Psychotherapy Archives - Heather Edwards Mental Health Counseling

EMDR Therapy: Rewrite your story

September 29, 2020

EMDR Therapy opens windows in the mind. Imagine rewriting your story. One where YOU decide who you are, how you can be, and how life's challenges affect you. Take a moment to notice how you view yourself in the world. Complete the statement, ”I am_____”. Is your belief negative, such as, “I am unworthy.”, “I am powerless.”, or ”I am unsafe.”? If so, that core belief may be tied to earlier unprocessed memories. What if you could believe something else? What would you rather believe about yourself? I am strong, safe, capable, worthy, lovable, smart… People decide to start EMDR therapy because of anxiety, depression, or pervasive negative beliefs. Francine Shapiro, the originator and developer of EMDR therapy stated that often these experiences are the result of unprocessed memories. When...

Dear Trauma: EMDR changes lives

February 5, 2020

Anxiety, Stress Management, Trauma

Dear trauma, I don’t need you anymore. You served a purpose and kept me safe in the face of danger. But now you’re getting in my way. I got this. Yours truly. When trauma happens, your central nervous system reacts in one of 4 ways to protect you: Fight - physically defending yourself Flight - running away Freeze - if I don’t move, they won’t see me - think deer in headlights Faint - playing dead It’s involuntary and automatic. It’s your body‘s way of protecting you in the moment. So, thank your body for doing that - and let it know you’re safe now. In the case of PTSD and limiting beliefs, it’s not enough to know you’re safe. Your body's protective mechanisms get frozen in time...

anxiety depression EMDR limiting beliefs mental health Psychotherapy ptsd trauma wellness

Suicide Prevention: How to get help

December 13, 2019

Uncategorized

I was recently interviewed by a freelance writer for an article about suicide prevention for a dating website. When it goes live, I will post it here. For now, I’m sharing some important information about how to help someone who might be in danger. Have you noticed posts on social media that sound threatening? Or have you heard vague references to self harm? If so, take action. Definitely tell someone. This could be a cry for help. You can talk to your friend if you think it would be helpful or family members and friends who could reach out to them. Don’t gossip or blow it off. Take it seriously. This could be a life or death situation. Be prepared with phone numbers to crisis counseling services...

depression help Psychotherapy suicide prevention therapy wellness

Mind Tricks: Conquer your fear

October 10, 2019

Anxiety

Mind tricks, a.k.a. cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), EMDR distancing techniques, chunking, and meditation practices saved me at Huayna Picchu. Little did I know, I would be frozen with fear upon arrival at Machu Picchu. With each step along the Inca trail, I held onto the mountainside to prevent being sucked into the valley 8000 feet below. My legs felt shaky, my breath was shallow, and my head was dizzy. Welcome to acrophobia, the fear of heights. When my guide suggested I would be hiking the big black pointy mountain, Huayna Picchu the next day, I was stunned. Huayna Picchu is a 9000 foot mountain that overlooks Machu Picchu. The part we would hike is a 1000 foot vertical climb in less than one mile. It’s named...

acrophobia anxiety CBT claustrophobia EMDR panic phobia Psychotherapy

Tattoos for healing?

July 11, 2019

Trauma

Tattoos date back to neo-Paleolithic times, serving purposes both for good and for bad. They have been used to record history, brand prisoners and slaves, express self-identity, and reclaim control over one’s own body. For many today, clients are claiming trauma recovery benefits. This intriguing Psychology Today guest blog by Heather Edwards combines insight about what tattoos can mean to folks, along with an interview with an artist in the craft, Paul Booth. The notion of a mark on oneself is as ancient as the Mark of Cain, after murdering his brother, Abel in the Book of Genesis. Nathaniel Hawthorn’s Puritan-era “Scarlet Letter” may not have been a tattoo–it was sown to one’s clothing–but it did mark the community’s condemnation of an adulterer. Not surprisingly, there is another side to...

