Hey…just a quick note to let you know that we’re over on Facebook, as Conexus Counselling (formerly Bergen And Associates Counselling). In addition to being able to see if there is a new blog post, we capture “connecting”/relationships videos, posters, and stories designed to help you grown the connections in your life. Go over to our …
You are not your job
I am a therapist. Yep. I am also a mother, a daughter, a sister, a niece, a friend, a cook, a writer, an eater, a teacher, a mentor, an auntie, a cook, a reader, a napper, a runner, a speaker, a walker, a parishioner, a sleeper, a Downton Abbey and Grey’s Anatomy watcher, a lover …
Beautiful and Beastly: Thoughts on Social Media – Part 2
Part 1 of this two-part series on the pros and pitfalls of social media highlighted some of the benefits of using various mediums to stay connected to – or in extraordinary cases – begin connecting with people who we hold dear in our lives. And yet social media has some darker sides, too. There was …
Worrying
The February 17th edition of Maclean’s magazine’s cover story was all about “The new worry epidemic”. In the article, worry is used interchangeably with anxiety, both of which are different than fear. Fear is the “flight/fright/freeze” response that occurs when one is exposed to a threat of some kind…a danger. Fear is in the now. …
The Movement: True beauty is real
I love this video that has popped up in a few places: It’s like these women are almost surprised at how disappointed they are at how they don’t/want/can’t own the beauty of the faces in these photos..the retouched, bleached, refined, blemish-removed, pore-airbrushed faces…just not seeing that perfected “beauty” in the image, and owning it as …
Hump Day Nudge: True Grit
I went to a book launch this evening for the book, When Quitting is NOT an Option, written by Arvid Loewen, with assistance by his son, Paul Loewen. I’ve written about who I affectionally call, my-crazy-Uncle Arvid before, back when he set a Guiness World Record in ultra marathon cycling. Often, people hang up their …
What is a healthy marriage?
All couples fight. Fighting doesn’t mean a bad marriage. In fact, fighting may be profoundly helpful for a marriage…it airs concerns, differences, slights, and hurt to allow for understanding. And understanding…knowing how your partner feels and having that matter…so you change your behaviour to better able to recognize your spouse…that’s huge. To think about: The essential …
Hump Day Nudge: Brother inspiring brother
I love this video…which was filmed in 2010 prior to Alexandre Bilodeau’s gold medal in the Olympics that year in Vancouver. He followed it up with yet another gold medal this year again in Sochi. This video highlights the mutual respect and inspiration two brothers have for each other, in a way that inspires both …
Depression vs Vitality
I’ve been pondering Andrew Solomon’s exquisite reflections on his own experience with depression. As a writer, he captures the pain and anxiety of depression remarkably. He wraps depression with words to enable those who have depression to feel understood and validated and affirmed. No, you are not crazy, you are not alone, and you definitely …
Beautiful and Beastly: Thoughts on Social Media – Part 1
I am not fortunate enough to have grandparents who are still around, but I know a handful of people who still do. And every now and then I find myself surprised to see exchanges on Facebook where grandmas and grandpas are responding to status updates, cute photos, or playing Words With Friends against their much …