Do I Have OCD? What OCD Really Is — and the Myths That Keep People From Getting Help
"I'm so OCD about my desk." We have all heard it, and many of us have said it — usually meaning we like things tidy or organized. It is such a common figure of speech that it has quietly buried the truth about what obsessive-compulsive disorder actually is. And that buried truth causes real harm, because it leaves the people genuinely suffering from OCD unrecognized, misdiagnosed, and often ashamed to
Postpartum Depression, Anxiety, and the Scary Thoughts No One Warns You About: A Montana Guide for New Parents
You were told this would be the happiest time of your life. The nursery is ready, the baby is here, everyone is congratulating you — and yet something feels wrong. Maybe it is a sadness you cannot explain or shake. Maybe it is a wall of anxiety that will not let you rest even when the baby is finally sleeping. Or maybe it is something more frightening: sudden, unwanted, horrible
Can Marijuana Cause Panic Attacks? What Montana Should Know About Weed and Anxiety
Since Montana legalized recreational cannabis, marijuana has become a normal part of life for a lot of people across the state — for relaxation, for sleep, for winding down after a hard day. And for many, that is exactly what it does. But there is a quieter story that does not get told nearly as often: for a significant number of people, weed does the opposite of relax them. It
Surviving an Affair: A Montana Therapist’s Guide to Healing After Infidelity
Few things shake a person the way infidelity does. The discovery of an affair can feel like the ground giving way — the story of your marriage suddenly rewritten, your sense of reality thrown into question, your trust in the person closest to you shattered in an instant. If you are living through this right now, whether you were betrayed or you were the one who strayed, you are probably
Why Do I Feel Anxious for No Reason? Understanding Anxiety That Comes Out of Nowhere
It can happen in the middle of an ordinary afternoon, or in the quiet just before sleep. Suddenly your chest is tight, your heart is quick, your mind is bracing for something bad — and when you scan your life for the reason, you come up empty. Nothing happened. Nothing is wrong. And yet here is this wave of dread, seemingly out of nowhere. If that sounds familiar, you have
Why Don’t Men Go to Therapy? A Montana Look at Men’s Mental Health
June is Men's Mental Health Awareness Month — a good moment to talk honestly about something Montana men have been carrying in silence for a very long time. Here is the picture most of us already recognize. A man is struggling. Maybe he is more irritable than usual, drinking a little more, sleeping a little worse, pulling away from the people who love him. Maybe he has been carrying something