EMDR healing Paul Booth psychology Psychotherapy tattoo tattoos trauma

Insomnia Tips: Sleep like a baby

May 1, 2019

Articles, Health, Lifestyle

Insomnia wrecks your mood, energy, and focus. Kayla Johnson from Tuck realizes this and requested that I share sleep resources with my readers. A good night's rest regretfully eludes many of us. Consequently, the outcomes can be dire. Insomnia has many links to mental illness as a cause and an effect. I'll share a few of Tuck's insights and research findings here. Chronically sleep-deprived people, some 20 percent of Americans, are more prone to costly diseases, accidents, and workplace absenteeism, at a steep cost to our national and global economy. The cost of drowsy driving motor vehicle accidents alone is estimated at $56 billion per year. Shift workers, healthcare workers, long-haul truck drivers, military operators, and others in jobs with demanding hours are at higher risk for sleep deprivation and...

anxiety depression heather edwards insomnia mental health psychology Psychotherapy sleep

SAD AF: Slay the happiness vampire

February 6, 2019

Health, Stress Management

This is for the dreamers, overachievers, procrastinators, and perfectionists. It’s a the middle of winter. A time that can be bleak and isolative. The days are fleeting. The nights are long. Gray skies blanket the possibilities and stifle your mood like a punch in the gut. SAD knocks at your door like the vampire of happiness. Your bed looks more and more inviting. Your motivation escapes you. You’re tired, a little somber, and you worry about your future. This is S.A.D. (Seasonal Affective Disorder). S.A.D. resembles a mild depression and typically occurs in winter. It challenges many of us - the creatives, the empaths, and everyone in between. In case you’re wondering if you have S.A.D. (Seasonal Affective Disorder) here are a few symptoms: decreased energy increased appetite (for...

depressed happiness heather edwards mood Psychotherapy SAD vampire winter

Trauma & A Path to Wholeness

October 29, 2018

Trauma

Trauma floods the news. Politics, religion, and a quest for power fuel horrific acts that forever impact victims and witnesses. They send a wave of trauma across the nation. Because of the Kavanaugh hearings, a shooting at a synagogue, or pipe bomb mailings to Political leaders, along with the little “t”’s (trauma’s) of daily life - such as, being bullied at work, losing a loved one, or having a financial crisis - your sense of peace and safety gets blocked. Trauma rocks your central nervous system causing physiological changes in your body that feel like stress, anxiety, panic or worse - a very real sense of being in mortal danger. Prolonged, it can lead to unhealthy patterns in your behavior affecting relationships, work, or wellbeing. Eventually, it can...

EMDR kavanaugh news psychology Psychotherapy shooting synagogue therapy trauma wellness

Heather Edwards Psychotherapy in New York

EMDR Therapy Changes Lives

March 20, 2018

Articles

EMDR Therapy: Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing changes lives. EMDR can be thought of as an integrative physiologically based therapy that helps a person see emotional material in new and less distressing ways. A Certified EMDR therapist helps guide you in a specialized way to clear trauma, break through limiting beliefs, and create an empowered way of being you. Using Mindfulness and bilateral stimulation while holding gentle pulsers, healthy memory processing is stimulated to gain emotional distance from difficult memories. Research shows that trauma & emotionally charged experiences can get physically frozen in time in your body. They live there in the present, interfering with your life, as if the experience is happening now. EMDR creates a natural flow of information processing so that balance is restored and memories become...

I Love You: 3 experts on relationships

February 12, 2018

Articles

Who do you love? Celebrate love and relationships. Cultivate meaningful connections. Bond with those who lift you up and keep you accountable to being your best. Create novelty and excitement with those dear to you. Bring play and imagination into your sex life. Live fully with the people who matter to you most. Love yourself. There are decades of research into what makes a healthy relationship. It boils down to three basic components - validation, fun, and attachment. Here are a few nuggets of wisdom from the experts like Dr.’s John & Julie Gottman, Esther Perel, PhD, and Susan Johnson, PhD. 1. To feel loved in a relationship you need to feel validated, acknowledged, understood, and respected. The Gottman‘s recommend turning toward your partner rather than away....

#relationships communication conflict couples heather edwards imagination love Psychotherapy Valentine's Day

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