In starting Thrive Therapy Studio, my mission was to expand my practice in order to be able to touch more lives both through helping more people and training more therapists in the style of therapy I believe to be most effective. The first step in this process was finding a name and believe me, this was one of the longer steps as I wanted to have a name for the practice that conveyed our mission.
 
THRIVE… I chose Thrive because it conveys what I am hoping for my clients and the professionals with whom I am fortunate enough to work!  I want all of us to figure out a way to not just get through life, cope, or muddle through but to figure out how to Thrive, even in some of the hardest and most challenging circumstances. I believe that is possible for all of us through self-reflection and, well, for better or worse, a good amount of hard work.
 
THERAPY… Well this one is probably obvious ;) But I wanted to make sure everyone knew up front what we do and what we are all about!  We are all about therapy, be it individual, couples, group, or family.
 
STUDIO… The easy answer here is that some other names were taken such as Center, Clinic, etc. But the more interesting answer is that the more I thought about my vision for the work we do, the more I wanted to convey that we are not top-down doctors who will medically determine what path you need to take. We are colleagues on your journey to insight and change and we welcome you into our offices just as though they are our homes. I felt that Studio conveys the homeyness we are cultivating in our offices.
 
Now, to share a bit more about our mission and goals at Thrive since you know more about the name and intention around it J
 
Our mission is simple and complex all at once as life so often is. We want to help as many people as we can live meaningful, brave, and authentic lives. We believe that we can do this best by being down to earth, warm, and truly authentically genuine with our clients. Therapy is tough and we believe that a sense of humor and ability to truly connect with people, makes it that much easier to do the hard work entailed in changing ourselves and our lives. This is why we balance being approachable while also challenging our clients to make changes they believe are right for them. That’s right, we are not the ones deciding goals and what needs to change for people… We expect our clients to collaborate with us in determining what changes they want to make. This is part of the foundation of Thrive is that we are not your typical bossy doctors who think we know better than you. We want to help you find your inner voice towards growth, wisdom, insight, and change and will be a guide on your journey. Sometimes we might walk next to you, other times in front, and also behind and let you lead the way. This means that we do not have magic answers because our belief is that there are no shortcuts or magic when it comes to true, deep, life-altering change. That kind of lasting change takes serious work and that is the work that we do together at Thrive Therapy Studio.
 
Please see our Values section of our website if you’d like to read more about what guides our work at Thrive!  We will also be sharing more about the Thrive Philosophy in the coming weeks. Please post any comments or questions you may have! As always, thank you for reading!

​Recently, I was discussing emotions with a friend not in the mental health space and realized that the topic of “numbing or avoiding emotions” comes up frequently both at work as well as in my personal life. So, I thought I would share some of my thoughts about the risks of avoiding or numbing emotions!
 
As a psychologist, the topic of numbing or avoiding emotions comes up frequently in my sessions and discussions with clients. It is my belief that part of this is our culture that currently suggests that any emotion that is not typically thought to be "positive" is somehow "negative" or "bad." Clients come in with many thoughts about how to manage emotions and often seem to vacillate between avoidance and wallowing in the emotion. Neither of these is very helpful for long-term mental health. Emotions are cues to the environment and so important to learn to sit with and process through them so that you can receive the lesson the emotion is there to teach. For example, if you are feeling depressed it is very worthwhile to think about what is going on and why you might be feeling down and depressed. This query and search for meaning can help you figure out what the depression is trying to tell you and what life changes might help you feel more content with your life again. 
 
Unfortunately, when someone tries to avoid or numb their feelings, it often leads to increases of that very same emotion in the future. Kind of like when you have a soda bottle and just keep shaking it. Eventually, it will explode!  Emotions are very similar and unfortunately, numbing them is only a short-term solution. Additionally, when we numb our unpleasant emotions, we also numb our more enjoyable emotions. They are flip sides of the same coin and it is through the experience of sorrow that our capacity for joy grows. 
 
Here are some tips on ways to sit with unpleasant emotions:

1. Remember that they are temporary.
2. Seek out the lesson that emotion might be trying to teach you by exploring the emotion further.
3. Try to figure out the exact emotion you are feeling. Often, unpleasant emotions are experienced as overwhelming and it can be confusing to know what is really triggering your pain. Sitting with the emotion, exploring the emotion, and arising at a reason or at least the accurate description of the emotion leads to understanding and a release.
4. Let yourself experience the emotion with the understanding that it will not hurt you and that though it is painful, emotions are all a part of being alive. Sometimes it is helpful to think of the emotion as a wave that comes and goes.
5. Talk to someone you can be vulnerable with. Particularly a close friend, family member, or maybe a therapist who can sit with you and express understanding without trying to solve the problem or “fix” the emotion.

I hope this discussion helped illuminate some truths about the balance that is so needed in our world around emotions!  Please let me know what you think in the comments section!