When our inner critic shows up, it can be hard to talk it down or reason with it. This part of our personality can be fierce, harsh, argumentative and stubborn. This critical voice tends to be judgemental and demeaning. Internal Family Systems therapy has helped me change the way I view my own perfectionism, shame,Continue reading “Changing our relationship with our Inner Critic”
Author Archives: kshanmuk
Preventing compassion fatigue: Simple ways to help family members struggling with their mental health
Living with someone who is suffering from a mental health problem can be challenging to say the least. Whether the individual is formally diagnosed or you’re noticing a shift in their moods, the ripple effect it has on the home is significant. One in five people are living with a mental health struggle, and withContinue reading “Preventing compassion fatigue: Simple ways to help family members struggling with their mental health”
What is Exposure Therapy?
Exposure therapy is a wonderful and challenging form of treatment that can improve phobias and anxieties. This treatment modality works off the assumption that, by slowly and continually facing a fearful situation, we become less scared. Gradual exposure involves creating a formal list of tasks that are completed in order to build confidence in facingContinue reading “What is Exposure Therapy?”
Unhappy relationship after a baby
Relationships are tested all the time when life throws curve balls. As much as we’d love for a new family member to bring us closer together, having a baby can actually worsen the sense of an unhappy relationship. Working in perinatal mental health, I hear a lot of parents talking about their relationship dissatisfaction. IContinue reading “Unhappy relationship after a baby”
15 mindfulness exercises to try today
There are so many ways to incorporate mindfulness in to your daily life and one post doesn’t suffice. Mindfulness is a moment to moment awareness of what’s happening internally (your emotions and physical sensations) and externally (using your senses to note what you see, hear, smell, taste and touch). While the definition may sound complicated,Continue reading “15 mindfulness exercises to try today”
Using validation to improve your relationship
When it comes to some challenging relationships, we all recognize that miscommunications and frustration seem endless. It feels like every conversation hits a roadblocks, and both you and the other person walk away feeling hurt, pissed off, and unheard. So how do we work through these blocks so that we can improve our relationship withContinue reading “Using validation to improve your relationship”
3 tips to improve your parenting style
How do you find your parenting style? Does it meet the standards you’d set out for yourself? Are there times where you look back and cringe, wishing things had gone differently? Are there moments where you’re proud of how you handled a tough tantrum? In the next few posts, I will be sharing some strategiesContinue reading “3 tips to improve your parenting style”
Safety Planning During COVID-19
This is a unique time in the world, where staying at home is meant to be the safest option. Yet, for someone living with an abusive roommate, partner or family member, staying at home can create a world of danger. Living within the confines of your four falls can mean being always available to aContinue reading “Safety Planning During COVID-19”
What is EMDR therapy and how does it help my PTSD?
It’s frustrating when you’ve been to therapy for many years and no amount of talking has truly helped you recover from traumatic events. While I practice CBT, DBT and other forms of traditional talk therapy, I have shifted my practice to focus heavily on EMDR to help process difficult memories that seem “stuck”. EMDR therapy,Continue reading “What is EMDR therapy and how does it help my PTSD?”
COVID-19: Working with the fear of not knowing
One of the biggest struggles with COVID-19 is the uncertainty with this virus. How do we treat it? Will we become infected? How long will we need to maintain physical distance?Given that there is so much that is unknown right now, it is understandable that many of us are struggling with anxiety. The following areContinue reading “COVID-19: Working with the fear of not knowing”