What is Trauma? Trauma is an emotional response to a deeply distressing or disturbing experience that can have lasting effects on an individual’s mental, emotional, and physical well-being. In 2020, the American Psychological Association described how trauma can result from a single event or ongoing stressors, such as abuse, accidents, natural disasters, or violence. Coping…
September is dedicated to suicide prevention. Therefore, I decided to write this article. As a psychotherapist who treats teenagers, I work with many parents who are worried that their teenager is depressed and may be suicidal. Many parents worry because suicide is a mental health issue for children and teenagers that often is ignored. In…
Art therapy and Trauma informed art therapy Art therapy is a combination of psychological approaches and art to address psychological, psycho-social, emotional, and behavioral issues. The goal of art therapy sessions is often to improve the individual’s overall well-being and reduce the negative symptoms of disorders. According to the American Art Therapy Association, “art therapy…
What is art therapy? Art therapy is a modality, in which art and psychology are combine to address the presenting emotional and behavioral difficulties. The focus of art therapy sessions is often on exploring emotions, thoughts, and behaviors from a symbolic way, in which clients are not obliged to verbalize their thoughts or how they…
https://www.pbs.org/video/hiding-plain-sight-youth-mental-illness-101/
September is suicide awareness month. Many parents of teenagers ask me, if their child could be suicidal and what to do if their child is suicidal? I have been getting this question even more now that the pandemic has lasted so long. As a result of teenagers and children having to stay in the house…
As the school year is starting many parents are focused on their children’s transition into High School or Kindergarten. However, there is another important transition for children. Beginning Middle School is a major transition for pre-adolescents. As a psychotherapist who works with adolescents, I am very familiar with what is happening on High School and…
I read an article about a 15 year old girl in Pensilvania who killed herself this week. She was the victim of bullying at school. The family described her as a nice, care girl. However, the bullying was severe enough to cause her to take her own life. We need to remember that bullying is…
It is summer time and school is out. Many children are engaged in summer activities such as swimming, water skiing and diving. Others are preparing for next year’s football season and cheerleaders are preparing too. While we use to assume these activities were safe, we now know they can be dangerous. Many parents of high…
In today’s world texting has become a very common way for people to communicate with each other. If I go to a baseball game or the theater, I see adults texting the entire time. I have even seen people fired via text. While it is becoming very common with adults, it is even more common…