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If you are a parent, the love you have for your children is immeasurable. The long sleepless nights rocking your baby or soothing your frightened or sick child are all worth it because you care and love.   There are times when you may not be willing to pay the price that love brings. One young man once told me he didn’t want to date or worse yet, get married, because he didn’t want to experience the pain of a breakup. “I’d rather be alone than experience the pain,” he said. That’s understandable. No one wants to experience pain; yet in any relationship, the chances are pretty high that there will be emotional pain at some point. If he keeps that view of life, he will miss out on the joy that comes with struggles. What this y

Annabella’s new book, Let Go of Anxiety: Climb Life’s Mountains with Peace, Purpose, and Resilience, can help you! Below is a sample chapter from the book: https://mindsetadminportal.wpcomstaging.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/let-go-of-anxiety.png 28 Going Upstream—Is It Worth It? The o’opu, a freshwater fish native to Hawaii, hatches in fresh water and literally goes with the flow, swimming downstream to reproduce. Its eggs are swept into the ocean, where they develop into young fish. Like salmon, these young fish instinctively return home. They measure less than three inches in size, but their determination to reach their birthplace and start another generation is huge. These fish don’t just swim upstream to get back ho

https://mindsetadminportal.wpcomstaging.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/przemyslaw-zientala-54brsfzksgg-unsplash.jpg The year 2020 will go down in history as one of our most challenging and disliked years. No question we all have been struggling in one way or another. However, some of us may already have been experiencing hard times in a variety of ways, whether it be mental, emotional, physical, social, or financial. When we are in the middle of hardships, we lament our circumstances with what should’ve, would’ve, or could’ve been, if it weren’t for that particular difficulty. We get stuck with emotions, thoughts, judgments, sensations, and urges to want to control what we cannot, especially our internal pain. We may not notice th

Halloween, All Hallows’ Day and Día de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) are part of family traditions for many. Halloween may be most familiar to you if you were born in the United States. Growing up in Guatemala my family used to celebrate el Día de Los Muertos. At that time families visit cemeteries, eat delicious food and remember their departed loved ones’ lives. Today, I’d like to invite you to think about the Day of the Dead and imagine what your grave will look like after you’re gone. Most importantly, what would the engraving on your tombstone say? Picture your loved ones talking about you and trying to decide what to inscribe. What would they think of you based on the way you’ve spent your time and energy every day of your life?

View original article published in Psych Central– Weddings, graduations, business meetings, travel, friends and family gatherings have been interrupted. Some activities we may have been looking forward to have been wiped out or postponed. Some people’s reaction can be anger, anxiety or stress. Others are mourning what could’ve been in sadness and frustration. A friend whose yearly tradition has been to enjoy the national college basketball tournament during March (March Madness) with his sons and their families is lamenting his loss. For his family, March is usually a time to watch their favorite basketball players and teams compete, and most importantly, an opportunity to bond with one another as a family. Many college students have mixed

If you struggle with uncertainty, the coronavirus crisis and other natural events in the world may only heighten your anxiety. If you tend to obsess about the future, your mind may be going a thousand miles a second providing a myriad of possible scenarios that could come true or not. Indeed, these are unprecedented times. The “what if” thoughts abound among all of us. You are not alone. As you read the news about the virus spreading, the fight-or-flight response is evident. It’s easy to go down the labyrinth of fear. Social distancing is limiting, and this has placed extra emotional stress because of our natural need for human connection. So what can we do? “To everything (turn, turn, turn) there is a season (turn, turn, turn), and a time

View original article published in Psych Central– I once had a neighbor who was very fragile in her age. When I’d ask her how she was doing, she would always respond, “I am counting my blessings. That’s what counts. Things don’t have to be one way all the time. Changes happen and I go with them and laugh instead of growl.” I loved her attitude, even though she was ill and up in years. She was accepting changes with a positive and grateful perspective. “The greatest trap in our life is not success, popularity or power, but self-rejection.” – Henri Nouwen When we struggle with mental, emotional, physical or relationship challenges, it is difficult to feel thankful and show gratitude. This can easily happen when we buy into unhelpful thoughts