Learning to Stay: How to Move Through Emotions Instead of Avoiding Them
Emotions - albeit painful at times - are easier to deal with than emotional avoidance, a leading cause of many psychological problems. When a person avoids feeling the magnitude of negative emotions, they come up with a temporary solution that makes them feel better. What they don’t realize, however, is that short-term comfort often leads to long-term pain. Noam Shpancer, Ph.D. explains how avoidance…
How to Prepare for Difficult Life Situations
Life has a way of throwing you a curveball at times. Rather than leave yourself at the mercy of chance, why not act by preparing in advance for difficult scenarios? By doing so, you stand a greater chance of moving past life’s challenges quickly. Build Resilience Through Decisive, Thoughtful Actions One way to do that is by building resilience through decisive, thoughtful action. The…
Better Communication for Couples (Part 2): How to Avoid Becoming Defensive
Now that you’ve had the opportunity to diffuse defensive behavior in others, it’s time to work on your own defense mechanisms. What causes you to feel insecure? Do you go on the defense every time someone brings up something about yourself that you don’t want to hear? Here are some tips that will help you avoid becoming defensive: Know that the person critiquing you…
Better Communication for Couples (Part 1): What to Do When Your Partner Gets Defensive
There are a number of things going on when your partner gets defensive. You can always send them to a therapist! Of course, that might not be the best first step! Try this first: he or she may feel threatened or hurt by what you’ve said. They feel the need to explain their actions because they feel that there’s been an accusation, and they…
When Baby Arrives: What You Need to Know About Staying Together as a Couple
Having a baby is a big life change. You can no longer go on vacation on a whim, stay out as late you want, or even sleep through the night. You now have something that is completely dependent on you for survival. It’s a stressful time learning to be parents and no one can fully prepare you for it. In fact, the birth of…
Why Money Can’t Buy Happiness
Many of us think that if we made more money or had more disposable income, we would be happier. But as the old saying goes, money really can’t buy happiness. It can buy security—studies have shown that people who make enough to live comfortably without worrying are happier than those who don’t—but it won’t actually make you happy. In fact, happiness levels increase with…
