Melissa Lund Therapy

08/26/2024

Happy National Dog Day to these two wild ones 🤣

05/25/2024

These two want to get in so bad!

05/18/2022

Haha 😂 I do feel married to this paper!! I might suggest a trial separation if it doesn’t get itself together soon 🤣

04/04/2022

Bill Gates, Albert Einstein, Michael Jordan, and Meryl Streep. What do these 4 people have in common? Aside from being iconic cultural figures, they are all identified introverts. Not all introverts are alike. Introversion is often mistaken for being shy or lacking social skills. In fact, according....

03/28/2022

Yes, those people whose eyes don’t glaze over the minute you say dissertation are true treasures…you know who you are 😊

03/25/2022

I just had a conversation about multitasking at lunch today. Everyone thinks they are good at multitasking…truth is no one truly is.

03/07/2022

We both lived to tell the tale that we survived America’s Most Haunted Hotel. However, I’m pretty sure Breckie, the 4-year-old boy who died from appendicitis at the hotel, and perhaps a friend, were trying to get my attention. In my pictures there is something on the floor…maybe footprints. On Michael’s photos…nothing!! Same time, same hallway. Curiouser and curiouser.

We both also survived axe throwing (another first for me), which honestly everyone was in danger as I was throwing! I did actually get a few on the target though 🤣

03/03/2022

I do not like to be scared. I see no purpose in repeatedly activating my sympathetic nervous system into fight, flight, freeze and increasing my heart rate without any benefit of exercise. I do not watch horror movies or visit haunted houses at Halloween for just this reason.

However, continuing in my attempts of stepping out of my comfort zone, I plan to spend the weekend in "America's Most Haunted Hotel" (https://www.americasmosthauntedhotel.com/) including a ghost tour. I'm good with the haunted mansion at Disneyland but this is a whole new kind of haunting.

This may be a time to practice what I preach and utilize those calming techniques. If those who know and love me do not hear from me by Monday, send HELP 😝

America’s Most Haunted Hotel is in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Officially known as the 1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa, its legend has been formed from the many “guests who check out but never leave”. Have you heard about the Baker Burial Site? Schedule your trip to see the bottles beginning June 1st....

12/01/2021

I was recently having a conversation about contentment and what it means to be content. It was argued that contentment was not having what you want but settling for what you have. I stated that I believed that being content meant being happy and okay with what you have and where you are in life. The conversation went round and round until we brought in the expert...Google. This is what came up:

Content: in a state of peaceful happiness.

I love this definition but how does one get to a state of peaceful happiness?

I think this has a lot to do with gratitude. I do not have nor have I gotten everything I have wanted. I am sure there will be more that I want that I will not be able to attain, but I am grateful.

I often encourage my clients to do a gratitude journal and each day list three things they are grateful for. This can be very challenging as at times things can feel so awful that it may seem there is nothing to be grateful for. But, where our thoughts go our feelings will follow, and if we can shift our thoughts from "life is so unfair, nothing ever goes my way, I never get what I want" to that of I am grateful for...our feelings and view of life can and will improve.

While we are in this season of thanksgiving I thought I would share just a little of what I am grateful for.

I am grateful for my loved ones. I have been blessed with many people, friends and family, who truly accept me for me with all my quirks, flaws, and idiosyncrasies. I am clumsy, lacking grace, and certainly not good at dancing, but I have those who will dance with me, whether it's in the kitchen to I Love Trash or in the parking lot to Perfect, without judgment (ok, there may be some laughter).

I am grateful for my grandchildren. I love how they always seem excited to see me even if I just saw them the day before. I love that they call me Gummy, and while I suspect that as they reach adolescence they may choose a more traditional grandma label, I am thankful that for now at least I am Gummy.

I am grateful for my clients, who tolerate my inarticulate moments and stick with me all the way to the end while I provide a far too long illustration of whatever I am trying to explain.

I am grateful for pain. Remember those things we want but cannot get...that can cause pain, whether it's a new job or a promotion, a child, a relationship, or as with one of my client's, a puppy. I do not like pain, but I am thankful for it as it is in the pain that we grow the most. We can look back on the pain and ask ourselves, "what did I learn about myself in this?"

I am grateful for the moments, being present in the here and now, for Christmas lights, great company, and a crazy dog (who truly is a menace but I love her🤣).

I am grateful for past, present, and future experiences and what I may learn from them, even if I do experience pain...as the song goes, "I'd rather hurt than feel nothing at all." A great supervisor once told me, "Melissa, being numb is not a healthy place to be." I'm still a work in progress.

11/21/2021

CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!

This new mindset of saying yes is certainly not always easy or comfortable. My most recent challenge was one of which I know nothing about and am very uncomfortable with...video and arcade games.

Recently, however, I was faced with an actual in-person, face-to-face, knock down, drag out challenge (okay, a little dramatic but you get the idea). I freaked out, panicked. But then I took a moment to reflect. And I realized I was always the person who stood next to the person playing the game..."no, it's okay...I'm good with watching." I realized my lack of self-confidence got in the way, held me back from trying new things, kept me on the sidelines so to speak. I want to practice what I preach and continue to push myself to step out of my comfort zone, therefore, challenge accepted!

I'm not going to lie, it was not pretty. I had a worthy opponent who clearly has had much more experience at Dave & Busters than I have.

Shooting hoops...me 4/opponent 30-something. Ring toss..who knows, but suffice it to say that I did not win. I remembered myself as being awesome at Skeeball...I am not! In the past I have crushed it at Connect-4...then I realized that I have played primarily against 6 to 10 year olds, and playing against an individual with a fully formed brain with adult executive function means I do NOT win so easily or at ALL!

Okay, those are my losses. My wins? My Ninja fruit skills are off the chart...I can slice anything that comes my way and miss most of the bombs. I also am surprisingly good with a rifle when the zombies are trying to attack (I have no idea where I picked up those skills). Last but not least, I can easily out feed anyone trying to satisfy the hunger of a very hungry hippo. But most importantly, I realized that while I am not good at most of these games and I certainly lost many more than I won, it was uncomfortable but it was alright. I survived...I did not die of embarrassment, humiliation, or any other fear that I may have had. It was just fun, uninhibited fun. So far, I kind of like saying yes more, even though it is uncomfortable. How can I possibly know the best life has for me if I don't allow myself to experience it?