Blog
By. Carly Blumenthal, MSW
The world is constantly shifting around us, and it can be hard to keep up with the everlasting new trends, technologies, and social changes. From my experience with patients, I have learned that a lot of teens and young adults are affected by the power of social media. Social media and “screen time” can be addicting and the average teen spends nearly 7.5 hours on their phones a day. Adults are not too far behind with an average screen time of 7 hours a day.
Social media is correlated to the upward trend of anxiety and depression in teens and young adults. Social media has many positive aspects such as staying in touch with long distance friends, expressing creativity, promoting causes, raising awareness. While social media can be good for man[...]
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By. Rachel Troob, Psychology Intern
Halloween is meant to be an exciting holiday where we dress up and gather with friends. However, Halloween can also be an overwhelming holiday that brings up feelings of anxiety and fear. There's the anxiety around the actual event of Halloween: the frightening costumes, haunted houses, and big gatherings. And, there’s the aspect of social anxiety. What costume do I wear? What if I am around alcohol? What if I am left out of a group costume? What if my child is not included in a plan? As Halloween is right around the corner, let’s take a second to examine our level anxiety around the holiday and locate ways to ease our fears.
Activity:
- When you think about Halloween, where do you feel the tension? Do you feel a pit in your stomach? Are your shoul[...]
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By. Rachel Troob, Psychology Intern
This year I am taking on the dual role of a full time student and a part time employee at Dr. Nerenberg Psychology Associates. As excited and eager as I am, this is a good time to take a step back and reflect on the ways I am going to care for myself.
The purpose of this blog post is to provide a refresher on self-care and open a discussion around implementing self-care in your own lives. As summer ends, evaluating our self-care plan is a great way to start the new school and work year.
I often hear the term “self-care” in my field of work. As therapists, it is our job to check on and work with our clients to put self-care first. We try to make sure that clients are taking care of themselves and finding a healthy work-life balance. The act of coming to therapy is o[...]
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Although our practice advocates for staying together and working through relationship struggles whenever possible, sometimes it is not in your best interest to stay. The questions below can help you determine what the best course of action may be for you. Unfortunately, there is no definitive formula for deciding if your relationship has enough positive attributes to warrant the difficult process of working on it. However, through the process of honestly answering the questions below you will likely gain some clarity. Feel free to go over your answers with your therapist, 12-step sponsor, or a close and supportive friend.
- Is there physical violence in your relationship? You should not stay in a physically abusive relationship. The psychotherapist Mira Kirshenbaum clarifies this issue, [...]
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In 2002, the director of the Stanford University Forgiveness Project, Dr. Fred Luskin described forgiveness as a feeling of peace that emerges as you take your hurt less personally and take responsibility for how you feel. Both Luskin and Dr. John Gottman, founder of the Gottman Institute, describe a distress-maintaining scenario called a grievance story. They explain that when we have trouble forgiving someone, it is because we put on a selective filter and select only those elements of the experience that support our own perception of events. This creates a sense of righteous indignation as we recall the most negative aspects of the person and his or her most hurtful actions. We then view the most virtuous and innocent aspects of ourselves, filtering out any personal shortcomings. Maintaining this mindset support[...]
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I am directionally challenged. In the past, I got overwhelmed by maps and needed to write out my directions in words, including as many landmarks as possible so it would make sense to me and I wouldn’t end up lost. From my perspective, one of the greatest inventions of all time is navigation systems for cars and phones. Instead of having to fumble with maps and directions from strangers, I can just follow my Waze app.
In therapy sessions, I often share with patients my belief that the navigation system I use in my car is a great analogy for life. I explain that there are times while driving, even with this wonderful navigation system, that I blow it. I miss the turn completely, or I turn left when the app says to turn right. What I love about the navigation system is that it does not judge me, it just tells me[...]
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I often start a couple’s therapy session by asking, “What have you done to help your relationship this week?” This is a very powerful question because it changes the couple’s mindset. Instead of pathologizing the problems in their marriage, it turns the focus to what they have done well. It also sets up the image of them working as a team to help rescue their relationship.
After I ask this question, there is often a pause as each member of the couple reflects back upon their successes the previous week. They each have the opportunity to share a behavior that makes them feel proud. This experience also helps them reframe small gains as essential contributions to the health of a relationship.
After listening to the couple share the positive behaviors that they have contributed, and providing supportive [...]
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My husband and I have always liked the outdoors. We enjoy hiking and have even spent a week long summer vacation visiting Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Once or twice a year we actually manage to take the kids out with us hiking in our local National Park. We take the dog, Rosie, with us too, and feel proud of ourselves that we “aired our family out,” by getting them away from their screens. However, in this time of Covid 19, we have taken hiking to a whole new level. Instead of participating in family hikes once or twice a year, we are now hiking two or three times a week.
Normally we are a very busy family. My[...]
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My 30 year old patient just told me he recently asked a woman he met on Hinge “Would you rather go on a first date through: FaceTime, Zoom or scream at each other from 6 feet away in a park?” Being quarantined home alone in his apartment reminded him of his deep desire to develop a healthy relationship. For some people living alone, the loneliness they are experiencing helps them prioritize the importance of forging intimate relationships.
For other people who are already in intimate relationships and living together, it may feel like the ultimate stress test. In fact, there has been research that looked at how people cope after tragic life events. In 2002 The Journal of Family Psychology produced a paper after Hurricane Hugo looking at how people in devastated counties of South Carolina coped after this tragedy. In this paper, the authors[...]
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In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, fear and worry abound. We are confronted with preoccupations about our physical health and safety, financial security, and the uncertainty of the timeline projected for the current quarantine. Additionally, we have been required to make drastic changes to our daily routines, seemingly overnight. Keeping up with news and social media updates can further exacerbate our already precarious state as each piece of new information seems to be more dismal than the last. Fortunately, we are now well-equipped with some practical information about protecting our physical health. My hope is that this post will provide practical information to safeguard your mental health during these uncertain times.
- Stay informed and follow recommendations
It is important to stay informed about changes be[...]
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The world is constantly shifting around us, and it can be hard to keep up with the everlasting new trends, technologies, and social changes. From my experience with patients, I have learned that a lot of teens and young adults are affected by the power of social media. Social media and “screen time” can be addicting and the average teen spends nearly 7.5 hours on their phones a day. Adults are not too far behind with an average screen time of 7 hours a day.
Social media is correlated to the upward trend of anxiety and depression in teens and young adults. Social media has many positive aspects such as staying in touch with long distance friends, expressing creativity, promoting causes, raising awareness. While social media can be good for man[...]
Read More
