Relationships: Why Searching For the "Perfect" Partner Will Disappoint You

Over the years I've had many clients focused on trying to find the "perfect" partner who end up feeling disappointed and discouraged (see my article: Dating For a Lasting Relationship: The Spark vs the Slow Burn).

The "Perfect" Partner Doesn't Exist

I've also worked with clients already in fulfilling relationships who believe they might be able to find someone else who might be even "better" in the long run. 

Their attitude is, "Sure I'm in a fulfilling relationship, but I wonder if I might be able to find someone who I would be even happier with."

Why Does Searching For the "Perfect"Partner Leave You Feeling Disappointed?

There is no such thing as the "perfect" partner and if you think in those terms, you could become chronically dissatisfied with any relationship (see my article: Relationships: The Ideal vs the Real).

Instead of focusing on perfection, which doesn't exist, focus on knowing yourself, the qualities you want in a partner and the deal breakers you can't live with instead of superficialities:

• Know Yourself: Start with self awareness and reflection: What are your values? What would be fulfilling to you? What are your needs and wants? (see my article: What is Self Reflective Capacity and Why Is It Important to You?).

Know Yourself

• Be Open and Honest With Yourself: Be aware of your standards and be open, honest and flexible without compromising what is truly important to you.

• Prioritize Character Over Personality: Looking beyond superficialities, character is more important than personality in the long run. Consider the ethical principles and values that guide a potential partner's behavior. Is it consistent with your principles and values? (see my article: The Problem With Falling In Love With Charisma Instead of Character).

Choose Character Over Personality

• Take Your Time to Get to Know a Potential Partner: One of the biggest mistakes people make when they are considering someone as a potential partner is that they rush into a relationship too quickly. They don't take the time and then, after they have defined themselves as exclusive, they discover either they're not compatible or the person they chose isn't who they thought they were. Some people do this over and over until they feel discouraged about relationships in general (see my article: How to Stop Rushing Into a Relationship Too Quickly).

Take Your Time

• Embrace Imperfections: This includes a potential partner's imperfections as well as your own (see my article: Overcoming Perfectionism).

Embrace Imperfections

• Consider the Long Term: Will you and your potential partner be compatible in the long term? Will you encourage each other's personal growth? (see my articles: Why Looking for a Soulmate Will Disappoint You and Developing a Growth Mindset).

Get Help in Therapy

If you have been unable to work through unresolved problems on your own, you could benefit from working with a licensed mental health professional.

A skilled psychotherapist can help you to develop the skills and tools you need.

Rather than struggling on your own, seek help from an experienced therapist so you can lead a more fulfilling life.

About Me

I am a licensed New York psychotherapist, hypnotherapist, EMDR, AEDP, EFT (for couples), Somatic Experiencing and Certified Sex Therapist.

I work with individual adults and couples.

To find out more about me, visit my website: Josephine Ferraro, LCSW - NYC Psychotherapist.

To set up a consultation, call me at (917) 742-2624 during business hours or email me.

Psychotherapy is an Active Process: The More You're Engaged in Your Therapy, the More You'll Get Out of It

As I tell clients who come to see me in my psychotherapy private practice in New York City, psychotherapy is an active process.  The more you're engaged in your therapy, the more you'll get out of it (see my article: Getting the Most Out of Your Psychotherapy Sessions).

Psychotherapy is an Active Process: The More You're Engaged in Your Therapy, the More You'll Get Out of It 

What Does It Mean to Be "Actively Engaged" in Your Therapy?
Many clients who are in psychotherapy for the first time think that psychotherapy is a passive process, but this isn't the case for contemporary psychotherapy.

New clients, who have never been in psychotherapy before, need psychoeducation from their psychotherapists in order to understand how to be actively engaged in psychotherapy (see my article: Why It's Important For Psychotherapists to Provide Clients With Psychoeducation About How Psychotherapy Works).

Being actively engaged in your psychotherapy sessions means more than just showing up, although, of course, on the most basic level, that's important.  But beyond showing up, you will get much more out of your psychotherapy sessions by:

• Being Open-minded and Curious About Your Therapy:  Psychotherapy isn't something that is "done" to you.  Your psychotherapist has certain skills and experience to help you overcome your problems but, as you know, your therapist doesn't have a magic wand to make your problems disappear, so you will get much more out of your therapy sessions if you begin therapy by being open-minded and curious about the psychotherapy process (see my article: Starting Psychotherapy With a Sense of Curiosity and Openness).

• Asking Your Psychotherapist Questions: Whether you're new to psychotherapy or you've attended therapy in the past, if there's anything that you don't understand or you have questions about, ask your therapist.  It's your therapy.  You're spending your hard earned money and time to be in therapy.  It's important that you understand what's going on and what you might expect.

• Understanding That Psychotherapy is a Process: Psychotherapy is different from going to see your medical doctor who might give you a shot or a prescription so you can overcome your problem.  Psychotherapy is an individualized process that unfolds over time.  Each psychotherapy client's process will be unique.  When psychotherapy is going well, the work in therapy usually builds on itself over time.

