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Peggy Handler
psychotherapy

Let Difficulty Transform You

1/28/2019

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Let difficulty transform you.
And it will.
In my experience we just need help
in learning not to run away.
- Pema Chodron
 No one likes it when life feels scary or hard or when a situation arises that seems insurmountable. Many of us end up in flight, fight or freeze mode when we are overwhelmed or anxious. Our brain's natural survival instinct is to get away fast! As children we may have been in  precarious, inescapable  family situations where we learned to run away emotionally or mentally to survive.
This survival tactic served us as small, dependent beings. But as adults, running away usually compounds the difficulty in multiple ways.  If we can find ways to face them head-on, these experiences CAN be transformative. If we can hold on to our mind and not lose it to paralyzing fear or flight, we can find a deeper,  stronger place within ourselves that we never knew existed, a place that is paradoxically indestructible in the face of something that may feel annihilating. 
But how, you may ask.... having the courage to take a deep breath ( or many) and be with the feelings that arise from the difficulty. Breathing into and fully experiencing them, separating them the anxious thoughts that perpetuate these feelings. Meditating, drawing, journaling, singing, dancing, spending time with trusted others and in nature, listening to your dreams and the messages they may send you. Knowing you don't have to go through this alone, that there are others who can and will support you in a variety of ways. 
Contact me if you would like assistance in transforming difficulties 
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    Peggy Handler, MFT, is a psychotherapist in San Francisco's Noe Valley

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Copyright © 2018 Peggy Handler | San Francisco
  • Home
  • Psychotherapy
    • Therapy Modalities
  • Therapy Specializations
    • Mid-and-Later Life
    • Conscious Aging
    • Work-Life Balance
  • Consultation
  • About Peggy
  • Contact
  • Psychotherapy Blog