Perspectives

SCG Staff Articles

Why Self-Care?
Elizabeth Hirata Elizabeth Hirata

Why Self-Care?

Self-care is something most women did not grow up learning about. We weren’t taught it or modeled it. No wonder most of the women who show up in my counseling office have not developed good self-care strategies. Most of them admit they feel selfish when they put their own needs or wants before those of their family, even in something like pursuing counseling.

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Depression in Women
Elizabeth Hirata Elizabeth Hirata

Depression in Women

Many women struggle with depression, and oftentimes it goes unnoticed and untreated. Check out this article from NIHM about depression in women. If this resonates with you and you want to talk to someone, reach out to us for counseling.

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Honoring, Celebrating, and Caring for Women
Elizabeth Hirata Elizabeth Hirata

Honoring, Celebrating, and Caring for Women

In honor of Women’s History Month, several of our staff clinicians will be sharing their perspectives on women and mental health throughout the month of March. Women have been essential to the development of counseling as it exists today.

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The Weight of Looking Back
Elizabeth Hirata Elizabeth Hirata

The Weight of Looking Back

Many of us can name where we were when significant historical events happened or when your personal life changed dramatically. This type of episodic memory is important and for many captures key turning points in our personal and communal lives.

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Are You Living with a Partner Suffering with PTSD after Sexual Abuse?
Elizabeth Hirata Elizabeth Hirata

Are You Living with a Partner Suffering with PTSD after Sexual Abuse?

Living with a person who has been sexually abused is hard! The abuse survivor often struggles with triggers he or she doesn't understand, making him or her overly reactive and difficult to live with. While your partner needs help from a professional, the truth is both partners need support.

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Living with Complex PTSD after Sexual Abuse
Elizabeth Hirata Elizabeth Hirata

Living with Complex PTSD after Sexual Abuse

Living with PTSD and C-PTSD is hard! If this describes you, a trauma professional can help you learn to cope and heal from the abuse you have suffered. If this describes someone you know, support them with patience and teach them they can trust you. Your patience and support helps them heal.

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Surviving Covid-19
Elizabeth Hirata Elizabeth Hirata

Surviving Covid-19

Like the simple protective steps to physical health, steps in protecting our mental health are not rocket science but ordinary.  Below are some suggestions you might try if you are emotionally struggling like so many others at this difficult time.

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World Mental Health Day
Elizabeth Hirata Elizabeth Hirata

World Mental Health Day

On Saturday, October 10th we invite you to join Sanctuary Counseling Group in observance of World Mental Health Day.

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Then Sings my Soul
Elizabeth Hirata Elizabeth Hirata

Then Sings my Soul

Music is one of the most versatile and accessible ways to engage in a person’s story. We all have songs that capture our current feelings, our most treasured memories, and the daring hope for our future. Our likes and dislikes of genre, style, and lyrics are almost as unique as our fingerprints. Music is often referred to as a universal language that can unite people across contexts.

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So What is Domestic Violence?
Elizabeth Hirata Elizabeth Hirata

So What is Domestic Violence?

For the sufferer, domestic abuse is hard to detect because of the abuser’s capability to calibrate him or  herself to the needs, fears, and wishes of the victim. Then, the abusive partner's interactions are manipulative, sudden, and coercive.

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Is Peace Possible During a Pandemic?
Elizabeth Hirata Elizabeth Hirata

Is Peace Possible During a Pandemic?

And when those lonely, hopeless times come, and you feel weighed down by the darkness of this world on your shoulders, I encourage you to remember the promise of our faithful God who said "Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.”

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Liminal Spaces
Elizabeth Hirata Elizabeth Hirata

Liminal Spaces

In entering liminal space you leave behind your former ideals and conventions, the status quo, the ordinary routines, inherited mindsets. You also leave behind your safety zone; you exit your place of security. You step out into a space where you will see things differently, where your world view might be shattered, where your existing priorities might be turned upside down.

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A Statement from SCG regarding Recent Events in America
Elizabeth Hirata Elizabeth Hirata

A Statement from SCG regarding Recent Events in America

At Sanctuary Counseling Group we are called to minister to everyone in all walks of life. As mental health therapists we take great care in refraining from imposing our own personal values within our practice; and yet, we also have a responsibility to advocate for change when witnessing the oppression of others.

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Finding Peace Episode 1
video Elizabeth Hirata video Elizabeth Hirata

Finding Peace Episode 1

Davidson United Methodist Church’s Reverend Jim Humphries speaks with SCG’s own Shannon White in the inaugural video in their Finding Peace series.

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