• Considering How Far You Want to Go in Psychotherapy: Sometimes, I compare psychotherapy to home repair as a metaphor.  When you make home repairs, you decide if you want to do a little painting and spruce up the place or if you want to do major repairs.  It's the same with psychotherapy.  Your psychotherapist can make recommendations and you would do well to consider them.  But, ultimately, it's up to you whether you want symptom relief or you want to get to the root of your problems.  You might be alright with symptom relief now and maybe you'll consider delving deeper your next time in therapy.  Or, you might want to delve deeper now so that you overcome your problems beyond symptom relief.  Similarly, you can make choices as to whether you want to focus on short term or long term goals.  Once again, it's up to you--not your therapist.

• Spending Time Reflecting on Your Psychotherapy Sessions: If you want to get more out of your psychotherapy sessions, rather than forgetting what came up in your session once you leave therapy, spend time reflecting on your thoughts and feelings soon after the therapy session.  Even though you've left the session, the process continues to go on for you in your mind unconsciously.  That means, whether you realize it or not, you're never in the same place when you return for your next session.  Why not try to reflect on what's changing for you by thinking about it between sessions?

• Spending Time Writing Between Psychotherapy Sessions: Writing between sessions is something I recommend to my clients because it helps you to reflect on what's happening for you and how you're changing as a result of your therapy.  Many clients ask, "How will I know if psychotherapy is helping me to change?"  One way is to reflect and write about what comes up for you between sessions and the changes that you notice.  You can choose whether or not you share your writing with your psychotherapist or not.  Aside from writing, some people draw pictures or write stories--whatever works for you to help you to be actively engaged in the process between sessions (see my article: The Benefit of Journal Writing Between Psychotherapy Sessions).

Psychotherapy is an Active Process: Journal Writing Between Therapy Sessions

• Talking to Your Psychotherapist About Something That's Bothering You About the Therapy: Maybe you're changing in ways that you don't understand.  Maybe something got triggered in your last session. Maybe your therapist said something that you didn't like or you misunderstood.  Maybe your therapist misunderstood you.  A lot can happen in a therapy session.  Your therapist might sense that you're having a problem, but maybe she won't, especially if you're good at hiding when things bother you.  In that case, how will your therapist know unless you tell her?  You need to provide feedback to your therapist whether she elicits it from you or not (see my article: How to Talk to Your Psychotherapist About Something That's Bothering You in Therapy).

• Understanding That "Feeling Better" Might Not Necessarily Mean Your Problems Are Resolved:  As I stated above, it's up to you to decide if you want symptom relief or you want to work deeper on your problems.  If you decide that you want symptom relief, you need to understand that this might mean, even though you're "feeling better," your problems might not necessarily be resolved--depending upon what you want to get out of therapy.  If you know this and you're okay with it, the choice is yours.  However, as an informed consumer, it's important to know what you have opted to do once you've decided that you want to end therapy (see my article: Starting to Feel Better in Therapy).

Conclusion
Psychotherapy is an active process for the client and the psychotherapist.

The more you're actively engaged in your psychotherapy sessions during and in between sessions, the more you'll get out of your therapy.

Getting Help in Therapy
The decision to start psychotherapy, especially if you've never been in therapy before, can be a difficult one.

It takes courage to take steps to change (see my article: Developing the Courage to Change).

If you've been unsuccessful in overcoming your problems on your own, you could benefit from seeing a licensed mental health professional (see my article: The Courage to Change).

A skilled psychotherapist can help you to identify and work through your problems so that you can live a more meaningful life (see my article: How to Choose a Psychotherapist).

About Me
I am a licensed NYC psychotherapist, hypnotherapist, EMDR and Somatic Experiencing therapist (see my article: The Therapeutic Benefits of Integrative Psychotherapy).

I work in a dynamic, interactive and collaborative way with individual adults and couples.

To find out more about me, visit my website: Josephine Ferraro, LCSW - NYC Psychotherapist.

To set up a consultation, call me at (917) 742-2624 during business hours or email me.

How to Make Your Psychotherapy Sessions a Part of Your Life Between Sessions

In an earlier article, Getting the Most Out of Your Psychotherapy Sessions, I addressed certain issues related to starting therapy, including: different types of therapy, how to choose a psychotherapist, ethical issues in therapy, and so on.  In this article, I'm expanding upon a topic that I began discussing in that article and a subsequent article, which is how to make your psychotherapy sessions a part of your life between sessions.

How to Make Your Psychotherapy Sessions a Part of Your Life Between Sessions

What Comes Up in a Psychotherapy Session Doesn't End When You Walk Out of Your Therapist's Office
Psychotherapy is a process.  It's not like taking a pill to make your headache go away.  Things unfold over time.

Many psychotherapy clients, especially clients who are new to therapy, leave their psychotherapist's office at the end of the session and immediately divert their attention to something else.   As a result, they become distracted and forget what they discussed in their session.

When clients forget what was discussed in their therapy sessions, the therapy sessions are relegated to a specific time and place rather than being a part of the rest of their life.  They leave behind whatever "pearls" they gained in therapy, and they will probably need to go over the same material again and again to remember those "pearls."

While I understand that people are busy these days, I recommend that clients take time after each session to reflect on what came up in session and any thoughts, feelings, memories, dreams or daydreams that might come up as a result of the session.

One way to keep your therapy sessions alive and to integrate it into the rest of your life is to write in a journal soon after the session is over.

