Understanding Attachment Styles and How They Affect Adult Relationships Let's face it: relationships can be difficult. And not just romantic ones. Sometimes it can be hard to feel totally safe, confident, or at ease around others in social situations or at work. We might feel anxious, cut off, or invisible. We might struggle to say "No", avoid conflict, or downplay our needs to keep the peace. We might feel pressure to adjust who we really are in order to be accepted by other

Understanding trauma When we think of trauma, most of us imagine overwhelming or life-threatening events: experiences that are shocking, terrifying, or deeply distressing. These are sometimes called "Big-T" traumas. Examples include frontline combat, catastrophic accidents, sexual abuse, violent assault, or a serious medical diagnosis. These kinds of events can lead to long-term distress, flashbacks, nightmares, and severe anxiety, all symptoms commonly associated with post-

When life is a challenge and there is a sense of being overwhelmed or distressed, one of the things that might help us to manage is to express our feelings through our creativity. Many find writing helpful: a journal, a poem, or perhaps just a sentence or two. When we experience emotional chaos, there is something cathartic about choosing the right words to pin those emotions onto the page. To capture them so that we may see them more clearly. To allow us the space to breathe