Whether it’s having to listen to your relatives’ questionable political rants or grimacing your way through an overcooked turkey, the winter holidays can be difficult at the best of times. Enter 2020, the year that brought us political upheaval, a racial reckoning, an incredibly tense U.S. election, economic instability, and of course, a deadly and destructive pandemic. Without a doubt, holidays this year will be more challenging than usual. We’re all excited to bid farewell to this dumpster fire of a year, but before we can do so, we should still expect that the holiday season will be emotionally challenging....

Updated on 9/7/2022 To some, the relationships between these fictional characters may be relatable, or even mild compared to the reality of their own family. There is certainly no such thing as a perfectly functional family, and all households have challenges and issues that manifest in a variety of different ways. But how those family problems are dealt with, or whether they’re even addressed, can determine the impact they may have on family members, often for the duration of their lives....

Updated on 1/11/2022For most people, shopping is part of daily life. Not only does it help us meet our basic needs, but it also lets us treat ourselves now and again. Sometimes it feels like a chore that just needs to get done, but other times it can be a positive, pleasurable experience that helps to relieve stress in our life.Many of us can relate to buying something nice for ourselves after a stressful day at work or an emotional conflict with a loved one....

Updated on 8/10/2021 What Is Behavior Modification? The principles of the practice come from the work of B.F. Skinner and histheory of operant conditioning. Building on Thorndike’s Law of Effect, which states that a behavior that has a good outcome will likely recur more frequently than an action met with a negative outcome, Skinner added the idea of reinforcement. Essentially, if a behavior is reinforced (i.e. praised or strengthened in some way), it will continue....

Erica Woodland didn’t intend to create a directory of queer and trans therapists of color. He was working as atherapist, supporting fellow queer and trans people of color (QTPOC), when he realized something had to change.Generational trauma, racism, incarceration, and state surveillance caused “pretty persistent mental health crisis” among the activists he worked with, said Woodland. So Woodland founded the National Queer and Trans Therapists of Color Network (NQTTCN),a database of dozens of queer and trans mental health workers of colorthat spans the entire United States....

Are you finding yourself absolutely drained after a day of Zoom meetings, even though you’ve barely left your desk chair? Yep, you can blame that on Zoom fatigue, and you’re far from the only one experiencing it. This phenomenon is widespread as so many of us are continuing to work remotely and have virtual meetings on video conferencing platforms such as Zoom — with the same, if not more, number of meetings....

Causes of Extinction When a person aims to eliminate a learned behavior, there is a key difference between their memory storage and memory expression — meaning the difference between what a person knows, and what a person tells another person they know. In extinction psychology, a connection between two events can be explained via classical conditioning andoperant conditioning. Classical and Operant Conditioning in Extinction Psychology Learning processes that occur naturally or intentionally through classical conditioning and operant conditioning play an important role in extinction psychology....

From the day we are born, the bond we have or lack with our parents affects our development. This goes on to impact our ability to form bonds with others beyond our caregivers. Having a secure attachment with your parents helps you create healthy bonds in all future relationships. This may sound like a lot of pressure on parents, but it is something that can grow over time and even change later in life....

Updated 3/09/2023 For some people, an ideal therapeutic approach doesn’t necessarily mean consulting a professional, answering questions that’ll help them determine what’s wrong, and listening to another person advise them on how to work through their struggles. The therapeutic process can also involve a more humanistic approach, where your therapist merely guides your journey of self-discovery and supports you in finding the answers you’ve been seeking. After all, you’re the expert on your own life....

You can’t stop thinking about them. The mere idea of them makes your heart light and fluttery, in all of the best of ways. And you count the minutes, or maybe even the seconds, until you can see them again. Yes, these are all the classic signs of falling in love, at least according to movies, television, and reality shows likeThe Bachelor. Although these things can all certainly be true when you’re first genuinely enamored with someone, there are other signs of romantic love to look out for....

Whether it be graduating college, moving to a new city, starting a different job, or doing all three at once, transitions are rarely easy. Even when the changes are welcome, the unknown can be scary and anxiety-inducing. Despite the challenges my new situation poses, I know this transition is pushing me to grow and will ultimately lead to amazing experiences and relationships. If you’re going through a transition right now, be gentle with yourself....

Updated 03/21/24 What is Talk Therapy?Talk therapy, or psychotherapy, is a method where individuals discuss their feelings with a licensed mental health professional to understand and resolve emotional and psychological issues. Talk therapy focuses on using conversation to explore and address troubling emotions, thoughts, and behaviors, facilitating personal growth and healing. While talk therapy can be done in individual and group therapy settings, it’s most commonly done one-on-one.Whether you struggle with depression,anxiety, or another type of mental health condition, this type of therapy can be very beneficial....

I still remember the first time I met mytherapist. My university health center gave me 5 names, and after looking each of them up, I called one because I loved the way she described her practice online — especially because she’d included that humor was important to her. I’m pretty sure I cried throughout our entire first session (and many following), but from the moment I stepped into her office I felt safe enough to show the most vulnerable parts of myself....

Updated 1/27/2023 We face countless stressors throughout life. Whether we’re worried about relationship problems, job issues, or the uncertain state of the world, let’s face it…life can be stressful. If it’s just a little stress or a big ball of panic in the pit of your stomach, learning how to calm down is a skill we could all practice.It might feel like learning how to calm yourself down is impossible, especially when you’re in the middle of a stressful or scary situation....

In 1993, Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch were dietitians working next to each other in the same office. Both of them, in keeping with the wisdom of the time, spent their days counseling their clients on nutrition and meal planning, all with the aim of helping their clients lose weight. Yet both of them had lingering doubts. Discipline and dieting worked for their clients for a time, but inevitably, diets proved impossible to maintain, and natural hunger resurfaced....