This doesn't have to be a time-consuming process and the journal entries don't need to be long.

How to Make Your Psychotherapy Sessions a Part of Your Life Between Sessions

Writing After Your Therapy Sessions:

• Enables You to Reflect on Your Session:  A therapy hour is a relatively short period of time as compared with the rest of your life, especially if you're attending therapy once a week.  It's easy to lose awareness of whatever you gained in that session if you don't take the time to reflect on it and write it down.  There might also be things that come up for you between sessions--a memory, a dream, a question about what your therapist said, something you didn't understand or something that bothered in you in the session (see my article: How to Talk to Your Psychotherapist About Something That's Bothering You in Therapy).  If you don't write these things down, you're likely to forget them.

• Creates an Increased Awareness of How You're Changing (or Not Changing):  When you spend time reflecting on and writing about your therapy sessions, you can develop an increased awareness of how you're changing (or not changing) in therapy over time.  This doesn't mean that you can expect big transformations in only a few sessions but, over time, you would benefit from assessing your progress in therapy.

• Enables You to See Where You Might Be Creating Obstacles For Yourself: It's common that when people come to therapy because they want to make changes in their life, they experience a certain amount of ambivalence about making those changes.  Change can be challenging, even if people really want it--especially if people really want it because there's more at stake.  Due to their fear of change, many clients often unconsciously create obstacles for themselves in therapy and in other areas of their life.  By capturing thoughts and feelings in a journal, clients can see over time if they're repeating certain self defeating patterns that are getting in the way of their psychological growth (see my article: Making Changes: Are You Creating Obstacles For Yourself in Therapy Without Even Realizing It?).

• Allows You to Take Your Share of the Responsibility For Your Therapy:  As I mentioned in an earlier article, psychotherapy is a co-created process between the client and the therapist.  There are certain parts of therapy that your therapist is responsible for including providing an emotionally safe environment for you to open up in therapy (see my article: How Psychotherapists Create a "Holding Environment" in Therapy).  But there are also aspects of your therapy are your responsibility. As mentioned above, if you're creating obstacles for yourself by not doing your part in therapy, like doing homework between sessions (if your therapist gives homework), then you're not taking responsibility for your part in therapy.  If you're keeping a journal, you can see how often this occurs, own it, discuss with your therapist, and change it.

• Increases Your Awareness of How Your Unconscious Mind Continues the Process :  Even when you don't consciously reflect on your psychotherapy sessions, the work continues to be done between sessions in your unconscious mind.  You might dream or daydream about something you spoke about in therapy or a thought suddenly pops into your mind, not so coincidentally, that is related to a discussion you had with your therapist.  Your dreams, daydreams, thoughts and feelings are important.  They reveal how your unconscious mind is continuing to process the material.  If you don't journal about it, you will have a harder time making these psychological connections.  

• Increases Your Awareness of the Different Parts of Yourself: In an earlier article, I discussed self states as parts of yourself that are constantly shifting. When you spend time writing in your journal between therapy sessions, you can see how the various parts of yourself affect you, which parts come to the surface in different situations and how these parts interact to help or hinder you (see my article: How Your Shifting Self States Affect You For Better or Worse).

• Helps You to Develop Increased Awareness About How Life Around You is Always Changing: There's an old saying by the ancient Greek philosopher, Heraclitus, which is "You could not step twice in the same river."  The significance of that quote is that, just as the river is ever flowing and never the same, life is ever changing.  If you take the time to write about it, you will gain a new perspective and appreciation for how life is constantly changing.

Heraclitus: You Cannot Step Twice in the Same River

• Provides You With a Personal Record About Yourself Over Time:  It's easy to forget how you were when you began therapy.  Your therapist can help you to gain insight into how you were at the start of therapy as compared to how you are now.  In addition, if you keep a journal about your experiences in therapy, you will have a personal record about yourself over time.

Conclusion:
As I mentioned earlier, the therapeutic process doesn't end when you walk out of your psychotherapist's office.

You're spending valuable time and money for your therapy sessions, so if you want to get the most from your therapy, take the time to reflect on your sessions and write down whatever comes up for you.

By taking the time to keep a journal about your sessions and whatever comes up between sessions, your therapy will become integrated in your life and you will get much more out of your sessions.

Not only will keeping a journal between sessions allow you to be more self reflective and aware of your own psychological process, it will also help you to develop new insights into yourself and the direction you want your therapy and your life to take going forward.

Getting Help in Therapy
Attending psychotherapy is a unique experience (see my article: Psychotherapy: A Unique Intersubjective Experience).

It takes courage to seek help in therapy and to change (see my article: Developing the Courage to Change).

Whether you want to gain psychological insight into yourself, make changes in your life or work through a traumatic experience, working with a skilled psychotherapist can be a life-changing experience (see my articles: (see my article: The Benefits of Psychotherapy and How to Choose a Psychotherapist).

The first step, which is making a phone call to set up a therapy consultation, is usually the hardest step, but it can also be the first step to transforming your life.

About Me
I am a licensed NYC psychotherapist, hypnotherapist, EMDR and Somatic Experiencing therapist (see my article: The Therapeutic Benefits of Integrative Psychotherapy).

I work with individual adults and couples.

