If you've ever had cancer — or are currently in treatment — you probably know this feeling without needing a name for it. The scan is scheduled. Somewhere in the days or weeks before it, something shifts: sleep gets harder, every twinge becomes evidence, and a low hum of dread settles in that you can't reason your way out of. This is scanxiety — the intense anxiety cancer patients and survivors feel in anticipation of follow-up scans, imaging, or results. For many, it's the h

You're exhausted in a way sleep doesn't fix. You've lost motivation for things that used to matter. You're going through the motions at work, at home, in your relationships. Is this burnout? Is it depression? It matters — because while they can look strikingly similar, they have different origins and different treatment paths. Treating one when you actually have the other can delay recovery. What Is Burnout? Burnout is a state of chronic physical and emotional exhaustion caus

Mindfulness has a marketing problem. Somewhere between the clinical research and the wellness industry, it got repackaged into something that sounds nothing like what it actually is — and everything like something a certain kind of person would roll their eyes at. Candles. Apps. The instruction to "just breathe." The implication that if you're still anxious, you're not doing it right. If that version of mindfulness hasn't worked for you, that's not evidence that you can't do

When people first hear that acceptance is a core part of therapy, the reaction is often the same. Acceptance? You want me to just accept this? It sounds like resignation. Like being told to make peace with something that doesn't deserve peace. Like giving up on getting better, on things changing, on the life you wanted. For people who have survived difficult things — trauma, illness, loss, burnout — the suggestion to "accept" it can feel like a profound misunderstanding of wh

Your mind is a storyteller. It takes raw experience — events, sensations, interactions — and constructs meaning from them almost instantaneously. Most of the time, this is useful. But sometimes, particularly under stress, after trauma, or when anxiety is running high, the stories aren't accurate. They're distorted in predictable ways that amplify distress and quietly shape your decisions without your full awareness. These patterns are called cognitive distortions . They're no

You've built a life that leaves very little room for stillness. Your calendar is full. Your to-do list is long. The moment one task ends, another begins. You're productive, reliable, and always moving. On some level, you know that the busyness isn't entirely optional. Some of it is genuine responsibility. But if you're honest, some of it is something else. When the busyness stops — when the house is quiet, when there's nothing left on the list, when you finally have a moment

From the outside, everything looks fine. You're productive. You meet your deadlines. You show up for people. You're reliable, capable, often the person others lean on. By most external measures, you are doing well. But on the inside, there is a near-constant hum of worry that doesn't switch off. A mind that is always scanning for what could go wrong. A feeling that you are one mistake away from everything falling apart. A deep exhaustion from working so hard to maintain an ap

There is a particular kind of wound that doesn't fit neatly into the categories we usually use to describe psychological suffering. It isn't simply fear, grief, or anxiety. It is something closer to a fracture in the moral foundation of a person — the sense that something happened that should not have, that you were part of it, and that you can never fully make it right. This is moral injury. It is one of the most underrecognized forms of psychological distress affecting peop

If you've been researching your symptoms and stumbled across the term "Complex PTSD," you're not alone. Searches for Complex PTSD have grown dramatically in recent years — driven, in part, by people who recognized themselves in descriptions that standard PTSD accounts didn't quite capture. Complex PTSD is real. It is clinically recognized. It is distinct from — though related to — PTSD. And it is treatable. This post will explain what Complex PTSD is, how it differs from PTSD

A cancer diagnosis changes everything. Even after treatment ends, many survivors find themselves caught in a relentless cycle of worry, hypervigilance, and emotional exhaustion that is difficult to explain to others—and even harder to simply "think your way out of." If you've been told you should feel grateful or relieved now that the hard part is over, but instead feel anxious, numb, or overwhelmed, you are not alone. And you are not broken. Cancer-related stress is real, re

A Life Built on Resilience and Growth Before I became a psychologist, I was a gymnast and a cellist. Sports and music taught me discipline, focus, and how to thrive under pressure—but also how to cope with setbacks and losses. I learned early that strength isn’t about never falling; it’s about getting back up, learning, and moving forward. That mindset has carried me through every chapter of my life, including some of the hardest ones. From Performance to Purpose I pursued p

Life inevitably brings difficult emotions, challenging circumstances, and painful experiences. Whether you're dealing with anxiety,...