Skip to content

Blog
Services
Scheduling
About

Home
About Us
Scheduling
Services
Blog

Blogkatymanganella2020-08-20T12:54:44+00:00

Whats new with us

Our blog is for all thats new with us

Schedule an appointment

Whats new with us

Our blog is for all thats new with us

Schedule an appointment

Categories

No categories

Instagram Gallery

austincitycounseling

My fellow logical peeps, I get it. 😎 And ya kno

My fellow logical peeps, I get it. 😎 And ya know what? When we focus on the logic of the situation, it's often because we're trying not to be "emotional" or fall into some negative stereotype about what it would mean if we actually gave any credence to our emotions. 😬

We have emotions for a reason (the meta irony here is not lost on me 🙃). They are loaded with helpful information. And beyond that, avoiding them is increasing the amount of emotional pain you are experiencing.

Learning to feel your emotions (and what it would mean if you did!) is deep work and is certainly something folks seek therapy for support with. You don't have to do this alone.

💖💖💖

#intellectualize #psychology #emotions #reason #logic #facts #feelings #personalgrowth #selfcare #feelyourfeelings #therapy #reasonstogototherapy #notetoself #therapyiscool #instatherapy #therapistsofinstagram #mytherapistsays #mentalhealth #austin #austinmentahealth #austintherapy #austintx #austintherapist #therapist #counseling #counselor #insight

applies to self and others. 😉 - #compassion #s

applies to self and others. 😉

-
#compassion #selfcompassion #selflove #personalgrowth #judgment #curiosity #therapy #reasonstogototherapy #notetoself #therapyiscool #instatherapy #therapistsofinstagram #mytherapistsays #mentalhealth #austin #austinmentahealth #austintherapy #austintx #austintherapist #therapist #counseling #counselor #insight

Perfectionism... IYKYK. 😎 A quick note on aff

Perfectionism... IYKYK. 😎

A quick note on affirmations. I think affirmations can get a weird rap as hoax-y or silly. The clinical theory behind affirmations is called "thought modification." The basic idea is this: The more you practice a thought, the more easily it comes and the truer it feels. If you're a perfectionist, your perfectionistic thoughts feel really true because they're well rehearsed (the thought neural pathway is strong). Affirmations give your brain new material for building new neural pathways (thought patterns) to replace the perfectionistic ones. The process of forming new neural pathways is called neuroplasticity.

🌼

#perfectionism #perfect #anxiety #copingskills #neuroplasticity #thoughts #therapyskills #goals #selfcare #selflove #affirmations #enough #therapy #reasonstogototherapy #notetoself #therapyiscool #instatherapy #therapistsofinstagram #mytherapistsays #mentalhealth #austin #austinmentahealth #austintherapy #austintx #austintherapist #therapist #counseling #counselor #insight

We can definitely categorize this under "things pe

We can definitely categorize this under "things people work on in therapy." And as I try to write a caption for this post, I am reminded just how complicated and delicate this can be.

In therapy, the general flow we follow here is:

🤍1. Bring awareness to what was learned.

🤍2. Cultivate compassionate acceptance that this is likely going to be our default instinct for how to deal with emotions.

🤍3. Learn how to respond in healthier, more productive ways.

If you're interested in diving deeper here, I definitely recommend bringing it up to your therapist. 🌼

-
#emotions #feelings #parents #caregiver #childhood #unlearn #selflove #selfcare #growth #personalgrowth #therapy #reasonstogototherapy #notetoself #therapyiscool #instatherapy #therapistsofinstagram #mytherapistsays #mentalhealth #austin #austinmentahealth #austintherapy #austintx #austintherapist #therapist #counseling #counselor #insight #selfcompassion #mindfulness

Ever wonder what you're supposed to do with painfu

Ever wonder what you're supposed to do with painful emotions? 👇

The thing is that it's very challenging (some would say it's impossible) to actually control *what* you feel. In therapy, we often focus on how to tend to ourselves *while* we're feeling difficult emotions, not trying to stop the emotion while it's occurring. This is a working definition of self compassion.

When we stop trying to reject our painful emotions, a flip switches and we can use mindfulness to recognize we are in pain. It goes like this:

🤍1. Ouch, this hurts. What am I feeling?
🤍2. Remember that I am not alone with this feeling. This emotion, whatever it is, is part of the shared human experience.
🤍3. What do I need in order to take care of myself while I feel this?

After the emotion has been processed, space opens up to explore if changes need to be made in order to prevent that situation from occurring again.

-
#selfcompassion #kristinneff #emotions #feelings #emotion #therapy101 #selfcare #takecare #reframe #refocus #mindfulness #human #humanexperience #pain #emotionalpain #therapy #reasonstogototherapy #notetoself #therapyiscool #instatherapy #therapistsofinstagram #mentalhealth #austin #austinmentahealth #austintherapy #austintx #austintherapist #therapist #counseling #counselor

Hey y'all! 👋 I just took a week off to recharge

Hey y'all! 👋 I just took a week off to recharge in the mountains of NM and I'm feeling SO good. Nature self care is like super-charged self care for me. I spent the week hiking, exploring via car (my sweet husband is *not* a hiker but he goes until he can't any more haha!), hot tubbing, stargazing, and watching for wildlife (we saw wild horses, y'all!). Anyway, I'm back and feeling like myself, and I wanted to say hello! 😎

📸Pic 1- Hiking on my birthday!

