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Have you ever felt a prickle of irritation when your therapist asks, “How does that make you feel? Where do you feel that in your body?” If so, you’re not alone. Many people feel frustrated when therapy seems to focus on emotion instead of quickly “fixing the problem.” But from a somatic therapy perspective, emotions are not a distraction: they’re often the most direct pathway to healing, clarity, and lasting change. Although focusing on emotion may feel like a detour, it’s often the fastest way to understand why your feelings feel so distressing and what they are actually trying to…

Emotional Reactivity Starts in the Nervous System We’ve all had less than sparkling moments. We snap at our children, lose it in traffic, and yell at our partner. To protect our self-esteem, we blame emotional blow-ups on our mood, or on someone else “because they should have known better.” Afterward, regret and even guilt set in. We think, “What’s wrong with me? I should be able to manage my anger. I’m a bad…(fill in your favourite self-criticism). But here’s the surprising truth: emotional blow-ups may not be just about willpower or “bad moods.” Your body may be hijacking your higher…

Emotional Reactivity Starts in the Nervous System We’ve all had less than sparkling moments. We snap at our children, lose it in traffic, and yell at our partner. To protect our self-esteem, we blame emotional blow-ups on our mood, or on someone else “because they should have known better.” Afterward, regret and even guilt set in. We think, “What’s wrong with me? I should be able to manage my anger. I’m a bad…(fill in your favourite self-criticism). But here’s the surprising truth: emotional blow-ups may not be just about willpower or “bad moods.” Your body may be hijacking your higher…

You may not know that September is Recovery Month. And if you love someone who is still actively struggling with addiction, you may wonder what that has to do with you. And that could be more than you might think. Every September, we celebrate people who have found their way out of addiction, honour the courage it takes to choose recovery, and remind people who are still struggling that change is possible. I know something about that journey. After living with addiction to opioids for 15 years, I am now nearly 40 years clean and sober. I know that recovery is possible because I've lived it…

Is your partner going through peri-menopause? Is your wife or partner tired, migraine-y or anxious? Is she no longer providing the kind of care you've been used to receiving? Is she speaking in a harsher way to you? Are you finding it challenging? You are not alone! Many of the partners I work with are bewildered at the change in their partner's behaviour when they start going through peri-menopausal changes. Unfortunately couples spend too much time suffering on their own before seeking help. If the changes are not understood resentment or other symptoms can build up in a relationship. Coming…

By: Christine Zitscher For anyone in recovery—whether it be day 1 or day 1000—we all recognize one major truth which is that it is nearly impossible to do alone and in silence. For me, this was a hard truth to accept. It is one thing to accept that I am an alcoholic but now I need to talk about it? No thank you! No one needs to know that I am a drunk who can’t control her drinking. I will quit drinking and everything will be fixed, right? Unfortunately, many of us who relapse discover that this is not possible. Addiction is an isolating condition; it keeps us apart from our fellows because we…

Have you ever had a feeling that something wasn't quite right, only to immediately question yourself? Maybe you noticed a change in someone's tone of voice. You walked into a room and could feel the tension before anyone said a word. You knew you were reaching your limit at a social gathering, but wondered if you were being antisocial. Or you had a strong feeling about a decision, only to talk yourself out of it. Maybe I'm overthinking this. Maybe I'm being too sensitive. Maybe it's not a big deal. Everyone else seems fine. Why can't I just handle it? If you're a highly sensitive person (HSP)…

If you’re a highly sensitive person, you may be especially familiar with the exhaustion of constantly thinking about other people’s needs. You notice when someone’s tone changes. You sense tension in a room before anyone says there is a problem. You might feel uncomfortable when someone is disappointed, frustrated, or upset with you—and find yourself working hard to make those feelings go away. Perhaps you say yes when you want to say no. You avoid difficult conversations. You apologize automatically. You change your mind, your preferences, or your plans to accommodate others. And afterward…

You find yourself here in the world existing with all the conditions and multiple intelligences at hand, moods and perceptions, capacities and limits, possibilities and relationships, informed by your evolutionary and ancestral inheritance. What makes you resilient, adaptable, flexible and fit for your existence in meeting this event you call your Life? The notion of Existential Fitness conjures a big picture view of all that comprises our wholeness of Being with our embeddedness in the world and all the contexts and roles we inhabit that demand our attention and call us to show up. The notion…