Blog - Page 9 of 49 - New York, NY

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How to Set Healthy Boundaries in Your Relationship

Boundaries are important in all facets of life and all relationships. Whether it is with family, friends, coworkers, or a romantic partner—boundaries are crucial for a healthy relationship. Most people know how important boundaries are; however, they are more complex to set, especially when it comes to romantic relationships.

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Couples Counseling

Giving Yourself Permission to be Intimate

It’s 2023, and while it seems like the world has become so much more progressive and accepting, there still do exist many “social norms” that place certain subject matters into a taboo constraint. As women, that can be even tighter.

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Anxiety Treatment

May is Mental Health Awareness Month: 4 Ways to Celebrate

The month of May is dedicated to Mental Health Awareness. It’s no secret that the last few years have been extremely challenging and hard on everyone’s mental health. From pandemics to politics, violence, and school shootings, everyone has suffered at some point.

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Anxiety Treatment

Empty Nest Syndrome: Processing Grief When Children Leave Home

It’s hard to believe how fast children grow up. It can seem as if it was just yesterday that they were taking their first steps or saying their first full sentence. Now, your child is about to hit another huge milestone—they are leaving home for the first time.

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Depression Treatment

How to Navigate Grief After Divorce

There was a time when they were your everything. Now, you are facing the impossible—divorce. It would be an understatement to say that divorce is a shocking experience.

Every relationship is different. No two couples will interact with each other in the same ways. Or share the same common interests. It's what makes life so wonderful at times—knowing how different we all are from one another. However, sometimes, these differences don't work out exactly in our favor. We can generally say most people are in two categories of relationships—codependent or interdependent. Most people understand the word codependency as something related to addiction. Relationships can also be codependent. Codependent relationships are defined by unhealthy balances. Interdependent relationships, on the other hand, are defined by a healthy balance. Let's go over the differences between codependent relationships and interdependent ones. Codependency vs. Interdependency: How to Know the Difference Confidence In Who They Are...Or Not In a codependent relationship, one partner will rely heavily on the other person for everything. They base their own opinions, values, or habits directly on their partner. They become so enmeshed with the other person that their own personality and life begin to mimic the other person. Or, they don't have the confidence to be who they are and rely on the other person for their happiness. In an interdependent relationship, each partner does not shape who they are based on the other person. While there may be shared interests or opinions, they know that it's okay to have differences in these things. Needs Of The Other Person A huge sign of a codependent relationship is when the other person's needs and wants always come first. Over time, they come to believe that their own needs are secondary to this other person. And that their happiness should always come first. In an interdependent relationship, this does not exist because each person tries to meet the other's needs and wants. There is a give and a take with every relationship. Balancing these things is a great sign of a healthy relationship. Emotions Codependent relationships will have an uneven playing field when it comes to emotions. Again, they won't deal with their own emotions or feelings because the other person is more important. On the other side of the track, an interdependent relationship is completely different. Each partner understands that their partner's emotions are important. But, they also acknowledge that their own feelings are important too. Conflict A tell-tale sign of an unhealthy relationship is that the couple may constantly argue. Most couples will argue at some point—that is not the issue. In this type of relationship, the arguing is almost daily. Sometimes, there might be no arguing involved for longer periods of time. However, these emotions and thoughts don't get expressed properly, causing them to build up over time. This causes an explosion of feelings and will lead to a couple arguing about everything once the conflict does actually get addressed. In an interdependent relationship, each partner understands that the other person might not agree with them. They know how to express what they are feeling about the other person in a healthy way before it gets too out of control. And, because they are addressing issues in an honest and open way, the conflict is kept to a minimum. How To Get Help With A Codependent Relationship If any of these signs are present in your relationship, don't panic. While codependency is challenging to deal with, it doesn't mean the relationship is doomed to fail. At the end of the day, codependency is all about learned behaviors and actions. And these can always be untaught! Let's connect soon so you can learn more about couples counseling.

Couples Counseling

Codependency vs. Interdependency: How to Know the Difference

Every relationship is different. No two couples will interact with each other in the same ways. Or share the same common interests. It’s what makes life so wonderful at times—knowing how different we all are from one another. However, sometimes, these differences don’t work out exactly in our favor.

couple standing close together embracing one another

Couples Counseling

Is it Possible to Have a Codependent Marriage?

With any relationship, romantic or otherwise, there should always be a balance between being the giver and receiver. At times, of course, we may need to give more to the other person. For the most part, however, there should be a healthy balance.

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Depression Treatment

3 Simple Ways To Manage Depression Symptoms

It’s normal to feel sad sometimes. We all go through periods when our mood isn’t what it normally is. Maybe something specific happened, like the passing of a loved one or a big move to a new location. Or maybe there is a lot of tension in a relationship, and things seem very up in the air.

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Depression Treatment

When Depression & Cultural Expectations Collide

Depression is a mental health disorder that can affect anyone. It’s a challenging mental health condition that can make someone feel hopeless, sad, and irritable and causes a loss of interest in activities or hobbies.

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Anxiety Treatment

5 Tips to Naturally Reduce Anxiety

If you recently had an official diagnosis of Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), you might feel confused about what to do next. You know that treating it is possible through medication, but maybe you don’t want to go down that route.

Jean Huber, LCSW