The reason most of us feel stressed in life is because of the way we think. Our thoughts have everything to do with how we feel each day. For example, if you think negative thoughts, you will feel negative. If you think positive thoughts, you will feel positive. Test yourself right now. Tell me 5…
Author: Dr. Christine E. Dickson
I am a psychologist specializing in mindfulness-based cognitive behavioral therapy and private practice consultations. My offices are located in beautiful downtown Pleasanton, California and the redwood forest of Mill Valley, California, but if you live out of the area I also conduct video conferencing.
Increasing Positivity and Optimism in Analytical People
For analytical people, it’s easy to develop a pessimistic attitude. We review, study, and examine our circumstances to figure out the best course of action. We take pleasure in thinking and analyzing. However, if we are not careful, our amazing, analytical mind will encounter worried thoughts and fixate on problems and challenges. Once we solve…
7 Ways to Improve the Moment
Strong emotional reactions are an unavoidable part of life. From time to time, we will experience strong emotions due to stressful situations in our life. It could be anything from getting bad news to having an argument with a loved one. Strong emotional reactions are normal but most of us don’t know how to cope…
Compassion for Difficult People: A Mindfulness Meditation
In an earlier post, I wrote about a mindfulness meditation called, “The Pebble” by my favorite author, Thich Nhat Hanh, an elderly Vietnamese Monk. Hanh is a practical Zen teacher who has written many books on how to apply mindfulness to daily life. If I had to recommend one of his books to you right now,…
The Pebble: A Mindfulness Meditation
One of my favorite authors of all time is Thich Nhat Hanh, an elderly Vietnamese Monk. He is a practical Zen teacher who has written many books on how to apply mindfulness to our daily life. Two of his books that are always on my night stand are called, “Anger” and “Fear.” But if I…
Soothing Emotions with the Five Senses
One of the most effective ways to manage our emotions is to soothe each of the five senses: vision, hearing, touch, smell, and taste. Self-soothing is a powerful strategy for helping us feel calm and grounded. Unfortunately, most of us forget to self-soothe or never learned to self-soothe as children. The good news is that…
6 Ways to Reduce Vulnerability to Emotions
When we are vulnerable to our emotions, overreacting to small triggers and to life challenges is very common. Research shows that our health habits are strongly connected to our emotional vulnerability. For example, if I only sleep 5 hours, drink two cups of coffee, forget to eat during the day, and procrastinate at work, I…
