DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, I AM SEEING CLIENTS USING TELETHERAPY AND IN THE OFFICE WITH PRECAUTIONS.

Life is challenging for many of us. It often seems like we are swimming in a sea of ambiguity, uncertainty, and doubt and are not sure in what direction to go for relief.

We may live in fear that we will not live up to our or other people’s expectations. We may beat ourselves up to motivate ourselves to avoid failure. We struggle with transitions and push away the fact that the nature of our existence is change. We do not live in the present moment and instead get caught up in ruminating about the past or worrying about the future.
We wonder if we can keep going with our burdens – depression, anxiety, relationship issues, work demands, school stresses, caregiver burdens, and illnesses. We look for myriad forms of escape – including drugs, anger, social media, blaming others, food – to avoid our suffering. We may lack clarity about what can be changed and how that change can be accomplished.

This situation is due to being human and the way our minds think and feel. Our familial and societal conditioning contributes to these challenges. Many of us spend years learning critical thinking skills and how to problem solve. However, we spend very little time learning and practicing how to be with our pain, live in a world of uncertainty, and still experience the joys of life.

My practice uses mindfulness-based psychotherapies, primarily Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and mindful self-compassion, to help adult clients (18 years and older) learn the skills to respond calmly, productively, and with openness to the challenges of living in our complex world.

These evidenced-based therapeutic approaches have been found helpful for clients experiencing difficult life transitions including retirement, academic or work problems, relationship difficulties, grief, depression, anxiety, caregiver stress, and chronic illnesses. With the skills learned, we will be better able to live life fully and recognize our common humanity.