To find out more about me, visit my website: Josephine Ferraro, LCSW - NYC Psychotherapist.

To set up a consultation, call me at (917) 742-2624 during business hours or email me.

Becoming Your True Self

Discovering who you are can be a lifelong process, especially since everyone changes over time.  In prior articles, I wrote about the false self from Donald Winnicott's perspective and about living a meaningful life (see my articles: Understanding Your False Self - Part 1,  Understanding Your False Self - Part 2, A Search For a Meaningful Life, A Happy Life vs A Meaningful Life and Becoming the Person You Want to Be).  In this article, I'm focusing on how to become your true self.

Becoming Your True Self

There is so much pressure these days to conform to social norms that you might not feel comfortable with, and by conforming to these social norms, you can develop a false or inauthentic self.

What is the True Self?
Donald Winnicott, a British psychoanalyst, identified the true self as being spontaneous, creative and alive (see my article: Recapturing Your Sense of Aliveness).

Developing a true self is a journey and that you develop over time.  There's no such thing as having "arrived" at developing a true self because, as I mentioned before, it can be a lifelong process.

By discovering who you are and living authentically and consistently with your values, you will have more of a sense of well-being.

There's no one way to achieve authenticity (see my article: Living Authentically - Aligned With Your Values), but here are some suggestions that might be helpful to you:

Suggestions For Developing Your True Self

• Keep a Journal: In prior articles, I've written about the importance of keeping a journal.  When you keep a journal of your thoughts and feelings, over time, you learn about what's important to you and what makes you feel authentic.  Keeping a journal allows you to have a dialogue with your deeper self (see my articles: Keeping a Gratitude Journal, Journal Writing Can Help Relieve Stress and Anxiety, and Writing Down the Milestones of Your Life).

• Spend Time in Self Reflection: Rather than keeping yourself busy every moment of the day, take some time to yourself and think about how your past and your current situations affect who you are.  Mindfulness meditation can be very helpful to keep you grounded and to develop insight into yourself and the world around you (see my articles: How to Connect With the Quiet Place Within Yourself and Creating Time For Self Reflection: Mindfulness).

• Talk to Loved Ones Who Are Also Developing a More Authentic Self: When you talk to others who are also trying to live more authentically, you develop insights into your own struggles.  You can also feel supported and cared about by people who are going through a similar stage.

• Read Inspirational Literature About Authenticity: By reading stories about people who have learned to develop a true self or who have struggled with issues around authenticity, you can feel inspired in your own journey.  This includes both fiction and nonfiction (see my article: Reading Literature and the Positive Effects on the Brain).

• Ask Yourself: What is My Purpose in Life?  This is another area that changes over time as you change.  Asking yourself what your purpose in life is helps you to live in a purposeful way rather than just drifting from one day to the next.  When you live your life with intention, your goals will most likely fall into place because you have an overarching purpose and all major decisions will be made to serve that purpose (see my article: Starting the Day With an Intention).

It's not easy to know if you're living as your true self.  It takes time and effort to think about what's important to you and how you will achieve authenticity.  

Even after you identify your core values, you might feel conflicted and ambivalent about your values.

You might be afraid of disappointing people in your life who might have a different vision for you.  It takes courage to stand up for what feels true and right for you.

How Psychotherapy Can Help You Discover Your True Self

We all have certain unconscious blind spots and it's usually very challenging to discover your authentic self on your own.  

Usually, people come up against the same blocks over and over again and they only get so far on their own.  

A skilled psychotherapist can help you to overcome the obstacles, both conscious and unconscious, that are getting in the way of becoming your true self (see my article: How to Choose a Psychotherapist).

While we're all human and none of us can always be our true self, when you live aligned with your values and what's most important to you, you will feel more fulfilled in your life.

About Me

I am a licensed NYC psychotherapist, hypnotherapist, EMDR and Somatic Experiencing therapist who works with individuals and couples.

I have helped many clients to live more authentically.

To find out more about me, visit my website: Josephine Ferraro, LCSW - NYC Psychotherapist.

To set up a consultation, call me at (917) 742-2624 during business hours or email me.

How Psychotherapy Helps You to Become More Self Reflective

In a prior article, Discovering That Your Feelings Aren't Facts, I discussed that many clients begin psychotherapy with an inability to distinguish between their feelings and objective reality.  It's as if they're looking through a distorted lens based on their own feelings.

How Psychotherapy Helps You to Become More Self Reflective

I also discussed that psychotherapy provides an opportunity to become more self reflective, objective and emotionally aware, which often leads to a more fulfilling life.  In this article, I'm going into more detail about how clients in therapy can learn to develop these skills.

The Observing Ego, Clinical Hypnosis and Hypnoprojectives
In psychotherapy there's a term called the "observing ego," which is the ability to stand both inside your experience as well as outside your experience at the same time.

It's as if there were two of you--one that feels your internal experience and one that stands just a little behind and above you that can experience your internal experience, see yourself and observe the external circumstances of your situation.

As a hypnotherapist, there is a hypnoprojective exercise that I sometimes use when I use clinical hypnosis with clients that helps them to enhance their observing ego and ability to self reflect.

I ask the client to imagine herself seated in a movie theatre.

