Linda M. Rio, MA, MFT

07/17/2025

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=122259495704030282&id=61550908467283&mibextid=wwXIfr

07/10/2025

“Brain Fog” Is described by those with several conditions and can be quite difficult to deal with.

https://www.facebook.com/100045274277469/posts/1387609516091511/?mibextid=wwXIfr

For many with pituitary conditions or endocrine disorders, "brain fog" is a common complaint. Author and therapist, Linda M. Rio, M.A., LMFT, shares about the connection here.

07/06/2025

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1194227489411594&id=100064730619198&mibextid=wwXIfr

07/04/2025

Happy July 4th! 🇺🇸

06/12/2025

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I was reading The Giving Tree to my son for the first time when I realized—with a lump in my throat—that I had become the tree.

The story seems simple: a boy loves a tree, the tree loves the boy. As the boy grows older, he takes—first her apples, then her branches, finally her trunk—until nothing remains but a stump. "And the tree was happy," Silverstein repeats like a lullaby, each iteration cutting deeper.

What shocked me wasn't the tree's self-destruction (though that haunted me). It was recognizing myself in both characters: the child who never thinks to ask "Is this too much?" and the parent who can't imagine saying "No."

Silverstein's deceptively simple drawings—that minimalist apple tree, that faceless boy—become a mirror. We've all been the taker who mistakes love for endless giving. We've all been the giver who confuses sacrifice with worth.

The genius lies in what's not said. Nowhere does the boy say "thank you." Nowhere does the tree say "I matter too." Their dance of devotion and depletion unfolds in stark, aching lines that children understand instinctively and adults feel in their bones.

Critics debate whether it's a beautiful parable of unconditional love or a troubling portrait of codependency. Maybe it's both. What's undeniable is its power—I've seen kindergarteners weep at the stump scene, while CEOs quote it in retirement speeches.

Years later, I read it again with my teenage son. He paused at the end and said, "The tree should've kept some apples for herself." And there it was—the generational shift in a single sentence. Silverstein's book had given us both the same story, but we'd grown into different lessons.

That's the magic of The Giving Tree. It meets you where you are—whether you're the boy climbing branches or the parent with bark worn thin—and asks the quietest, hardest question: "When does giving become losing yourself?"

Keep it on your shelf. Loan it to a friend. Just don't be surprised if you find yourself touching its pages differently each time life changes your answer.

BOOK: https://amzn.to/45M5Ux4

02/04/2025

It seems that our current world has so many challenges. So, each day perhaps we can all try to commit to being just a little more kind, patient, and supportive to one another. If everyone made small efforts we can combat negativity, fear, and oppression.