Hello to FPA as we welcome the month of June! You might not be aware that June is designated as Men's Health Month , which is why I want to share some thoughts with you specifically about men's mental health. You'll notice as I write that I make some generalizations about both male culture and female culture, and I want to note up top that of course these things are not true for all individuals and that my language choice of men/man is not exclusionary to other masculine gender identities.

Hello FPA! Today I want to share some thoughts with you about how we can untangle our identities from our medical and mental health illnesses.

Hello friends of FPA!December is in full swing. The holiday season is upon us. With the holidays often comes an increase in stress. We manage the expectations of ourselves and our loved ones around traditions, gatherings, gifting, and events.This is your gentle reminder to be honest with yourself and others about what matters to you during the holiday season.Less can be more.Doing less can lead to having more- more bandwidth, more quality time, more patience, more presence, more gratitude, more joy.Less pressure can mean more ease with your loved ones. Less gifting can mean more security for your family finances. Less hosting can mean more patience during times of togetherness.If you find that the holidays put you in a funk, get curious with yourself about why. You might be grieving the loss of an important person, celebrating without them for the first time. You might be stressed about finances and anxious about how you're going to afford everything expected of you. You might get irritable when you feel obligated to attend events and gatherings where you're socially uncomfortable. You might feel resentful or bitter about the time and effort you put into decorating or cooking or shopping without being acknowledged for your work.If the holiday season is bringing you down, look for creative ways to minimize that negative impact. Set some limits for yourself, ask your family to support you in taking good care of yourself. Delegate tasks to your partner or parent or child. Make sure you actually rest if you're afforded time away from work and other responsibilities.Order a meal or organize a potluck instead of cooking. Put up the decorations that mean the most to you, and leave the rest in storage. Draw names for family gifting instead of everyone buying for everyone.Do less if doing less brings you more. - Rae Holliday, LMFT