The client arrives just before the movie starts and finds a comfort seat as she waits for the movie to begin.  Everything else--the temperature in the movie theatre and the general atmosphere--are comfortable.

As the movie begins, she realizes that it's about a character who is similar to her in many ways and who has the same presenting problem that brought the client into therapy.

The Observing Ego, Clinical Hypnosis and Hypnoprojectives

At the same time that the client is seated and watching the movie, there is another part of her that is in the projection booth who is observing the part of her that's seated.  The part in the projection booth also has a view of the entire theatre and she is watching the movie.

The benefit of using a hypnoprojective is the client often develops insight into her problem by externalizing the problem to the movie screen and making it concrete.  By making the movie about someone else, the client has an opportunity to be more objective.

Also, the relaxed state of hypnosis allows the client access to unconscious information that she normally wouldn't have access to in a fully awakened state.

With regard to our discussion about an ability to self reflect and developing the observing ego, the part of the client who is in the projection booth is an observing ego.

This part has the unique perspective of having both the internal and external experiences and has a full view of everything.  The part in the projection booth is also watching the part seated in the theatre and often develops insight into that part of herself.

During the debriefing after the hypnoprojective hypnotic exercise, clients will often say that they're surprised that they were able to see their problem and the solution with much more clarity (see my article: The Unconscious Mind: The "Symptom" Contains the Solution).

Mindfulness Meditation
I often recommend that clients practice mindfulness meditation as another way to become more self reflective and develop an observing ego (see my article: Psychotherapy and the Mindful Self).

Mindfulness Meditation As a Way to Become More Self Reflective and Develop an Observing Ego

For beginners, it's often easier to follow a mindfulness recording, like the recordings developed by mindfulness expert Jon Kabat Zinn, as a way to start.

Aside from helping you with emotional regulation, mindfulness meditation also helps you to develop and improve your self awareness.

With regular practice, mindfulness meditation can help you to reduce stress, improve your autoimmune system, improve concentration and memory, and increase emotional intelligence.

The Observing Ego: The Ability to Remain Rooted in Your Experience At the Same Time As You Stand Just Outside Your Experience
Hypnoprojectives and mindfulness meditation are two ways to develop an observing ego.

Aside from these powerful tools, being open to your therapist's observations can also give you a new perspective beyond your subjective experience.  It allows you to consider an alternative to your subjective state at the same time that you're rooted in your own experience.

This is one of the benefits of being in therapy (see my article: The Benefits of Psychotherapy).

Consider the Following Fictionalized Scenario About the Observing Ego in a Psychotherapy Session:
Ella comes to therapy in a bad mood.  She tells her therapist that she's feeling pessimistic about a new relationship because the man she's dating seemed preoccupied and distracted when they spoke last night.

Based on her pessimistic feelings about the relationship, Ella's thoughts are off the races:  She just knows that he's going to break up with her, and if he breaks up with her, she won't meet anyone else as nice as he is, and then she'll be alone for the rest of her life.

How Psychotherapy Helps You to Become More Self Reflective

Her therapist recognizes this as one of Ella's recurring patterns that creates problems in her life: Ella  assumes that her feelings are facts.

So, her therapist asks Ella a series of questions to help Ella to develop a more observing ego:  Did anything negative happen between her and her boyfriend?  Did he say that he didn't want to date her anymore?  What other evidence is there to support Ella's feelings?  What makes Ella assume that her feelings are facts?

Ella reflects upon her therapist's questions, and she becomes aware that she is projecting her own anxiety and negativity onto her boyfriend.  She realizes that she has no objective reason to believe that her boyfriend will break up with her.

Later that day, Ella's boyfriend calls her and apologizes for being distracted on the phone the night before.  He tells her that he was worried about a work problem, but that problem has since been resolved and he is feeling better.  When they see each other later that night, her boyfriend is his usual affectionate, attentive self.

How Psychotherapy Helps You to Become More Self Reflective

When Ella returns to her next therapy session, she tells her therapist that she realizes that she fell back into her recurring pattern of believing that her feelings were facts.  She feels frustrated that she continues to regress into this old pattern from time to time.

But, at the same time, Ella also recognizes that she doesn't fall back into this old pattern nearly as much as she used to before she came to therapy, so she is aware that she has made progress in therapy.

Ella made a commitment to her therapist to increase her mindfulness meditation practice and to also practice stepping outside her experience when she's tempted to project her negative feelings again.

Conclusion
The ability to self reflect is essential to being a self aware adult.  Without the ability to self reflect, you're more likely to look at yourself and others through the distorted lens of your own perceptions.

One of the benefits of psychotherapy is that it helps you to develop the ability to self reflect by developing an observing ego.  This is often a one-step-forward-two steps-back process as you develop this skill (see my article: Setbacks Are a Normal Part of Psychotherapy Along the Road to Healing).

The more you practice developing an observing ego, the better you'll get at using it.

Getting Help in Therapy
We all have our blind spots (see my article: Overcoming Your Emotional Blind Spots).

Often, we don't realize that we have a particular blind spot until we're able to stand outside our experience and reflect on it.

Psychotherapy provides a unique intersubjective experience where an attuned therapist can help you to overcome your blind spots, negative projections and your confusion about your feelings being facts (see my article:  The Psychotherapy Session: A Unique Intersubjective Experience).

