Explore the striking parallels between "queen balling" in honeybee hives and the societal pressures women face today. This blog sheds light on the challenges and struggles women undergo in meeting societal expectations and discusses how society can support them better.
Stress is a proxy killer. Stress is connected to heart disease, high blood pressure, colitis, sexual issues, strokes, diabetes, insomnia, migraines, depression, alcoholism, suicide, irritable bowel syndrome, panic disorders and so many more. It’s time to take control of your health, decrease your stress and take care of self.
Our new favorite thing is the Happier podcast with Gretchen Rubin (but more widely, podcasts in general) and here’s why:
They are mindful
It’s kind of a unique experience, to be focused on the incoming information in a mindless manner. The information is literally being poured into your brain without even trying, but that’s okay because it’s informational…which brings us to the next reason that podcasts are so awesome.
If you were not aware, the month of September is Suicide Awareness month. Some of you will read the quote about and squirm in your chair. For many, this is a taboo topic that isn’t often discussed in a public forum. For others, it’s part of a daily struggle. Suicide, particularly among the African-American culture, is highly stigmatized as the “unforgivable sin” (American Association of Suicidology). This highly tabooed topic re-entered our consciousness when young actor Jett Jackson self-inflicted a gun-shot wound. Even then, many failed to name it what it was: suicide (Ebony Magazine, August, 2013)
Chances are, you know a family that has a child that seems different from the rest. Impaired social and developmental skills may be symptoms of a developmental disorder, such as autism. Autism can manifest in many levels, which is why it is most often referred to as a spectrum disorder. Some children and adults with autism may be highly functioning, other may appear to have difficulty interacting appropriately with others or become and others can be diagnosed as early as six months of age. For infants up to 18 months old, parents may notice that their child provides no response to people or may fixate on an object. Toddlers may not respond to their name, avoid eye contact, or have monotonous motions like rocking their bodies or flapping their arms. When diagnosing autism in children, the earlier you see symptoms, the sooner you can start therapy at Summit’s Edge and improve your child’s quality of life.
When you think about those affected by PTSD, who comes to mind? Do you think of someone who has lost a loved one, experienced sexual abuse or assault, or has survived a natural disaster? Post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD is a serious mental illness that may develop after a person has been through or witnessed a frightening incident. Events such as combat, abuse, and traumatic accidents are just a few causes of PTSD. These types of events often induce feelings of helplessness, horror, or extreme fear. These individuals may become extremely agitated or they may tend to isolate themselves. Summit’s Edge Owner, Daron Elam, is a trauma and crisis counselor specializing in the treatment of PTSD and other trauma-related disorders.
As you look around and see that your friendships are dwindling, you may not be motivated to do anything about it. But what if I told you that friendships that don’t help you grow are not friendships at all. As you start your new career, maybe get married (or stay single while everyone else you know gets married), have a family, it can become very easy to slip away from friendships. In order to evaluate your current friendships, ask yourself these questions:
Usually when I tell clients to become intentional, they kind of nod and smile but they rarely know what exactly I mean. An intention is a thought put in play towards an intended thing or plan. We are constantly told to set goals, meet deadlines, get to the bottom line. But rarely do we set out intention, which is an extremely present feeling; that in making, you cannot fail. It eliminates a required result but instead connects us to our path to get where we want to go.
After Haleigh Cox, a 5-year-old who struggling with severe seizures and forces to move from Georgia to Colorado, this case spurred a conversation across Atlanta, and across our nation. Many parents, like Haleigh’s, have been petitioning for this bill to pass for other similar medical issues.
We wanted to take a moment to clarify the bill that was passed, review what is not part of this bill, and cover those issues that still remain:
Summit’s Edge Counseling Owner & Managing Therapist, Daron Elam, was invited to be a guest speaker to the ladies of North River Church and City of Refuge Residents at The Women’s Retreat: Loving God’s Abundant Life.
Loving God’s Abundant Life held their first of many annual women’s retreats on location at City of Refuge (COR). COR is a non-profit organization that is dedicated to community development efforts that lead to sustainable living for the 30314 zip code where there are overwhelming economic challenges and a lack of social, medical and psychological support. Summit’s Edge has partnered with COR in early 2015, in an effort to improve the mental wellness of their staff. Summit’s Edge and COR have an equal interest in serving the members of the Atlanta community who are living on the margins. Summit’s Edge has a vested interest in the helpless and the hurting. On this very special occasion, COR partnered with a local church, North River to present a Women’s retreat for the City of Refuge staff and residents.
In a culture that encourages us to say, “I want” rather than, “I have” it can be stifling to gratitude. Have you ever had a bad day and stopped to be grateful that you have legs? Or hair? Or the gift of sight, smell, taste? More than likely, you have somehow managed to forget. Or maybe your world has gotten so gray that you feeling something (gratitude) feels like nothing. Either way, more than likely, your last instinct is to counter discouragement with gratitude.
Grief is not a 12 step program. It cannot be contained by your timeline for healing. It does not concern itself with your convenience. We know that grief does have stages but those stages rarely follow an order. Sometimes, in order to define the abstract, you must determine what it’s not.
We love a good story. A feel-good story, a come-back story, a love story. Many are revered for their triumph over struggle. People have a funny fascination with pain and struggle. We like to see self-made people; people who beat the odds, walked through the fire, unscathed.
It is those people who get our attention and our respect. They make the best teachers, preachers, and story-tellers. We revere them because they are uncommon, unique, and unconventional.
When you’re truly fatigued, you know it. You can’t even pretend that “tired” is the right word to describe how you feel. What you may have failed to realize is that you may be doing it to yourself.
Did you hear me? You are doing this to YOURSELF. Often times, we get into a routine that breeds fatigue. Same old habits, same old outcome. You may be doing some of the right things to build a routine that breeds energy, positivity and strength. But if you’re fatigued, may you don’t know how notto be.
Self-worth is a concept that many are able to define but unable to obtain. It consists of a lot of wondering, a lot or searching, and a lot of waiting. It’s wondering, “Am I’m fine just the way that I am?” It’s searching for worth and value—maybe first in others, then within yourself. And it’s waiting to see if one day it will find you….or will it?
Each year, the count down from one year to the next bring promise of new things to come. It is a time of reflection and planning. It’s a time when many create objectives such as “lose weight this year” or “take better care of myself.” Most often resolutions are a promise to better care for themselves. Unfortunately, when we consider taking care of ourselves, we don’t always survey those around us to see how they are promoting or denying our efforts.
This time of year is heavily associated with seasonal changes. The leaves are crisping to the lovely red, yellow and orange shades to welcome the winter weather. It is during this time that we also gain that extra hour of sleep and walk out of work into darkness. And for many, this time of year marks the onset of many undesirable symptoms that include a heaviness and with it, a state of depression.
Verbal, psychological, emotional, sexual and financial abuse often remain unrecognized or excused among victims of domestic violence. Let us eliminate any confusion that still lingers over this issue: Abuse is abuse is abuse. Many of the previously listed forms of abuse are precursors or supplements to physical violence. Let’s review the various types of verbal dominance and control that can be used over a partner
