Gina Behm, LCPC

Hey y'all, sorry for the delay in content this past week, I've been taking care of a sick baby, which, spoiler alert: forced me to be flexible!!

Our little guy spiked a fever over the weekend that lasted into Monday, so I had to practice psychological flexibility in many ways! Needless to say, my usual schedule was definitely interrupted 😂

You know what else happened though? Our self-trust in parenting G R E W 💗

On Monday night, we took Carter's temperature and it had broken from 101.1 for the past 48 hours down to 99.8. Ryan looked at me, pumped his fist and said "We did it! We're parenting!!!"

Even though we've been parenting for the past 4 months (and then some, arguably), this moment was a turning point for us. We rearranged our norm - I rescheduled clients, Ryan stayed home alone with C for the first time all day, we adjusted feeding and sleeping patterns, took care of the dogs differently etc. Was it a nightmare, you betcha! Did we survive? Hell ya we did. And now we know exactly what to do next time!

If we would have stayed rigid in our schedule, there would have been consequences for everyone - Carter would have been miserable at daycare, he could have gotten other babies sick, I would have been distracted at work, Ryan would still feel like he wasn't parenting (jk 😂) But instead, we all made huge gains.

So think of this anecdote the next time you think to yourself, "do I really need to practice flexibility..?" Because the answer is Y E S. Tell me below, how have you built self trust through flexibility lately?! 👇🏼👇🏼👇🏼

Psychological Flexibility begins with our ability to release rigidity, step away from black and white thinking and create multiple paths, alternatives and options for ourselves (mental and literal!)

Here are a few ways to begin increasing flexibility in your lives:
EMOTIONAL:
•recognize and validate your changing emotions- we feel all different types of ways all the time y'all, it's normal and let it be!
•challenge your thoughts- not everything your head tells you is ... sometimes it's one option and sometimes it's a straight up lie. Don't let yourself get trapped here
•live through your own values- there is nothing more rigid than trying to live by someone else's rules, so live by your own value instead!
PRACTICAL:
•change up your morning routine- drive a different way to work or have a different creamer in your coffee! Get yourself off autopilot
•try new foods- expand your palate and your knowledge here! Try a new food or an old one prepared a different way
•learn something everyday- look up fun facts or listen to a podcast
•practice awareness of the present- the present is always changing, so being aware of it allows you to practice fluid shifting

Remember, the ultimate goal here is to BUILD TRUST in your ability to manage, cope & survive! If you give yourself options or you allow there to be more than one "right way", you greatly increase your ability to succeed... not just in your endeavors and goals, but emotionally and relationally as well! Now, doesn't that sound nice?

Y'all remember last week when we talked about dropping the CONTROL? This is what you can work on instead!

Psychological Flexibility is a person's ability to maintain awareness of the present moment and utilize that awareness to face the unavoidable challenges of life. As the word flexibility would imply, this is done through balance, adjustments, shifts, and so forth. Psychological flexibility is the OPPOSITE of rigidity, so for those of you who swear by your routines and set schedules, I'm gonna burst your bubble a little this week (sorry, my bubble had to be bursted too, I know how you feel!)

The ultimate goal here is to be able to cope with change in a way that helps to facilitate self trust. When we remain rigid, we inevitably will be faced with a challenge we can't solve, and that causes us to lose trust in ourselves. In order to continue to believe in ourselves (and quite frankly, our ability to survive) we have to become more fluid and adjust to scenarios. How do we do this without jeopardizing our morals you might ask? You ask yourself this: what is my intention here? Does that align with my values? What are multiple ways I can achieve the outcome I want/need while remaining in tact with my values? And go from there...

For those of y'all who are rigid like me, practicing flexibility in smaller ways is a key predecessor to this skill, so stay tuned for some quick tips and tricks on that next!

✨My 2022 Mantra✨
NEW YEAR • SAME ME • MORE HEALING

I've had a handful of discharges since I've been back at the office (yaaaay clients!!!) which means I have a handful of openings for new people!

