Zen Counseling NW

03/31/2026

Tell me what you are doing for your health? Today I’m throwing out my plastic cutting boards!

03/21/2026

Great news! My small downtown office now has both a Psych Nurse and a Physicians Assistant. Suzette, our PA specializes in menopause and weight loss. I have a few openings and I specialize in Anxiety, OCD, relationships and families affected by dementia. Another therapist provides EMDR for stuck trauma. DM me for more information!

01/31/2026

https://youtu.be/cK7EJgILMIk?si=jupgnX27z1mpn6F_

Excellent podcast on family estrangements which have become much more common in recent years.

Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/?sub_confirmation=1In a groundbreaking conversation about one of the fastest-growing cultural shifts of our time: Op...

01/31/2026

Please read more about breaking the pattern: https://www.livewellwithsharonmartin.com/end-codependent-relationships/

01/28/2026

The Best Way to Reduce Anxiety Is to Make Your Brain Feel Safe
https://buff.ly/u8iaCyr

Your brain wants safety. Give it that, and stress eases.
😰 Anxiety = brain sensing threat
🧠 Calm = brain feeling safe

There are many ways you can calm your body and make your brain feel safer to reduce anxiety and improve your mental health. In addition to the ones in the image:
😴 Prioritize sleep
🏋️ Exercise
🤝 Socialize
🌞 Notice “glimmers”
🌬️ Breathe deeply
🙏 Mindfulness

12/06/2025

Insights on tough personalities:

11/30/2025

Good representation of attachment styles.

Each attachment style has a different way of reaching for connection, especially when things feel tense. Anxious attachment sounds like Are you really there for me because deep down it fears being left alone with big feelings. It looks like checking, questioning, and trying to close the distance quickly so the relationship feels safe again.

Avoidant attachment is often misunderstood. It is not about not caring. It is about losing a sense of self when emotions get intense. When closeness feels overwhelming, avoidant partners cannot find their own internal grounding, so they pull back to feel steady again. It can look like distance, but underneath it is fear of being engulfed, not a lack of love.

Disorganized attachment carries both longings and fears at the same time. Come close feels comforting, and go away feels protective. The push pull is the nervous system trying to manage two opposite survival strategies at once.

Secure attachment says I am right here and you are right there. It is the calm confidence that we can stay connected without losing ourselves, even when things feel hard. It is independence and closeness working together instead of competing.

11/10/2025

Great article… try these questions with your partner instead.

In the happiest and most successful relationships, each partner believes that the other will follow through on their commitments. Harvard-trained psychologist Dr. Cortney Warren shares the phrases that couples who truly trust each other never say.

08/27/2025

07/12/2025

Right? Read it again!

07/05/2025

If you find yourself using the top phrases and you are struggling with relationships, therapy can help.

06/30/2025

Best tool for anger, defensiveness and reactivity… “practice the pause!”