“Certainty is a feeling, not a fact” is a well-known phrase among OCD and anxiety therapists, but it bears spending some time unpacking. Anyone who reads my stuff regularly knows that worry and anxiety feed off of uncertainty and discomfort. Here’s the nuance I want to explore: uncertainty and discomfort are feelings just like happy,...
How to best respond to our children’s worries and anxiety is one of the questions I’m asked most often. In this month’s Northeast Ohio Parent’s article, I dive into the topic of reassurance. To recap quickly, there are two types of reassurance: productive reassurance and unproductive reassurance. Productive reassurance is when you give your child...
Even though their mom was a therapist, my kids complained when they were little about seeing one. Looking back, I completely own that I probably didn’t present the whole thing very well. Ok I know I didn’t, because they thought they were the only ones who needed it (SO not true) and that it did...
As I read about the college admission scandal, I find myself filled with equal parts of anger and sadness. So much so that I felt compelled to write this. I’m angry with the parents and the broken system, and I’m sad for the kids, many of whom had no idea their parents were engaging in...
My son is learning to drive. Talk about anxiety! His is one of those situations where I really have to be aware of my verbal and nonverbal communication. If I’m not aware of my words and actions, the driving lesson is a disaster. For example, if I’m worried he’s going to hit the curb, I’ll...
I don’t know about you, but my kids never miss an opportunity to tell me what I’ve done wrong. They remind me that I “didn’t like their haircut enough 11 years ago” (this just happened at Thanksgiving dinner) or how I “freaked out” when they left the yogurt machine running on vacation (hello! Yogurt was...
One of the greatest — and hardest — parenting skills we can learn is to REALLY listen to our children. When I discuss the how’s of listening, or validation, most of my clients have the same reaction. They say “yeah, I’m already doing that, I don’t need to work on it.” When we role play...
I recently wrote an article for Northeast Ohio Parent outlining 7 tips for when Kids are legitimately scared of Halloween. I’d like to expand upon that here, because a question I’m often asked is “What’s the difference between worry and anxiety — and why does it matter?” Great question, moms and dads! To answer you,...
On Monday, we discussed the basics of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder in children. I thought it might be helpful to also share this quick, ten-second breakdown. The O is for Obsessive. An obsession is an intrusive thought, which is highly distressing, that causes the child to feel worried, anxious, disgusted or just “not right.” The C...
Fall has arrived! For those of us in Northeast Ohio, we look forward to the cooler temps, apple picking and pumpkin carving! We also look forward to the nationally recognized OCD Week. Ok, admittedly, only a select few of us look forward to that last one. The reason I look forward to it is because...