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By: Rachael Sullivan, PsyD Finding Balance in Unsteady Times As we all attempt to adjust to this “new normal” with no playbook, our mental health is undoubtedly impacted. Collectively, our baseline anxiety levels have risen in the face of uncertainty and forced adaptation. Whether we’ve dealt with anxiety for years prior or are struggling with worrisome thoughts for the first time, we’re all looking for effective ways to cope and find balance. Balance. A small word with incredible meaning. While we have heard before that a sense of balance in our lives is recommended (e.g., “work-life balance”), the COVID-19 pandemic drives home the importance of balance in a way previously unknown. This unique balancing act has multiple components: balanced routine, balanced emotions, balanced perspective, balanced information – just to name a few. Balanced Routine Fifty plus days into our new normal, you likely have had to adapt and find new routines. Balancing our routines does not mean we have to schedule out every hour of the day or strive towards unattainable ideals for what we could be doing with our time. Rather, balance in our routines means doing what we can to fulfill our roles and responsibilities, while also ensuring we are caring for ourselves. Self-care has become quite a “buzz word” over the last few years, but it is more important than ever. Self-care means being intentional about taking time to engage in activities that bring us pleasure and increase our mood, without the notion that we need to “earn” them. Self-care will look different

The COVID-19 pandemic is causing massive changes to all of our lives. It is normal to have feelings of isolation, anxiety, depression, and confusion during chaotic times. The Metis Center and are clinicians are dedicated to supporting our community throughout this pandemic. To help you and our community through this crisis, the Metis Center’s psychotherapists are available to help with your mental health needs. We are continuing care for all of our current patients, and are also accepting new patients. Our commitment to remaining available to our patients is unwavering. Our physical offices are open and will remain so unless circumstances change. We are also providing comprehensive telehealth online counseling services, as we have done since 2016. We pledge that we will continue to provide care through one or both of these channels to all of our patients who need it. Click here to learn more about our telehealth online therapy services. Appointments are available from 8 AM – 8 PM, Mountain Daylight Time, although there is limited availability of in-person appointments. At our offices, we are ensuring that we clean, sanitize, and disinfect surfaces multiple times throughout the day, and are providing “sanitizing stations” for patients coming to our office. If you have any symptoms of illness or have been exposed to someone who may be ill, we ask that you not come into the office and instead make an appointment for telehealth therapy. If you are a current patient, you do not need to cancel your current appointment. Just contact the office or your

By: Bonnie Brown, PsyD The world has learned a lot about itself in the past several weeks. We, as individuals, have learned a lot about ourselves in the past several weeks. “Social distancing” and “quarantine” are becoming a normal part of our vocabulary. While these can be scary, and getting lost in the thoughts about what happens next can be enveloping, it’s important to remember that you are not alone. You do not have to go through this alone. You can take steps to minimize the difficulties that lie ahead. Social Interaction Humans are such social beings, and now more than ever we are realizing that concept. A quarantine can mean working from home, not working at all, not going to a favorite restaurant or brewery, skipping that sports practice, not attending that play that you bought tickets for, not going to the park with your kids, skipping the play-dates that gave you some relief, and not attending church. Instead, only leaving the house for essentials (i.e., food, water, medications). That means no social interaction, doesn’t it? Definitely not. It’s incredibly important to maintain as close to the same level of social interaction as you were used to by other means. Options include: Face Time calls, virtual brunches or happy hours, texting friends and family members, watching Netflix “together”, sending emails, sending snail-mail letters, having kids decorate cards to send to others, and maybe even interacting with your neighbors from your back or front lawn. Another option to get connected is the NextDoor website/app that connects

