When we’re overwhelmed— with stressors, sensory input, responsibilities, thoughts, feelings, sensations in our bodies— it can be really hard to actually say what’s wrong and ask for what we need. This is hard for adults, with our brains twisting and rearranging every thought at a mile a minute. It’s particularly difficult for kids, who have limited emotional vocabulary and experience.

Playing and having fun with your kids is important. It connects you to each other, it helps you solve problems together, and it fills their needs for engagement and attention.

Parenting is HARD. I think what makes it so hard is the swirling cyclone of our own histories and emotions, the love we have for our kids, and our worries about their futures, all while they know how to drive us up a wall better than anyone… and we still have to get them to gymnastics or soccer.

You probably already know the symptoms of a panic attack: hyperventilation, heart palpitations, dizziness, tingly hands, sweating, chills, shaking, chest pain. For many people, it’s easy to identify what they’re panicking about, whether that’s something outside of them (eg, getting on an airplane) or inside of them (for instance, the thought that your boss is going to fire you). And many times, people have panic attacks without knowing why at all.

I often talk with clients about how screen time negatively affects their mood and anxiety. However, there are also some really wonderful ways technology can support your mental health. These are convenient, easy-to-use apps that I often recommend.

With families, I often share a well-loved metaphor. A family is like a solar system: each planet has its own orbit and gravitational pull, allowing the whole system to successfully stay in balance. If anyone one planet experiences some changes, the whole family feels it. One change can send ripples through the whole system, which can lead to anything from a bumpy orbit to a planet spinning off into space.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy theorizes that there is an interaction between our thoughts, feelings, and actions. Additionally, it explains that many of our thoughts are directly or indirectly determined by our core beliefs. In CBT, we are working on making space for more helpful and accurate thoughts, and activating different behaviors, to impact emotions. Further along in treatment, we are also working on helping to challenge maladaptive core beliefs and create more helpful beliefs about yourself and the world.