Spotless Mind Mental Health LI

01/16/2026

Please call (631)365-4454 or email hello@nytherapy.org to connect!

12/15/2025

Calling all moms💗 You are not alone on this journey, you have the power within you, you can heal. Call today (631)365-4454, email hello@nytherapy.org or visit our website nytherapy.org to schedule an appointment today!

12/15/2025

Navigating young adulthood is not easy. We can help. (631)365-4454 or hello@nytherapy.org

12/11/2025

Here to help🩵

Nytherapy.org
(631)365-4454
Hello@nytherapy.org

12/04/2025

10/25/2025

The Marshmallow Test: What Decades of Research Revealed

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, psychologist Walter Mischel and his colleagues at Stanford University conducted the Marshmallow Test. Preschool-aged children were offered one marshmallow immediately or two if they waited for about 15 minutes without eating the first.

Early follow-up studies suggested that children who waited longer tended to have better life outcomes, including higher academic achievement and SAT scores. These results were widely interpreted as evidence that self-control in early childhood predicts long-term success.

Today, the Marshmallow Test is understood as highlighting both individual self-regulation and environmental context—showing that the ability to delay gratification depends not only on willpower but also on trust, stability, and access to consistent resources.

10/24/2025

Behavior Chain Analysis is a structured DBT tool that helps identify the steps leading up to a problematic behavior. By tracing what happened before, during, and after the behavior, patterns become clearer and easier to change.

It begins with the prompting event that started the chain. Next are vulnerabilities, or factors that made the reaction more likely, such as fatigue or stress. The chain of events includes thoughts, emotions, and actions that followed in sequence. Finally, you identify the consequences of the behavior and consider more skillful responses that could replace it in the future.

Implementing the Behavior Chain Analysis can help break down issues into clear, manageable steps that highlight where change is possible. By tracing what led up to a behavior, it becomes easier to see which parts of the chain can be adjusted.

10/22/2025

When low mood or burnout make it hard to stay engaged, even the smallest actions can start to shift things. Behavioral Activation, a CBT-based approach, helps rebuild motivation by focusing on what’s doable and rewarding in life.

The process shown in the image below breaks this into three parts:

Behaviors — Choose activities that you enjoy or find meaningful, no matter how small. Building a list of these makes it easier to follow through and create moments of positivity.

Ease of Completion — Identify how achievable each activity feels. Starting with the simplest tasks, like taking a walk or making your bed are easy and rewarding.

Reward — which actions bring a sense of satisfaction or relief? Completing easier or less rewarding tasks will facilitate success as its difficulty increases.

Behavioral action sparks motivation and builds your ability to tackle bigger challenges, one small step at a time.

10/17/2025

Emotional regulation is closely connected to physical health. DBT’s PLEASE skills provide a framework to support both mind and body. They focus on caring for physical illness, maintaining balanced nutrition, avoiding mood-altering substances, keeping consistent sleep, exercising regularly, and engaging in meaningful or mastery-building activities.

Practicing these skills can reduce emotional vulnerability, improve overall functioning, and help individuals respond to stress more effectively. These are concrete, actionable steps—not abstract concepts—for everyday emotional management.

The attached image breaks down each PLEASE step, showing exactly how physical self-care contributes to emotional balance.