12 ways to manage family holiday visits
Family gatherings are nearly always complicated. Consider these 12 strategies to help minimize the distress for yourself.
Heather M. McKenzie, Therapist
(919) 744-8335
Online Counseling and Clinical Supervision
I hope that you find the content here helpful! This blog is meant to provide ideas, tips, and insights and is not meant to replace a relationship with a therapist or to serve as medical advice for your specific needs.
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- Oct 23
- 7 min
Like yourself more: the power of self-validation
Validation is a human craving. We all want to matter. Since external validation isn't guaranteed, learning to self-validate is essential.
- Sep 24
- 8 min
How do I know what I’m feeling?
Emotions are crucial to our success, so it's important that we are able to identify exactly what we're feeling. Learn your body clues here!
- Aug 27
- 7 min
How to get started with mindfulness
Mindfulness is an effort to have intentional awareness of what is going on inside of you at the present moment. But how do we do this?
- Jul 29
- 7 min
How does my attachment style impact my relationships?
Our attachment styles will show up with every human interaction. Learn how your tendency towards Secure or Insecure attachment impacts you.
- Jul 29
- 7 min
What is my attachment style?
Attachment Style refers to the way we perceive and connect with others. It’s at the root of all our interactions with people.
- Jun 22
- 4 min
Quick strategy for managing intense emotions - the STOP skill
Emotions dictate where our attention goes. The more intense an emotion gets, the more it narrows our focus. Use the STOP skill for control.
- May 21
- 9 min
What does Borderline Personality Disorder look like?
The BPD criteria are explained in terms to help you better assess if this is something that applies to you or someone you care about.
- Apr 20
- 7 min
6 Ways to Improve Self-esteem Without Therapy
You are the only person you'll for sure be with until you die, so the health of this relationship and your self-esteem is crucial.
- Mar 23
- 7 min
Why do we have emotions?
Emotions are crucial to our survival. But if we don't have great strategies for managing them, they can get us into a world of pain.
- Feb 23
- 7 min
What makes a person trustable? 11 traits to look for.
Trust is one of the scariest gifts we can give someone and trust is crucial for healthy connections. 11 qualities to determine trustability.
- Jan 26
- 5 min
What can I eat for better brain health?
Brain health impacts emotional health. Eating brain healthy foods can increase your mental clarity, emotional management, and overall health
- Nov 3, 2020
- 7 min
How to practice self-compassion (or “Would you say that to a friend?”)
Self-compassion is about the practice of treating yourself with kindness, just as you would treat a friend you cared about.
- Oct 20, 2020
- 4 min
Is my relationship healthy?
Take a few moments to reflect on these crucial elements that may be healthy (or not) in your connections with other people.
- Sep 15, 2020
- 6 min
How much do you really know about suicide?
Suicidal thoughts do not mean you are crazy or that you are broken.
Suicidal thoughts DO mean that you are human and that you are in pain.
- Jun 7, 2020
- 5 min
How to cope when the nation is in crisis
The U.S. is going through intense and emotional turbulence. There's no roadmap and this is new for all of us. Some tools to help you cope.
- Apr 14, 2020
- 8 min
Surviving Stay Home Orders with your Sanity Intact
There's no roadmap for what we're experiencing right now. Here are 19 strategies to help us emerge on the other side with our sanity intact.
- Mar 31, 2020
- 11 min
How a quarantine can impact your relationships and interactions (and what to do about it)
If you live with other people, you will be dealing with some unprecedented experiences in your environment over the next weeks and months.
- Mar 10, 2020
- 6 min
Your (understandable) anxiety about the Coronavirus COVID-19
Feeling overwhelmed about a novel pandemic killing people worldwide is perfectly fitting. But letting anxiety control or paralyze you is not
- Jan 21, 2020
- 4 min
Questions to ask before getting married or making a commitment (please!)
If you're thinking about making a long-term commitment, please save yourselves some heartache and dive into these questions. Please!