Call now to schedule for January if your New Years goals include healing, self improvement and just a general feeling of BETTER 💛

But also, send an email cause I'm out of office this week to finally visit our family 😋🥰

📞913.735.9527
⌨️[email protected]

Happy Holidays from my fam to you! This is the best family photo we'll be getting this year since we are spending Christmas with just the three of us 💚

Holidays aren't always the easiest for people. In fact, for some the holidays can be downright painful. If you are enjoying the holidays this year, that is wonderful! Please remember to be mindful of those who are hurting. If this holiday is hard for you, please remember you are strong, and you will survive. If you typically love this time of year but for whatever reason, this year hits different, please remember this season too will pass.

However you spend these holidays, know that you matter and you are loved 🤍 here's to looking forward! 🥂
Merry Happy Everythinf y'all,
Xoxo, GB

This weeks What Is It: THE INNER CRITIC

Your inner critic is that pesky voice inside your head that ridicules, judges and criticizes your every move... how aaaaahNOYing, AMIRIGHT? Well, actually, only if you let it be!

The good news is, you have a lot more control over your inner critic than you might think! Most people try to squash their inner critic by ignoring it or criticizing it right back, when in reality, the best way to quiet your inner critic is simply to interact with it. Your inner critic is a part of you, and when we ignore it or fight with it, we end up losing self-trust, which just gets us in deeper.

Later this week we'll review exactly how to challenge our inner critic, just in time to practice, practice, practice during all those difficult holiday get togethers; Let's get past this stressful time of comparison together y'all!

R E S O U R C I N G: what is it?

Resourcing is when you work to identify and implement effective coping skills to utilize in times of distress.

You all have heard me discuss grounding, and while many may think of the terms resourcing and grounding as synonymous, grounding is actually a type of resource. Resources come in many different forms, which we will hit on later this week, but for now, I simply want you to buy into the idea that resources are USEFUL 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

I work with many individuals who initially find resourcing silly, or don't buy into its effectiveness. I've worked with clients who spend multiple sessions creating resources with me, and then don't use them out in their real lives; Not only is this wasteful of session time, it is also just plain inefficient!!! Ya ain't gonna feel better if ya don't try 💡🙃

Resources are proven to work y'all; they mainly help instill feelings of safety, but can also inspire feelings of confidence, competence, stability, peace, so on and so forth... basically, whatever you are in need of during a moment of distress, you can make a resource for! How dang cool is that!! Not to mention powerful AF 💪🏼

Resources are one of the best ways to help regulate your emotions (notice I said regulate, not control...), which is a huge reason most people land in therapy whether they realize it or not. Feeling overwhelmed? Resource by envisioning a calm space. Feeling nervous about a presentation? Resource by revisiting a time when you crushed a project. Depression symptoms hitting you?? Resource with loved ones, your senses and much more.

So, do you buy into it yet? Stay tuned for more specifics later this week...

I'M BAAAACK 🤩
I dropped my baby off at daycare, I panicked, I breathed through it, and now I'm ready for clients to come sit on my couch!!
I cannot wait to resume therapy with my current clients and begin work with new ones. Call or email me today to book your session!

I am officially on maternity leave! I will be unavailable to contact during this time as we settle into our new normal with our sweet love bug 🤍
CURRENT CLIENTS: please follow the plans we created together for coverage and support during this time period.
INQUIRING CLIENTS: Feel free to send an email or submit a form via my website. I will be responding to all new inquiries upon my return to office in mid-November, at which time we can assess if you are still in need of services, schedule a time to chat and determine if we would be a good fit together! If you are needing services prior to November, I highly encourage you to seek another therapist - your health is important!
AS ALWAYS: this page is NOT a substitution for therapy OR a space for emergency contacts. If you or a loved one is in immediate danger, please contact 911, the local authorities or other sources of support such as the su***de hotline at 800.273.8255