blue water counseling--06-2018--twc website

2017 Financials l Coping Skills l High Anxiety

Connection
A Publication of Blue Water Counseling n Fort Gratiot n Rochester Hills

Downward Dog
Yoga, Massage and Healing Arts Enhance Mental Health Treatment

Downward Dog, anyone?
People choose to go through therapy for many reasons: they
might be suffering from anxiety or depression; they might be
having problems in a relationship; or they might experience
social isolation or awkwardness, among many other reasons.
Alternative forms of medicine have long been suggested as
potential enhancements to both physical and emotional self-
care.
Interested clients can now work with a therapist in a traditional
office setting and also as part of an alternative
healing group when yoga is offered at Blue
Water Counseling beginning in June.
The class will be taught by Kimberly Peltz,
a therapist at BWC who holds a degree as a
licensed master of social work (LMSW) and
who is also a credentialed yoga instructor.
“I began practicing yoga three years ago and
it started to have impacts in my personal life
and my professional life,” she said. “It really is
the practice of mind-body-soul.”
She immediately recognized the way yoga
could help her BWC clients.
“Yoga helps people restore balance and
integrates their mind and body,” she said. “The
practice applies effortlessly to therapy.”
Kimberly Peltz, Though clients who meet with her in the Yoga at Blue Water Clinic
LMSW
office experience a traditional therapy session – “Yoga for EmotionalWellness”
“what we do mostly is talk therapy” – she also uses meditation
and deep breathing exercises during client sessions to help calm Six week courses / Six participants per class
them. Instructor:Kimberly Peltz,LMSW/YR200
“It’s a choice many times they are open to,” she said. Call 810-985-5125 for session dates
She began offering clients the opportunity to meet with her
one-on-one for a separate yoga session if they were interested in Peltz also holds credentials in Reiki, another alternative
learning more about the mind-body-soul connection. medicine practice that helps people relax.
“You learn about the different chakras and that can help
with emotional health, too,” she said. “Doing different poses She encourages clients to partake in a variety of alternative
and using the body to heal is useful, as a lot of emotions can be healing arts, such as yoga, Reiki or massage.
stored inside the hips, for example, which is related to the fight
or flight response. “Any modalities that allow them to be settled can be good for
“Doing physical poses and stretches helps release some of them,” she said. “For some people, it could be joining a book
those chemicals from the body. The newer science studies, club instead of alternative modalities, but we want to make
particularly of trauma, find that the body stores emotions. sure they are taking care of themselves, their bodies, and their
When we do things like yoga or get a massage, we’re working emotions and find a way to settle their minds.”
on releasing emotions while you’re doing that. We can work
with the body and help let go of whatever it has stored inside.” This series begins June 20 and will be offered again in the
future, as will other yoga practices.

PFiinctaunrceial
Blue Water Counseling
2017 Financial Picture

Blue Water Counseling is a non-profit organization Self Worthy
established to provide therapeutic services of the Self Esteem Key to Self Love, Good Relations
highest standard to children and adults seeking to
change and improve the quality of their lives. What Endless arguments with the man in her life have left Renee
follows is the 2017 financial report: feeling unsure of herself and questioning whether or not she
might be to blame for all of their problems. After all, he tells
BlueWater Counseling her it is all her fault. Maybe it is?
Balance Sheet 2017 It is not. Renee is dating a narcissistic man and her self-esteem
is suffering as a result of trying to meet all of his expectations
Assets and failing, because he tells her so.
Tammy Hubble, a licensed professional
Current Assets ..................................................... $170,944 counselor and nationally certified counselor
Land Building & Equipment ............................. $133,351 (LPC-NCC) at Blue Water Counseling,
Total Assets .......................................................... $304,295 has recently seen a number of clients who
are experiencing similar issues in their
Liabilities & Net Assets relationships.
“I see a lot of toxic relationships,” she said.
Current Liabilities ............................................... $200,295 “It amounts to emotional abuse. The abuser
Long-Term Liabilities .................................................... $0 has ego and self esteem problems. They need
Total Liabilities .................................................... $200,295 to feed that ego because they don’t feel good
about themselves. So they bring down their
Net Assets partner.”
Hubble, who sees a lot of 20-something and
Unrestricted ......................................................... $104,000 young adult clients, said a lot of people -- both
Total Liabilities & Net Assets ......................... $304,295 men and women -- model what they learned
from their parents. Tammy Hubble,
Revenue LPC-NCC
“I hear about patterns of behavior and what
Program Service Fees ...................................... $2,047,592 they might have learned from their own parents, whether
Medicaid Champs Fees ........................................ $42,169
Miscellaneous .......................................................... $4,127
Total Other Revenue........................................ $2,093,888

Total Public Support & Revenue ................. $2,093,888

that is emotional, verbal or physical abuse.
“A lot of times when we’re used to abuse, a dysfunctional
relationship feels better than no relationship. I talk to clients
about the difference between being alone and loneliness.
I like to educate them and encourage them to read about
relationships, while trying to boost their self-esteem and
sense of self worth. And believe me, I know it is easier said
than done.”
Hubble also said learning healthy communication skills
is also essential for long-term relationship success. “Instead
of criticizing what someone hasn’t done, praise what they
have done,” she said. “We also work on communicating in
different ways. Keep the sarcasm out of there and then say,
‘Thank you!’ to your partner. It goes a long way.”

Coping Skills
Medications,TraditionalTherapy Help Relieve Issues

“Why can’t I shake this sadness?”

