Atlanta LPC Counseling Services, LLC - Tracey Gagne, LPC

06/18/2022

06/25/2021

A little blog post I found by Amen Clinics about the use of alcohol. You probably knew some of this information to some degree, and it’s still a good reminder of one of the PLEASE skills.

Alcohol is essentially toxic to our bodies and brains, and while occasionally imbibing a small amount is not likely to cause harm for most adults, drinking regularly can definitely take a toll on you.

08/09/2020

Mindfulness⠀
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Tonight, we watched a movie in our neighborhood green. At one point, I leaned toward my son, newly six, and told him the mosquitoes were getting me. ⠀
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He told me, “The clue is to not pay attention to them.”⠀
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Well, he was right, of course. He knows that we can choose where we focus our attention. I followed his suggestion and chose to sing along with the soundtrack of the movie instead. The mosquito bites were still there, and they were less bothersome.⠀
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I tended to them when we returned home after the movie.⠀
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I appreciate that mindfulness can help us turn suffering into pain by helping us to momentarily distract so that we can enjoy an unusual and needed outing during our continued shelter in place.⠀
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*This is a simplified description of this skill. If you'd like to learn more about this skill or how I may be able to help you, please contact me. To visit my website, please check my bio!⠀
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07/23/2020

Many of us have heard of ACES or Adverse Childhood Experiences and know that if we have a high ACES score, we can be pretty sure that we are struggling in adulthood. Well, recent studies are showing that PCES or Positive Childhood Experiences can counteract ACES. I have known for a long time about the notion of resilience and how it can help a child overcome adversity during childhood. This article has more to say about that with regards to specific ways that resilience can happen.

By now, most counselors, pediatricians, teachers, and other people who work with children know about ACES: The “Adverse Childhood Experiences” scale. ACE’s predict, based on measu…

07/20/2020

Pleasant Events⠀
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The other night, a couple of friends and I got together on Facebook to play a board game.⠀
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Prior to the pandemic, we met every Monday to play board games, and we’ve been missing this. So, we decided to figure out a way to play online.⠀
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There are a variety of ways to do this. We played a card-based game where one of us drew cards that determined our play.⠀
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I have attached an article here for you to read about this as a way to play games with friends.⠀
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https://link.medium.com/4MKit1Vrg8.⠀
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The website Boardgame Arena is mentioned in the article, and it’s a website that my friends and I have used in the past. It’s a great way to play both familiar and unfamiliar games.⠀
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*This is a simplified description of this skill. If you'd like to learn more about this skill or how I may be able to help you, please contact me. Also, I have written a blog post on this subject. To visit my website, please check my bio!⠀
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07/09/2020

I don’t know about you, COVID-19 has lasted longer than I expected it to. And, I’m tired. ⠀
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I can’t tell you how many posts I’ve read on social media recently about people hitting walls with the emotional side of the pandemic. ⠀
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Additionally, there are so many people I have spoken to who want to know what else they can do because “the skills aren’t working.”⠀
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That certainly may feel like reality, and it remains necessary to engage in skills. What I’m talking about here are Emotion Regulation skills. Many people are at the end of their ropes—my five-year-old told me last weekend that he believes we need a vacation—and probably have the urge to avoid, or to use Distress Tolerance skills.⠀
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I get it. I find myself there sometimes, too.⠀
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The thing about DT skills is that they are meant for distress that is relatively short in duration—they aren’t meant to be “life skills.”⠀
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That’s why we need to focus on ER skills. Marsha Linehan provides a list of 225 pleasant events that people can try out. Lane Pederson also has an extensive list. Although, you probably don’t need these.⠀
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What you do need—probably—is to schedule at least one activity every day that you enjoy, something that you can look forward to each day. And, engage in it mindfully—practice your Participate skill. ⠀
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Remember that the goal of emotion regulation is to decrease your vulnerability to negative emotions and increase your vulnerability to positive ones. During a time like a pandemic, this may not feel like much.⠀
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And, it’s everything.⠀
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*This is a simplified description of this skill. If you'd like to learn more about this skill or how I may be able to help you, please contact me. To visit my website, please check my bio!⠀

07/01/2020

I just put these up on my freezer for use in our family’s homeschool.⠀
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Looking at them this way caused me to think about how our thoughts can be all jumbled up in our heads with different words jumping out at us.⠀
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This makes me so grateful for a regular mindfulness practice. ⠀
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When we practice mindfulness daily, we build up the skills necessary for choosing our focus. This can be really helpful during stressful times.⠀
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When we take time out of our day—and research shows that we need only five minutes per day—to do this, we increase the likelihood that we can choose our focus during stressful times.⠀
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That seems more than reasonable, right?⠀
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How can you find ways to take that five minutes for mindfulness each day?⠀
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If you would like to see my Dialectical Strategies for Practicing Mindfulness, please go to my web site, the link is in my bio!⠀
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*This is a simplified description of this skill. If you'd like to learn more about this skill or how I may be able to help you, please contact me. Also, I have written a blog post on this subject. To visit my website, please check my bio!⠀
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06/28/2020

I’m so excited that this game arrived yesterday! I backed it on Kickstarter because it’s a game based on using DBT skills. ⠀
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I haven’t had a chance to play it yet, and I’m excited about playing with my family in preparation for then playing with my clients.⠀
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I’ll keep you updated on how it goes.⠀
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06/19/2020

Vulnerability to Positive Emotions ⠀
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Lately, I’ve been hearing how heavy people are feeling. I’m feeling it, too.⠀
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I’ve been talking to my clients about the importance of Increasing Vulnerability to Positive Emotions or building resilience to negative ones.⠀
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One way to do this is to plan regular joyful events. Do something every day, or as often as possible, that brings a feeling of joy or happiness. The nice thing is that this can include just about anything, unless it will ultimately be harmful in any way. Both Marsha Linehan and Lane Pederson have lists of hundreds of positive events in their respective DBT skills books.⠀
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Something to think about is that currently, it may feel like WORK to engage in positive or pleasant events, and it’s really important that we do so now when there’s so much going on that’s stress-inducing and, if we’re not intentional, will contribute to our having an increased vulnerability to negative emotions, if we’re not already there.⠀
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Some things that we’re doing over here:⠀
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1. Dancing to our favorite songs ⠀
2. Singing ⠀
3. Trying out new recipes ⠀
4. Growing a small garden⠀
5. Telling new made-up stories⠀
6. Going on neighborhood adventures ⠀
7. Learning how to skateboard ⠀
8. Taking epsom salt baths⠀
9. Playing piano and guitar ⠀
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Sometimes, I find that I’m just tired. We also need to listen to our bodies. Rest when we need rest, cry when we need to cry.⠀
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We want to find synthesis. We don’t want to rest all the time, and we don’t want to spend so much time trying to “have fun” that we wear ourselves out.⠀
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You know your body better than anyone else. It’s really important that you listen to it, engage in positive events daily, and get adequate rest when that’s what your body wants.⠀
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Tonight, I made a new restful essential oil blend. I think it’s working!⠀
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*This is a simplified description of this skill. If you'd like to learn more about this skill or how I may be able to help you, please contact me. To visit my website, please check my bio!⠀
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