Therapy Chicago Archives
I work with many clients who are assessing their current romantic relationship or what they want in their future romantic relationship. Both are very useful and beneficial exercises to do. Many people are looking for their soulmate, and someone they can spend the rest of their life with. This idea of a soulmate may stem from wanting to find their own happy ending, that Disney movie fairy tale they have dreamed of ever since they were little.…
Read More
Madissyn Fredericks, Licensed Professional Counselor, Symmetry Counseling What does it mean to be a perfectionist? It is easy to believe that those who classify as a perfectionist are on track to become perfect, but that is far from the truth. Being a perfectionist isn’t necessarily about things being “perfect”, but needing to be and striving for it at any cost. For example, a perfectionist may hold beliefs such as “I am not okay as I am”, “No…
Read More
Amanda Gregory, LCPC, EMDR As a therapist, I always ask new clients if they have a pet. It might seem like an odd question, but research studies have indicated that having a relationship with a pet can positively impact your physical and mental health. To make the most of that positive influence, it’s important to ensure that your bonds with your pet are strong. So how do you strengthen a relationship with an animal? Try these six…
Read More
Madissyn Fredericks, Licensed Professional Counselor, Symmetry Counseling Being a part of the dating scene these days includes a lot of swipes, coffee dates, drinks, laughs, great connections, and even some bad dates. The easy and very common way to let someone know you aren’t interested is to “ghost” them. Ghosting someone entails ceasing all communication and contact with them without warning or explanation. To be honest, most of you have probably thought about ghosting someone at some…
Read More
I work with many clients who struggle to get their days started without feeling overwhelmed, stressed, depressed, or anxious. What many individuals fail to realize is that waking up on the “right side of the bed” starts with your nightly routine. While they are completely different parts of the day, having a relaxing, yet proactive and productive nightly routine can make for a better start to your morning, especially if you are someone that is required to…
Read More
Your relationship just ended. You may have been dating for a couple of months, a couple of years, engaged, or married. You may be feeling sadness, relief, joy, devastation, or a combination of many emotions. Even with the end of an intimate relationship, you may have to maintain a platonic relationship due to sharing children or being in the same friend group. Regardless of your circumstance, the transition from being in a relationship to being single can…
Read More
I work with many clients who are incredibly stressed in their professional lives, including having challenging colleagues or not getting along with their boss. When talking with them, I help them discover what kind of coping skills can help them with their day-to-day professional stressors. It is very common to feel overwhelmed while at work, especially if you have a work culture environment that is less than ideal. One thing I commonly bring up to my clients…
Read More
Now that we’re at the end of November, holiday season is in full swing! Hopefully you just had a great Thanksgiving and people everywhere will continue celebrating various holidays through January. All the joys of the season coexist alongside all of its difficulties and struggles. To help keep yourself healthy over the next few months, keep these tips in mind: 1. Get your sleep. The holidays bring a lot of disruptions in normal schedules and routines for…
Read More
Many holiday celebrations incorporate sharing a meal amongst members of a community, big or small. Food can serve as a beautiful way to bond and to unite. In fact, there may even be an evolutionary basis to the concept that food is love. Several types of monkeys have been observed to use food in order to strengthen social bonds with other monkeys both within and outside of their kinship network (Hamilton, 2013). Yet for those struggling to…
Read More
When we are listening to someone talk, we sometimes tend to day dream and not listen to what they are saying due to many reasons. We tend to get bored, or not agree with what they are saying, and then we tend to go into our own thoughts. Often enough, that individual might as us a question about what they said, and we are unable to answer back because we have not actually been listening. Active listening…
Read MoreDo You Need Help?
Not what you were looking for?