Mental Health

 This past week I’ve been sick...really, really sick. I haven’t been this sick in a long time and it has been rough.When you’re a kid being sick isn’t great but you get a few days off from school, your mom takes extra care of you and you get to watch bad daytime TV.Getting sick when you’re adult...it doesn’t have that same allure. Life continues to move, work piles up and dishes, laundry and all the other things you planned to do are still sitting there waiting for you once you feel better.As I sit and think about the past week all I can think about is how annoyed I am that I...

 Phew!!!! This past month is finally OVER. I don’t know about you but things have been really rough for me.Things have been a little rocky in all areas of my life and biz recently. And I want to be honest, I am human too.When I go through difficult times, it allows me to reevaluate my life in many different ways.And in doing so this past month,  I kept hitting this wall over and over again until I realized what was happening...This week’s topic: Resistance is all around usI was resisting change.Not sure you know what resistance looks like?It’s when you have a great idea or you’ve...

 How’s it going?! Well it’s been quite a month. The sun is finally out and it’s light later and later which I love and I haven’t worn a sweater in a week! You know what that means…spring has arrived.This month we’ve been decluttering and letting go of the big things and the small things in our lives that just don’t work for us anymore. I’ve gotten rid of bags and bags of clothes and shoes and I’ve even managed to get my son to organize his lego collection! (Not an easy task…every set if vital to his collection.)Now you’ve got time and space and you’re ready to move into this new season with...

 My last two articles I’ve talking about decluttering and letting go of the things that are holding you back. Sometimes it is all the physical stuff we have that gets in our way and keeps us stuck. Other times it’s the people in our lives or the situations we’re in that need to go.Hopefully this past week you’ve been decluttering and getting rid of the small things in your life. The small errands you need to run, the phone calls you need to return, the co-worker youneed to tell to stop playing their loud music when you’re trying to work. All those little things that bog you down...

 Welcome back! Have you been observing your life and asking yourself the question, “What do I need to let go of?” Are you starting to notice there are things in your life you’ve been tolerating that you’re not willing to tolerate any longer?In my last article I talked about how the simple act of getting rid of chipped plates woke something up in me. Now I know that changing a behavior or maybe letting go of a relationship or good friend is not like tossing a chipped plate into the trash.This first step of observing what isn’t working in your life is just that…a first step. Don’t...

Did you watch “Tidying Up” on Netflix? For me it was a master class in how to find clarity. I read Mari Kondo's book a couple of years ago and I got rid of bags of clothes and shoes that don’t bring me joy and lots of other items in my home. It felt good but like most people I fell back into old habits. This year I decided to sign up for a Feng Shui course. If you don’t know about Feng Shui, it’s an ancient art that formed 6,000 years ago in China. It’s hard for me to define it so check out this article if you want to learn more. Back in January I went to a conference in NYC and met a woman...

 I have a confession to make...I have a terrible habit...and it’s a bad one. Every morning I set my alarm for 6am and every morning I hit that snooze button. Not once. Not twice. Like a good 5 or 6 times!I know it’s terrible. The night before I would set the alarm with every single intention to wake up early, work out, get some work done, meditate, read...I had a whole morning planned. The night before...I’m stoked and ready for the next day. How I would feel in the morning...that’s a whole other story.Today, I still set my alarm for 6am and I do hit the snooze, at times, but...

 Every day as I pick up and drop off my son from school, I take this long winding road up in the hills of Berkeley. We pass by big, beautiful homes that have these amazing views of the Golden Gate Bridge and all of the bay area.Any time I saw a “for sale” sign in front I would imagine what life would look like if I could buy that home. I could see myself waking up in the morning and having my coffee as I looked out across all of Berkeley and into San Francisco.Some days I felt inspired and excited to focus on myself and my business so that fantasy could be a reality but other...

  You might be days away from yet another family function, party, or gathering…....how are you feeling? Exhausted? Energized? Somewhere in between?As I’ve said (more than once), family functions or even parties mean different things to different people.This week’s topic: Do what makes you happyThis week’s topic is a simple one. Do what makes you happy. Do what makes you light up inside and makes you feel like YOU.If you love family functions and parties and gatherings then please, do them all. Say YES to everything. BUT if this isn’t you...don’t say yes to all the parties and...

 Do you set intentions?Intentions are awesome. Think about how you want to show up this month (day, year) and set an intention that supports that vision.Mine is, “I intend to keep up with healthy habits.” I will tell you I’m the queen of “I’ll start over tomorrow, monday or in the new year.” Time after time I’ve said this and year after year I would eat too much, drink too much, spend too much and assume the new year would erase it all away. (Hint: It doesn’t.) Today’s topic: Reflect You survived “the holidays, your birthdays, graduation partyies, your move…” with or without your...

 There are times throughout the year that stress hits us a little harder than other times. It can  hit us during the holidays, birthdays, moving, graduations etc.And I know there are friends that will simply say to you, “Don’t stress.” They mean well, even if it’s frustrating to hear.But actually that’s not bad advice...I mean simply saying, “don’t stress” to someone who is freaking out is not the best delivery but the idea or meaning underneath is exactly what all of us need to do this month.Today’s topic: Choose to respond to stress differently this yearI’m not denying there is...

