Too good to be true? An effective goal setting process you can sustain even when motivation is lagging. Learn how!

It’s hard to sustain effort over time. Sometimes it’s easier to get started than it is to keep going. This happens all the time with New Year’s Resolutions…if you belong to a gym you are well aware of the crowds that come in January and how quickly it goes back to normal in the next month or two. People often spend all their energy gearing up to get started and forget to plan for how to keep going.



In the first 2 posts in this series, we covered the difference between dreams and goals (and why they are both essential) and learned how to set SMART goals. Now that you have dreams and a plan in place for how to meet them, ensure your success by learning from the past and using organizational tools (and people!) to help you stay organized and accountable. An effective goal setting process incorporates opportunities to reassess and refocus when needed. read more

Writing SMART Goals Makes Achieving Your Dreams Possible.

Without setting goals, we may never achieve what it is we dream. Dreams are an endpoint and don’t include the steps to take to get there. The goals we decide to work on take thought and planning to increase the chances for success. This is where SMART goal setting comes in. Writing SMART goals will increase your ability to translate thought into action and help you make the goals effective and realistic. Setting SMART goals is an effective way to start achieving your dreams.

Remember that dreams are the destination, not the journey. Goals are the process we take to get there.

Download your free SMART goals worksheet to follow along with this post. read more

Achieve Your Dreams! A Series on the Importance of Setting Goals

Goals are part of every aspect of life and achieving them comes down to priorities and proper planning. Without setting goals and objectives, life becomes a series of chaotic events that feel out of your control. This series will walk you through the why, what, how, and when of creating goals so that you have a better chance to meet them and achieve your dreams. Although both important, goals and dreams are not the same thing. The importance of setting goals becomes obvious when we think of how many dreams we have had that we have never acted on. Don’t let your dreams stay wishes! read more

Need help quitting Juul? Learn more about treating Juul addiction.

The quit-smoking techniques available for traditional cigarettes also work for people treating Juul addiction. A Juul e-cig is unique, but not so special that it needs separate therapies to treat Juul addiction. Nicotine addiction is the same, regardless of the delivery mechanism. Quitting Juul is hard but not impossible.



Read the first post in this series to learn all about Juul e-cig and what makes it different from other e-cigarettes. read more

What is Juul? Hint: Teens love it! Find out what you need to know about Juul.

In this last year, people have started to reach out to me for help quitting Juul. I’ve been asked “Do you know how to treat Juul addiction?” as if it is some fancy and obscure entity rather than simply one of many electronic nicotine delivery systems. Even if people don’t quite understand what is Juul they know they are having a terrible time trying to stop using it. Juul’s ability to cause nicotine addiction isn’t special….or is it? Let’s talk about what you need to know about Juul. read more

There is a drug called Lean in school. Have you heard of it?

Truth be told, I read my daughters texts. I don’t feel great about it but 7th-graders aren’t “oversharers” (with their parents) and I want to have an idea of what is going on. Her texts were my source of learning about the drug called Lean. It wasn’t at a conference or in one of my 4,000 medical magazines that seem to come daily; it was embedded in a text to a friend about what their respective schools were like. She mentioned there were lots of kids who use Juul and some who use the Lean drug. What? Huh? Am I the last to know this is a thing? What is the drug Lean??!! read more

Feeling stuck in life? Instructions from a psychiatrist on how to live the life you love

If we are feeling stuck in life, or even uninspired, we have the opportunity to be creative and infuse passion back into our journey. You can create your future one step at a time to live the life you love. Stop and take the time to reassess your dreams and life goals, make a plan to live life to its fullest, be intentional with your goals, and pick your priorities wisely.



Downloadable 10-Step Guide

I created a 10-step guide to help you take charge of your life and create the future you deserve. Use this guide to: read more

7 Alternatives to AA in Recovery from Addiction

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) has helped countless people in their recovery from addiction but one size does not fit all with healing. The messages of AA don’t resonate with everyone and it’s important to know alternatives to AA exist. Healing and recovery are lost on some that become distracted by what they interpret as religious aspects of AA. This post is about the other options for a self-help addiction recovery program.

The more alternatives to choose from, the greater the chance that people will find a program they identify with. Recovery will still be hard but may be easier to start when it’s the right fit. read more

We Can Help Prevent Prescription Medication Abuse and Drug Diversion

Prescription medications stolen from friends and family are a major source of abused medication and are often the initial way middle and high schoolers first get access. To find your prescriptions, all it usually takes is a quick trip into the bathroom by friends, family, or workers struggling with addiction. Don’t be the source for their prescription abuse and drug diversion! Follow these 2 easy ways to prevent medication diversion and cut down on prescription medication abuse.

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Want to Motivate Behavior Change in Others? Apply Motivational Interviewing Techniques to General Life

Motivation is the fuel needed for change. Without it, it is difficult to create the inertia to move past status quo. People often gravitate to what is known rather than the unknown and live in a state of being comfortably uncomfortable instead of making behavior change. Motivational interviewing techniques can be applied, not just between therapists and their clients, but as a general tool of communication to facilitate motivation for change.



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