Am I In A Healthy Relationship?

As children, we learn everything we know about relationships from our family and friends. We see how our parents interact, we learn from how they treat us, and so on. What we experience in relationships growing up feels so normal that sometimes it isn’t until we reach adulthood that we realize they may not have […]

What Is Trauma Bonding?

When you think about the trauma and hard things you went through in your childhood, can you think of any inappropriate bonds you had with anyone? If your answer is yes, you may have a trauma bond.  What is a trauma bond? How does it impact your life today? How can you get free from […]

How To Deal With Someone Who’s Gaslighting You

Gaslighting is a common term in our culture nowadays, but what is it? What does it mean? How do we recognize when others may be gaslighting us? What Is It?  Gaslighting is an insidious form of abuse, in which one person invalidates the lived experience of another. Lying, deflecting, and shifting blame are all tactics […]

Spiritual Bypassing

The woman stood at the end of the potluck table, staring down at the casseroles. The cancer had come on so quickly; her Ed hadn’t stood a chance. He was gone.  Another woman walked up next to her, setting a dish on the overflowing table. “Aw, I’m so sorry about Ed,” she said. “But you […]

Toxic Positivity

A little humor: A father said to his son, “How did you do on the math test today?” The son said, “I’m afraid I may have failed it.” Father, “Son, don’t be so negative, try to be positive!” Son, “Dad, I’m positive that I failed that math test today.” Being positive or optimistic is a […]

Tips for Lowering Your Anxiety

Whether or not you have been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, we all encounter anxiety from time to time. When anxiety rushes in, it’s hard to know how to handle it in the moment. Sometimes a small moment triggers a wave of anxiety that throws off your entire day. Even though dealing with some levels […]

Discovering Your True Self

WHO DEFINES YOU? Who defines you, and defines your identity? Are you defined from the inside out, or from the outside in? Do you feel secure and confident in who you are? Or have others told you who you are? Have you created an identity based on being yourself, or based on being accepted by […]

Reflections From The Wilderness

“But I will court her again and bring her into the wilderness, and I will speak to her tenderly there.”  Hosea 2:14 (The Living Bible) “Who is this coming up from the wilderness leaning on her Beloved?” Song of Songs 8:5 (NIV)   There have been several times of my life that I would call times in […]

Excuse Me, Your (Southern) Roots Are Showing

Depending on your background and where you grew up, you may find it hard to believe that many churches in the United States, especially in the South, still teach that women cannot be pastors or leaders in the church. They also believe that in the church, women cannot teach men or hold positions of authority. […]