...[ read more ]