Therapy is a long and winding road. There are peaks, feeling mentally strong and achieving your goals, and valleys where you don’t feel like you’re making as much progress as you’d like. Sometimes, as clients progress along this road, they take two steps forward and one step back, and at other times they may even feel like they are taking two steps forward and three steps back. Don’t get discouraged, it’s likely that you’re making more progress than you think....

“I’m sorry for what you have been through.” This is the very first thing my therapist said to me. Before we talked about working together. Before she explained howtherapycould help. Before she offered any advice. I will never forget that moment because it was the first time I truly felt “seen.” Up until that point, everyone with whom I shared my story responded with either a) shock or b) solutions. Neither of which felt great....

Mental health isn’t simply about what’s going oninsideyour head. What’s happeningoutsideyour head is important, too — from a cluttered bedroom to a poorly-lit office to the view from a window — it can all impact your well-being. Physical environments directly impact our psychological health. It’s easy to see why: we spend alotof time thinking about what’s around us. And all that external stimuli has an effect! Maybe the laundry hasn’t been folded in three days, and it bugs you every time you go to bed....

Stress is an overarching theme in most of our lives. Though we’re all busy, everyone finds time to talk about being stressed, unable to meet the competing demands of work and family, not to mention friends, hobbies, and self-care. This is a difficult way to live — and whether or not our culture requires such stressful excess — maintaining a breakneck pace can sabotage your ability to enjoy your day-to-day existence....

Nothing quite beats the exhilaration of the final weeks of college. After surviving four years of packed lecture halls and grueling exams, it’s time to celebrate. You successfully navigated living on your own, pushing beyond your comfort zone, and expanding your horizons. And maybe you even learned a thing or two. Cheers are in order! Reaching the end of college is undoubtedly exciting, but graduation can also be daunting. Approaching the precipice of adulthood and looking out at the uncertainties of the real world can be a deeply scary time, whether you have a cushy job lined up or not....

Sunny days, warmer temperatures, barbecues and pool parties are just a few things you might think of when someone mentions the month of June. However, did you know June also happens to be Men’s Health Month? To honor this time and raise awareness of the issues men face, we’re sharing some tips on how tolisten to your bodywhen it’s telling you something’s not right. The reason? Failing to care for yourself physically, or not encouraging others to care for themselves, can result in poor mental health outcomes....

The notion of “toxic” people is popular these days, with most advice leaning toward cutting such people out of your life. In some situations, such asdomestic violence, this should be the obvious choice. Friendships are a little different, however. It’s harder to know when you need to set limits. Just like any other relationship,friendshipsrequire give and take. In addition, we have the idea that true friends stick together through thick and thin, so we you put up with foibles for the sake of the relationship....

One of the most difficult parts about struggling with mental illness is that unlike many physical disorders, there are often no outwardly visible signs. To the outside world, a person in thethroes of depressionmay appear completely normal — “high functioning” — when in reality they’re wrestling with deep inner turmoil. Dysthymia, also know as high-functioning depression, allows someone in anguish to hide in plain site. I know from experience. When I was first officially diagnosed with depression andgeneralized anxiety disorderin my early twenties, I had spent a very long time doing everything I possibly could to seemfine....

When you imagine a conscientious person, you likely conjure up someone dependable, diligent, andself-controlled. They likely have a strong awareness of their surroundings, their own thought process and the perceptions of others, making conscientiousness a key predictor for many tremendously positive outcomes, such as developing healthy, stable relationships and good job performance. It is not surprising, therefore, that many strive to become more conscientious, and there are actionable ways to build up this valuable personality trait — even if being conscientious doesn’t necessarily come naturally for you....

Your friend met a new guy, and she’s head over heels about him. He’s all she talks about, and she’s over the moon to have met him. You, as her friend, are happy for her — until, that is, you meet him. You want to scream “You can do so much better!” because you know this guy isn’t worthy of her time. But, the question is, should you? We can’t choose who our friends date, sois it worth speaking up?...

When you’re newly in love, you want to share the news with everyone. Your hope is that your friends will find your partner as amazing as you do, and that the two of you, as a couple, will have close ties with the friends that you love. For some lucky people, things work out this way. Their friends approve of their partners right from the get-go, andbuild closer connections over time....

While it’s a cliche to say that every cliche contains a grain of truth, the common idea that men are less emotionally available than women is one that persists — perhaps for good reason. According to gender stereotype, a man who isn’t emotionally available does things like: Below we’ll discuss some of the factors possibly contributing to men being less emotionally available, why they persist, and potential ways that men can open up....

Even the best relationships, conflict is inevitable, and it’s no surprise that money ranks as one of thetop issuescausing stress and division between partners. How to earn money, how to spend it, how to save it, where to keep it, who gets it, and what it means day-to-day are all aspects that couples must address and re-address over time. Couples Therapy OnlineStrengthen your relationship through couples therapy you can participate in together or apart, at your convenience....

For better or for worse, everyone’s got a past, and let’s be real — not everyone’s past is rainbows and butterflies. Our pasts make us who we are and shape our lives, and when we’re in a relationship, we take on our partner’s baggage and interpret it in our own way. Unless you’re the very first person someone’s dated (unlikely), you’re going to have to also deal with their past relationships, too — the good, the bad, and the ugly ones....

Only1 to 2 percent of the populationexperience this type of sensitivity, having the ability to feel and absorb the emotions surrounding them. They likelyview the world through their emotions and intuitionrather than putting too much logic behind their decision making. While this characteristic can be a source of personal strength, it is also important to know how to manage common challenges of being an empath. What is an Empath? For those who are more introverted empaths, they may be more sensitive to the brain chemical responsible for feeling pleasure — dopamine....