Total Life Counseling Blog

Total Life Counseling Blog2024-04-09T22:36:06+00:00

Holiday Sleep Tips to Survive Season | Orlando Counselor

Holiday Survival sleep Tips to Survive the holidays Christmas can be so exciting and fun but also exhausting and overwhelming as well.  Shopping from store to store, and attending holiday parties are fun to celebrate but often we can lose track of time and get so exhausted so we have some holiday sleep tips to help you survive! Why [...]

Teen’s Mental Health | Where to get Help| Orlando Counselor

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the U.S. Surgeon General Murthy, symptoms of both anxiety and depression have doubled during this time with about 25% of the youth experiencing depressive symptoms and about 20% experiencing symptoms of anxiety. There has also been a rise in symptoms associated with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). On the brighter side, mental disorders [...]

Tele-health expert | 10 Tips to Managing Coronavirus Anxiety

Tele-health expert | 10 Tips to Managing Coronavirus Anxiety and Social Isolation Dealing with the unknown can be very scary. This pandemic happening around the globe has brought feelings of stress, anxiety and fear in our lives. In times of high distress, it’s common that our system suffers chemical alteration. A crisis, like this one we are facing, has [...]

Four Tips For Holiday Party Food Anxiety | Orlando Counselor

Do you loathe holidays? Dread social invitations? Can’t stand the thought of a Christmas party? Those with eating disorders (Bulimia, Anorexia, Binge Eating or Overeating) shiver at the upcoming holiday season, not for the social aspect but for the food. Almost every single holiday tradition or event for most cultures and religions involves food. Thanksgiving is routinely touted as [...]

Holiday Stress Tips | Orlando Counselor

Are you dreading the chaos of the holidays with the cooking, entertaining, shopping, decorating, etc?  Not looking forward to the in-laws meddling in your family or talking about politics? Living a day by day routine can be difficult to manage, even when life seems to be "organized." Stress is not always a bad thing, it can help us to resolve [...]

Orlando Counselor | How To Cope with Holiday Blues

Orlando Depression Counselor gives tips for depression during the holidays!  Whether someone has lost a loved one, has a house in foreclosure, or gone through a divorce, Christmas is an especially difficult time of year. Loss, death, separation, and divorce issues seem especially painful during the holiday season. At a time when people focus on their family and relatives, [...]

What is Holiday Eating & Overeating? | Orlando Counselor

Can’t resist that extra portion? Have to go through that drive through? Have to eat dessert, or maybe two? Now that the holidays are behind us, many will turn their focus to improving health and shedding unwanted pounds. The average American gains SEVEN pounds between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve.  How can you tell the difference between some simple [...]

4 Tips to Thrive Through the Holidays

Orlando Family Therapist on 4 Tips to Thrive Through the Holidays If you are like most people, when you see the holiday displays around Halloween, you ask yourself, is it that time already? Holidays can be met with mixed emotions, the joy of the season and the feelings of being overwhelmed. How would you like to not only survive the [...]

Adults, Blog, Family, Orlando, Parenting, Updates|

Depression: Recognizing Signs and Symptoms | Orlando Counselor

Orlando Depression Counselor answers the question how do I know if I am depressed? According to the National Institute of Mental Health, during any 1-year period, 17.6 million American adults or 10% of the population suffer from a depressive illness. The cost in human suffering cannot be estimated. Depressive illnesses often interfere with normal functioning and cause pain and [...]

7 Important Tips To Endure Stress During Coronavirus | Trauma Tele Therapist

7 Important Tips To Endure Stress During Virus Quarantine Many of us have been so overwhelmed with this sudden change that has impacted our life and routine because of the pandemic we are facing for what could be months. Some of us have been laid off from our jobs, we have a constant fear of what will happen to our [...]

9-11 20th Anniversary | Grief Counselor 5 Tips To Cope With Grief

Do you remember where you were when those planes struck the World Trade Center? Did you know someone that worked in the Twin Towers? Did you lose a loved one or a friend? Do you still have feelings of grief or post traumatic stress symptoms every time you see replays of the trade center burning and collapsing to the ground? [...]

Parenting Tips to Make Homeschool Work | Orlando Counselor

Daily Homeschool Schedule Advice  The coronavirus pandemic is continuously changing our lives, but one thing for sure is, you’re unsure of how to go about the next few weeks. Like most parents, you’ve suddenly found yourself solely responsible for your child’s education. You could be unsure of how to go about this tough situation, but all you know is [...]

Blog, Children, Jim West, Orlando, Teens, Updates|

Back To School during COVID-19 | Counselor Tips

Going back to school has always been a stressful time. School supply shopping, school clothes, class schedules, getting your child back onto a school schedule, bus times, etc..But things have become an entirely new level of stress because of Covid-19. Dealing with social distancing, mask regulations, and everyone’s fear and stress. Some are dealing with virtual classes which is a [...]

