Mental Health Topics

From elementary school through high school, many children experience bullying from their classmates every year. Bullying is harmful to all parties and can cause lingering emotional trauma that affects children well into adulthood.  In an effort to protect kids and limit bullying’s damaging effects, October has been recognized as National…

Stress is a daily part of life, for better or for worse. We all face challenges in our daily lives from figuring out how we get to our favorite coffee shop to completing daily tasks and maintaining our home.  How we manage our stress levels can impact our relationships, the…

As cliche as it sounds, life is a roller coaster, with frequent ups and downs. And when we hit the lows of the ride, our self-esteem (among other things) can suffer. For example, when we’re ghosted after a couple of promising first dates; or when we don’t get that callback…

The transition from the laidback days of summer back to the structured environment of school can often be a challenging one for children. Just as adults might take a while to readjust to work after a vacation, children also require time to settle into their school routine.  Dive into these…

Antidepressants can help people effectively manage symptoms of depression as well as other mental health conditions. However, these individuals may, at some point, stop taking their antidepressant – for a wide variety of reasons – and if they do so abruptly, they’re at risk of developing a condition called antidepressant…

Jealousy is an emotional state in which an individual desires something that someone else has and they do not. It’s rooted in comparison — it most commonly occurs when someone is comparing themselves and their life situation to another. People can experience jealousy in a variety of areas of their…

Suicide isn’t an easy topic to think about, let alone discuss—especially with an individual you suspect is suicidal. A lot of emotions can be involved, and you certainly don’t want to make this person feel worse. That said, it is incredibly important that we do discuss the matter and get…

While people experiencing active suicidal ideation usually have the intent, plan, or means to harm themselves, people experiencing passive suicidal ideation usually have thoughts of suicide but without the intent to follow through.  While passive suicidal thoughts may sound less severe than active ones, they are undoubtedly upsetting. It’s also…

One of the hardest parts of therapy can be reckoning with our emotions. Emotions affect all of us, but sometimes focusing on the ones that feel good can cause us to avoid the ones that feel worse. However, though not all emotions feel good at first, it can help to…

You always want to be able to comfort those close to you, but when they talk about deep and bitter truths like struggling with suicidal thoughts, it can be hard to know what to say—it’s scary to hear, and oftentimes, there isn’t much you personally can do about it. What’s…

Imagine suffering a terrible loss and not having it be understood by hardly anyone. Sounds pretty awful, no? Unfortunately, that’s exactly what disenfranchised grief is—a profound and often overlooked emotional pain experienced by individuals following a significant loss that society does not fully acknowledge or validate.  Disenfranchised grief can have…

Everyone has a disturbing dream from time to time. However, when these dreams become persistent, they can interfere with one’s everyday life. And when this happens, it could be a sign of nightmare disorder.