Over the years, I’ve had the gift of working with clients who, through their experience with therapy have become inspired themselves to become therapists. This week I had the pleasure of speaking with one of these clients who is now finishing her masters degree and in the early stages of building her private practice. Listening […]
A year ago I was referred a client who I’ll call “Shelly” who had recently gotten a divorce. Like many women I see directly after a divorce, her self esteem had been crushed and her identity completely altered. For a long time she was unable to step into her power, gravitating toward people and situations that did not […]
A few months ago a client “David,” who suffered from severe, debilitating anxiety was referred to me. For many years his negative thoughts had controlled the way he viewed the world. He had somehow been able to hold down a stressful job, however his mounting anxiety had taken a toll on his emotions, his physical health and his relationship with his family. In our first session, David shared with me […]
From the moment we awaken in the morning, we are overwhelmed with emails, texts, Instagram feeds, Facebook posts, news headlines and phone calls, all pulling us out of our dream state and toward a world filled with emptiness, fear and relentless responsibilities. It’s no wonder that many of us want to roll over and hit […]
When was the last time you stopped to do – nothing? Most of us are so distracted in the world in which we live that we are no longer present or aware of our routinized, patterned, distracted behavior. We are so used to this pattern of distraction – staring at our phones, our televisions, driving […]
Recently, I visited the meditation center Unplug, located just below my office in Santa Monica. Excuse the pun, but I have to give a major plug to this fantastic center. Unplug offers a variety of meditation classes, including sound baths, aromatherapy meditation, breathwork, guided visualization, meditation for manifestation, meditation for type A’s, mindful-stress mastery, etc. I […]
Many years ago when I worked at an addictions treatment center, I saw a client who was trapped both in an addiction as well as a dysfunctional relationship. We happened to be sitting outside during our session and as my client talked incessantly about her difficult situation we both watched a tiger swallowtail butterfly become […]
“The root of suffering is attachment.” Guatama Buddha A few months ago I had a man in my office who couldn’t stop complaining about his wife. The minute he walked through the door he began to grumble about her. Everything she did and said rubbed him the wrong way – the way she had no […]
“TO LOVE IS TO RECOGNIZE YOURSELF IN ANOTHER.” Eckhart Tolle This week, we heard a news station make the mindless remark that we shouldn’t care about children and families in distress at the Mexican border because after all, they are not American families. Behind this remark lies a whole belief system – if our family […]
Too often I see couples sitting on opposite ends of my couch, clutching onto the decorative pillows as if they were floatation devices, staring angrily in opposite directions. Yet, when they talk to me about what they most deeply desire, it is EXACTLY THE SAME THING as their partner describes – to be seen, heard, […]