They don’t belong because the child knows on some level there’s a healthier way of existing, that there’s another way to show up in the world and live, even if they’re not quite sure what that looks like. For a child who perpetually feels like an outsider in their own home, or an adult who feels untethered to anyone, this can lead to numerous symptoms, including addiction and addictive tendencies.

Rigorous, long-term psychological research demonstrates clearly that people who are denied abortions are more likely to experience higher levels of anxiety, lower life satisfaction and lower self-esteem compared with those who are able to obtain abortions. In addition, there is no research to indicate that abortion is a cause for subsequent mental health diagnoses.

The collective still very deeply holds the trauma that has been caused by the violence directed toward non-straight people. This may be directly held by older generations in the lgbtqia+ but it may be held in the psyche of the younger generations. Creating space for these feelings to be expressed, explored, and held without judgment is important for healing this wound. Discrimination scars and some folx may not feel they have the space and time to heal in the ways needed. Let us hold that as we move forward in this Pride month. There is space for everyone to celebrate and heal in community.

To answer that question, I think it’s important to understand what happens in therapy. First, the therapeutic relationship is unique and special. The therapeutic relationship itself is where and how healing happens. For some, a therapist is the first or perhaps only secure attachment figure in their life. A secure attachment figure is someone who provides a safe physical and emotional environment for interaction. They are people clients can count on, someone they can express their innermost thoughts to, a person that holds space for feelings and processing feelings without shame, blame, or judgment.

Oftentimes going deep into the soul and the psyche requires you to let go of and lose your footing in the world as you knew it. There’s a surrendering here, an acceptance of what is rather than what you want to be. Carl Jung speaks to this when he writes, “Every transformation demands as its precondition ‘the ending of the world’ – the collapse of an old philosophy of life.”

yoga nidra can help with issues like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), addiction, insomnia, anxiety, and more. That’s not conjecture, by the way. A study from 2011 found yoga nidra helped war veterans reduce rage, anxiety, and emotional reactivity while increasing feelings of relaxation, peace, self-awareness, and self-efficacy. In 2014, a study by Pamela Pence found sexual trauma survivors reported significant decreases in PTSD symptoms, negative thoughts of self-blame, and depression. They also reported an increased feeling of joy.

Whatever you're judging yourself about, it's worth it to ask if maybe the judge is mistaken and practice accepting yourself as you, right now. You don't have to do it alone, if you look around you might find there are already people in your life who love and accept you without changing a thing. Seek them out and let them shine that love upon you while you learn to do it for yourself.

Healing is also not swift, despite the numerous people in the world trying to tell you otherwise with their quick-fix products and programs. Awareness of an issue is one thing – something afforded by the use of psychedelics, for instance – but integration is another.

There’s so much attention on men with multiple partners, but what about the reverse? What about a woman in a consensual relationship with multiple men?

Belonging contributes to self-worth, self-esteem, and a sense of who you are, even. And it starts young – not at school in terms of who you sit with at lunch, but before that, with your family. Yes, they may provide shelter and food but that’s simply not enough to engender a feeling of belonging.

Gaslighting can be unconscious. It can be so effortless you don’t even know it’s happening. It could be your normal way of operating and last for years unchecked because it thrives in the shadows. That also means by looking at the shadow, by doing shadow work, it’s possible to reconnect with reality and that internal light can shine forth like a beacon.

After expressing all the emotions that arise, be it anger, sorrow, disappointment, etc., the dying person may start to have acceptance that death is happening. It’s not something theoretical in the far, distant future, but instead here, now. The person isn’t “giving up,” but rather giving in or surrendering, accepting the inevitable, the natural order of life. Life is not possible without death just like light is not possible without shadow.

Healthy relationships are consensual ones where each partner respects the other’s boundaries and doesn’t make assumptions about what’s OK and what’s not.

Tattoos can be a form of self-expression and a way to process trauma, for instance the death of a loved one. Tattoos can be a way to transform wounding and reclaim the body for the Self. Tattoos can increase embodiment. Tattooing does so by bringing attention and emphasis back to the body, to the skin, but also to the psyche

There aren’t a lot of spaces for traditionally gendered men to experience body movement. Athletics is one of them. This is more so for the players and less so for the spectators. The spectators often experience quite the opposite of athleticism with a high probability of sitting to watch the game and an increase in using substances, such as alcohol.

My invitation to you: What if you considered the holidays rest days? What if instead of staying with family for five continuous days you took breaks in between? Or were with them only one to two hours each day? Otherwise, you might need a vacation from your vacation because your “vacation” was so stressful! It can be hard to feel rested if you’re anxious about everything that “needs” to get done during your supposed “downtime.”

This time of the year, the veils are the thinnest, some say. It's the witchiest time of the year as we are halfway between the autumn equinox and the winter solstice. The darkness is longer than the light and it's a prime time to reflect on our ancestors, life, and death. Death is inevitable and something that we will all experience. Not only the “big death” at the end of our lives, but also smaller deaths like the end of a relationship, losing a furry companion, or letting go of a behavior.

The breath is ever present. Always here as a constant in our lives. When we feel lost, we can come back to our breath. It is a guide for us. A tool to go inward. A tool to then go outward from a centered place.

The body is its own boundary. The body contains us, holds us, keeps our organs intact. Our skin especially separates us from the rest of the world. It designates where we end and others begin. The skin is what differentiates the inside from the outside.

However the body wants to respond, I encourage you to listen. The body has its own wisdom so let whatever wants to occur, occur.