Category: Coping

Coping means to invest own conscious effort, to solve personal and interpersonal problems, in order to try to master, minimize or tolerate stress and conflict. The psychological coping mechanisms are commonly termed coping strategies or coping skills.

Holding Christmas Ornament

Healthy (and Fun) Communication During Family Holidays

…As each of you prepares for your family holidays, maybe you are also considering what to expect this year. Even though you may have had sadness or loss, political changes or political consistency, marriages or divorces, there are often unifying factors. There are often things that can bring you closer as a family to talk about over snacks, dinner, or desert. Moreover, there may even be things that you can talk about that are not uncomfortable….

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Kindness

5 Things to Know about Kindness

……We all want to believe that we are good people, and that we contribute well to our communities. Acts of kindness and giving, even small gestures, validate these lovely parts of ourselves. What better way to feel like a kind and loving person than through small little actions that put more good out into the world……..

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Mindfulness Nature

Mindfulness with Nature

Read this article to learn more about how to use mindfulness through nature. Mindfulness in Action I turned the corner at the Iowa Arts Festival, and saw picture after picture of nature: raw, beautiful, and unique. “Oh, look at how cool these are,” I said to my son. “What’s so cool?” asked a voice behind […]

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Self-Care and Self-Compassion Improves Parenting

Self-compassion is an important part of parenting children and adolescents.  A few years ago, the Washington Post published an article called “Teaching Children Self-Compassion by Modeling it Ourselves” by Mandy Lange.  The article addresses the idea that children learn how to respond to their difficulties, stressors, and mistakes through their own experiences, and through what […]

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Graduation

The Summer Before College: 7 Tips for Parents and Teens

The summer before college represents a huge transition between high school graduation and leaving for school in the fall. Families are proud, excited, worried, and quite busy. There is much to do and prepare for, especially if that teen is headed to college in the fall. The summer after graduation is an exciting and overwhelming […]

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Woman winning award

Finding Your Way Through Status Anxiety

Issues related to status and college pressures are familiar to many people, particularly given the college admission scandals in the news lately.  Recently, federal prosecutors filed charges against a group of parents who paid someone to “help” admit their children to particular colleges. Specifically, these parents paid to have someone else take standardized entrance exams for […]

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Happy Nowruz

Spring in the New year!

The snow is melting and we can breathe in the fresh air once again. It’s a time for new beginnings, renewal, fresh energy, cleansing, and new habits. The natural world around us is going through a change and we can also go through some internal changes with it.

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