Isobel Gardner, LMFT

This wild Kingfisher's grandparent, I found in the garden, nearly dead, some years ago. Nursed him back to health, and set him free. The next morning, the family swooped down, past me, in gratitude.
A couple of years later, I awoke to find the next generation, a parent of this bird, waiting for me on the terrace, his wing seemed broken. I picked him up and examined him. He never flinched, and stared deeply into my eyes. A thorn had locked his wing from operating. I pulled it out, and set him free. Without fail, he passes my window every day at the same time, crying out to me.
This baby, sat in the tree, eye to eye with me, then flew directly to my hand, and sat there for several minutes, before flying away.
Intuition, compassion, good intent, those essences of love, was all we had. Pure, unspoken.
An energy that has no end, and passes silently onward, much further than we can imagine..

From Van Der Kolk to Levine: Notes from Europe's Premier Trauma Conference at Oxford University Dive deep into the world of trauma and stress research at Oxford University's premier trauma conference. Join renowned experts like Van Der Kolk and Levine as they merge ancient mindfulness practices with contemporary trauma research, shedding light on holistic healing approaches

Read my new blog post about mindfulness vs. CBT. Both are tool based. Which one do you think is more effective and why?

Is Mindfulness a more effective alternative than CBT? Mindfulness-based therapy and cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) are two widely recognized approaches that equip individuals with valuable tools to manage their emotions and thoughts effectively. While both therapies share common ground in their emphasis on empowering clients, they differ in their o

It’s Mental Health Awareness month and this year’s focus is on anxiety, something most of us are unfortunately more than familiar with.

As a specialist in anxiety treatment, I’m a featured author of an article in that offers insights on how Mindfulness-based psychotherapy and coaching can help those suffering from anxiety. It also links to a YouTube video I’ve made that demonstrates how to STOP anxiety before it overwhelms you. Link to article in in my bio. Enjoy!

The serenity prayer was coined by the Christian founders of Alcohol Anonymous and is used world wide for people struggling with addiction. The first line “God grant me the serenity to ACCEPT the things I cannot change” is the first order of the day! Without accepting reality as it is even the most painful kind, we cannot move on, change or evolve. Note that Accepting reality is not the same as approving it. It just means it is what it is and whiteout that embodied acknowledgement it’s impossible to free yourself from the situation. Buddha considered Acceptance of reality absolutely necessary as the inability to accept reality is the great cause of suffering. It’s a very wise prayer and reflects back on both western and eastern ancient wisdom. As a therapist I help my clients overcome their resistance to accepting reality and help them process the emotional pain/disappointment that follows. Not until then are we free to create a better reality for ourselves.

Practicing self-care and self-love 🥰is fundamental to a successful and happy life. This is true for girls and women in particular who are not just biologically set up to care for their off spring selflessly but as an extension often groomed by society and their families to sacrifice their own needs for the benefit of everyone else, not just their own kids. Often this is unconscious and automatic and done without reflection as it’s been passed on for thousands of years to the detriment of a lot of women who lose themselves in the process. The grooming invokes powerful feelings of guilt and shame if one resists others needs and prioritizes one’s own. This behavior of neglecting one’s own needs usually leads to resentment and self-loathing, poor self esteem and all kinds of destructive behaviors. In order to prevent such fate it’s essential to break the pattern and start practicing self-care and setting healthy boundaries. Obviously, there are times when we have to prioritize others particularly the needs of babies and young children and other responsibilities we’ve committed to. It’s fully possible to look after oneself and one’s own needs and also be a supportive member of our community. It’s all in the balance. We might just need to learn to manage our own feelings of guilt and shame and be curious about what our own needs are.

