Recent Posts
Make Sense of Addiction: How the “Love Affair” Started
Author: Jeanette Hu, AMFT Many people who come to me want to change their substance use behaviors carry a lot of shame and self-blame. They are told that there is something inherently wrong with them for developing a substance use problem. If you have been haunted by the question, “What is wrong with me?” […]
Recovery in Action: Buttons!
Author: Jeanette Hu, AMFT One of the early conversations I have with people who are trying to make change in a compelling behavior is, “What pushes your buttons?” Many times, with an expression of frustration and loss, the person tells me that they don’t have any, that their cravings are totally unpredictable and out […]
Drink Or Not Drink – How to End the Internal Tug-of-War
Author: Jeanette Hu, AMFT If you are considering cutting down or quitting drinking, then chances are that you are familiar with the tug-of-war over “drink or not drink”—where you have two voices in your head. One urges you to not pick up that bottle today, while the other whispers in your ear that […]
Who You Are Is More Than What You Do: The Sun, Leo, and the Strength of Presence
Author: Michael MacLafferty, LMFT My client arrives and plops heavily onto the therapy couch. “It’s good to be here,” they say, “This is the first chance I’ve had to slow down all day.” I nod and smile. We spend a few moments without speaking, enjoying a restful silence. I have made my office as […]
Pandemic: A Poem by Lynn Ungar
Pandemic* What if you thought of it as the Jews consider the Sabbath— the most sacred of times? Cease from travel. Cease from buying and selling. Give up, just for now, on trying to make the world different than it is. Sing. Pray. Touch only those to whom you commit your life. Center down. And […]