​Most of you know my little family is moving to another house soon. Trust me, I know how many cool things lie ahead after we move but it is so overwhelming to leave the home I brought my kids to from the hospital. It is also overwhelming to think about the great friendships I will be moving away from. The people who seem like my second family on the cul-de-sac.

​I know the relationships will still be there at the end of the day, but it is sad to leave the community that has been built in that circle. A feeling of protection because we all have each other’s back—whether it is borrowing that giant ladder to change the batteries on our beeping fire alarm, or getting that late night text that we left our garage door open for the 800th time, or the kids, young and old, playing with one another daily, or the thoughtful meals and gifts sent our way after our kids were born, or the late nights in the driveway— those are the memories I will miss.

It is always scary to move to a new place because, as they say, "you can't pick your neighbors." Moving is like playing Russian roulette: you could be safe or, well, you get where I'm going. If I was given a chance, I would pick my neighbors all over again in a heartbeat. 

Change is hard. I work daily with people who are pursuing change. Now it is my turn and it is much harder than I expected, with each curtain and kitchen item I pack into a box. I know we’ll be keeping in touch, but this is my written thank you to each and every one of you. I appreciate the feeling of family you helped me feel in our first home.

​Cheers to you! I'll miss seeing your faces every day, even though I know you probably peep in my windows when our blinds are left open!  :P


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Let’s talk feelings. Some of you may be thinking, “Aw, here she goes again with the feeling talk!,” but it is so important to normalize this conversation. Saying how we feel and being able to sit with the unpleasant feelings of others is really hard for people in our current society. It’s considered taboo or shameful to express yourself. Then if we do, we often feel like a burden onto others when they blame themselves for our emotional reactions. Let’s get one thing straight: Although we can impact how other people feel, every person’s emotions are completely separate from that of any other person. There is no blame in it. We choose to feel a certain way based on how we perceive our world and the interactions we have in it. There it is—I said it. We CHOOSE to feel a certain way.

Why would anyone choose to feel depressed then? There are plenty of reasons. It is not a straight forward answer. We may have been wired this way from our negative childhood experiences (see my post on Emotional Minimizing here). We may not feel like we are worthy of happiness. We may have never had anyone validate our feelings or teach us how to handle the hard emotions in an effective way. An emotion like depression may be something that feels natural and comfortable based on our own perception of ourselves.

In therapy this concept is referred to as building your emotional tolerance. We all have a certain amount or types of emotion we are accepting of. Some people can only accept the good/positive emotions, but any instance of distress or negativity spirals them into a deep darkness where they are consumed by their tsunami wave. Whereas others may have really high emotional tolerance based on their experience of trauma and their ability to be emotionally resilient. These people are able to experience emotions like fear, uncertainty, and embarrassment with the understanding that emotions come and go, that they will never be stuck in that emotion forever. They can manage feeling cruddy for a day because eventually that wave will go back to sea and they can experience positive emotion again.

​So, the question is, “How do we build emotional tolerance?”

I recently had a client with severe allergies help me develop this analogy. Our allergies don’t go away if we toughen through them or ignore them. Sure, you can medicate them, but only for a short time. Sometimes your allergies could even get worse if you choose to avoid any treatment. Emotions are the same: ignoring and avoiding them means they will grow into this huge monster inside of us that we can no longer control. You can medicate your emotions but you are not dealing with the real issues.

This client mentioned that she receives a monthly shot to treat her severe seasonal allergies, noting that the shot contains small amounts of the allergen that gives her the most trouble so she can tolerate it in her living environment. That is what we need to do with emotions: learn to let them into our lives in small doses so we can build our immunity to them. Therapy is just that. It is exposure to the emotions we avoid in real life but in small doses, in a safe and validating environment. If we allow ourselves to experience our emotions with a qualified professional, we may experience acceptance of those emotions. We may learn to manage those emotions better so we don’t turn to booze, self-medication, unhealthy relationships, isolation, etc. We may develop a healthier life altogether without letting the tsunami of emotions overwhelm us.

I encourage you to explore your own emotional experience: is it a wave that comes and goes or is it a tsunami? How do you tolerate those emotions?

Let this reflection be a guide in whether it is time to take the step into therapy and further self-understanding.

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