 How was your holiday? This year my family decided to go to a restaurant and I have to tell you…I loved it! No shopping, no preparing, no cooking, no cleaning…just eat and go. Some of you may be clutching your pearls at the thought of a restaurant on Thanksgiving…me…I thought it was awesome.So what now?! Well, it’s time for you to focus on YOU.The holidays (or any family event), and all the stress that surrounds them takes a lot out of all of us and you need to take some time for yourself to process, regroup and move forward. This week’s topic: Self-care is more than just a hot...

 Reflecting upon what you want and need from yourself and your family during the holiday season or any time of year is imperative.When I say “what you want and need” I’m talking about determining how you want to behave when you’re around your family and what behavior from your family you’re willing and not willing to tolerate.Many times we assume because “its our family” we have to excuse or tolerate words and behavior that we would never excuse or tolerate from our friends. Not true. As I mentioned last week the beauty of being an adult is YOU get to decide what is OK and not OK...

The hardest part about being in your 20s  is all the unknowns: Not knowing if you’re in the right career. Not knowing if you’re in the right relationship. Not knowing if you’ll ever find the right career or relationship. Some days life feels amazing, as if nothing could bring you down. Other days… not so much. Here are 7 steps to surviving your 20s. It’s tough to know if you should  just be happy and content for what you have or if it’s time to cut your losses and go in a new direction. I hate to break it to you but the 20-something years are all about uncovering the unknowns. You can’t know...

 What are your thoughts saying to you???If you’ve been practicing the exercise from my last article, then you should be well acquainted with the running inner dialogue that’s saying in your head right now, “Oh wait…I didn’t read your last article…maybe I should go back and do that. Click here to read.…I don’t have time for that…I should get back to work…I have so much to do today…ugh I have that meeting in an hour…I really hate Bob from accounting…all he does is talk………”That’s the running dialogue I’m talking about. Right now as I write this article I’m thinking, “I don’t know...

 Today is the perfect time to talk about fear!!!! I’m not talking about horror movies or haunted houses or cobwebs in the bushes and all the other things associated with this holiday. I’m talking about the various anxieties and fears we walk around with every other day of the year.Overall having certain fears is important. We need our anxiety because it’s what gets out of bed in the morning to go to work to pay our bills and to make sure we look both ways when we cross the street.Those are our human instincts for survival and those are your good “fears.”Today I want to talk about...

 In this article I want you to focus on your worth as a person and not get too caught up in being busy, busy, busy all the time.While we think we don’t want to be busy we really do. What..huh?! When you’re busy moving a million miles an hour, running from meeting to meeting, you don’t have to think about anything but how busy you are! This week’s topic: How do you move forward?Our desire to be perceived as “so busy” gets in the way of us being able to get quiet and reflect upon our lives. There’s an exercise I share with my clients called, “The Alarm Exercise” which is a...

You -- a 20-something -- are walking down a crowded street, past stores and cafes full of other 20-somethings. As you pass by, you see signs of confidence everywhere: the way the brunette with the knee boots strides into the bookstore. The way the young couple lean into each other over their coffees, knowing smiles on their faces. The way the other passer-bys nod their head as they talk to whoever on their phones. You know their stories all too well, too. Your college roommate has committed herself to a life of true freedom. She’s just bought a camper, sold all her stuff, and is moving to...

It can be a struggle to truly know your worth. Here's how to start recognizing that you deserve more and deserve better. Well, I guess I can’t hide it anymore…I’m a huge Real Housewives fan. I watch all the cities. I listen to several different housewives podcasts. My sister and I will spend hours on the phone debating Bethanny vs. Carol (I can see both sides but mainly hate that they’re no longer friends.). If you’re not a fan then let me explain…Siggy Flicker was a housewife in New Jersey for about two seasons. People loved her the first season and then her second season she got a little...

 Are there certain times of the year that you feel you can do things a little differently? You can start over and have a new beginning?For me it’s September, it has always felt like new beginnings for me. Even after I left school and started working full-time there was something about September that made me feel like I could do some things differently. For others, it might be the start of spring.But for you, I want you to know it can be any day you make the decision to do so. This week’s topic: Banish your inner “mean girl” (or guy)This week we’re talking about something each and...

 Everyday can be a fresh start if you let it be. It can be a time to get rid of the old stuff and start to do things differently.I take time each month to review my life. I cleanse and let go of things that no longer serve me. Let’s talk about what you can let go, what you can keep and what’s your next action step. This week’s topic: ForgivenessI know I just jumped right in but this is an important topic. Here’s the thing about forgiveness, You don’t forgive for the other person, you forgive for yourself.One of the reasons we hold onto our anger and resentment towards someone who...

 Do you have a drill sergeant living inside your head? So many of my clients tell me that they have this voice inside of their head that helps them form and stick to new habits.The problem they tell me is, while they hate this imaginary authoritarian that rules their life; they can’t possibly let themselves “off the hook” and adopt a new way of thinking. If they did that all their good habits and behaviors will magically disappear.Once upon a time the school of thought was you needed to tear a person down and then build them back up in order to form a new habit.Don’t get me...