Do you feel as though you’re sleepwalking through life? You don’t remember your drive home, what happened at work, or the last time you made a decision you’re passionate about. When we live on autopilot, we feel as though we’re no longer invested in making our lives happen; it’s as if we’re passengers in our life. Part of being on autopilot is wired into our brains. Our brains naturally make unconscious decisions due to practiced habit. This is a helpful quality until we begi

Happify is an organization with experts and scientist who study happiness. They have determined that 50% of how happy a person feels is genetic. However, that leaves 50% up to us to decide. Emotions can be contagious just like the common cold. It’s no secret that certain people can make you feel more joyful and bring out a playful part of yourself that you like much better. In the same way, there are people who make you feel overwhelmed, anxious, and bring out a cynical side

Life is full of uncertainty. Although you can make plans, they don’t always work out. Optimism is a powerful tool that can help keep you balanced and moving forward during situations that are out of your control. Optimism is both a natural trait and learned skill, according to leading social scientists. When you practice optimism, you maintain a sense of hopefulness, confidence, and positivity without losing your ability to be realistic. There are people who believe that bein

In generations past, young people have always struggled with comparing themselves to others – their looks, their spouse, what they wear. Comparing ourselves helps us understand where we are on the social strata and determine new goals we may want to pursue. Unfortunately, comparison can create new concerns and increase self-criticism and envy. Young people today face the same challenges, but it’s becoming increasing difficult to not be so self-critical due to social media. Ph

It’s estimated that 30 million Americans beginning at age 12 are addicted to a vice that helps them silence or avoid specific feelings. Drugs, alcohol, screen time, gambling, food, and porn all help numb feelings they don’t know how to cope with. It’s also estimated that less than 15 percent get help from mental health professionals. Whether you’re overcoming a bad habit or an addiction, the physical sobriety is often easier than the emotional one. “Emotional sobriety” is get

In my clinical practice, I see capable people. They are successful in their careers, raising families, caring for parents, and enjoying time with friends, but many of them share one thing in common. No matter how successful they are, they view themselves as failures because of their weight or some other perceived flaw. Their social encounters often reinforce their sense of failure with body shaming and name calling. Every person who has ever been teased or called a name remem

At some point in life, no matter who you are, you’ll feel stuck. The new year is the perfect time to make a change. If you’ve tried making new year’s resolutions in the past, you know getting excited or motivated about changing your life is the easy part. Fitness and make-over advertisement are everywhere. However, most of us who begin a program of self-improvement begin making excuses after several weeks, finding flaws in our plan. Change is difficult without an achievable g

The loneliest most of us ever feel is when we are with someone we don’t care for. A bad date or a bad marriage can make us feel isolated and unloved. Even still, many people go out with people they don’t have feelings for to avoid being alone for New Year’s Eve. After all, who wants to be home alone on New Year’s Eve? According to our culture, it's the one night you are supposed to go out and have an adventure or a kiss to bring in the new year. One of the reasons we don’t wa

From the age of twelve to at least eighteen, a girl is under constant scrutiny about her body, looks, and sex appeal. We have advanced technologically, but girls still go through the same judgment and peer pressure that their mothers did. Recent evidence suggests that depression increases in teens that are frequently engaged with Facebook. It can create also anxiety with a constant discussion of, “Am I pretty enough? Am I prettier than her? Am I more popular?” It is not appro

On October 5th we celebrate World Teachers Day. A day recognized since 1994 to commemorate teachers and teacher organizations to ensure the needs of future generations will be met by teachers. Everything that happens to a child at home and in the classroom or playground is shared with a teacher. They educate, but they also parent, grandparent and help fix boo-boos as well as broken hearts. They deal with your child’s study habits, personality temperaments, academic pressure a