By: Bonnie Brown, PsyD As a general rule of thumb, we are told to get about eight hours of sleep per night. That means we should be sleeping about one third of our lives. That’s a large amount of our time, and often far too few people actually reach that number. Does that ever make you wonder how sleep works? What if you don’t get enough? Is it really that important? Maybe you’re thinking, “Yeah, yeah…I know I need eight hours…I just cannot sleep”. What can you do to get as close to that number as possible? You’re not alone. Actually, two thirds of adults in all the developed nations do not actually obtain the recommended eight hours of sleep per night. There are many reasons human beings sleep, and we’re only recently learning more and more. Research has shown that sleep is important for things such as our memory, ability to learn, make logical decisions, keeping our immune system in check, balancing insulin and glucose, and our cardiovascular system (to name a few). Essentially, sleep is one of the most important and effective things we can do to help keep our brain and body in a healthy state. Most people are familiar with the notion that we have a circadian rhythm of twenty-four hours. What most people don’t know is what else goes into feeling tired and eventually falling (and staying) in a comfortable sleep state. One signal that your brain relies on is body temperature. Your core body temperature peaks in the late afternoon,

BY: Rachael Sullivan, PsyD Neurodiversity: High-Functioning Autism (AKA Asperger’s Syndrome) Thanks to the ever-evolving science of understanding how our brains work, you may have recently encountered the term “neurodiverse.” While this may sound complicated, the term simply refers to recognizing and respecting brain differences, the same way we would with any other individual difference. Neurodiversity is a way to describe individuals whose brain has certain variations that result in these individuals learning in a different way than individuals who are “neurotypical” do. Neurodiversity often refers to those individuals who have received certain diagnoses, such as Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Specific Learning Disorder, and Autism Spectrum Disorder. It is most important to recognize that we strive to use the term neurodiversity to describe individuals with these diagnoses in order to reinforce that these are brain differences, not deficits. In fact, individuals who are neurodiverse frequently have specific strengths and cognitive abilities that individuals who are neurotypical do not. Autism Spectrum Disorder, or ASD, is a diagnosis that describes one type of neurodiversity. The word “spectrum” in ASD is a key component of beginning to understand autism – it refers to the vast variations of how ASD presents in any given individual. There is an accurate and important saying about ASD: “If you’ve met one person with autism, you’ve met one person with autism.” One phrase that is often associated with ASD is “high-functioning,” which refers to an individual who experiences the social and emotional difficulties and stereotyped behaviors or interests that are associated with autism, but does not

By Courtney Glueck, PhD It’s that time of the year again. With the year’s end fast approaching and the holiday season in full swing, many people are likely experiencing heightened levels of stress and worry. Arranging holiday travels and gatherings, finding the perfect present, keeping up that workout routine, and meeting end-of-year deadlines are just a few of the things likely to cause excess worry this time of year. For many it happens every year at this time, and so it doesn’t come as a surprise or present excessive concern. We face it, push through, and get back to “normal life” in January. Now, imagine what it would be like to have this level of stress, worry, and pre-occupation characterize your life year-round. For a select group of people who suffer with anxiety disorders, this, unfortunately, is a persistent and daunting reality. Anxiety Disorders: An Overview Anxiety disorders are a broad category of mental disorders that includes many different manifestations, including generalized anxiety disorder, specific phobia, social anxiety, and panic disorder, and together they make up one of the most common forms of mental illness. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, approximately 31.1% of U.S. adults experience an anxiety disorder at some time in their lives. Unfortunately, despite their prevalence, many still misunderstand these disorders and struggle to cope themselves and/or support others they know living with these challenges. Debunking Myths about Anxiety Several myths exist around anxiety and anxiety disorders. Below are just a few: 1.  Anxiety isn’t a “real” illness. (While some

By Chris Kelley, PsyD Imagine leaving your home to go grocery shopping. This is something you have done dozens, hundreds, maybe thousands of times before. It is practically muscle memory at this point. You check to see what you need to replenish in your kitchen, gather your belongings, walk through your front door and lock it behind you. No thinking required, brain on autopilot, maybe even distracted by music or a podcast playing from your phone.  Now you are in front of your home, either walking toward your vehicle or toward your destination. Suddenly, a car speeds down the road you live on, jumping the curb and nearly collides with you! It misses, speeds away, and you are left standing there.  What is the first thought you have? What about the second thought? “That was close!” “That person really could have hurt me.” “This neighborhood is dangerous.” “What an idiot! Who drives like that in a neighborhood?” “I probably should not use headphones while walking around anymore.” “Good thing I wore my lucky shirt today.” “I am never shopping at night again.” “I should buy a lottery ticket.” How might the thought you have make you feel? Scared? Excited? Angry? Hopeless? You may even feel a combination of several emotions at the same time! What do you do next? Perhaps you shake yourself off, get in your car, go shopping, and forget anything happened. Perhaps you call your closest friend (“You’ll never believe what just happened!”). Perhaps you decide to avoid any additional risks, turn around,

