In the simplest terms: burnout occurs when the stress we experience exceeds our capacity to cope with that stress. While some individuals may be able to thrive- at least in the short term- under high stress, eventually chronic stress without relief begins to take a toll on even the most resilient individuals. Everyone has a…
Shortly after completing my Mindful Grounding Activity Card deck, I had an idea for an emotion card deck, each card containing an evocative abstract image, for use as a tool in helping visual-thinkers and less-verbal kids and adults identify and communicate emotions. Although I’ve dabbled in abstract alcohol ink art, I knew this…
Last month, my patrons helped me collaborate on creating this new resource: a pizza-themed feelings wheel for kids. Via the Patreon community, Patrons got early access to this resource as it was developed, and their input shaped this final draft, which is now available for everyone to download below. I love how this ooey-gooey…
This three-piece worksheet is an adapted excerpt from my COVID Kid’s Activity Book. This bundle includes two worksheets, with three pages total. The Feeling Forecast is a coloring book page and activity designed to teach kids about the Window of Tolerance (and why sometimes everyone needs to take a break to calm-down in…
Most of us are more than a little concerned about the mental health of the kiddos that we care about during this pandemic. The natural resiliency of kids combined with the positive benefits of all the time spent together during quarantine (even though that may feel at times like way too much time!) is likely…
This little video explains why it’s SO HARD to calm down once we’re set off. Make the motions with your own hand to get a sense of how an amygdala overwhelmed by fear, danger, or any overwhelming emotion can blow up, making us seem to “flip our lid” and act in ways we…
Our window of tolerance refers to how much we can handle, emotionally, before shutting down or blowing up (Emotional states called “hypoarousal” and “hyperarousal” by brain researchers.) Healthy brains in optimal circumstances have a big arch that helps us stay present to listen, learn, and grow even when difficult stuff is happening. The normal…
> JUMP TO DOWNLOAD < The Emotion-Sensation Feeling Wheel WHAT IS IT: It’s an adaptation of the “feelings wheel” that many therapists and educators use to help people learn to better recognize and name their emotions, adapted to include common body-based expressions of emotions. HOW THE EMOTION-SENSATION WHEEL IS DIFFERENT: The two…
Traditional DBT helps develop emotion regulation and impulse control in people who struggle in these areas, but Radically Open (RO) DBT is an adaptation of DBT targeted towards people struggling in the opposite way: those with an overabundance of self-control and who struggle to express emotion. I encountered the text version of this crisis response…
Why Mindfulness? In a culture where life is often lived digitally, mindfulness matters. While our brains increasingly adept at sensing fake news deciphering complex texts based on emojis, but increasingly we struggle to orient ourselves to more physical, embodied, aspects of the world. Mindfulness is one way to train your brain to be present in…
Results of a recent study confirmed what has long been suspected: “neurodegeneration underpins disease progression when major depressive disorder is left untreated,” In layman’s terms, neurobiologists have been able to demonstrate that when depression goes untreated, sections of our the brain can begin to degenerate. This research indicates that untreated depression can cause the…
