Calm Down! Quick! 😊 More than just another pretty relaxation exercise

Stressed out, or anxiety high? Feeling overwhelmed? Yelling at yourself to calm the eff down isn’t going to help… Here’s a practical, neuroscience-based, step-by-step exercise to get you calmed down, quick. This is more than just another pretty relaxation exercise. You’re going to be hacking and reverse-engineering the “alarm system” in your brain and body. If you want to learn …

How to file for insurance reimbursement for therapy

Filing for reimbursement for psychotherapy is actually very simple! You can do it online, or by mail. Here’s how. Most of the more skilled and experienced psychotherapists in the Washington, DC area are “out of network” providers, meaning you’ll pay your therapist directly, and then submit a claim for reimbursement from your insurance company. Your therapist can help answer any questions you have, …

Finding Sliding Scale Psychotherapy in Washington DC

If you’re looking for psychotherapy with a flexible fee structure in DC, there are a number of resources in the area for finding psychotherapists who offer sliding scale fees, typically based on your financial circumstances. (I always maintain a number of “sliding scale” spots in my practice, for current, ongoing patients who encounter a temporary job loss or other financial …
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Brain-Friendly “Circuit Breakers” for Fear, Stress, and Anxiety

“Fear.” If I were perfectly concise and accurate, that would be the sum total of my response to the question, “What do you specialize in as a psychotherapist?” Because, when you get right down to it, that’s what we’re all dealing with, in one way or another. Fear, fear of fear, fear of conflict, fear of being alone, fear of …
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When You Can’t Sleep at 3 in the F***ing Morning

It’s 3am and you can’t sleep. 3am and you can’t sleep? Ugh. This post is for you. This post isn’t about WHY you wake up and can’t get back to sleep at 3 in the morning, or HOW to stop waking up at 3 am every morning. (That stuff will be in the upcoming additional posts in this series.) This …

Mindfulness Meditation and the False Lure of ‘Zoning Out’

Why meditation does not make you a self-involved, zoned-out bliss-ninny. Here’s the polite version of a question I received recently about my support of mindfulness meditation as a practice for well-being in relationships: Why are you encouraging people to zone out? Sitting around pretending they’re above it all, and avoiding real feelings? Who wants to be in a relationship with a self-involved bliss-ninny? …
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Free Book Excerpt: ‘Rewire Your Brain for Love’

Better integrated brains make better relationships! Download a free excerpt from the bestselling book, “Rewire Your Brain for Love: Creating Vibrant Relationships Using the Science of Mindfulness” (Marsha Lucas, PhD – Psychologist / neuropsychologist in Washington, DC) So many thanks, to so many people, for making my book, Rewire Your Brain for Love: Creating Vibrant Relationships Using the Science of …
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Sleepless? Five Things to Know About Using Melatonin Correctly

“I can’t fall asleep, but melatonin doesn’t work for me.” Sleep eludes a lot of us, so I hear this fairly often. And almost as often, it’s because the poor tired person has been taking it wrong. Melatonin can be a very effective way to help your body sleep better – not just longer, or faster, but better, giving your …
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Go ahead, be selfish: VOLUNTEER

Doing good for others is good for you – and the fact that you’ll benefit from it personally doesn’t make it count any less. Here’s a compiled list of the benefits to YOU from volunteering to help others — it probably covers a lot of your own New Year’s “resolutions”. Over and over, research has clearly demonstrated these wide-ranging benefits. …
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Ruts and Holes Along the Way

Walking your path, living your life in an authentic, meaningful way, isn’t always as simple as putting one foot in front of the other. Sometimes you fall into ruts — or holes. I was reminded of this piece by Portia Nelson while sitting with a patient today – thought I’d share it here. Autobiography in Five Short Chapters Chapter One …