by Carolyn | Aug 22, 2019 | Uncategorized
From sleeping habits to home dynamics, babies change everything! Whether you’re a parent or not, all you need is a close friend, family member, or to watch a sitcom about parenthood to see a glimpse of the little and big shifts in responsibility that can ripple...
by Carolyn | Apr 12, 2019 | Uncategorized
Most of us are taught that depression is a flaw in brain chemistry. But another important and hopeful way to understand depression is through understanding our emotions. Life experiences, especially adverse ones, can ignite many emotions in the brain. Research...
by Carolyn | Jan 16, 2019 | Conflict Resolution, Couples Therapy
Relationships are hard! In times of conflict, like when you hurt someone’s feelings or they hurt yours, emotions run high. When emotions are set-off, it revs us up. Our bodies react to triggered emotions by getting tense. We put up our guards and get defensive. Our...
by Carolyn | Jun 6, 2017 | Uncategorized
“Reprinted with permission from Keys to Unlocking Depression by Michael D. Yapko,...
by Carolyn | Feb 16, 2017 | Uncategorized
The amygdala is an almond shaped mass of nuclei (mass of cells) located deep within the temporal lobes of the brain. The amygdala hijack is an immediate, overwhelming emotional response with a later realization that the response was inappropriately strong given the...
by Carolyn | Oct 13, 2016 | Uncategorized
Sometimes I wonder if I’ll have gay children. I’m not sure if other parents think about this, but I do; quite often. Maybe it’s because I have many gay people in my family and circle of friends. It’s in my genes and in my tribe. Maybe it’s because, as a pastor of...
by Carolyn | Apr 4, 2016 | Emotionally Focused Therapy, Listening
Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom. – Viktor E. Frankl
by Carolyn | Apr 4, 2016 | Conflict Resolution, Couples Therapy, Marriage Counseling, Premarital Counseling, Relationships
“A boundary is simply what’s ok and what’s not ok.” — Brené Brown Every couple will negotiate boundaries: what is individual, what is ours, and what is public. The architecture of a relationship is made up of a web of rules and roles that we begin weaving on the first...
by Carolyn | Mar 15, 2016 | Expressing Love, Relationships
“When we first started dating, we partied and drank a lot. And when I drink, I don’t orgasm, so I got into the habit of faking it. We got married and I stopped pretending, but I never told him. And now, he can’t understand why I don’t orgasm in five minutes any...
by Carolyn | Jan 28, 2016 | Uncategorized
Source: drsuejohnson.com Any researcher knows that, if you aspire to be an ‘objective’ scientist, you are not allowed to be passionately impressed by your own research. I am now going to break that rule. It seems appropriate at the beginning of a New Year that my lab...
