GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
When a substance user first starts therapy it is important for both the therapist and client to have a full understanding of the history and progression of their substance use. Details about the client’s history of substance use can help with understanding the purpose the substance use behaviors serves for the client and the difficulties […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
Sometimes we get caught up in the day and forget to focus on what we are feeling. This can cause us to miss important signs of our changing mood, which can affect our ability to use healthy coping skills. When we are struggling with understanding our mood patterns it helps a great deal to have […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
People who are suffering from mental health challenges can often feel discouraged from being able to achieve their goals. Sometimes their ambitions and efforts to make progress toward their goals are overshadowed by defeating thoughts, like “why bother?”, “it’s too much, I won’t be able to do it” or “I will start tomorrow”. Having an […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
Many clients seek therapy because they struggle with regulating their moods. They go through mood swings that may cause them to easily feel stressed. People who struggle with managing their moods can often feel overwhelmed, which makes it difficult for them to understand and manage what they are feeling throughout the week. A weekly mood […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
In therapy, a client learns a lot about their emotions and gain perspective on their life challenges. Through self-exploration, they learn different ways to cope with the challenges they face. Therapy teaches coping skills that help clients relieve their symptoms in real-life situations. They learn valuable life skills in sessions, but sometimes it can be […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
A person’s mood can fluctuate when they are struggling with mental health issues. Some days are easier than others, and patterns of dealing with harder days can affect a person’s progress in therapy. Clients often have a pattern of how their mood affects them. Throughout the day there are certain triggers based on responsibilities, encounters, […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
After learning what cognitive behavioral therapy is, how it works, and how components like cognitive distortions, automatic negative thoughts, core beliefs, emotions, and behavior all contribute to our perceptions, it is important to learn how to challenge negative thoughts and cognitive distortions. A great tool to learn how to challenge cognitive distortions is the automatic […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
In cognitive behavioral therapy, a therapist will often work with their client to identify their cognitive distortions. Cognitive distortions are patterns in thinking that typically make someone think in the negative and have negative expectations. This can be detrimental to the client for many reasons, the biggest being it holds them back from growing mentally […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
Having coping strategies is an important part of maintaining good mental health, but sometimes a person can develop unhealthy coping strategies without realizing the impact they have on their quality of life. Unhealthy coping strategies may be effective, but that does not necessarily mean that they should be used to cope with life stressors. There […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
Trauma can affect a person in different and unexpected ways. People can suffer from different symptoms without realizing that they are from the traumatic event they experienced. Helping a person get in touch with their trauma can help them understand how they are feeling and learn what to expect from the experience. Going through trauma […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
Treatment for substance use can be challenging. The experience is different for everyone, and people enter treatment with different levels of motivation for recovery. Knowing how motivated someone is in treatment for substance use is an important part of treatment planning. In order to set someone up for success, it is important to understand their […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
Change takes time. Change can be challenging for people to accomplish, and it is often something that people resist. Change is scary, but can also be exciting, healthy, and liberating. Some changes cause pain while others cause relief. Whatever the need is for change, it can be difficult for a client to facilitate change in […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
A strong social support network is an important component of maintaining mental health. Whether suffering from a mental health condition, recovering from addiction, or just managing daily stressors, social support can be a huge resource for managing mental wellness. Sometimes it can be hard to reach out for support, but helping a client know who […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
When people are angry, they are not only angry. Their anger is a reaction to a trigger. A trigger occurs in a person’s environment, but it is fueled by much more. Feelings, thoughts, insecurities, fears and memories all contribute to a person’s anger. It is important for a client to understand this fact. Clients rarely […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
Rational emotive behavioral therapy (REBT) is a form of therapy that can be very effective in helping clients. It offers a means to gain perspective on challenging situations. REBT suggests that the way people understand situations causes them to be reactive. The concept of REBT implies that a situation is neither positive nor negative. A […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
Everyone has stressors in their lives. When people are in therapy, different stressors can serve as triggers for different conditions. Most people in therapy will have significant triggers that can cause them to think, act and feel in ways that are not healthy for them. An important part of therapy is helping clients identify their […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
When working with clients in recovery from substance use it is important for both the counselor and the client to understand where their temptations stem from. Everyone will have different moments of temptation, and it is not uncommon for a client to be confronted with temptation when they least expect it. Temptations are very difficult […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
A major part of learning how to cope with stress, anxiety and other mental health disorders is to learn effective relaxation techniques. Relaxation techniques are a critical part of maintaining good mental health. They are needed for different areas of your body, and without them you cannot properly cope with stress, anger and other upsetting […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
When used properly, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a very effective form of therapy. CBT helps people work on their problem behavior by providing a means to understand their thoughts and feelings. People often react to stressors quickly, and that can prevent them from thinking things through. CBT teaches a person how to slow down […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
Cognitive distortions (thinking errors) are a huge contributing factor to many people’s mental health issues. Cognitive distortions are erroneous patterns in thinking that lead to negative thoughts, bad feelings and poor behavior. When someone suffers from a cognitive distortion, they are not able to perceive tough situations in a healthy way. That is why it […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
A huge part of using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to help clients cope with their triggers is teaching them about cognitive distortions. Cognitive distortions are patterns of thinking errors, and they affect a person’s thoughts, feelings, and reactions to upsetting situations. It is not uncommon for a person in therapy to turn to cognitive distortions like […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
