Are You Anxious or Is It Hypervigilance?
Hypervigilance is more than just anxiety If you are a person with anxiety, this probably sounds familiar to you: You have gone to an unfamiliar place or are with people you don’t know well and …
Managing COVID Fatigue in the Fourth Wave
Managing COVID Fatigue (Chronic Stress) When You Thought the Worry was Over By late spring of 2021, I was breathing an unmasked sigh of relief. Like many people, I felt that the worst of COVID-19 …
How To Find an Affirming Therapist
How to find an affirming therapist In my experience, there are many minority communities who worry about finding an affirming therapist: LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, etc.) Polyamorous or consensually non-monogamous Those that …
New Location and Practice
New Practice and Location! Introducing Inspired Happiness Therapy & Wellness, LLC Stacey Aldridge, LCSW is pleased to announce that her solo mental health practice, Inspired Happiness Therapy and Wellness, LLC will be opening its …
Healing From Religious Trauma
“No one’s ever sat me down and taught me what empathy is or why it matters more than power or patriotism or religious faith.” ― Zak Ebrahim “Christ the man died long ago, …
Self-Care You Can Actually Afford
Self-care you can actually afford Now more than ever, we all need to be taking care of ourselves. We are 6 months into a pandemic that does not seem to be slowing down, at least …
Here Is What To Do When You Are Out Of Choices
Here Is What To Do When You Are Out Of Choices A woman in her mid-60s sits in front of me. “I don’t have any choices.” She tells me. “There is nothing I can do. …
The Tasks of Grief
What Is Grief? We tend to think of grief as a sadness related to death or loss. Grief is actually defined as a reaction to a significant loss. While this loss can be a death, …
The Danger of Emotional Reasoning
Cognitive Distortion Series In this series of blog posts I am going to cover common cognitive distortions aka problem thinking or thinking errors. The way that we think affects our world more than we usually …
How to Know If You Should Get a Divorce
Does Getting a Divorce Mean That You Failed? When I first see a couple for relationship or marriage counseling, I ask them why they want to save the relationship. It seems like an obvious question, …