Zana Van Der Smissen
By: Zana Van Der Smissen Whether you are moving out of a rental, buying your first home, or moving into college dorms, moving stress is very real. It can be exhausting, anxiety-inducing, and can overall end up being a negative experience for most. However, I am here to say that you can find ways to cope with that stress and even find this new chapter exciting! So first let’s talk about what moving stress might look like.…
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By: Zana Van Der Smissen Today I will be exploring the concept of self-worth. A concept that comes up in many therapy rooms and can be hard to address at times. There is a perception that perhaps talking about self-worth means that we are being egotistical if we feel like we are telling ourselves that we are “worthy”. While in other instances of lower self-worth, we might believe that people will take pity on us and sympathize…
Read MoreBy: Zana Van Der Smissen, LPC (TW: Eating Disorders. This article does contain content that might be triggering for some. If you find yourself feeling uncomfortable, please step away from the article and take time for yourself or reach out for help at Symmetry Counseling) Hello again and welcome back to the second part of this blog, how to prepare for the holidays with an eating disorder. In the first part, I talked all about tips on…
Read MoreBy: Zana Van Der Smissen Feeling tired is one of the most common things that come up in the therapy space whether or not that means you are physically or emotionally tired, it happens to all of us. So how do we restore and recharge when we feel that way? In this blog, I will be talking through the difference between sleep and rest and how to establish what you might be needing. There are a lot…
Read MoreBy: Zana Van Der Smissen As human beings, we are always trying to find activities and hobbies that can be helpful to our mental health. We talk about self-care and how we can include it in our daily routine. Whether it’s taking a bath, making ourselves a homemade meal, or even talking to an old friend on the phone, we want to try to be intentional about how we use our time. One of the forms of…
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By: Zana Van Der Smissen Firstly, I have to disclose that I have always been a fan of group therapy. It has always been so interesting to watch people from all kinds of backgrounds come together to share their story in the hopes that others can relate. Group therapy has been an effective tool for many whether that means bringing a sense of community or giving an individual a space to be heard. But how do you…
Read MoreBy: Zana Van Der Smissen (TW: Eating Disorders. This article does contain content that might be triggering for some. If you find yourself feeling uncomfortable, please step away from the article and take time for yourself or reach out for help at Symmetry Counseling) The holidays are a time of year for cold weather, Christmas music and of course, food. Food is the main event for most families whether or not it is preparing as a family,…
Read MoreBy: Zana Van Der Smissen You just graduated from your program in the spring and now you are a full-time employee with bills to pay, meetings to attend and a lot of “adulting” responsibilities. Where do you go from here? How to Navigate the Big Jump From College Life to Being a Full-Time Employee Firstly, acknowledging that this is a real feeling is important. Whether you are feeling overwhelmed at your job or feeling lost as to…
Read MoreBy: Zana Van Der Smissen New therapies are popping up all the time and making sure what therapy works best for you is vital when working with your therapist. So, learning what is out there can be useful when wanting to explore something new in the therapy space! Brainspotting: What Is It and Is It the Right Therapy for You? Today, I will be talking about a brain-based therapy called, Brainspotting. Dr. David Grand developed this therapy…
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By Zana Van Der Smissen, MA, LPC, NCC (TW: Eating Disorders. This article does contain content that might be triggering for some. If you find yourself feeling uncomfortable, please step away from the article and take time for yourself or reach out for help at Symmetry Counseling) Body Checking is the act of compulsively looking into a reflective surface or mirror to scrutinize parts of your body or all of your body. It has become a normative…
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