Throughout the course of therapy, it is important for both the therapist and the client to have a concrete understanding of how the client is growing and developing their coping skills. Therapy is more than just talking about feelings. It is about personal growth and learning how to manage thoughts, feelings, coping skills, behaviors and […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
Having healthy communication skills are important, but also challenging to develop. Some people may struggle with articulating their feelings and needs. It is common for a client to struggle with being assertive or understanding what it means to be assertive with your needs. Learning how to reflect on a situation before confronting another person can […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
When teaching your clients cognitive behavioral therapy(CBT) skills, it is important to help them gain an understanding of common thinking errors and how they affect thoughts, feelings and behaviors. When a person has a pattern of negative thinking, it will skew the way they see and understand how they fit into a situation. This will […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
When dealing with a client who is struggling with self-confidence and low self-esteem, it is important to ensure that they are aware of their protective factors. Knowing your own protective factors is important. Protective factors serve as a source of strength, hope and comfort when dealing with a challenge. Sometimes a client is not aware […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
Being aware of a client’s triggers is a critical component of learning how to cope with symptoms of mental health challenges. Triggers are situations that can cause a person to react in an unwanted or unhealthy way. Triggers can cause a person to struggle with unwanted thoughts, feelings, and impulses. They are especially challenging when […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
It is not uncommon for a client to feel like a victim of their own anxiety. Anxiety is a difficult feeling to live with, and it is often chronic for people who seek counseling. Anxiety brings ruminating negative thoughts that can have a major impact on a client’s ability to get through their day. When […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
Stress is a natural part of life. It is a part of life that everyone must face and learn how to cope with. Some people are able to manage stress well, while others tend to really struggle to cope. Stress can lead to other issues, like anxiety, depression, motivation issues and relationship issues, so it […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
The first step to managing stress is learning how to recognize stress. Most people who experience symptoms of stress do not realize that it is a physiological reaction. They also do not realize how often daily occurrences can be triggers for stress. When working with a client who is struggling with stress-related issues, it is […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
Dialectical behavioral therapy is particularly useful when it comes to teaching a client how to handle distressing or upsetting situations. DBT teaches coping skills for stress tolerance, emotional regulation, and the reduction of mood swings and panic attacks. DBT provides several different tools that help a person learn how to cope with upsetting emotions like […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
The Cognitive-Behavioral model is used in cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). It is a model used to explain the process of how CBT works and how it is helpful to utilize while in counseling. Often clients struggle to understand the meaning behind concepts in CBT, so it is helpful to have a visual aid that explains the […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
When in recovery, it is important to have a safety plan. Patients who are in recovery will face many challenges, and most of them will be unexpected. This is why helping our patients be prepared for triggers, cravings and obstacles is critical for recovery. About This Worksheet This is the Relapse Prevention Plan worksheet. This […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
At some point in a client’s journey, he or she will need to take a step back to evaluate how he or she is managing self-care. It is important for a client to be well-aware of what he or she needs to be able to maintain self-care, and to understand a hierarchy in which the […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
It is important to have a list of goals and objectives for the client and therapist to work toward when beginning a new therapeutic relationship. Setting goals creates a foundation that helps the client and therapist stay on track when helping a client feel better. Setting goals also empowers a client to stay on track […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
In successful therapeutic processes, there will come a point in which a client needs to learn how to maintain a healthy, positive lifestyle that promotes mental health and wellness. Clients learn a great deal while in therapy, and making sure that the skills they learn is important to ensuring the client’s successful completion. It is […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
The way we think is a huge component that contributes to the way we feel, behave and react to situations. People develop habits in thinking. Sometimes those habits are healthy, but often people can develop erroneous patterns of thought that affect the way they perceive the world and their place in it. These thoughts are […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
It can be easy to get wrapped up in the moment of a stressful situation and instantly feel overwhelmed and without direction or hopes of finding resolution. When dealing with stress it is important to keep in mind that it will trigger anxiety, and each person reacts to anxiety in different ways. It is important […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
Sometimes it can be tough for our clients to know what words to use to express what they are feeling. Feelings and emotions are complex, and can sometimes be uncomfortable and overwhelming. When our clients struggle to articulate their feelings it can be helpful to provide a guide to help navigate them through the words […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
As therapists, we know that most issues and concerns our clients face are more dynamic and intricate than the client may realize. Many components contribute to presenting issues with our clients, and often there is more than meets the eye. When working with clients on issues like emotional regulation, mood disorders, anxiety, and self-esteem, it […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
Sometimes clients struggle with learning how to feel happy and fulfilled in their lives. Whether it is due to depression, low self-esteem, or motivation issues, it is not uncommon for clients in therapy to struggle to find traction toward happiness or contentment. These clients will ultimately feel lost and sometimes hopeless in their efforts to […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
Cravings to engage in dangerous or indulgent behaviors like drinking, using drugs, overeating, or sex are a difficult thing for a patient to work through. Each time a patient experiences a craving or a trigger to engage in something they know is not good for them they are confronted with the conflict between doing what […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
Children find it hard to cope with things they do not understand. There are many people, places and things in the world that scare children, and when children are afraid they feel lost, alone and vulnerable. Children who are fearful have a hard time developing the confidence they need to face their fears, but if […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
One of the most important things we do as therapists are screen our patients for indicators that their safety may be compromised. As professionals, we do this to make sure our patients stay safe between sessions. While not every patient will require safety planning, therapists must be mindful of safety issues and know how to […]
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GinaMarie Guarino, LMHC
When starting with recovery from substance use it is so important that the patient be able to identify and understand the people, places and things to avoid. The more a patient learns about sobriety and themselves the more they realize the patterns that people, places and things cause and how detrimental it is to their […]
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