Relationship Issues

The people you are close to play an important role in your life. One of the key predictors of well-being is whether we’re in healthy relationships with others, whether it’s with a spouse, friends, siblings, colleagues, or neighbors. Some relationships will have a deeper and more lasting impact compared to others, but the point is that as relational and social creatures, the health of our relationships is immensely important. If the health of our relationships matters for our well-being, it pays to know why those relationships can go wrong, and how to remedy it. One of the key areas where a relationship can be unhealthy is when emotional neglect is taking place. Emotional Neglect in Relationships Emotional neglect is an unfortunate reality in many relationships. Whether it’s between parents and their children, siblings, or in a romantic relationship, it’s possible for loved ones to experience emotional neglect. Emotional neglect can be understood as a type of abuse. When a person is neglected emotionally, their emotional needs are consistently ignored, dismissed, or disregarded. Plano Christian Counseling can provide support and guidance for individuals experiencing emotional neglect. What adds to the pain of emotional neglect is that the ones who are disregarding or dismissing another’s emotional needs are the same people who carry the responsibility to meet those needs. Partners, caregivers, or parents are responsible to others to meet their needs, and it’s part of what makes the relationship a healthy one. Emotional neglect can take various forms, including minimizing or trivializing the other person’s experiences; being unavailable and unresponsive when called upon; showing little to no interest in the others’ feelings, thoughts, or experiences; not providing reassurance or comfort; ignoring or dismissing the other’s emotions; withholding validation and support; and not acknowledging or apologizing for hurtful or harmful behavior. When [...]

` One of the most critical aspects of our emotional freedom is to forgive those who have hurt us. This is especially true for people who have suffered trauma or abuse. A person with a traumatic past may need the help of forgiveness to move past it and thrive in their lives. However, just because a person has forgiven someone does not mean they need to give them access to their lives. Good Boundaries to Draw With Causers of Trauma Boundaries help people limit access to interaction with them and what they can know about them. A person who wants to protect themselves from suffering trauma again needs to draw proper boundaries with that person. Here are five good boundaries to draw with people who have caused trauma: Time Boundaries Limit the amount of time you spend with a person. If you see that person regularly, limiting the time you spend talking with that person is essential. A person who has subjected you to trauma and is not repentant may quickly come back to that topic and cause you pain and harm by denying the behavior even existed. This can re-trigger the pain you are trying to get past. Furthermore, a person who has subjected you to trauma wants to know more about you. By spending more time with you, they can learn more details about your life. Draw a reasonable time boundary and limit their time with you or your loved ones. Plano Christian Counseling can help you set healthy boundaries and find healing from past trauma. Space Boundaries Similarly, limit or restrict their ability to get close to you. A person who is close to you in proximity can try to hug you or, even worse, abuse you. To protect yourself, you need to draw a space [...]

We all experience feelings of anxiety occasionally; from low levels of stress to sometimes even crushing anxiety. These feelings can vary in intensity and duration and what triggers them will also differ from person to person. For some people, being called upon in class or during a work meeting is terrifying, while for others meeting new people or being in crowds can make them anxious. Therefore, anxiety can ebb and flow depending on circumstances. However, for some individuals, anxiety never lets up. Plano Christian Counseling is here to help, offering compassionate, faith-based support to guide you toward peace and healing. There are times when a person’s anxiety is so bad that it impedes their day-to-day functioning, diminishing their sense of well-being. When anxiety is like this, you should consider visiting a health professional, who can help you understand the reasons for your anxiety and find skills to help you to better manage it. PTSD is one form of anxiety that can affect one’s relationships significantly and lessen your quality of life. The good news is that a trained therapist assist you in lessening the severity of these symptoms. PTSD and Its Causes Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a serious mental health condition that’s caused when a person witnesses or is involved in an extremely stressful or terrifying event that involves actual or threatened death. Sometimes, even when a person learns about such an event and is not directly involved, it could lead to PTSD, which is considered secondary trauma. PTSD can result from events like serious injury, sexual violence, war, physical assault, childhood abuse, traffic accidents, or being threatened with a weapon. It is not altogether clear why some people experience traumatic events and get PTSD, while others do not. At the root of PTSD, there may be a [...]