Kate Motaung

Upon asking if it is possible for kids to control their emotions, it is equally important to ask whether it is reasonable to expect it. As a therapist who has worked with children five years old and older, I will answer yes to both questions. Yes, it is possible for kids to control their emotions. And yes, it is reasonable to expect a child five years old to be able to control their emotions. However, defining what that control

Is overeating a struggle for you? Many of us face this struggle daily in our abundant culture, where food is tempting and readily available. However, the Bible can help you have better health by reminding you to curb your overeating habits. When you use specific verses of God’s Word to prepare yourself, you can fight back with confidence when you are tempted to overeat. Jesus used Scripture to fight temptation at a time when he was very hungry (Matt.

Have you ever wondered, “What is OCD and do I have it?” Perhaps thoughts like these sound familiar: “Did I turn the stove off before I left for work?” “I need to make sure the locks are secure one last time or something bad will happen to my family.” “My hands feel dirty even after five times washing.” “If I don’t follow through with [this compulsion], I may be responsible for a loved one’s death.” Do these or similar

Some relationships look fine on the surface, but something essential is missing on the inside. The conversations happen, and plans are made, but life keeps moving, and the emotional connection that should anchor it feels out of reach. It could be a partner, a parent, or an emotionally unavailable sibling, leaving a person questioning their worth, their perception, and their faith. The desire to be truly known and to matter to someone is not something to be considered prideful. It

Trauma doesn’t stay contained to one person. PTSD and relationships are often intertwined because of the effects of post-traumatic stress. This ripples out and touches the people closest to you. Partners, friends, and family members often navigate the unfamiliar territory of emotional distance and protective walls within these relationships. The person they love has built barriers that feel impossible to cross because of trauma. This isn’t about understanding what PTSD is. The challenge involves recognizing how the trauma will reshape

No one plans on getting divorced when they say, “I do.” But life happens. Previous family-of-origin cultural norms and communication styles can tend to stand at the forefront of unresolved issues. Circumstances change, and people can grow apart, with unresolved resentment and unforgiveness. When people begin to only exist in their marriage, interactions and healthy communication will become difficult, and sometimes divorce may become unavoidable. While divorce can be a trauma for the adults going through it, it can

We cannot take emotions lightly, yet they are hard to define. How do you explain to someone what love feels like? Or grief? Or sadness? Feelings can overtake us and even cause physical ailments. Have you ever been so worried about something that it made you sick to your stomach or gave you an excruciating headache? Some people seek solace and comfort in food. It can start innocently enough: Choosing to celebrate accomplishments with dinners out or soothing a

In the years since the COVID-19 pandemic, substance abuse among adolescents has been at lower levels than before the pandemic. It’s not entirely certain what has contributed to this, but the National Institute on Drug Abuse has indicated that the reported use of alcohol, nicotine vaping, and cannabis in the twelve months before the survey found levels of use have “generally declined from or held steady” compared with previous years. This is undoubtedly good news, with the survey indicating,

OCD is often used as an adjective to describe someone who is excessively neat or particular about the cleanliness of their home. However, the truth is that the things that people refer to when they describe someone as OCD are just the tip of the iceberg. Coping with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is far more complex than many realize. Not many people know that there are six types of OCD, each with its unique behaviors and beliefs. It’s important to clear

You’ve probably experienced it. Maybe you were on the receiving end. A friend stops by, and before you can even get past the niceties, they dump a month’s worth of their tears and fears at your feet. Or maybe it was you. Something built up inside of you all day, all week, maybe all month, and the moment someone asked, “How are you?” it all spilled out of your mouth in one unfiltered, jarringly authentic rush. That’s what has

Sometimes we experience a specific kind of tiredness that sleep doesn’t fix. We try to lie down at the end of the day in hopes of waking up the next morning feeling refreshed. But we’re disappointed when we wake up feeling just as depleted as we were when we closed our eyes. Mental exhaustion and chronic fatigue are more complicated than we think. Chronic fatigue or mental exhaustion is not just a temporary condition, and a good night’s rest

There are many reasons you might seek long-distance relationship tips. Perhaps you’re dating someone you met online, and they live in another city or state. Your spouse may have taken a job in another state, but you’re still working to sell the house where you’ve been living for the last 10 years. It could be that a friend of yours is dating someone she met overseas while studying, and she’s asking you for advice. Or you might be a military