If you’ve ever had a thought so disturbing it made your stomach drop, you’re not alone. Most people occasionally experience random, intrusive thoughts like imagining pushing someone into traffic, blurting something offensive, or even harming a loved one. These thoughts come and go without much weight. But for people with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, they aren’t as temporary. The thoughts tend to stick, sparking fear, doubt and spirals of self-questioning.
Do you ever find yourself reacting to certain situations in a way that feels overwhelming or outsized? Do you find yourself yearning for others to reassure you amidst this feeling or insist that someone else act in a particular way that will relieve your activated emotions? Do you ever get teary-eyed or tender when you think of yourself when you were a child, or see an adorable picture of you when you were a kid? If so, you may have just uncovered your wounded inner child.
You're an active participant in your life, not a passive bystander. You’re connected to your body, your emotions, your time, and your values. That connection helps you move through life in a way that actually feels like living.
In all relationships, life occurs, and shifts happen outside of and inside the couple unit. As much as we may want to protect our relationship bubble from outside influences, we are not immune to the climate around us. If we expect to be the same people, with the same life, and the same experiences throughout a long-term relationship, we are actually setting ourselves up to be especially vulnerable to the impact of both external pressures and internal change. Change will happen. The adage of change being the only constant is especially true when navigating relationship changes. So how do we navigate them together, instead of growing apart?
When previously romantic long distance relationships depended on idealization, pining, and pen-pal style correspondences, these days, LDRs contain as many emotional, logistical, and relational challenges as more geographically convenient connections, compounded by the added variable of physical distance. Because of this growing access to romantic partners across the world, long distance relationship advice, support, and communication tips for couples navigating love across the globe have never been more needed.
Do you ever find yourself reacting to certain situations in a way that feels overwhelming or outsized? Do you find yourself yearning for others to reassure you amidst this feeling or insist that someone else act in a particular way that will relieve your activated emotions? Do you ever get teary-eyed or tender when you think of yourself when you were a child, or see an adorable picture of you when you were a kid? If so, you may have just uncovered your wounded inner child.
Almost every client had questions and doubts about the EMDR experience beforehand. All questions are completely understandable, especially because there are some EMDR myths floating around the dialogue that can percolate and lead to a general sense of hesitation. Let’s break down together what EMDR is, and what EMDR isn’t.
Along with the obsessive mental replay comes a series of questions and confusion, with no satisfying answers. Questioning your own memory or perception: Was any of it real? Am I going crazy? Your own value: Was I not attractive enough? Desirable enough? Questioning the truth of who this person was the entire time, who now feels like a complete stranger. The compulsion to know everything: Who? What? Where? When? How? Is healing what I want? Is it even possible? What happens if I leave? What happens if I stay?
When it comes to healing from trauma, discomfort can sometimes be part of the process. In EMDR, it often means something meaningful is starting to move.
When people think of trauma therapy, they often assume that remembering the traumatic event is a necessary part of healing. But what if you don’t remember? Whether due to childhood amnesia, dissociation, or the brain’s natural defense mechanisms, many people struggle with unclear or missing memories of painful experiences. If this sounds familiar, you may wonder: Can EMDR Therapy still help?
Imagine your emotional state as existing within a window. When you're within this window, you can think clearly, make rational decisions, and feel in control of your emotions. This state allows you to handle daily stresses without becoming overwhelmed or shutting down. It’s where we experience a balance between our sympathetic (fight-or-flight) and parasympathetic (rest-and-digest) nervous systems. This is your window of tolerance.
While the holidays are filled with the warmth of loved ones around the table, laughter echoing through the house, and shared traditions, grief sees the empty chair, the unspoken name, the absence of familiar voices and touches. What should feel like togetherness instead brings a longing for what is no longer possible.
Our senses play a pivotal role in how we form, store, and retrieve memories. This is because the brain areas responsible for processing sensory input are closely linked to the regions that store and retrieve memories. The hippocampus, which organizes and recalls memories, works together with the amygdala, the emotional center of the brain. They ensure that emotionally charged events are more vividly stored in memory. This link exists for both extraordinarily painful and joyful memories alike.
When we talk about “trauma,” we’re talking about an emotional or psychological response to a distressing event or experience. It’s not necessarily the event itself that’s traumatic but rather the way it impacts a person’s sense of safety, stability, or identity. Trauma often leaves people feeling overwhelmed, helpless, or disconnected from themselves or others.
