Happy New Year

History?  A moment in time?  A year forgotten or remembered?

I just came across this article about planning for 2019.  Or should we say planning for 2025 not 2019.  Maybe this is something many of us should follow.  Maybe this should be introduced in therapy?  Or just your everyday life?!





Photo by Steven VanDesande Jr on Unsplash
Photo by Crazy nana on Unsplash

Read more about Dr. Strayhorn's practice and philosophy...

Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah Stories and Radio Tales

As Christmas  and Hanukkah are here storytelling should be incorporated into the joy of the holiday season.  From holiday traditions to gift giving the stories are a wonderful opportunity to bring in the holiday cheer.  I loved this NPR Christmas stories.  

Or what about Radio stories for season past.  And definitely the impacting Hanukkah light stores - the artform of listening is a powerful and artful communication.

Read more about Dr. Strayhorn's practice and philosophy...

Christmas and your Self Care and Mental health

The holidays are here!  For some of us they are joyful.  For others perhaps complicated and they return us to difficult and painful memories.  Regardless of past feelings stress is all around the holidays.  With this in mind Coping at Christmas - 5 Top Tips to Look After your Mental Health is a starting point to control your next few days.  If you do have stressors create a list of 5 categories that you can manage and control.  One key issue that often surfaces in therapy sessions is family.  If you have issues with stress or communication with family set limits.  If conflict is a predictable...

Merry Stressmas and Stress to the World!

Getting Through the Holidays Yet Again.  Will This Year Be a Piece of Cake; or Fruitcake?

I was asked in a store yesterday if I was “ready for the holidays?” With candor I said “no, ugh, not even close.”  The woman at the register seemed so happy as she replied “Neither am I.” She was relieved in a misery-loves-company-type-fashion.  My being ill prepared seemed comforting. You could see the stress on her face.

In my December 12, 2018 blog concerning holiday stress it is no secret that the holidays can cause stress for many people. Reviewing the 2015 Healthline survey that measured holiday stress shows that overall the majority of respondents were stressed. Gen Xers reported feeling stressed (65 percent) with Baby Boomers (62 percent) and Millennials (61 percent). So, stress affects all of us this time of year.

So, is managing the holidays with a happy outcome possible? I think this article from last year is still worth reviewing about managing holidays and creating memories during the holiday season.  Although there are specific items in the article that ...

Let's Light Up the Holidays

Christmas is a time of illumination. The holiday season is rich in diverse belief systems.  Thus the celebration of Christmas is for everyone should we choose to embrace it.  In fact, the holiday is so widespread many global metropolitan cities present stunning light extravaganzas.  Although many of us do not directly celebrate the Christmas holiday many of us in the United States recognize its meaning and tradition mainly from our youth.  If you know Faith you know she believes the symbols of Christmas give hope, meaning and whimsy to children.

Santa Clause, reindeer, the North Pole, decorated presents, cakes and cookies, Frosty the Snowman.  But perhaps the one thing that competes with Santa Clause is the Christmas tree.  Whether the shimmer of the artificial or the chrisp intrusion of the pine's smell we all accept that trees are the transition from make believe to the wonderland and lights of the holidays.

Photo by Andre Benz on Unsplash
 Read more about Dr. Strayhorn's practice and philosophy...