Momentum Counseling

Suicide is a top 10 cause of death for all ages in the US; it’s no. 2 for ages 10-34, no. 4 for 35-44, and no. 5 for 45-54. Roughly 5% of the US population experiences suicidal ideation each year. LGBT+ individuals are approx. 3x more likely to have SI, and 5x more likely to make a suicide attempt. Those who make an attempt are 5x more likely to require serious medical care as a result. Approx. 40% of trans individuals report making at least 1 suicide attempt; of these, 90% o...ccurred before age 25. LGBT+ individuals who experience social rejection are approx. 8.5x more likely to make an attempt. Studies have shown that receiving support from friends, family, and community significantly decreases rates of SI and suicide attempts. Be a good friend, a good parent/sibling, a good neighbor. You don’t have to believe the same things to be a decent person. And it could very literally save a life. #pride #pridemonth #lgbtq #mentalhealth #depression #suicide #suicideprevention #counseling #psychology

Saying the words out loud, ‘I think I’m transgender,’ is one of the hardest things to do, especially if it is the first time. Ryan Sallans Coming out...can be one of the most difficult parts of a trans person’s journey. At the same time, it can be one of the proudest and most satisfying. Nicholas Teich For many, maybe even most, transgendered individuals coming outsharing their gender identityto their family and friends is one of the scariest things they’ve ever done.... If someone honors you by coming out to you, don’t disrespect their trust by responding in an inappropriate or hurtful manner. For further, and more in-depth resources, and transgenderism and surrounding issues, check out The Trevor Project; Straight for Equality; Second Son, by Ryan Sallans; and/or Transgender 101, by Nicholas Teich (there are many other resources available, as well) #mentalhealth #relationships #communication #psychology #counseling #lgbtq #pride #pridemonth #transgender

We need others. Humans are a social species, and we slowly dieboth literally and figurativelywithout human interaction. You need people in your corner for warmth, guidance, pleasure, and recovery, whether that be from injury, grief, or addiction (etc.). We enter the danger zone of depression when we begin to isolate. Know who your people are; keep them close.

A common concern I hear from clients, and see when reading about mental health concernsor just lifeis that people don’t have a good grasp on who they are, or who they’re meant to be. But here’s the thing: none of us do! And that’s ok! Who we areour core beliefs about ourselves and the world, our deeply-held values, our favorite flavor of J to put with the PB, etc.is something we figure out along the journey. Reminding ourselves of that is a powerful way to ease anxiety th...at is driven by a perceived need to be more or be different than who we are in this moment. With the exception ofperhapsa few immutable characteristics, you are not something you discover one day through trial and error and interior spelunking; you are something that is constantly in the process of becoming, the invention of endless revolutions. You never know who you are, because who you are is always changing. You catch glimpses of yourself in time, when life shines through your inner world like a prism, illuminating all the sundry colors you contain. It isn’t possible to disentangle the light from the color, the discovery of change from the change itself. from Elizabeth Bruenig, I Became a Mother at 25, and I’m Not Sorry I Didn’t Wait, The New York Times, 5/7/21

To strive is to work towards a goal, or to struggle in opposition to something. At a very basic level, life is striving to oppose death. But if that is all it is, can we really say we are living? Everyone needs a purpose to work towards and for. Purpose is what gives life meaning. It can be something huge, like curing cancer, or something easier, but no less important, like being a good friend or parent. Living with that purpose (or those purposes) in mind enriches both our own lives and those around us. What is your purpose? What are you striving for?

If you ask me, the most important thing in learning how to cook is not the techniques but how to harness curiosity and fulfillment from the process, the puzzles and the answers, the failures and the triumphs, the hunt... The food that comes as a resultwhich I’m told has made a lot of others happy, toois the pleasant byproduct...[of] cooking for one reason and one reason only. Happiness. Everyone needs a creative outlet to serve as a pressure vent for the stresses of life.... Learning a craft gives us a way to relax, to exercise our minds and hands in a way not related to work, and, (usually) have an end product to enjoy when we’re done. During grad school I, like Mandy Lee, turned to cooking (which is actually what lead me to her great blog and book; check it out at LadyAndPups.com). But it can be woodworking, or sewing, or model planes, or working on cars; literally anything. Just find something to enjoy as a process, to take your mind off things. And in case you’d like to try cooking, I’ve included a very simple pasta recipe that takes about 20 minutes start to finish. Everyone’s gotta eat, and who doesn’t love pasta, right?

It’s been a bad 18 months for a lot of us. It’s been a bad few years for a lot of us. For some, it’s been a bad couple of decades. It’s healthy and natural to want to comfort people we care about when they’re hurting; but if we go about it the wrong way it doesn’t actually help at all. Here are some ideas on things NOT to say, along with some things TO say. Rephrase them to fit your own way of talking, and to fit the situation. And above all, remember that sometimesfrequentlythe best way to comfort someone is to just be there for them and not actually SAY anything.

Who we are is formed from everything we have ever experienced, good and bad, successful and unsuccessful, treasured and regretted. I do not believe that everything happens for a reason, but I absolutely believe that we can mine good and benefit from our failures and tragedies, and become better, stronger people on the other side.

In the classic film Lawrence of Arabia, our hero T.E. Lawrence wows his friend by extinguishing a flame with his fingers. (It was a different time, they had fewer options for entertainment.) The friend tries it himself, and is surprised by pain. Ooh! It damn well hurts! he exclaims. Certainly it hurts, replies Lawrence.... What’s the trick, then? The trick, William Potter, is not MINDING that it hurts. Pain is an unavoidable part of life. More importantly, it is an unavoidable part of change. The cocoon must be shredded to reveal the butterfly; the tree must die to build the table; and so on. If we shy away when things get uncomfortable, we will never grow or move closer to becoming who it is we want to be. The pain of changing habits, of separating ourselves from unhealthy relationships, of going to the gym, of staying up to finish the paper, these are all real. They’re uncomfortable. But they won’t kill you; and you will be better and stronger for having gone through it.