ACA MEMBER BLOGS

Approximately 300,000 women give birth each month in the United States, which means that since the beginning of stay at home orders in the US, more than 600,000 women have delivered a child.

As a mental health professional I am used to being the one helping others. It’s what I trained for and what I enjoy. I am not always successful of course, but I do what I can. Sadly, during this pandemic I have found myself feeling powerless in so many ways.

What are the things dads do that make them great fathers? Today the message is about putting the Zen back in Citizen and in our kids. During this time of uncertainty, chaos, tension, and conflict we as dads are called on for consistency, calmness, reassurance, hopefulness, and managing moods to avoid impulsive and frenetic results with our families.

First of all: I can learn that I can make a choice to remind myself of certain things to help me alleviate my fears.

An important part of therapeutic work is becoming more aware of the sources of emotional reactions: are they entirely oriented around present situations or are there some roots in past experiences?

After the last COVID-19 patient has been discharged and the intensive care unit beds are empty, the world will declare the crisis over. Politicians and pundits will begin to talk about mistakes made and try to lay blame. They will finger point and bluster about why it got as bad as it did and declare it wasn’t their fault.

Telehealth services, driven by the pandemic, has certainly expanded to extraordinary levels, with more and more counselors using technology to connect with clients, mentors and colleagues.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. It is important to reach out and check on students and parents to let them know you are available for questions or to talk to during the challenging COVID-19 crisis.

Why should I care about meditation? Because it has a direct connection to health benefits such as lower blood pressure, improved blood circulation, lower heart rate, less perspiration, slower respiratory rate, less anxiety, lower blood cortisol levels, more feelings of well-being, less stress and deeper relaxation.

Earlier in this series of blogposts, I wrote about counselor self-care. I wanted to address it early on as it is such a critical element of our practices right now; we cannot afford for it to be an afterthought.