This time of year comes with heightened expectations, emotional triggers, financial stress, and an overwhelming sense of obligation. If you’ve ever found yourself dreading a family gathering or saying "yes" to something you don’t want to do, this blog is for you.

Here’s how to set—and stick to—boundaries with your family this holiday season.

As someone who cares deeply about the people in your life, you might often find yourself caught in the delicate dance between showing compassion and falling into the trap of compliance or people-pleasing. While both compassion and compliance can look similar on the surface, their emotional roots and long-term effects are quite different. Learning how to extend care and kindness to others while setting healthy boundaries for yourself is key to maintaining fulfilling relationships and preserving your own well-being.

Perfectionism can become harmful when it’s driven by the belief that you must do everything perfectly in order to be accepted, loved, or valued. If you believe you can’t rest until everything is perfect, this can lead to exhaustion, anxiety, and feelings of inadequacy.

If you grew up in a family where alcoholism or other forms of dysfunction were present, you may have heard the phrase “adult child of an alcoholic” (ACOA) before. Or maybe you’re just now learning that you are part of a specific group with a special acronym. But what does that really mean? And more importantly, how does it affect you today, as an adult navigating your relationships, work, and day-to-day life?

This blog post delves into the unique challenges that we millennial women face when deciding whether or not to have children—and how overthinking can often turn this decision into an anxiety-ridden spiral that keeps us unsure and riddled with guilt and doubt.

When I describe myself as a relational therapist, I'm talking about the heart of my approach to therapy: fostering a relationship that feels safe, supportive, and healing. Many of my clients come to therapy with experiences of emotional pain, often rooted in past relationships that lacked safety, understanding, or healthy boundaries. My goal is to offer something different—to be a figure in their life who helps them heal from the wounds inflicted by others.

Seeking therapy can be a crucial step towards mental well-being, but the cost can sometimes be a barrier. Recently, I think a lot of us have been experiencing more financial hardship, so I wanted to put together a resource list of some things to consider to make therapy more affordable.

Shame is a deeply powerful emotion that can burden our hearts and minds, not to mention heavily influence how we see ourselves and interact with the world around us. Shame tells us we are not enough as we are, not lovable. And for many of us, when we feel that way about ourselves, we either want to hide ourselves (isolate), act out, or numb out.

From early childhood, girls are conditioned to be "good" and “nice.” Politeness, agreeableness, and compliance are qualities that we are praised for. The unspoken rule is clear: play nice, don't make waves.