I always loved playing charades when I was a little girl. Trying to get people to guess words or strings of words without speaking. It’s something my parents played with their friends a lot too. They’d be in their best party clothes - while I took time to sneak into the kitchen to steal - I mean eat - as many as those bright red sticky (horrible for you) cherries as my little fingers could reach.

So, here‘s the first clue - the word has 3 letters - starts with a vowel - very common - but I haven’t used it yet!

I can imagine it with you. Hey, I’ve watched TV and the movies! I’ve seen how people are pouring their hearts out while being judged as crazy or defective. 

I mean, we’ve all seen this setup:

The head nod.

The “uh-huh”. 

The silence as the counselor sits across from you analyzing every word, every movement you make while looking down at the note pad that holds all your darkest secrets. 

Until time runs out, you’re left spilling your guts while being judged to be crazy in some way - yes, judged, analyzed - and you already feel so self-conscious and crazy all on your own!

Who needs that???

I don’t either!

And, that’s why I want to tell you that’s not at all how it works. Breathe. Sense the relief! It’s not how we work anyway!

Our minds chatter on all day long. It’s impossible to be aware of each & every single thought, and while I dislike talking in absolutes, I’ll venture to say it’s just impossible for us to be THAT aware. While it isn’t usually a problem, our thoughts are behind the steering wheel driving to our emotional destination.

Does your mind ever run in a circle, and leave you feeling like a hamster running on a wheel? Or, maybe you’re suddenly feeling kind of down, and you don’t really even understand why? Our thoughts are very powerful drivers of our feelings.

In our therapy sessions, part of the work we do together is looking directly at your current thoughts. Many times how we feel has nothing to do with the past, and we don’t necessarily need to even look at it.

When we’re in our Wise Mind, we balance the rational with the emotional.