Rather than struggling on your own, you can get the help you need with a skilled psychotherapist (see my article: The Psychotherapist's Empathic Attunement Can Be Emotionally Reparative For the Client).

Psychotherapy can help you to free yourself from recurring negative patterns that are keeping you stuck.

About Me
I am a licensed NYC psychotherapist, hypnotherapist, EMDR and Somatic Experiencing therapist who works with individual adults and couples.

I have helped many clients to lead more meaningful lives.

To find out more about me, visit my website: Josephine Ferraro, LCSW - NYC Psychotherapist.

To set up a consultation, call me at (917) 742-2624 during business hours or email me.

Discovering That Your Thoughts and Feelings Aren't Facts

There are many clients who begin psychotherapy believing that their feelings are facts--whether it's their feelings about themselves or others.  For those clients, psychotherapy offers an opportunity to develop an ability to self reflect so they can stop confusing their feelings with facts and develop emotional intelligence.

See my articles:  

Developing Emotional Intelligence

Creating Time For Self Reflection

Gaining a New Perspective in Psychotherapy About Yourself and Others

The Benefits of Psychotherapy

Discovering that Your Thoughts and Feelings Aren't Facts

Intuition and gut feelings are certainly important, and this isn't what I'm referring to when I say that feelings aren't facts.

I'm referring to believing that distorted feelings and thoughts are facts and the need to develop an ability to take a step back from your feelings to question whether what you feel is objectively true.

When you don't self reflect and question whether you're being objective, you run the risk of attributing meanings to yourself and others that are false, which can create problems in your life.

Examples of Feelings Not Being Facts:

• Tom noticed that his supervisor had an angry look on his face when he looked in Tom's direction.  As a result, Tom assumed that his supervisor was angry with him, and he avoided his supervisor for the rest of the week.  At the end of the week, Tom's supervisor told him that he realized that Tom was avoiding him and he wanted to talk to him about it.  During that same conversation, his supervisor told Tom that he was angry because their director was making unreasonable demands of him.  At that point, Tom realized that his supervisor's angry look had nothing to do with Tom and that Tom's original feeling about the situation was inaccurate.

• Lynn had a feeling that the new woman, Jane, in her book club was arrogant and standoffish.  One day one of the other women in the group invited Lynn and Jane for coffee.  During their conversation, Jane mentioned that she tended to be shy and quiet, especially around people that she didn't know well, and this often caused people to think that she was standoffish.  Jane said she welcomed the opportunity to join them for coffee to get to know them better.  After that, Jane was much more friendly in the group, and Lynn realized that she misinterpreted Jane's quiet demeanor for arrogance.  She realized that her original feelings about Jane weren't true.

• After her boyfriend ended their relationship, Rena had a strong feeling that she would never be in another relationship.  She assumed that she would be alone for the rest of her life because no one else would want to be with her.  This made her feel lonely, sad and hopeless.  But a few months later, Rena met a man at her friend's party and they began dating.  As their relationship developed, Rena realized that, even though her feelings had been strong that she would never meet anyone else and that she would be alone for the rest of her life, these feelings weren't objectively true because she was now in a new and wonderful relationship.

As in the examples above, feelings--even strong feelings--are often disproved by life's circumstances.  But a change in circumstances doesn't always occur, and people who believe that their feelings are facts remain convinced.

Discovering That Your Thoughts and Feelings Aren't Facts

When people have strong feelings and beliefs that make them unhappy, they often come to therapy to deal with their unhappiness.

One of the goals of therapy is to help clients to step back from their feelings, reassess their feelings objectively and develop insight.  By developing the ability to step back to self reflect and stand outside of personal feelings and beliefs, clients in psychotherapy can develop emotional intelligence.

This can be very challenging for clients when their beliefs that feelings are facts has been longstanding.  They might have learned to identify with their feelings so strongly that it becomes difficult to see beyond these feelings.

Conclusion
It's easy to confuse feelings with facts, especially when you have strong feelings about yourself or others.

Rather than being swept up by feelings and taking action based solely on your feelings, you can learn to become more self reflective.  By being more self reflective, you have an opportunity to be more objective.  And by being more objective, you can see yourself and others in a more accurate way.

Developing this ability on your own can be difficult, especially if you've been in the habit of believing that your feelings are always objectively true.

A skilled psychotherapist can help clients to become more aware of their feelings and beliefs so that they become more self reflective and objective.

Getting Help in Therapy
Most people come to therapy because they feel stuck in some way.

People who believe that their feelings are objectively true have an opportunity in therapy to develop more insight into how they think and how their feelings and thoughts are affecting them.

If you feel stuck in your life, you owe it to yourself to get help in therapy with a skilled psychotherapist who can help you to overcome the obstacles that are getting in the way of your having a fulfilling life.

About Me
I am a licensed NYC psychotherapist, hypnotherapist, EMDR and Somatic Experiencing therapist who works with individual adults and couples.

I have helped many clients to develop insight into their thoughts and feelings so they can change their lives.

To find out more about me, visit my website: Josephine Ferraro, LCSW - NYC Psychotherapist.

To set up a consultation, call me at (917) 742-2624 during business hours or email me.

