Author name: Mary Joan Brinson

Do you struggle with feeling hopeless or helpless? It is impossible to have a positive sense of wellbeing if you are plagued with feelings of hopelessness and helplessness.It is important to recognize that there are steps you can take to improve how you feel creating a new sense of empowerment. If you find yourself feeling […]

Parents are struggling. They have been struggling since mid-March when a two-week extension to March break became a six-month hiatus from school as we knew it. Many have become reluctant home-schoolers. Many have had to balance the anxiety associated with being an essential worker and the threat of bringing the virus home to their families. Many

Parenting is a tough gig. We all want to do it so well – but I believe it is the hardest job in the world. It has certainly been the hardest job I have ever done. I thought I would be a natural parent – I had always loved kids and knew I wanted to be

Do you ever fantasize about finding an escape? Some beautifully blissful way to escape the misery and challenge of the current moment. Continuing to live through the social isolation related to COVID-19 and ongoing uncertainty is hard. And when life gets really hard, the temptation to escape can feel powerful. Our chosen path for escapism may

Treatment for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is possible. In my previous article, Trauma and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, the symptoms of PTSD were reviewed. If you have been experiencing these symptoms for more than a month, there is a very good chance that your life is being significantly disrupted, and you could benefit from therapy. But

Pandemics, like Covid-19, challenge the way that people cope. Our brains are designed to react to novel and unfamiliar things as threats. Fear of infection, a lack of understanding and a lack of control impact us on deep levels. For some people this can be considered a traumatic experience. However, it does not necessarily mean

Mothers are so hard on themselves. I often joke with clients that when women give birth someone secretly implants a guilt chip in their brain making them feel guilty about everything. Although the brain chip is not real, the issue of mother guilt is very real and it is depleting mothers who experience it and

Trust is vital in a relationship. Many people would agree with this statement. However many couples struggle and lack of trust is often cited as a problem. It is impossible to feel emotionally safe in a relationship when there is a lack of openness and transparency. There are secrets that clearly destroy trust in a relationship,

Now that we are over a month into the pandemic, the experience of being quarantined with our children has become real. Juggling the responsibilities of taking care of the home, keeping our children fed, active, educated, and entertained while possibly working from home and managing the various stressors caused by Covid-19 has begun to take

Have you gone through something as a child that was really challenging for you emotionally? Many of the clients we work with have. And these experiences can have long lasting impacts. When children experience such emotional challenges, they will find a way to cope that helps them to get through and survive. For many, that