“I’m feeling blue all of the time and yet, there is no reason for me to be

unhappy.”

“My husband passed away last year and life has just moved on.

Everyone around me seems to be doing better, but I am still just so very

sad. I want to feel happy again and yet, I can’t sleep and I can’t shake

my sorrow.”

“My son is just so angry all of the time and we cannot figure out why.

He knows he doesn’t feel right, but cannot seem to snap out of those

feelings of anxiety, sadness and anger. Is there anything that can help

him?”
Traditional therapy sessions can help many people work
through a wide array of issues.
Situational issues that arise during the normal course of life,
such as divorce or the death of a loved one, often
cause great sadness, anxiety and depression.
Others suffer from depression and anxiety
throughout their lives; it
is built into their genetic “Once
code and affects their someone
moods and way of life.
Regardless of the cause, seeks help,
help is available through the turnaround
the use of psychotropic
Jill Thuston, medications and Blue in their life
MSN, Water Counseling is able can be

PMHNP-BC to provide that assistance so quick.”
to its clients through the services
of Jill Thuston, MSN, PMHNP-BC
(Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse
Practitioner – Board Certified).
Thuston meets regularly with BWC clients.
“I do psychiatric evaluations and medication reviews,” she said.
Clients she sees at BWC come from a wide variety of
backgrounds and are dealing with a wide range of issues. to more awareness or it is just being diagnosed accurately more
“We see a lot of kids with ADHD and kids with anger issues or often, I’m not sure.”
depression and anxiety,” she said. “I see adults with depression,
anxiety, mood disorders and anger. With adults, issues such as One issue that she has noted has been difficult on people,
divorce or a death in the family can have an impact that can be particularly children, is the rise of social media.
helped with medication.”
Thuston noted that medication is not a replacement for talk- “There’s a lot more social media and that is hard on kids,” she
therapy. said. “They are lacking personal interactions with people. They
“Depression can manifest itself in a lot of ways…you may not are looking for connections on social media and that isn’t always
be able to eat or sleep or concentrate at work. These meds hold the best place to find it. Plus, they never get a break from it. They
you in place while you go through therapy. no longer leave school and get away from bullying. It’s on their
“Medication is like the body of the car,” she said. “It holds you phone. It doesn’t seem like they are ever getting any relief.”
together but it doesn’t take you anywhere. You need the therapy
to move you forward. Thuston said the most important thing for people to know is
“Mental health issues are on the rise and whether that is due that there is help available.

“It makes me sad that people feel badly and have trouble
reaching out,” she said. “I wish there wasn’t such a stigma
surrounding mental health. Once someone seeks help, the
turnaround in their life can be so quick.”

High Anxiety
Children, Adults Do Not Have to Suffer fromAnxiety;Help isAvailable

Roxanne was not getting the sleep she needed. anxiety disorders. “With kids, we see they are having difficulty at
Constantly and chronically worried about what seemed like school and frequently the schools will suggest having them come
everything in her life, she tossed and turned and had trouble in and get evaluated.”
sleeping.
Friends no longer contacted her because she never felt up to Regardless of age, help is available.
socializing. In fact, on many days, she did not even feel like leaving “When worry and feelings of anxiousness really begin interfering
her home. with someone’s functioning in their everyday lives, we really
Roxanne was suffering from a classic case of anxiety. encourage people who suffer from anxiety symptoms to seek
treatment because it is treatable and they can have a better quality
Michele Trupiano, MA, LPC, a therapist with Blue of life.”
Water Counseling, said she treats a lot of clients for
anxiety disorders. It’s a very common reason for
people to come in for therapy.

“It’s pretty debilitating,” she said. “It impacts their
functioning. They can have non-stop worry and it
can interfere with their enjoyment of life.”

Anxiety, by definition, is a feeling of worry; it is not
a disorder that is just “in someone’s head.”

“There’s frequently a genetic component to it,”
said Trupiano. “And certainly some clients have
experienced trauma, as well.”

Clients diagnosed with generalized anxiety
disorder often have a genetic makeup that
Michele Trupiano, predisposes them to feelings of anxiety and worry.
MA, LPC The disorder manifests itself in many ways, such
as those described for Roxanne, but Trupiano said
clients also make note of issues such as stomach
problems, grinding teeth and difficulty concentrating.
Trupiano said the good news is that therapy can help.
“It’s called cognitive behavioral therapy and we work on their
behaviors to improve their outcomes and quality of life,” she said.
Techniques therapists use to work with clients include:
l Talk therapy
l Relaxation techniques
l Healthy lifestyle
l Deep breathing exercises
l Self talk
l Meditation yoga
Trupiano noted that both adults and children can suffer from

Blue Water Counseling’s mission is to provide the highest standard of service
for children and adults seeking to change and improve the quality of their lives.

Connection is published periodically by: Opinions expressed are those of
Blue Water Counseling Blue Water Counseling staff and
1501 Krafft Road independent researchers. Readers who
Fort Gratiot MI 48059 would like to address specific problems
Phone: 810.985.5125 should contact Blue Water Counseling
Toll Free: 800.292.1288 to schedule an appointment.

Editor 1B3lu4e9WS.aRtoecrhCeostuenrseRldin. g- Ste. 220 Writer & Designer
Linda Liethen Rochester Hills, MI 48307 Patti Samar
Executive Director Phone: 248.650.6130 The Write Company
Blue Water Counseling Toll Free: 800.292.1288 www.TheWriteCompany.net

www.BlueWaterClinic.com