Self Reflection and Basic Mindfulness Techniques

In my previous article, Creating Time for Self Reflection: Mindfulness, I began a discussion about mindfulness as one way to engage in self reflection and included some of the benefits of mindfulness.

Self Reflection and Basic Mindfulness Techniques

In this article, I'll continue the discussion by providing some basic ways that you can begin to develop a mindfulness practice on your own, if you haven't done so already, so that you can reap many of these benefits.

The Roots of Mindfulness Practice
Although mindfulness has its roots in Buddhism, there are many other religions and spiritual practices that include some form of prayer or meditation technique that can be considered mindfulness techniques.

The Roots of Mindfulness:  Buddhism

But you don't have to be religious or even consider yourself to be a spiritual person to practice mindfulness in your everyday life.

Jon Kabat-Zinn, the founder and former director of the Stress Reduction Clinic at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center, helped to bring attention to mindfulness practices to the general public.

The research that he conducted among patients showed that mindfulness practice can lead to physical and psychological improvements.

Basic Mindfulness Techniques
I think that many people, who aren't familiar with mindfulness techniques, believe that mindfulness techniques tend to be mysterious esoteric practices that would be difficult to learn and, as a result, they feel discouraged about learning to engage in mindfulness.

But, as I mentioned before, practicing mindfulness doesn't have to be connected to any form of religion or spirituality (although it can be), and it doesn't have to be complicated at all.

There are many ways to practice mindfulness, so I'm going to begin with very basic techniques that can help you to get started.

Mindfulness and the Mind-Body Connection
One of the reasons why I love using mind-body oriented approaches to therapy, like EMDR, clinical hypnosis and Somatic Experiencing in my psychotherapy practice in NYC, is because I believe that the mind-body connection is crucial for overall health and well being, and these types of therapy all have in common that they focus on the mind-body connection.

Mindfulness and the Mind-Body Connection

Since my focus in this article is how you can begin to develop basic mindfulness techniques on your own, I'll begin with the simplest techniques that don't involve attending psychotherapy.

A Basic Mindfulness Technique:  Noticing Body Sensations
One basic way to practice mindfulness is to just notice the sensations in your body.

To practice mindfulness in this way, you don't need to know how to meditate and you don't even need to know anything about the mind-body connection.  You just focus on your body.

A Basic Mindfulness Technique:  Noticing Sensations in Your Body

Here are some simple steps:

• Focus on the physical sensations that you're experiencing right now.
• Notice what you're sensing in your body without judgement, which means just noticing.  This can include noticing an itch, a tingling sensation, a pain, a sense of fullness or emptiness in your stomach, muscle tension, scratchiness in your throat, and so on
• If you like this technique, you can start at the crown of your head and do a slow body scan from head to toe and just notice what you feel--again without judging it.
• If you get distracted, it's okay.  Just bring your attention back to your body.

Another Basic Mindfulness Technique:  Noticing Your Emotions in Your Body:
After practicing noticing body sensations, if you find you enjoy this, you can add noticing your emotions in your body.

A Basic Mindfulness Technique:  Noticing Your Emotions in Your Body

This is a technique that I use with clients in my psychotherapy private practice with EMDR, Somatic Experiencing and clinical hypnosis, but you can also do it on your own (see my article:  Mind-Body Psychotherapy: The Body Offers a Connection to the Unconscious Mind).

Basic steps to noticing your emotions in your body:

• Begin by noticing body sensations (as outlined above).
• After you do a body scan from head to toe, begin to notice where you feel emotions in your body without judgment.
• If you're new to this, it's easier to start by noticing certain sensations in your body and beginning to tentatively identify which emotions this might be related to.  So, for instance, if you sense tension in your jaw, tension in your shoulders or clenched stomach muscles, ask yourself what emotions might be connected to these sensations.

As you practice noticing emotions in your body, you will become better at identifying these emotions and using this information to develop a greater sense of self awareness.

One of the keys to practicing these mindfulness techniques is being nonjudgmental.  So, if you find yourself beginning to berate yourself for feeling certain sensations or emotions, just notice that you're doing this and, if you can, allow those judgmental thoughts to float away.

Another Basic Mindfulness Technique:  Notice Your Cravings
Noticing your cravings can help you to become more mindful of your cravings, whether it's a craving for food, alcohol, drugs, overspending or whatever it is.

A Basic Mindfulness Technique:  Notice Your Cravings

Whatever the craving is, if you just notice it first, rather than immediately giving in to your craving, you'll soon discover that cravings often come and go.

Basic steps to notice your cravings:

• Begin by doing a body scan, as outlined earlier in this article.
• Notice, without judgment, where you're experiencing these cravings in your body (mouth, stomach, etc).
• Rather than denying or actively trying to get rid of the craving, just allow it to be.  If you don't indulge in the craving, it often just passes.
• Notice what it feels like in your body and emotionally to have the craving come and go.

Another Basic Mindfulness Technique:  Mindfulness Meditation
There are many ways to practice mindfulness meditation, so I'm going to focus on a basic way to get started.  After you've practiced for a while, you can find your own way to practice.