📸Pic 2- Sitting with a herd of wild horses. There was 17 of them!

📸Pic 3- One of their babies walked *right* up to us. Scared the crap out of me, but she was just curious. It was very, very sweet.

📸Pic 4- A really gorgeous view we came upon.

I hope you are well and feeling like yourself, too. 💖

-
#selfcare #selfcompassion #nature #hiking #virgo #virgoszn #wildlife #horse #rest #relax #loveyourself #personal #timeoff #therapy #reasonstogototherapy #notetoself #therapyiscool #instatherapy #therapistsofinstagram #mytherapistsays #mentalhealth #austin #austinmentahealth #austintherapy #austintx #austintherapist #therapist #counseling #counselor #insight

I don't know about you but I feel like a huge sens

I don't know about you but I feel like a huge sense of relief when I let go of needing to control what I feel and instead focus on how to take care of myself while I'm feeling it. 🥰

When you are able to create space between the feeling and the reaction, you give yourself the chance to choose intentionally and compassionately how to respond. 🙌

-
#emotions #feelings #emotionalhealth #mindfulness #reaction #control #emotionalintelligence #selfcare #intentional #selfcompassion #calm #peace #peaceofmind #therapy #reasonstogototherapy #notetoself #therapyiscool #instatherapy #therapistsofinstagram #mytherapistsays #mentalhealth #austin #austinmentahealth #austintherapy #austintx #austintherapist #therapist #counseling #counselor #insight

Breaking it down, here's what is happening when yo

Breaking it down, here's what is happening when you feel anxious:

👉Your brain (specifically, your amygdala) automatically scans the environment every few seconds for potential threats. This is a healthy survival mechanism and it happens unconsciously. It's critical for keeping you alive. As an example, potential threats your brain might identify could be a loose dog when you're running, a car running a red light, or someone seemingly following you walking to your car in a parking lot.

👉For someone with a brain that orients anxiously, their amygdala is overly cautious and identifies threats in the environment that a non-anxious brain might not label as a threat.

👉What happens when the brain identifies a threat in the environment? Well, the brain and body go into survival mode. Literally. Your brain's limbic region activates, prompting a fight / flight / freeze reaction.

👉If you have anxiety, you're living in a fight / flight / freeze state more than a non-anxious person is. Many of the symptoms of anxiety are actually the feelings of fight / flight / freeze in the body.🤯

🧠🫁This is why the therapy interventions for anxiety are two-pronged: Physical and psychological. And since the brain and body talk to each other, intervening on either one will have an impact on the other.

It's pretty incredible, really.

-
#anxiety #neuropsychology #brain #psychology #psychoeducation #themoreyouknow #selfcare #body #survival #therapy #reasonstogototherapy #notetoself #therapyiscool #instatherapy #therapistsofinstagram #mytherapistsays #mentalhealth #austin #austinmentahealth #austintherapy #austintx #austintherapist #therapist #counseling #counselor #insight

What's under that anger? That jealousy? That resen

What's under that anger? That jealousy? That resentment? It's usually something tender, like feeling worried, helpless, or abandoned. Often, the hard emotions serve as a protective layer for the soft ones underneath.

🌼

-
#emotions #feelings #emotionalhealth
#emotionalintelligence #mindfulness #selfcare #therapy #reasonstogototherapy #notetoself #therapyiscool #instatherapy #therapistsofinstagram #mytherapistsays #mentalhealth #austin #austinmentahealth #austintherapy #austintx #austintherapist #therapist #counseling #counselor #insight

Yes, Simone Biles showed us SHE can do it. But tha

Yes, Simone Biles showed us SHE can do it. But that doesn't mean it's going to automatically make it easier for you. In fact, you might feel increasingly ashamed that you "can't" do it. The reason you can't just willpower your way into self care is because you hold beliefs that oppose it being okay.

Major disclaimer: This is totallyyyyyyy something people go to therapy for. If this feels like too much to go at on your own, I strongly encourage you to get support.

🌼

-
#selfcare #beliefs #simonebiles #selfcareisntselfish #olympics #willpower #hustle #grind #expectations #therapy #reasonstogototherapy #notetoself #therapyiscool #instatherapy #therapistsofinstagram #mytherapistsays #mentalhealth #austin #austinmentahealth #austintherapy #austintx #austintherapist #therapist #counseling #counselor #insight

Load More... Follow on Instagram

If you or someone you love is having a mental health emergency or is experiencing a crisis, please call the Travis County 24/7 Crisis Hotline 512-472-HELP (4357) or proceed to your nearest emergency room.

(512) 883-9224
hello@austincitycounseling.com

(512) 883-9224
hello@austincitycounseling.com

If you or someone you love is having a mental health emergency or is experiencing a crisis, please call the Travis County 24/7 Crisis Hotline 512-472-HELP (4357) or proceed to your nearest emergency room.

Home
About Us
Scheduling
Services
Blog

—Social