A Starting Point

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"The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another. "
- William James



This quote seems appropriate for the start of our new blog, seeing as this quote inspires me personally, to be highly aware of my own thoughts.  James was definitely on to something. The ability to focus on, understand and modify one's thought processes is now a major practice in a number of counseling theories and techniques today.  To name a couple of the evidence based theories that we use regularly at Kelley Counseling - Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT).  Both therapies have a component of becoming aware of our thought patterns and learning to choose healthier, more positive thoughts, which in turn leads to less emotional distress.  Though James was not around to see CBT and DBT flourish and become increasingly important in the counseling world, it is evident that he was aware of the importance of examining our thought processes and how they influence our feelings.  

With all of that said, we will continue exploring these techniques much further in future posts, however, this quote seemed like a good place to start.  

Much can be taken from such a simple quote, so let's keep that in mind, maybe write it on a post-it or note card and tape it to your mirror, or any other place you will see it often.  

A simple reminder of how our thoughts influence and control our feelings can be powerful! 

-Lauren Dawood



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