A Basic Mindfulness Technique:  Mindfulness Meditation

Basic steps to practice mindfulness meditation:

• Find a quiet place and time where you won't be interrupted for at least 15 minutes (you can increase the time, if you like, as you develop your mindfulness meditation practice).
• Sit quietly and notice your breathing.
• Notice what it feels in your body to breathe in and what it feels like to breathe out.
• Allow your thoughts to come and go without judging them or trying to hold onto them (this includes both "negative" thoughts as well as positive thoughts).
• If you get distracted, bring your attention back to your breathe again.

Later on, if you like mindfulness meditation, as I mentioned, you can develop your own unique way of practicing.  But, in the beginning, this is all you need to do to start.

Practicing Acceptance, Self Compassion and Being Nonjudgmental
Allowing judgmental thoughts to come and go can take practice.

Self Reflecting and Basic Mindfulness Techniques:  Acceptance and Self Compassion

When you start practicing mindfulness techniques, you might need to allow these thoughts to come and go many times.  That's okay.  It usually gets easier over time with practice.

Getting Help in Therapy
Many people have problems getting started with basic mindfulness techniques on their own because they feel overwhelmed with emotional problems.

If you're feeling emotionally overwhelmed, you're not alone.

Seeing a licensed mental health practitioner can help you to overcome your problems so that you can live a more fulfilling life.

Seeing a psychotherapist who has a mind-body oriented approach to therapy can help you to work through your problems in a more holistic way.

About Me
I am a licensed NYC psychotherapist, hypnotherapist, EMDR and Somatic Experiencing therapist who works with individual adults and couples.

To find out more about me, visit my website:  Josephine Ferraro, LCSW - NYC Psychotherapist.

To set up a consultation, call me at (917) 742-2624 during business hours or email me.

Creating Time for Self Reflection: Mindfulness

In a recent conversation that I had with a therapist, who is a friend and colleague, we talked about how, generally speaking, many people seem to value "staying busy" much more these days than spending even a small amount of time on self reflection.

Creating Time for Self Reflection:  Mindfulness 

I believe that this overall decrease in self reflection, in turn, has lead to detrimental health effects, lack of satisfaction with life, a deterioration in important relationships for many people as well as a disregard for the environment and the health of our planet.

In a prior article, Psychotherapy and the Mindful Self: The Benefits of Mindfulness in Therapy, I focused on why I'm a proponent of mindfulness in therapy.

In this article, I'll discuss why I think mindfulness, as one form among many, of self reflection, has overall health and mental health benefits whether you're in therapy or not.

Why Is Self Reflection Important?
I know a lot of people pooh-pooh the idea of taking time for self reflection and refer to it derisively as "navel gazing."

At the same time, people who actually do spend some time each week either practicing mindfulness, meditating, doing yoga, journal writing or coming to therapy to reflect on their lives, tend to express much more satisfaction with their lives than people who focus on just "keeping busy."

There can be many reasons why people keep themselves distracted by "keeping busy" (see my article:  Are You "Keeping Busy" to Avoid Painful Emotions?).

Creating Time for Self Reflection:  Mindfulness

By "keeping busy" most of the time, it's easy to live in a "mindless" way without self reflection or empathy for yourself and others.

Life can feel meaningless, shallow and overly routine as you become more disconnected from yourself, significant people in your life and your environment (both personal environment as well as the environment of our planet).

Becoming Mindful of the Environment of Our Planet

More than ever, I'm hearing from clients in my psychotherapy private practice in NYC that they're feeling an increased sense of loneliness and alienation.

I think there are many reasons for this, including an emphasis on "staying busy," less time for self reflection as well as less meaningful in-person contact with significant others--just to name a few causes of this complex phenomena.

As with anything, there needs to be a balance between spending time on self reflection and taking care of your responsibilities, working, having fun and everything else that is part of a full life.

By "Keeping Busy" Most of the Time, It's Easy to Live in a "Mindless" Way

We can always find something else "to do" that can eliminate time for self reflection, so it's usually a matter of making it a priority and creating the time to do it, much as you would for anything else that you feel is important.

Once you create the time for self reflection and develop this as a healthy habit, it often doesn't take a lot of time to reap the benefits.

Mindfulness and Self Reflection
Mindfulness is one way to engage in self reflection.

Creating Time for Self Reflection:  Mindfulness

Even just 15 minutes a day of mindfulness can help improve your overall health and sense of well being, and these benefits include:

• focusing on the here-and-now rather than focusing on regrets about the past or worrying about the future
• developing a greater capacity to form meaningful connections with others
• developing better coping skills
• cultivating a healthier perspective about life
• improving sleep
• alleviating gastrointestinal problems
• alleviating depressive symptoms
• alleviating symptoms of anxiety
• helping with obsessive compulsive disorder
• lowering blood pressure
• reducing chronic pain
• helping to improve communication in relationships
• developing a healthier appreciation of the environment

These are just some of the many benefits.

When you consider the substantial benefits of mindfulness, isn't it worth spending 15 minutes to help improve your health and overall sense of well being?

In my Self Reflection and Basic Mindfulness Techniques, I'll discuss some simple ways that you can practice mindfulness to get started.

About Me
I am a licensed NYC psychotherapist, hypnotherapist, EMDR and Somatic Experiencing therapist who works with individual adults and couples.

To find out more about me, visit my website:  Josephine Ferraro, LCSW - NYC Psychotherapist.

To set up a consultation, call me at (917) 742-2624 during business hours or email me.