Did you know… there’s lots of different types of counseling? Turns out, it's not a one-size-fits-all; there’s actually quite a few! Our counselors here at Real Life Counseling are trained to provide a wide range of services, meeting your needs across life’s many stages. Mental Health Counseling Individuals across the lifespan and from all walks of life receive tailored, compassionate support from counselors, trained to help you build resilience and psychological flexibility.

Real Life Counseling's own Jake Tracy recently joined the NY Executive podcast to introduce himself, share more about our Petoskey private practice, and explore what the counseling process actually looks like! Check it out to learn about what clients can expect from counseling, how it can help, and ways in which counselors are human beings too! Listen to the episode here: https://ny-executive-podcast-info.simplecast.com/episodes/1366-jake-tracy-05-18-26-licensed-professional-

It can be challenging to find up-to-date and neurodiversity-affirming education on autism; it can be even harder to decide if it’s worth it to pursue an autism assessment, which can be expensive or otherwise difficult to access! Those who are exploring the possibility of seeking out an autism diagnosis for themself or on behalf of a loved one deserve clarity and to feel self-empowered. Thankfully, an autistic-led research-informed online resource has been developed to address

Chronic illnesses, such as diabetes, arthritis, and cardiovascular diseases, can significantly affect individuals’ mental health, leading to increased levels of anxiety, depression, and general emotional distress. Understanding this relationship between physical and mental health is vital for both patients and healthcare providers. Research has consistently shown that chronic illness can adversely affect mental health. Individuals with chronic illnesses often experience ampli

Ashlyn Garber, August 14 2024 Mental health is not something to take lightly. Your mental and emotional health is arguably even more important than physical health and hygiene. If you don’t take care of your mind, it’ll be even harder to take care of your body and adapt to other things going on in your life. It can sometimes seem easier to disregard your mental health with statements like “It’s all in my head”, “It’s not as real as a physical illness”, or “Other people have i

Ashlyn Garber, July 31 2024 If a tree falls in the forest with no one around to hear it, does it still make a sound? This age-old question has a deeper meaning than just fallen trees. It’s also a question of value: do the things you do matter, even if they seemingly don’t directly affect anyone nearby? The answer, of course, is yes. When you consider yourself as the tree. What comes to mind? Maybe it’s a young sapling just starting to sprout branches and leaves, or perhaps a

Kaitlin Ryan, September 7, 2023 If you have found your way to this article, you may be asking yourself this very question every day. You may also experience confusion as you wrestle with the answer. This can make it worse because you just don’t know where to start to fix it. After all, people wake up each day and make a variety of decisions that directly and indirectly impact their lives. Most of those decisions are made in effort to maintain or try to better their lives. So

Kaitlin Ryan, July 10 2023 Let me address the question many people wonder when they are in counseling… Is my therapist judging me? It is natural to ponder what is going on in the mind of your therapist when you reveal an affair or discuss substance use. Maybe you thought you saw their mouth briefly twist into a frown or they furrow their brow disapprovingly as they jotted down a note. Now, you are feeling judged or like you should hold back in sessions. If you haven’t even ma

Kaitlin Ryan, June 27 2023 So how do you know if you need counseling? If you are struggling to decide if now is the time to reach out for help, here are a few things to consider. Do you feel stuck, like no one could possibly understand what you are feeling? Yes, you may need counseling. Are you struggling with negative thoughts and feelings that you have no idea how to manage? Talking with a professional could be beneficial to work through those thoughts. Do you feel like you

Kaitlin Ryan, June 12 2023 Let’s state the obvious, a bartender doesn’t mind if you never get better. It is easy to find wisdom in over the counter advice after a few cocktails, but it’s not usually what will fix the core problem of your complaint. Like the cocktails, it is often just a band aid. There is a common misconception that bartenders, hairdressers, and the like can almost be therapeutic. Talking does have a cathartic effect, and it can be easy to share with a famili

What is counseling? People often mistake THERAPY for casual talking, but counseling is anything but an easy chat over coffee. Sitting and talking to a stranger that digs into your personal life can feel like an awkward interview. You might be asking yourself, Should I tell them everything? What are they thinking about me? Do I even like this person? All these thoughts are very normal responses to meeting with a counselor for the first time. Counseling is a space for you. It i

Libby King, February 25 2021 Have you ever taken the time to assess your hunger? Real Life Counseling created a scale just for you! The more positive of a relationship we have with food and ourselves the more higher quality of life we will live. “As soon as you trust yourself, you will know how to live” - Goethe To talk more about intuitive eating and/or learning to trust yourself schedule an appointment with one of our today!

Libby King, February 8 2021 We’ve all heard of them, but what does "attachment styles" really mean? Attachment styles are characterized by different ways of interacting and behaving in relationships. For instance, in children it is a direct observation of how a child and parent interact. In adulthood it is an interaction among romantic partners. So what do each of these styles even mean!? Real Life Counseling is here to tell you. 1. Secure Attachment: Confident, Reciprocal, N

Libby King, January 28 2021 Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) can include things like physical and emotional abuse, neglect, caregiver mental illness, and household violence prior to your 18th birthday. The more ACEs a child experiences, the more likely they are to suffer on both an emotional and physical level. The excessive activation of our stress response system can lead to long lasting wear-and-tear on the body and the brain. Here at Real Life Counseling we instill ho

Libby King, January 26 2021 We can’t control a lot of things in life, but one thing we can control is our usage and exposure to social media. Social media is a double-edged sword because it was designed to connect and keep up with busy modern day lives. That initial intention has changed drastically to the point where our brains have been retrained to think “if it didn’t happen online, it didn’t happen in real life”. We have become so accustomed to building an online social p

So you have a high IQ, so you’ve got “street smarts”. Maybe you even pride yourself on your artistic, musical or even spiritual intelligence, but how emotionally intelligent are you? How do you respond to anxiety? How does your son or daughter respond? What can you do if you’re not proud of how you react under stress? The first step in change, the first step in growth, the first step in grace is awareness. Check out the three audio recording interviews with Pastor Chip

August 20, 2018 Reasons teens and families seek counseling. Only healthy people seek counseling. Unhealthy people just suffer through it.

February 1, 2018 To all my snowbird friends, to the adventurers, the fearless friends excited for the day they leave the safety of the nest: take heart, take hope! To Jerry and Sue, Mark, Jim and Julie, my parents, Don, Dixon and Julie, Scott and to all the other adventurers out there, take heart, take hope! From my warm house and big bed I commend you, I admire you. I want to be more like you. Not fearless, but courageous despite the fear. Stepping out into the unknown,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNuE-f4AKxE&t=49s Check out the video HERE Learning is HARD! There is no simple short-cut away around it. It can become easier with a great teacher, but nevertheless, the actual connecting of those circuits in your brain is tough work. Muscle memory, memorizing new information, learning a new skill, or even just upgrading an old one. It’s all tough. As an aside before getting into it, I’m going to try get through this whole video without s

Recently I was able to spend the holiday with my favorite 3 year old, and well, one of my favorite people ever, my nephew Jonathan. Wife, generous gift giver: helicopter ball toy complete with lights and a laser; it flies around the room and if/when it inevitably bumps into something it automatically shuts off. Off/On. Off/on. Jonathan would scream in delight as I reset this toy to continue playing. Great, but for every 6 minutes of playing time, we needed to plug it back in