Blog
This online workshop is being hosted by the Canadian Federation of Artists. They invited me to deliver this workshop to help artists learn mental health practices with the goal of navigating creative blocks and helping to prevent burnout.
Have you been feeling too flat for a long time? Have you been wondering, is this all there is to life? Have you been feeling low motivation, not having fun, and generally disinterested in your own life? But while you are feeling all of this, you are going to work, going to meetings, meeting all your responsibilities, and carrying on with the tasks of life. But it feels like a real slog.
If this description resonates with you, you may be experiencing High-functioning depression.
As a relationship therapist, I do a lot of learning, studying, and reading about relationships and how to be a better relationship therapist. One of my all-time favourite relationship researchers, teachers, and relationship therapists is Stan Tatkin. In this TED talk, he explains some of the neurobiological reasons of why relationships are so hard and what the main project of our intimate relationships is. I encourage everybody who is in a relationship to watch this.
Being on the Bisexual Spectrum (Bi+) is still fraught. The strange thing is that it seems like it shouldn’t be. Aren’t we way past Bisexuality being an issue for anyone by now? This belief is actually part of the problem: the struggles Bi+ people grapple with continue to be dismissed, under-studied, and minimized, and we are cast as whiny, confused, and attention-seeking. This very dismissal prevents the struggles the Bi+ population’s experiences from being appropriately heard, understood, acknowledged, validated, and therefore addressed.
While going to therapy is known to be highly effective, supported by research, and is lauded in many circles, it still gets a bad rap in popular culture. Therapists are often portrayed on TV and in movies as unethical buffoons who sleep with their clients! Yikes!
Fortunately, this is extremely rare in reality. Sadly, stigma about getting therapeutic help for our mental health still exists in many circles.
As a therapist, you can imagine that I am a big proponent of the role therapy can play in one’s life. It is such a great tool when we have the opportunity to engage in it. But I'm also a big proponent of taking charge of our own healing and growth! Therefore, when I come across evidence-based actions that people can take into their own hands, I am thrilled! And am motivated to share with you. Therapeutic writing fits the bill: it is an activity you can do on your own, with zero financial cost, and is well supported by research.
It is entitled: What Your Bi+ Clients Need You To Know, about guiding and educating Registered Clinical Counsellors on important information about counselling clients who fall on the Bisexual spectrum. I
