Summer Can Increase Exposure
It's summer and school is out, which means it is peak season for traveling, flip flops and SPF is the first thing you see when you walk into the store! As a kid, I remember July being the month when I rode my bike to...
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What Father's Day Means To Me
Father's Day means many things to many people. Our entire team has participated in creating this Blog with the willingness to share through vulnerability and transparency their unique experiences to express what Father's Day means to them. Through reading each experience, we hope each reader...
Mother's Day (from a single mother's perspective) By: Cherie Oakley
I never had some grand idea of what a Mother’s Day should be like. I know some women receive gifts, some are taken out to a nice lunch or dinner, some get breakfast in bed. I think most moms just want to feel appreciated. Maybe a little extra help around the house on Mother’s Day, a card in the mail from their son or daughter who live out of town, a phone call or a text … Words are really powerful, and it doesn’t take much to tell someone you love them, appreciate and value them, and that means so much! Isn’t that what we all want anyway? For me personally, I was asked if I was going to do anything for Mother’s Day recently and I said “No, it’s just like any other day “… See, I’m a single mom.
Tis the Season of Love, Relationships and ... Conflicts - By Emily Kerlin
I am a therapist who enjoys working with couple’s (spoiler, we are a rare breed)! I love watching two people learn more about themselves, while learning more about each other and applying that knowledge to their relationship. It can be some of the most challenging and rewarding work to do and I do not take it for granted when I get to witness repair and growth within a relationship. It is interesting to me the way that there can be reoccurring themes that come up in couples therapy, no matter the presenting problem. It is also interesting to me that tools that seem to work to resolve issues in romantic relationships also seem to work for any kind of relationship.Since February tends to get this reputation of being the month about love and relationships, I thought I would share two things that can help us strengthen our relationships. As a disclaimer, this is not just for romantic relationships; these tools apply to all relationships in our life.
A Practical Guide to Handle Holiday Stress - By Emily Kerlin
The holiday season can bring people around a table, who have not seen each other in a long time. For some people, it feels exciting and enjoyable to share a meal or a cup of coffee with family or friends that they have not seen...
Election Stress and Polarization: How to Cope and Cultivate Peace
Picture this scenario. You’re out to lunch with co-workers one week before the presidential election. You cover all of the small talk pleasantries, and after a while you start to wonder, “Will anyone dare to acknowledge the pressure cooker that our nation is sitting in...
Paris Olympics 2024: Celebrating Strong and Courageous Women
On Sunday night the torch in Paris was extinguished to close out the 2024 Olympic Games. The world came together as it does every 4 years to watch the most talented athletes compete. Our eyes are captivated by the astounding capabilities of the human body...
Inside Out 2: The Journey of Recovering the True Self
Summer is officially here with triple digit heat indexes to prove it! Typically, this is a season of slowing down from the usual pace, enjoying time at the pool, kids going to summer camps, family vacations and…summer movie blockbusters! Our family was particularly excited about...
Mother's Day: Honoring Nurture
On Sunday we honored mothers, and despite my good intentions of having this blog done at least a few days before the holiday, life got in the way. So a day late is going to have to be good enough. More often than not, I’ve...
Starving for Connection: Social Media, Eating Disorders and Fasting
As I write this blog on a chilly and dreary March 1, I’m hopeful that the groundhog was right in that we will enjoy an early spring later this month. I’ve written before on finding purpose in the seasons, particularly trusting that winter is a...
Thanksgiving 2023: Grief and Gratitude
It’s been a minute since my last blog, and typically when I procrastinate with writing it’s because I’m avoiding something. I think I’ve known that due to the recent events in my life, this blog would need to be more vulnerable, and it’s risky for...
Tending the Soul: Pruning Through Trauma Therapy and the Enneagram
Earlier this year on a cold an icy day I wrote about reframing the “dead of winter” as an invitation to rest. Just as the trees let go of their leaves to conserve water and nurture their inner root system, we may need to let...
The Covenant School Shooting: Grieving While Supporting Our Children
What do you say when there are no words that seem to fully express your deep heartache? That’s where I’m at the day after the Covenant School shooting in Nashville that took the lives of three 9-year-old children and 3 adults, before the shooter was...
Eating Disorder Awareness: Calling for Change
March is here and the first signs of spring are popping up that reveal the hope of new life. Concurrent with this transition to a new month is National Eating Disorder Awareness Week, which this year was from February 27 – March 5. Because preventing...
Winter 2023 - A Call to Rest
Winter 2023: A Call to Rest As I type this on January 31st it’s a dreary and cold day in Nashville with ice in the forecast for tonight. Winter is fully present, and despite those sporadic days that tease us with milder temperatures, winter claims...
Cultivating Joy and Peace While Preventing “Holidaze”
“Are you ready for Christmas?” Every year around this time I hear this question from well-meaning friends and acquaintances trying to make friendly conversation. I’ll engage and recognize their intent, but all the while that question just adds more pressure to the long to-do list...
Thanksgiving 2022
It’s late November, and Thanksgiving is upon us. I’ve always found it appropriate that before the holiday season of giving and receiving comes the holiday that focuses on gratitude for what we have, or at least that was the original intent. As the American tradition...
September is National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month
The focus of this month’s blog is of a more serious topic that isn’t often talked about, which is all the more reason to be talking about it: Suicide. September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month- a time to raise awareness, break the stigma, share vital...
Transitions and New Beginnings
The end of July is upon us and with that comes not only lots of heat and humidity here in the South, but also the preparation for a transition to more consistent routines. The more relaxed flow of summer will begin to fade for families...
Mental Health, Gun Violence and PTSD: Where is the Hope?
June 2022 Blog Mental Health, Gun Violence and PTSD: Where is the Hope? May to June: Just this flip of the calendar has always seemed to me like one of the biggest transitions of the year. In May spring is in full bloom, and just...
The Path Towards Growth: Ambivalence, Burnout and Expansion
So it’s been a minute since I posted a blog…almost 9 months in fact. I could come up with many excuses for not writing and could almost always fall back on busyness as an excuse, but I always say that you have time for what...
Defining Courage: Reflections on Simone Biles and Mental Health
Defining Courage: Reflections on Simone Biles and Mental Health After Simone Biles withdrew from Olympic competition for mental health reasons, I’ve taken some time to digest what she’s stated, and to read the opinions of others. As a mental health professional and as a former...
Re-entry: Navingating Our Comfort Zone
Re-entry: Navigating Our Comfort Zone As the case numbers of COVID-19 continue to decrease as vaccinations increase, the world is opening back up. On May 13, 2021 the CDC updated the public health recommendations by stating that fully vaccinated people no longer need to wear...
Spring: The Hope of New Life
Spring: The Hope of New Life Welcome Spring! For me the early signs of spring are always exciting and hopeful. Everything that had died starts to come to life again. Growing up in Indiana, winters were bitter cold, and I remember how I couldn’t wait...
Doorknobs: The Gateway to Connecting
A couple of weeks ago I embraced a home project that involved doorknobs- lots of them, 20 to be exact. We moved into our new home a little over a year ago, and while there’s much that we love about it, the shiny brass doorknobs...
2020: Farewell or Good Riddance?
2020: Farewell or Good Riddance? One more trip around the sun, and the time has come when many reflect upon the previous year and set intentions for the next. When I opened my practice in February of 2018 I intended to begin a blog for...
Reflections from March 2020: The Lion and the Lamb
I can still recall sitting in my first grade class around March 1, listening to our teacher tell us about the old proverb, “March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb.” I’m not sure why that memory stands out to me. Come...