Many people aren’t taught what boundaries are or how to properly set them. Just like any new skill, learning to set boundaries can feel clumsy and awkward at first. As you learn how to set boundaries, you may run into some common myths:1. Setting boundaries is mean. I hear this...
One of the main issues people come into therapy wanting help with is communication; whether it is between two spouses, a parent-child relationship, an entire family system, or even an individual needing help in expressing themselves. Some of these complaints may sound familiar: “They...
All relationships can experience gridlock when talking about a difficult topic. Relationships, whether it be a couple, friendship, parent-child, or family system, tend to have a familiar dance that plays out in communication and conflict. For example, a common dance is the pursue-retreat...
If you’re like most people, your New Year's resolutions have already fallen to the wayside and you have likely fallen out of the habit of changes you had hoped to make. Creating healthy, sustainable changes is not impossible, you may just need a new strategy. Perhaps you’ve...
I recently read Peggy Orenstein’s book Girls & Sex then attended a workshop she hosted for Bay Area parents about the changing landscape of adolescent female sexuality. (Side note: This is exactly the type of hot pink, bold front cover books that therapists read on airplanes...
It’s that time of year again, hearts and flowers and reminders of love are plastered on the walls of your favorite coffee shop, stores are filled with signs telling you to show your love with a $300 bouquet of roses, and pink and red cards are front and center at the grocery store...
Every one of us craves the feeling of belonging, by nature we are communal or tribal, it is built into us to be in relationship with others. Think back over the course of your life and you will see this play out in different ways- the group of friends you spent most of your school days with, the...
A recent study by Common Sense Media surveyed the attitudes, concerns, and behaviors of parents’ media use. Many parents express concern about their children’s use of media, in how it affects their sleep, effects of social media, too much time online, etc. Parents, it turns out...
In our affluent area, it's not uncommon to hear parents lamenting of their children's materialism but unsure of how to change it. With the constant barrage of ads, marketing, and social media, we fight an uphill battle. Adults get easily sucked into "more, more, more" and the upward comparison...
Heading home for the holidays can conjure the warm fuzzies of nostalgia and anxiety of old patterns or family conflict. Whether heading home from college, returning to your childhood home with your own family in tow, or hosting family yourself, spending time with family can often pull...
