Welcome to CounselingMatters.live and to our first post! I am honored you are taking the time to visit and read on. This blog will have many contributors on many different mental health subjects and topics of interest for people interested in living an emotionally healthy lifestyle. I hope you find these entries helpful. This entry... Continue Reading →
Setting boundaries is not a bad thing. It doesn’t mean you're being mean, rude, or selfish. It shows and communicates to others what you are and not comfortable with. You may have to tell individuals you are not available or you don’t have the bandwidth to handle certain situations. This doesn’t mean you love them... Continue Reading →
Have you ever found yourself replaying conversations, wondering what went wrong, only to be met with silence? In today’s world of constant connection, it can feel especially confusing when someone suddenly disappears without explanation. This experience, often referred to as “ghosting,” can leave us searching for answers that never come. Ghosting is more than just... Continue Reading →
Dreams have fascinated humans since the beginning of time. They can be mysterious, exciting, and often confusing. At times, dreams feel incredibly real, making us question whether the dream actually happened or might happen in real life. Dreams can inspire creativity, tell us stories that may not relate directly to our waking lives, or sometimes... Continue Reading →
Gone is the old adage that children need to be seen and not heard. Children need to be heard just as much as adults do. When a child has gone through something that they just don’t have the words for, sometimes a great way to help is the use of children’s books. This is a... Continue Reading →
In recent years, loving-kindness meditation has become an increasingly popular mindfulness practice. Rooted in ancient Buddhist tradition and now widely used in modern therapeutic settings, it offers a structured way to cultivate warmth, care, and goodwill toward ourselves and others. Research continues to explore its potential for improving emotional well-being and reducing mental health symptoms,... Continue Reading →
In today’s fast-paced and unpredictable world, it is easy to feel overwhelmed by the number of challenges we face. News headlines, personal responsibilities, health concerns, and the behavior of others can all create a sense that there are a lot of things we need to manage. Focusing too much on things we cannot change, however, often leads to worry, stress, and... Continue Reading →
Many of the daily choices we make, about health, relationships, and goals, for example, are influenced by something we rarely notice, psychological distance. This concept refers to the mental space we perceive between ourselves and a person, event, or idea. Even if something is physically close, it may still feel distant in our minds depending... Continue Reading →
Video games are often viewed as simple entertainment, but they have increasingly become meaningful tools in counseling, especially for children, teens, and young adults. Because gaming is already a part of many clients’ daily lives, integrating it into therapy can strengthen the connection with a client, and it can give the client a safe place... Continue Reading →
In the first part of this blog series, we explored how thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are interconnected and how patterns like negative thinking and schemas can shape our experiences. But awareness alone isn’t enough to create lasting change. In this second blog we’ll survey the practical tools that Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) provides to help... Continue Reading →
