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Finding Emotional Support During Difficult Times
These days we all need emotional support. I mean, really. Just when you thought politics and the climate crisis were enough, along comes the coronavirus. Seriously? A pandemic? Now? I try to avoid expletives on my blog. But this moment really requires several WTFs. I am sure you are reading articles from all of the…
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Counseling Gifted Adults — A Quick Guide for Therapists
What do you do with the clients you suspect are super smart? Clients who talk fast, think fast, and ask probing questions. Who are so articulate and high functioning, you can’t understand why they say they are depressed and anxious. Who are paralyzed by fears of failure and the pressures of their “great potential.” Who…
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Living Your Authentic Life May Mean You Look Or Sound Or Feel A Little Weird
I know that authenticity is important to you. Truth. Clarity. Open-heartedness. Depth. Beauty. Integrity. Knowing who you are. Living the life you were born to live. But how do you manage to be authentic when your natural intensity overwhelms others? When you are told to slow down and stop asking so many questions. When no…
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Parents of Gifted Children — Who Needs the Counseling?
Parents come to me worried about their gifted kids. Anxiety, existential depression, trouble in school, sensitivities, loneliness, empathy, perfectionism, social responsibility. I describe the typical social-emotional traits of gifted children and the challenges they often experience. We strategize. This information is a relief for parents who are overwhelmed by these super intense, extremely curious, highly…
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Gifted and Resilient — When You Grow Up With Abuse or Neglect
As a psychotherapist, I know trauma. Every day I counsel dear rainforest-minded (RFM) souls who were seriously traumatized by their parents. What is remarkable is that I have found, consistently, that they have not become abusive as a result. They have clearly been impacted deeply. And yet, they have somehow managed, even with unspeakable pain,…
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Tips for Aging Well When You Have a Rainforest Mind (And Overexcitable Hair)
I am in my sixties. That sounds OLD to me. AARP. Medicare. Senior discounts. Golf. Geezerville. But I don’t feel OLD. In fact, other than some possible hidden creeping potential decrepitude (!), I think 60-something is kind of fine. Pretty great, actually. You, too, can have a pretty-great-actually time into your 60s and beyond. Here’s…
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Loving the Wounded Gifted Child Within
When you were a little tyke, you probably had passions, curiosities, quirks, and quests. You may have corrected the adults who didn’t know the difference between crimson and red. You may have wondered why the other kids wanted to be bunny rabbits for Halloween when they could be Richard Feynman. You may have corrected your…
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Childhood Trauma, Psychotherapy, Courage, and Your Gifted Self
You are in therapy. Grieving for your little child self. The one who thought it was her fault that her father was so angry. That her mother spent hours alone in a dark room. The curious child who was bullied in school because he excitedly answered all the questions and hid in the library during…
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You Have a Right to Say NO — Tips for Deep Thinkers, Perfectionists, Empaths, and HSPs
It is easy for me to say NO. In fact, it’s one of my favorite words. No, I will not run a marathon. No, I will not go camping with you for two weeks in Antarctica. No, I will not go to that month-long silent kundalini yoga retreat. (I live in Eugene, Oregon, USA. People…
YOUR RAINFOREST MIND
SUPPORT FOR THE EXCESSIVELY CURIOUS, CREATIVE, SMART & SENSITIVE
