Learning to Accept Reality: How Mindfulness Can Help You Navigate Life's Challenges

The rain has been steadily pouring down the last few weeks. Pouring by southern California standards anyway. Something I’m quite stoked for, given our desperate need for it, and any change in weather excites me. Also, any excuse to hibernate for a bit is always welcome.

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How Growing Plants Teaches Us About Personal Growth, Mindfulness, and Ecotherapy

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I come from a long lineage of green thumbs—farmers and gardeners. Unfortunately, I didn’t quite inherit the gene. Or perhaps, more accurately, I’m not patient enough. Or actually, upon more reflection, growing things takes a lot of time and effort, and I prefer to put those resources toward something else.

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Anger in the Time of Measles: How Mindfulness Can Help You Handle It More Effectively

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In the past week, I’ve been yelled at multiple times. Mostly by strangers. For nothing. Literally, just walking along, minding my own business, not getting in anyone’s way. This isn’t typical for me. I’m generally quite conflict averse. An issue in its own right, but we’ll get to that another time. I’ve only ever been in one fight—back in 6th grade. And it wasn’t even a real fight. My sister said something I found offensive, so I punched her. Then promptly got in so much trouble that I never hit anyone ever again. Don’t worry, I apologized, and we’re best friends to this day.

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Loving-Kindness Meditation

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Sometimes it’s really hard to be kind to ourselves or others. Maybe we’re judging ourselves or judging others. Maybe we’ve hurt ourselves, maybe others have hurt us, maybe we’ve hurt others. Maybe we’re having trouble forgiving ourselves or someone else. Whatever it is, love is not what we’re feeling. And even when we think we’re justified in those feelings, there’s still a part of us that knows we’re only hurting ourselves by holding onto such negative energy. We know it isn’t aligned with our true selves and we want to stop feeling so “bad.”

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How to Shift from Judgment to Understanding and Create Positive Change

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We’re all human. (Or, if you're not human and reading this, holla! We’re all living beings.) And to be human (and alive) is to make mistakes. We all make them, and that's perfectly okay. However, in our society, mistakes are often met with judgment. If you've grown up with judgment from others (who hasn't?), it’s easy to internalize this and start judging ourselves and others as well. With judgment comes shame—the fear of being excluded from the group. While this may have been a life-or-death issue when we were all hunters and gatherers, it’s more emotionally painful in our modern times.

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How to Embrace Mistakes with Mindfulness and Self-Compassion

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I made this teeny, tiny, little mistake last week. I mean, I definitely made more than one, but this one in particular was the inspiration for this post. I’m not going to bum you out with a rundown on everything I think I did “wrong.”

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Finding Peace in Change: How to Control What You Can for a Happier Life

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I’ve written quite a bit about change—not surprising for a therapist! Wanting change, fear of change, it’s pretty much the only reason any of us go to therapy. My most recent post about change we choose touches on how difficult change can be, but change that’s forced upon us—without choice—is a whole different ballgame.

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Finding Joy and Mindfulness in Challenging Times: Strategies for Emotional Resilience

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Life seems particularly extra these days. Between climate change impacts, social upheaval, and political tensions, the problems often feel overwhelming. The struggles of hopelessness, helplessness, and anxiety about the future is real. Sometimes, the urge to curl up in a ball and wait for someone else to fix everything seems like a legit course of action.

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New Year, Real You: Embrace Your Authentic Self in 2025

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We’re all familiar with the phrase: “New year, new you.” But let’s be real for a second—how many of us actually feel the pressure to completely change ourselves just because the calendar flipped?

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New Year's Resolutions: Mindful Habits for Long-Term Success in 2025

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All right, folks, it’s that time of year! The end of the current year, where we either celebrate with fancy outfits and cocktails or cozy up on the couch in pajamas. It’s the time when we enthusiastically prepare to set New Year’s resolutions, eager to start fresh.

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Mindful Gift Giving: How to Make the Holidays More Fulfilling

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Giving is a funny thing. On one hand, it's a highly prosocial behavior that brings both the receiver and the giver the warm fuzzies. Biologically speaking, these feelings are designed to help us form deeper connections and strengthen bonds within our communities.

Move Slow and Build Things: The Power of Mindfulness in a Fast-Paced World

I’ve always been a speed racer. I’m not talking about NASCAR. (Although, I’ll admit sometimes I pretend to be a race car driver on the open freeway!) I’m talking about everyday life—rushing to get through tasks as quickly as possible, eager to move on to the next thing.

The Healing Power of Nature: How Ecotherapy Can Improve Mental Health and Well-being

What I instinctively knew—something we all feel in our hearts—was later confirmed by science: nature heals. The fresh air, sunshine, and greenery of natural spaces are scientifically proven to reduce stress, increase happiness, and improve overall mental and physical well-being.

Gratitude in Times of Struggle: A Thanksgiving Reflection

And if all else fails, nature is always there to remind me of life’s beauty. The trees, flowers, oceans, mountains, and quiet moments in nature all fill me with a deep sense of peace. I’ve become particularly to birds’ songs, reminding me that as long as they are singing, we’re okay in this moment.

How to Be Mindful of Emotions

So if emotions are SO useful, why have they gotten such a bad rap?

Well... to begin with they feel pretty freakin’ uncomfortable. As humans, we do whatever we can to avoid pain, which can be useful to our health and safety. It keeps us alive. But avoiding all discomfort can cause other problems.

We need the information that our emotions are communicating to us to have clarity, make useful decisions, and lead fulfilling lives.

How to Be Mindful When Being Interrupted (by Construction)

When the roofers began to replace our entire roof, they said it would take three to five days to complete. Of course, it could take a bit longer if they were to find more that had to be done. And find more seemed to be their motto. Three to five days stretched into six weeks!