Blog, Children, Jim West, Orlando|

Tips To Be a Better Dad | Orlando Counselor

“Courageous: Honor Begins at Home” is a movie that tells the story of five fathers.  The film showcases men, from all different cultural backgrounds, with the universal desire to become strong fathers.  As the film displays, being a father is no easy task.  For example, after a long day of work, it is typical for fathers to get home [...]

Dad Superbowl Commercials Teaches 5 Lessons Why Fatherhood is Important

Super Bowl commercials went beyond the usual humor in Doritos and Budweiser campaigns. These commercials pulled at the heart strings of many dads across the nation that may have inspired them to be more present for their children and teens.  It appears that the commercials were tailored to the Dads and the importance of their roles. Toyota did an amazing job with an [...]

Adults, Blog, Children, Family, Orlando, Parenting, Teens, Updates|

Family Counselor | 4 Fathering Tips for the School Year | Connecting with your Son |Fox 35 Interview

Just like every school year, a new set of challenges is presented before him.  With these challenges comes both stress and excitement.  Do you remember your first day of class?  Maybe you were like me and unable to sleep.  The first day is usually fun, with everyone running on adrenaline from seeing good friends after a long summer break.  [...]

Tips for Test Anxiety | Reducing FSA Stress | Orlando Counselor

“Reducing Stress from Tests!” “I am going to fail the FSA and repeat third grade!” “I don’t have enough time for the test!” “I can’t sleep the night before the test!” February and March many students across the state prepare to take the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FSA) and the stress for some is insurmountable.  Psychiatrists across the state [...]

Orlando Counselor on Helping Parents Understand Bullying

On April 16, 2011 in Minnesota, a slumber party made national news when two eighth graders, Haylee Fentress and Paige Morrison, were found hanging in Fentress’s house. It was a suicide pact fueled by cyberbullying, humiliation, and the taunting of their peers. Unfortunately, millions of teens in America face bullying in some form, and too many result to suicide [...]

Counselor Relationship Expert on Tips to Get Romantic This Valentine’s Day During COVID

Valentine’s Day is an excellent way for couples to take a little extra time and show each other their appreciation for all that they do. We can get so caught up in our busy schedules that we may forget to show that special someone the tender affection that they deserve. This year, however, could be a challenge for those [...]

Counselor on Tips to Relieve Stress, Keep your Kids Busy, and Bond with your Family During Quarantine

Background We are quickly approaching the one year mark since our country was thrown into the whirlwind of a global pandemic. It has been almost one year since families have had to restructure in order to compensate for school, work, and community closures. All of this confusion, chaos, and uncertainty has caused children and their families to take on [...]

Boca Raton, Family|

Orlando Counselor on Parenting the Defiant Child

If you have a defiant teen, you know the struggle of having to put your foot down regarding rules and obedient behavior. Maybe you have had your child yell “no!” when you tell them to go to bed, or maybe you have been the one yelling because your frustration reached its limit. Regardless of how intense these back and [...]

Blog, Boca Raton, Defiance|

5 Tips For Extended Family Holiday Scheduling

Are you dreading the holidays?  Do you have to split holidays with more than two groups of relatives?  Do you feel you are traveling all over the place and resent holidays?  Are you a people pleaser and trying to make everyone family member happy? The movie "Four Christmases" is not just a funny movie, it's a very real situation [...]

School Systems struggling to keep up with the rise in need for Mental Health Services

If you were to sit in on a public classroom in 2022, vs sitting in one in 2019, you would see a clear difference in the mood, energy, and overall flow of the day. The pandemic of 2020 still affects today’s environment in society. Teachers and admin across various states report that there has been a rise in classroom [...]

Netflix the Social Media Dilemma | Social Media Addiction is What the Designers Intended #StopHateForProfit

The Social Dilemma If you’re anything like the other 182.8 million Netflix subscribers, you probably saw “The Social Dilemma” in Netflix's “trending now” category. This hour and a half movie supposedly covers the dangers of social media on human behavior and modern society. The movie goes on to depict dramatized scenes of Billy scrolling through Susie's feeds all day, [...]

5 Quarantine Tips for Coping with Social Isolation While Social Distancing | Counselor

5 Tips for Coping with Social Isolation While Social Distancing 1 in 5 Americans are in social isolation in their homes due to the COVID-19 virus.  5 states have now issued “stay at home orders,” which entails no going out in public to bars, nightclubs, restaurants, gyms, entertainment venues, places of worship, weddings, parks, beaches.  Exceptions are grocery stores, [...]

Go to Top