I started this blog over a year ago during the pandemic. It’s funny to see how much has changed in just a year. My values are still the same and I truly wish to reach the individuals out there struggling with the monsters inside their head. To this day, I still fully believe in practicing gratitude (or for those of you who are more science driven, “positive neuroplasticity”) Our brains are like a muscle and everything we do in repitition can eventually become our default mode. Like leaving the house and not remembering if you closed the garage door, your body and brain take over before your mind is cognizant of what you are doing. As I tell the patients I work with, you have to start out small and work your way up. As Susan David explained in her book “Emotional Agility” (2016) Change is a process not an event and we need to align our values with what we want in life. It’s important to understand what we value and learn how to cultivate our own intrinsic motivation. So before therapy even begins I think it’s important for anyone to identify 2 things: what do you value and what is your expectation in your healing process?
Here I go…
Published by Ashden Smith
My purpose dawned on me when I had left an abusive relationship after five years. I began writing about everything I had gone through and my struggles to rebuild my life. Once I started working in mental health, I realized how my story and the research I had conducted impacted and helped, not only the patients I was working with, but also my coworkers and friends. I hope the information and research I share will continue to pay it forward and help many more individuals living with the monsters inside their heads. View more posts
The Monsters Within 