It’s February - the month of romance! And while love is in the air, real relationships come with real challenges. Anxiety has a way of creeping into all areas of our lives, and relationships are no exception. Relationship anxiety is an unwelcome guest that keeps messing up what should be a steady, comforting partnership.

So what can you do to increase the chances of accomplishing your goal? Whether it be abstaining from substance use, cutting down your drinking, being more social, getting better sleep or living a value based life, we encourage you to set goals that follow the S.M.A.R.T. goal framework. The S.M.A.R.T. goal framework will help you to frame your goals and aspirations into concrete, actionable steps. 

In this blog post we will explore the psychological basis for the S.M.A.R.T. framework (i.e., why we think it works), detailing how each component targets a specific mechanism to enhance motivation and increase the chance for progress. 

When you live with an invisible illness, it can often feel like you have to explain to others your pain, prove that your exhaustion is real, and convince people who tend to rely on what they can see on the outside. If you add this to the physical and emotional pain you're already experiencing, it’s easy to see why you may be feeling worn out and isolated. 

We see you. We believe you, and in this blog post we will share some ways that we have found to be helpful to the clients we have worked with who are also navigating invisible illnesses to better cope with these experiences. 

We hope that this post will help you to feel seen, heard, and provide assurance that you are not alone in your experience. 

Mental health during the holidays can feel really hard. The holiday and Christmas season is often packaged as this picture-perfect time of joy, connection, and festive cheer. To be fair, many of us enjoy much of what the holidays has to offer. But let's be real: even in the best of times, the holidays can bring periods of intense stress, anxiety, depression, and even loneliness depending on our social situations.

SAD is a type of depressive disorder that is linked to changes in seasons, most commonly it presents in the fall and with symptoms continuing through the winter months. Less frequently, SAD can onset in the spring or early summer, resolving in the fall or winter months. 

So given the shortening days in Calgary, Alberta, we figured this was the right time to cover what SAD is, what causes it and what strategies that you can do to help manage depressive symptoms as you navigate the winter months.