One of the most important things to remember is that all unhealthy behaviors started their lives as coping mechanisms. When you understand that, you can have more compassion for yourself, and therefore minimize shame.

For the individual who has trauma activations, anxiety, grief, attachment issues, or lives an alternative lifestyle, even acts of daily living can be overwhelming in today's world. Obviously, we can only do so much to change adverse circumstances beyond our control; the events of a tumultuous past, and/or a challenging present. However, we can change how we think about things, question the perspectives that give power to negative thoughts and self-narratives, and how we react.

As mentioned, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy gives power back to the client. When we dig deep to explore and challenge destructive self narratives, we eventually conclude that those narratives actually belong to someone else: an abusive parent who said we were stupid; the partner for whom nothing was ever good enough, etc. When we realize and accept that WE continue those narratives even when the perpetrator is no longer present, then, WE can choose to stop believing them. This release gives us power to rewrite and explore who we are without the old, negative messaging. And, how exciting is THAT!
Your life is waiting for you.

To book your free 30-minute introductory session, to see if it’s a good fit for us to work together, please call the office: (845) 758-0563.
Or if you prefer email:  nataliebrownlmsw [AT] gmail [DOT] com (written to avoid the SPAM robots).