Wilson Counseling: The Armchair Chronicles

We will never experience intimacy in relationships if we blame others for our problems "I don't share anything personal with my mom", my client told me. "My mom is one of those people who always blames other people for her problems. When I was growing up she told me the reason we did not have enough money is because my dad had abandoned her by divorcing her. According to her, my dad was also the reason she did not have any friends, that she gained so much weight, that she had to live in a broken down house, that she was alone in life. At first I thought my dad was a bad person, but I figured out after listening to my mom blame others for every problem in her life that she had a messed up perspective. I knew if I shared with her things I was struggling with, I knew that she would go negative, blame me or someone else, and the whole conversation would just depress me." Blame is the discharging of discomfort and pain Why do we blame others for ou...

image:gratisography.com "There is no passion to be found playing small -- in settling for alife that is less than the one you are capable of living."  -- Nelson Mandela A little encouragement for those of you who feel broken down. When you feel unsure, try being courageous. If you don't feel it, do it any way. Strength only comes from doing the hard stuff in life. Fake strong till you become strong. Sounds trite, but try it and you will accomplish more than you thought possible. Try something you were afraid of; challenge yourself a little more each day. Don't be afraid to pursue the life you are capable of. Don't be afraid to fail. Even in the failing (especially in the failing), you learn to be strong  if you just keep fighting. If you are struggling with the pain in your life,  professional counseling can help. You can call our Houston therapist at 713 - 591 -3612, or visit the Wilson Counseling website at www.wilsoncounseling.org  to ...

Sometimes you just want to eat some doughnuts, chips, or ramen noodles. But, inevitably, there is a sense of regret. And then the internal berating: Why was I so weak? Why did I eat that crap? There are physiological reasons why your body has these cravings. In this guest post, Courtney Wyckoff of Mommastrong.com , writes about how you can make peace with your body and your cravings. Your cravings are trying to tell you something The truth is that our cravings are instructive. They are a flashing signal to our brains indicating what our bodies need. But we have to learn to read the signals.  Sound strange? Courtney Wyckoff explains below how to read the signals and honor your cravings and your body. By the way, I will be talking more about Mommastrong.com in future blog posts. They are a fitness program for moms. Their slogan is "Instigating an adventurous life through strength that matters." I appreciate their focus not on weight, numbers, or an ideal body t...

Who Wouldn't Want Less Stress? It has been incredibly gratifying to see my clients go from being anxious and depressed to hopeful, joyful and resilient. There are many simple yet powerful techniques that seemed to work over and over. After years of teaching these techniques to clients, a colleague and I decided to record them so that more people could have access to them outside of therapy sessions. The audio recording is entitled "6 Keys to Conquering Stress, Anxiety and Depression: Learn to Thrive, Not Just Survive." Learn to Start Taking Control of Your Own Life In the audio you will learn to •      Calm your mind and body •      Decrease your stress and increase your productivity •    Deal with difficult people  •     Increase your confidence •   Get rid of the dark cloud of depression In short, you will learn to thrive in your life.  Bring the Therapist's Voice...

image:gratisography.com The Tragedy of Dieting Most diets will fail you. It is hard to get clear statistics, but it is generally believed that around 95% of people on diets will not be able to sustain the diets for very long and many will gain back even more weight than when they begin dieting. A 95% failure rate is a depressing statistic, especially after all of the effort, denial, and thought you put into dieting in the first place. Dieting can sometimes read like a tragedy, beginning with deprivation and ending with weight gain. As a Houston therapist that works with people struggling with disordered eating and body image issues, I hear a lot of diet stories. I have one client, Danielle who told me about her mom taking her to the weight loss clinic at age 10. Danielle was the only child of a single mother, so she spent a lot of time with older women. Women who were always on this diet or that. Danielle was also a people pleaser. When her mom dieted, she wanted to support ...

image:gratisography.com Forget the New Year's resolutions As 2015 fades into 2016, this is the perfect time to think about what you want your life to look like in the coming year. I am not just talking about New Years' resolutions. We have all made and broken resolutions more times than we can remember. I want to ask you to think about a bigger, more important question. What is missing from your life? What would enhance your life? For some of you, this might include finding the courage to pursue a new job, start dating again, open yourself to more community or new friendships, or getting involved in a club, church, or other non-profit. These goals may have even been things that have been on your mind for a while. But inertia, laziness, fear, or insecurity have been getting in the way. We often just keep doing what we have been doing. Ultimately, we are creatures of habit. We talk to the same friends at parties, sit in the same seats at church, order the same food a...

We are excited to welcome Wendy Evans to Wilson Counseling. Wendy has a wonderful combination of warmth and strong clinical skills. This combination is one of the reasons she is so successful at helping people make real changes in their lives. Wendy is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with over 20 years experience in the field. She enjoys working with adolescents, adults, and couples who are struggling with grief and loss, anxiety and depression, eating disorders, and relationship and abuse issues. Wendy offers a safe and non-judgemental environment that allows clients to open up and feel accepted. She uses a variety of techniques to help clients reach their goals including cognitive behavioral therapy, problem solving and some gestalt techniques. These techniques help clients build on their strengths instead to motivate change toward their goals. If you would like to schedule an appointment with Wendy, you can contact Wilson Counseling via e-mail at nancy @ wilsoncounseling ...