Candid conversations with my brain

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Mental Health

Mental Health

General conversations about mental health

You Are Not Alone

You Are Not Alone

This last Sunday I taught a lesson on mental health in church to the adults and youth. I know I only scratched the surface of such a broad topic. One of my goals was to bring awareness and a desire for people to learn more about mental health. Based on

Communication: Part 3

Communication: Part 3

I am very hard on myself. When something doesn't go as planned, I blame myself. Did I make an honest mistake? It doesn't matter; I'm a horrible person. I have extremely high expectations for myself. When I don't achieve these expectations, I&

Communication: Part 2 Follow-up

Communication: Part 2 Follow-up

In last week’s post I wrote about not hiding the fact that we have mental health issues. I mentioned how helpful it can be to open up to someone else and be honest about something you’re struggling with. I also mentioned that opening up doesn’t only help

Communication: Part 2

Communication: Part 2

One of the biggest challenges with communication is learning to be honest about something you're struggling with. Everyone is struggling with something. And everyone is trying to hide what they’re struggling with from everyone else. Maybe we fear judgment. Maybe we're ashamed or embarrassed. Maybe

Communication: Part 1

Communication: Part 1

The human brain is an amazing communication tool. Our challenge to communicate begins on Day 1 as a baby. Our brains teach us to cry when we're hungry or tired. If we're really hungry or tired, our brains learn to increase the volume of our cries.

Emotions: Part 5

Emotions: Part 5

I just got back from spending a week with my family. We had a great time together kayaking, paddle boarding, swimming, playing in the river, hiking, playing games, and just having fun together. It's so important to make memories with family! Now I am back and ready to

Emotions: Part 4

Emotions: Part 4

If you haven't yet, read Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3 of this discussion on emotions. Over the last 12 years of being a mom I have learned that emotions with my children ebb and flow. Some days are better than others. Daily I recognize the need

Emotions: Part 3

Emotions: Part 3

If you haven't yet, read Part 1 and Part 2 of this discussion on emotions. In Part 2 I discussed how using a bridle helps tame, train, and direct a horse to be of great use. Without a bridle the horse might otherwise be hostile and dangerous. Our

Emotions: Part 2

Emotions: Part 2

In my previous post on emotions (read it here if you haven't yet) I discussed my belief that emotions are neither good nor bad, but that learning to control our reactions to emotions is essential to avoiding undesired results. In this post I want to continue with a

Emotions

Emotions

I know I have been MIA for the last couple of weeks. I have been really busy and my posts got put on the back-burner. Sometimes we just have to roll with the punches. Let's talk about emotions. A few years ago I experienced several emotional breakdowns over