Blog and Articles

A new blog, on average, is published about 3-8x a month, tending to offer ideas and perspectives on psychological aspects of current events, an introduction or deepening of how Dr. Denise Renye works with people, and some practices you can do blending psychology, sexology, spirituality, embodiment and art.

Press publications and mentions can be found here.

Notice to readers

These articles are not intended to be a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, medical treatment, coaching or therapy. Seeking the advice of your physician or qualified mental health provider with any questions you may have regarding any mental health symptom or medical condition is imperative. Do not disregard professional psychological or medical advice. Do not delay in the seeking of professional advice or treatment because of something you have read here.

Denise Renye Denise Renye

‘Dad-ing’ Not Babysitting

Men regularly receive immense amounts of praise for basic acts of parenting – changing a diaper, bringing their kid to the park, etc. People ooh and ahh when they see a dad doing these things but don’t bat an eyelash when they see a mom doing the same thing.

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Denise Renye Denise Renye

What is Clinical Consultation?

If you are interested in joining a clinical consultation group, you can ask for referrals from colleagues or professional organizations, or search online for groups in your area. Many groups are offered through local mental health organizations, private practice clinicians, professional associations, or online platforms. It's important to find a group that is a good fit for your needs and interests, and that provides a supportive and collaborative environment for learning and growth. At Whole Person Integration, we provide clinical consultation for psychologists and psychotherapists who are seeking to enrich their practices and offerings to patients.

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Sex Remains Important in Long-Term Relationships

Sex…it’s something that is typically part of a romantic partnership or marriage and it’s wise to have a conversation about it from the beginning of a connection. People may be asexual, pansexual, have a high interest in sex, have kinky desires, prefer a vanilla scene, or anything in between. But there is a prevalent and under-talked about sexual concern in some relationships.

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Trauma Healing Denise Renye Trauma Healing Denise Renye

How to Apologize Effectively in 5 Steps

These non-apologies essentially blame the other person for feeling upset or hurt. There isn’t acknowledgment on the part of the person who did the hurting so they aren’t real apologies. That’s the key, acknowledgment of one’s own actions. The non-apologies are defensive statements that endeavor to get the person who is doing the apologizing “off the hook.” The statements don’t take responsibility for the person’s actions so they aren’t real apologies.

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Psychology and Spirituality Denise Renye Psychology and Spirituality Denise Renye

What is Spiritual Bypassing?

We human beings are complex and often, unconsciously and creatively, employ various strategies to avoid pain: primarily addictions and bypassing. Spiritual bypassing is sidestepping or avoiding facing unresolved emotional issues, psychological wounds, and unfinished developmental tasks but talking the talk of an individual who is more “spiritually evolved.”

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Psychedelics Denise Renye Psychedelics Denise Renye

Addiction Recovery and Psychedelic Assisted Therapy: What you Need to Know

The medical profession is becoming increasingly interested in using psychedelics for deeper healing and given the resurgence in the West (note that using psychedelics for healing has been practiced indigenously for millennia), it’s no wonder people from all backgrounds, including those in recovery from addiction, are curious whether psychedelics can help them.

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Denise Renye Denise Renye

How Inner Child Work Can Heal Perfectionism

Perfectionism is an attempt to hold onto the illusion of control. It’s a creation of the mind to give a sense of power to a situation or environment where helplessness may abound. When the environment is chaotic, the mind wants to create control from within. One way of doing that is to begin a practice of self-discipline and buy into the idea that perfection exists and that you can embody it in this world (you simply cannot). Inner child work can be healing for perfectionism.

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Denise Renye Denise Renye

The Hidden form of Incest: Enmeshment

Some folx grew up too soon and were forced to be adults before they were ready. This happens for a variety of reasons and one of those reasons is covert incest, also known as enmeshment. Enmeshment occurs when a parent or caregiver looks to their child for emotional support and psychological validation. In other words, there aren’t strong boundaries within the family. And those strong boundaries are necessary for the safety of the child. They are also necessary for the safety of the parent’s psyche but the child’s psyche is really negatively affected.

