Let’s Talk About Attachment Theory: The Basics

Early attachment with parents

Have you ever wondered why you repeatedly overanalyze interactions with other people? Or why you and your spouse have repeatedly argued over your tendency to downplay relationship milestones? Or why you constantly send text messages to your best friend to make sure they aren’t mad at you?  All of these behaviors can be traced back to attachment.  Today’s blog is the first in a series of blogs where we will explore attachment theory. Attachment theory offers valuable insight about ourselves and how we form relationships. Let’s dive in to the origins of attachment theory and its significance to counseling.  Attachment Theory  Famously known as the first attachment theorist, British psychologist John Bowlby wanted to understand how the earliest emotional bonds...

Read More

Mindfulness: Practicing Presence

Woman practicing mindfulness

“I want you to focus all your attention on being present in this moment.”  This was the challenge that my friend John gave to a room full of middle and high school students. Every other week on Wednesday evenings, my husband and I spend time volunteering at a local youth ministry. At nearly every gathering there is an allotted time in the evening when an adult will share a lesson with the students. John was the one giving the lesson this particular evening.  John continued on, “I really want you to focus on this moment. Where you are, what you see, what you feel, what you hear.” The room went silent…for just a moment. Breaking the silence, John said, “And...

Read More

Stages of Change

change

We all have moments in life where we decide to make a change.  Sometimes it’s a career change, a relationship change, or even changing something about ourselves (communication, patterns of behavior, a bad habit, etc.).  Whether you realize it or not, there are often certain, intentional steps that you take when you decide to make a change in your life.  These steps are officially referred to as Prochaska and DiClemente's Stages of Change Model. Today on the blog, I’m going to talk about the Stages of Change and how knowing what they are can make you more intentional in shifting your life in a different direction.  While reading, you may realize that you are actually in one of the stages,...

Read More