Community, Pain, and Healing By: Sunda Friedman TeBockhorst, PhD, ABPP The other day, my two young children were playing a t-ball game in a local youth sports league. One of the players on their team had taken a ball to the face, and, while he wasn’t badly hurt, of course it had been a shock of pain, surprise and probably embarrassment for the little guy. He was crying – loudly – as the game went on. This boy – the crying boy – happens also to be a neighbor and one of my son’s best friends. As he cried, it became clear that he didn’t want to leave the game, but was told by Coach that he might have to if he couldn’t pull it together. I prompted my children to approach the child (he was playing center field, my kids in right field) and offer some words of companionship and comfort, whereupon both children looked at me as though I’d grown an extra head and stood as if their feet had grown deep roots. My older child, after a second, and third, prompting, stood very thoughtfully, staring at the boy, and, with a deep breath that very much looked like a screwing-up-of-courage breath, marched herself over to the boy, patted him on the back, said something brief and fled in relief. But also, pride shown on her face; she had done something a little scary, but it had been kind, and she took satisfaction in doing the harder-but-right thing. My younger child followed her example

By Matt Bynum, MA, LPCC These days, it feels like mental health is getting much needed attention in many circles. On both a national and local level, more and more people seem to be working to decrease the stigma of asking for help. This is truly wonderful. But there are still a lot of misconceptions and unknowns about therapy floating around. What is therapy exactly? Why do people go to therapy and what do they get out of it? What happens in the therapy office? What is the therapist’s role? What follows are some answers to these questions. Keep in mind that different therapists will have slightly different answers to these questions. In fact, there are as many “therapies” as there are therapists, because each clinician will bring their own experience, modalities, and approach into the room. Furthermore, if a therapist is good at what they do, they will do their best to adjust the therapy to fit your specific needs. What is therapy? Why go to therapy? Psychotherapy, (or counseling), is the process of regularly meeting with a mental health professional to work through problems and dilemmas in your life and gain some renewed sense of vitality or flexibility. People seek individual therapy for lots of different reasons. Be it addiction, past trauma, a break-up, major life transition, relationship issues, anxiety, depression, or strong desire to look at painful habits. That being said, it is absolutely OK to see a therapist if you are wanting some increased self-knowledge and personal growth. There is a common

Nine Common Symptoms of ADD By Sunda Friedman TeBockhorst, PhD, ABPP If you’ve ever found yourself in the middle of a conversation and realized that you don’t know what the person you’re talking to just said because you forgot to pay attention to him or her, you may relate to this title and wonder: is this Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)?  Or, is ADD affecting someone close to me?  Here are nine signs and symptoms common to those who may be affected by ADD.  People accuse you of not listening – even when you are. Wandering attention is a core symptom of ADD.  This often surfaces for people via interpersonal frustration and relational stress when people don’t realize you aren’t intentionally disregarding them or their concerns. You just lost your phone – again. Keeping track of personal possessions can be particularly tricky for those with ADD, who tend to spend more time than the average bear hunting down wayward possessions. Alternately, some have developed an intense focus on preventing this with certain rituals and routines, which must be adhered to inflexibly – which can be another sign of ADD. Doors have magical brain-erasing properties. Having to walk from one room into another – to tell somebody something, to retrieve an item, to do a task – can be a series of misadventures for the person with ADD, who may have to give this several tries before their short-term memory decides the jig is up and produces the nugget of knowledge about why the journey was started in