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Denise Renye Denise Renye

Using Inner Child Work to Heal from Trauma

Why is inner child play a way to heal from trauma? Because every time something substantial or traumatic took place in your life, it was registered within and inner child play is one avenue of healing, if you wish to engage with it.

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Trauma Healing Denise Renye Trauma Healing Denise Renye

Watching Your Parents Grandparent

For someone in that situation, it may feel confusing or even like gaslighting. Generally, people want healthy, functional, emotionally regulated parents. There’s grief when that’s not present and why focusing on reparenting yourself can be so healing. To see the sort of parenting you wish you could have received given to your kids, but not to you, can bring up numerous feelings.

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Trauma Healing Denise Renye Trauma Healing Denise Renye

When the Happiest Time of Year Isn’t So Happy

Don’t let art and social media bully you into feeling something that’s not authentic. Remember, this is a time of year for hibernating and going inward. It’s not only the winter solstice itself that brings up the sentiment, it’s also the days leading up to the solstice and the ones after it. We are in the midst of that time. Yes, it’s the holidays, but it’s also winter.

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Ritual and Ceremony Denise Renye Ritual and Ceremony Denise Renye

The Wisdom in Honoring the Winter Solstice

We can honor the rhythm of winter by withdrawing from the world in ways that feel right. They may feel unfamiliar because we are so conditioned to lean in and be a part of what’s around us instead. Maybe it means staying home more or taking solo walks. Slowing down can feel incredibly challenging because the regular busyness of life often distracts from the feelings inside. If we’re rushing around, it’s harder to notice the body’s cues or to become curious about lingering emotions. Instead, we’re too caught up in our to-do lists to notice what’s happening internally.

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Trauma Healing Denise Renye Trauma Healing Denise Renye

Trauma Response: The Part Missing

Fawning looks like codependence. It’s putting someone else’s needs above your own. It’s struggling to say “no” and saying “yes” when you don’t want to. Your orientation is toward other people instead of yourself, “What will make them happy?” not “What will make me happy?” It’s making yourself responsible for other people’s actions and reactions: “I must have done something wrong. If only I’d done XYZ, they wouldn’t be angry/withdrawn/upset, etc.”

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Trauma Healing Denise Renye Trauma Healing Denise Renye

The Alchemy of Acceptance

When you practice acceptance, you’re no longer focusing outward. You’re no longer trying to change, fix, or control other people and situations so you can feel happy, fulfilled, peaceful, or whatever it is you think will happen if only they did XYZ or if ABC looked different. Instead, you’re keeping the focus on yourself and asking what you can do right now, given these circumstances and these people, to feel the way you want to feel.

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Denise Renye Denise Renye

The Modern-Day Witch Hunt in Iran

Over and over again, the patriarchy tries to disenfranchise women and other minorities. Who the minority groups are varies from country to country, but regardless, those in power wish to remain in power and as we’re seeing, they’ll do anything to stay in that position. Including detaining thousands of protestors and executing those who dare to defy their authority.

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Ritual and Ceremony, Trauma Healing Denise Renye Ritual and Ceremony, Trauma Healing Denise Renye

How to Stay Sane During the Holidays

To stay sane during the holidays, I encourage my patients, clients, and students to continue the practices they have at other times of the year: breathwork, somatic work, yoga nidra, freewriting, getting outside, etc. It may feel tempting to let these practices fall by the wayside, but in times of stress, you need them more. Make sure you prioritize you because you are the most important relationship you’ll ever have.

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Ritual and Ceremony, Trauma Healing Denise Renye Ritual and Ceremony, Trauma Healing Denise Renye

Witches, Women, and Psychology

Witches, of today and yesteryear, accept all parts of themselves, which promotes psychological healing for us all. There is a depth of healing that can occur when individual work is done that enacts not only on their own psyche but also heals collective trauma. When intergenerational and collective trauma are more richly understood and focused upon, deeper layers of healing can occur.

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