Veronica Guerrero-Quan, M.S., LPA-Independent Practice Have you ever wondered if your experience of anxiety is within the normal range? At what point is the chest pain, racing thoughts, overthinking, sleep difficulties, or feeling on edge too significant? Is this just part of the human experience? Is your experience “too much”? What is anxiety? Let’s start by defining anxiety. Anxiety can feel very similar to fear, although they are not entirely the same. Fear is what we expe

Morgan Brown, M.S. Have you ever felt lonely? Maybe you recently moved to a new city, state, or country and you don’t know anyone. Maybe you know plenty of people, but you can’t seem to connect on a deep enough level. Or maybe, just maybe, you have many deep relationships, but still feel lonely. You can stand in the middle of a crowded room and feel completely alone. In these situations, what can you do? The first step, and the most important step, is to continue taking care

Jessica Simonetti, M.S.   We all most likely know someone with a smartphone. We all also most likely know someone who is always on their phone and never seems to have the ability to set it down. They seem to be addicted to being on their phone at all times. Maybe this person is you or maybe it’s someone you know, but one thing is for sure: there is increased research that suggests using a smartphone or other electronic devices can cause symptoms congruent with an addiction an

Morgan Flores, M.S. Maybe this sounds weird, but I am super passionate about talking about sex with patients because it is such a significant part of life for many people and it is such a hush-hush topic! Well, actually society brings up sex all the time, but not usually in the most flattering, informative, or helpful ways. Real talk about sex is needed as there are so many people out there who have genuine questions that there are legitimate answers to. If you could have a n

Morgan Brown, M.S. In February, there is a struggle that many of us face: The death of our New Year’s resolutions. We started strong during the first week of January…or maybe the first day? And things quickly went downhill. The excitement faded, energy dwindled, and the habits and changes that you craved for yourself suddenly don’t feel worth it anymore. This is something that so many of us go through every year, but how do we change that this year?  The first step is to ackn

Happy New Year! Perhaps fitting, but this message is coming a bit late. Like so many out there, this time of year has seemingly approached so quickly! Each new year, so many people (myself included at times!) set unobtainable goals, typically referred to as resolutions. Per definition, a resolution is a firm decision to do or not to do something. Well, isn’t that daunting? As a new year’s resolution, we are pressured with something referred to as a “firm decision.” Because of

Morgan Flores, M.S. Morgan is a unique therapist in that she has training in psychology and also holds a pastoral license, making her uniquely qualified to incorporate biblical principles into therapy when desired. In some church settings and Christian homes “psychology” and “mental health” have been considered taboo topics or concepts that are off the table for consideration. Christians can feel leery of counseling out of a concern that psychology can be used to try and navi

Morgan Brown, M.S. Let’s say you have a child that is, for all intents and purposes, a loose cannon. They are constantly having temper tantrums about who knows what. They are always yelling and crying about seemingly insignificant changes to their schedule. They have a nighttime routine that takes 20 minutes to get through because they must know if the door is locked, the windows are locked, the car is locked, the refrigerator door is closed, the lights are turned off (but no

Amanda Stanley, Ph.D. Grounding is a technique used in mental health to help people come into the present moment with their senses. Mindfulness is described as being in the present moment, whereas grounding is used to get to the present moment. These terms are sometimes used interchangeably, and that is ok- there’s no quiz here! When we worry, we are focused about something that has happened in the past or thinking about something in the future . Grounding helps us stop this