5 Ways to Help Newly Adopted Children During the Holidays
When most people celebrate the holidays, they are surrounded by loved ones telling stories and laughing over mugs of hot cocoa as they exchange gifts. During this time of holiday cheer, many children who were adopted are faced with the realization that they will not see any of their biological family during the holidays. It is a stark reminder of the grief and loss they have...
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A Therapist’s Observations on Low Self Esteem
As a therapist working with many individuals, I have found that most people go through life wondering if anyone cares. But if we truly look deeper, we can usually see that’s not entirely accurate. So, what’s motivating the activation of this feeling that “no one cares.” Old unresolved abandonment wounds? Old feelings of neglect and/or experiences of having been rejected, dismissed...
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How to Cope with Family Estrangement During the Holidays
Holidays are steeped in traditions that are centered around the family and there is a hallmark sentiment that everyone is rejoicing in love with their near and dear during this most festive time of the year. The truth looks a bit different though. Family conflict, tension and even estrangement are more common than you may think. One study found more than 40% of participants had...
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A Registered Dietitian’s Healthy Eating Tips for the Holidays
The holidays have arrived— the time of year when we get together with family and friends to celebrate! Since many holiday festivities center around food, this time of year can be challenging for those attempting to eat healthy. However, going into the holidays with a plan and knowing what choices to make will help alleviate this added stress. Read on for a registered dietitian’s...
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Coping With Grief During the Holidays
Kristen saw her reflection in the full-length mirror. She looked lovely in the beautiful dress she had purchased for her company’s holiday party. Yet, in the blink of an eye, Kristen found herself sobbing, the carefully applied make-up now smeared by her tears. She didn’t know how she was going to get through the event. All she could focus on was her beloved sister, whom she tragically lost a...
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5 Foods to Ease Seasonal Affective Disorder
Seasonal affective disorder (SAD), better known as seasonal depression, can be defined as a reduction in brain chemicals that help regulate mood, potentially resulting in periods of depression during certain times of year. Research shows that people with seasonal depression may have reduced serotonin, which helps regulate mood, and possibly too much melatonin, which helps maintain the...
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6 Ways Your Food Choices Can Help Lower Stress and Support Mental Health
There are no magic foods for boosting your mood. But when Registered Dietitian Kali Alrutz works with patients at the Counseling and Wellness Center of Pittsburgh, she often begins by telling them that a healthy diet can really help support their mental health, as well as their physical health.
Kidsburgh asked Alrutz for advice on how Pittsburgh families can use healthy food and drink to help...
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Which Meditation Style is Right for You?
There are a plethora of meditation styles available which can support your overall wellness goals. With such an array of meditation styles, you may wonder which form would be most helpful for you to reduce stress or induce your next nirvana. Since each meditation style require different skills and mindsets, read on to see which one might be right for you. Walking Meditation. Walking...
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8 Ways to Make Your Relationship More Comfortable
Relationship Advice for Couples
At the start of a relationship, it’s perfectly normal and natural to feel nerves. You are still trying to present the best version of yourselves. Over time though and as the relationship progresses, it’s vital to learn how to feel comfortable in your relationship. A lack of comfort with your partner can prevent you from growing as a couple and can possibly...
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7 Sober Activities To Do in Pittsburgh
National Recovery month is observed in September every year. It gives us the opportunity to celebrate Sober life, break down stigmas and bring awareness to addiction. The month serves as a celebration of the steps taking to improve access, information, and treatment. You can observe National Sober Month by spending it Sober. While that may seem simple enough, it may come as a challenge to...
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Top 5 Rituals to Create Connection in Your Relationship
Creating a love that lasts takes time and commitment. One of the keys to this kind of love is intentionality. Intentionality is acting in a deliberate manner that shows your partner that you love them. It might look like cooking a nice meal for your partner, or getting them a special coffee, or maybe another gift like flowers. Being intentional is a necessity to maintain romance and foster a...
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5 Tips for How to Deal with a Jealous Partner
Jealousy is an important and useful emotion. It can indicate that something is amiss in our relationship. It can help us act in a way that brings greater closeness and security to our connections when we respond to the signals of this emotion in a supportive and relationship-supporting way.
Yet jealousy can also reign down on our relationship, it can pull apart the integrity of a connection...
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Suicide Prevention and Warning Signs
September 10 is World Suicide Prevention Day. According to the World Health Organization, over 700,000 people will die by suicide each year. We should think about the signs, symptoms, and behaviors of the people around us so that we can do our best in having awareness to prevent suicide.
Suicide is, unfortunately, still a taboo topic and product of dismal and ill mental health; major...
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7 Tips on How to be Happy
Bliss, contentment, joy, with all of this jolly there is much debate. Are we birthed from our mothers’ wombs and onto the terrestrial sphere with an innate capacity to experience greater abundance of positive vibes or is a happy disposition something that can be nurtured? There are endless varieties of self-help books, and spiritual manuals indicating the gamut of tactics which when put...
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The Best 5 Steps for Making More Adult Friends
It is widely acknowledged that making friends as an adult can be a huge challenge for many and there are real reasons why this occurs. There is something very special about the connections we nurture in our childhood and teen years and if you are one of the lucky people who remains near and close with your childhood friends you will easily note how irreplaceable those special connections are....
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What is Complicated Grief?
Losing someone close to you can invoke many complex emotions like sadness, pain, loss, and hurt. These feelings are natural and a part of life, but with complicated grief, or complicated bereavement disorder, such feelings don’t fade with time or improve. Their emotions might be so intense that it disrupts their daily life.
Living with complicated grief can bring up dysfunctional behaviors and...
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Mental Health for Everyone
The month of May is Mental Health Awareness Month. Learning about mental health and why it is important to take care of breeds promise for a happy, healthy community. Beginning in America in 1949, this outreach program has grown to include over 150 countries. Today, in 2021, its’ purpose of raising awareness and educating the public about mental health is more important now than ever before...
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10 Natural and Sustainable Ways to Manage Anxiety that Aren’t Meditation or Exercise!
Anxiety management in a healthy sustainable way!
Here is the ultimate listicle of healthy ways to reduce and manage anxiety symptoms beyond meditation and exercise because while both of those do work, they might not be in everyone’s tool bag. Here are 10 simple and effective therapist verified ways to help.
Blow bubbles! This works two ways, one who can be anxious when they are...
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