How to use ancient human knowledge to self-treat anxiety and panic attacks in a few short minutes:
1: Fixate your gaze on an immovable object/point while simultaneously focusing your attention on the physical sensation of air going in through your nostrils (in a normal tempo), into your lungs and out again. Make sure you use your diaphragm to breath as supposed to breathing with your chest (which could aggravate your sympathetic nervous system). If you struggle with holding your attention on your breathing you can focusing your attention on the sensation of your feet touching the floor instead. The overall idea here is to move your attention away from your thoughts and into your body in order to ‘ground’ yourself. Anxiety and panic is not a psychological process, it’s a physiological process that our ancient ancestors knew much more about than most of us do today. It’s an old knowledge that needs to be retaught as it is free of charge and empowers the user. If you practice and cultivate this ‘panic off button’ every day when you feel fine, it will be much easier to remember and access it when you actually need it. Good Luck. This tip sure improved my life, I hope it improves yours too💜❤️

“Yesterday, I was clever so I wanted to change the world, Today, I am wise so I’m changing myself…”

Are you or someone you know feeling overwhelmed by stress, intense emotions and/or intrusive negative thoughts? Are you at a loss on how to cope and manage? I offer confidential evidence based effective treatment online. For more information go to my website or send me an email. Links in bio.

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Mental Healt Awareness Month happens to coincide with The Birthday of the founder of Mindfulness - Siddhartha Buddha himself. If you are serious about your mental Health - practice mindfulness . A regular daily practice will solve most mental health issues. See link in bio of YouTube video where I show how you can reduce anxiety in a few steps in a few minutes. If you need mindfulness coaching to help you get started consider mindfulness based psychotherapy. Info in bio. 🙌🙏🌸 **us

11 years ago I was lucky enough to be taught Vedic (Transcendental) meditation by this brilliant man Light Watkins in Venice, CA where we both lived at the time. He is my first meditation teacher ever and for that I’m immensely grateful as he set me off on the greatest spiritual journey of my life. This weekend he is in London on his world tour and I got to refresh my Mantra focused transcendental meditation skills which differ quite a lot from Zen. He is a modern day meditation rockstar if you will and have written several amazing books on meditation that I highly recommend. He expressed interest in touring Sweden so for all you Swedes let me know if you’re interested and I’ll pass it along. This guy shines so bright you don’t want to miss out! 🌸🙏✨🧘🏽🧘🏼‍♀️🧘🏻✨🙏🌸

Are you looking for your next dopamine high? Dopamine is a natural chemical in our brain that makes us feel good. When we are under a lot of stress for a longer period of time it’s easy to misuse dopamine to relieve ourselves from the stress we are experiencing. Sometimes this develops into a dopamine addiction and as a result our overall well-being and ability to focus and be present declines #. Dopamine addiction often operates under-the-radar and can be very difficult to recognize.

I offer evidence-based treatment online or in person that provides the tools you need to break free from the dopamine addiction cycle. Email me to set up a free call to address your particular needs.

Isobel Gardner, LMFT I offer the highest quality mindfulness-based psychotherapy, EMDR, Meditation courses by telehealth (phone or video conference) or in person in Santa Monica and San Pedro, California.

We lie to ourselves and others to avoid Feelings of shame, guilt and humiliation. Sometimes talking to a trusted mental health professional can set you free from your own web of untruths.

Su***de rates among teen girls in the US is up 51% since 2019…

It’s high noon everyone takes mental health seriously. Depression and anxiety is treatable and should never be ignored. You can find mental health experts and clinics all over the world who speak your language at https://www.psychologytoday.com

Emergency Department Visits for Suspected Su***de Attempts ... During the COVID-19 pandemic, emergency department (ED) visits ..

My new office in Mayfair, London

Simplify your life: practice mindfulness; stay in the present. Repost

This guy just turned in his thesis at 104. Let that sink in. It’s never too late to put your foot forward, to study, to learn, to change your life, to improve and evolve. That’s the beauty of life...

Advice from a 104-year-old PhD student - BBC Reel In October 2020, Lucio Chiquito submitted his PhD thesis at the age of 104. Mr Chiquito is from Medellín, Colombia. He started his PhD at the University of Manchester 77 years ago, held a successful career as an engineer throughout his life, and was the co-founder of Colombia's largest energy compa...

In this YouTube video I address catastrophic thinking, anxiety and panic and show you how to use some easy and *free* techniques to stop it all by yourself.

HOW TO STOP CATASTROPHIC THINKING, ANXIETY AND PANIC Catastrophic thinking, also called Catastrophizing is when something upsetting or something unexpected happens in our lives and we jump to the worst possible...

Happy Holidays! Remember to gift yourself self-care, patience and kindness this holiday season and beyond 🌟🥰

The Food That Helps Battle Depression