Unshackle Yourself
Dana R. Cason, Ph.D.
“And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.”
Unshackle yourself from limiting beliefs and create the life you really want.
What you think of as personality flaws might just be adaptive strategies gone awry. We all pick up fears and blocks as we navigate our imperfect world. They start in childhood when we adapt to conditions and emotional patterns of our families and wider cultures. Sometimes there is outright trauma in our early lives. More often there is a sense of not being quite enough of something indefinable that would make everyone happier or prouder or less stressed. As children, we blame ourselves for things that are far beyond our control. Our attributions provide us with a sense of stability, predictability and the hope that we can make things better if we become better. They become filters for the way we see ourselves and the world. Once established, the core beliefs go underground and guide us in unconscious ways.
Psychotherapy can help you let go of protective patterns that no longer serve you. If you expect danger or rejection or criticism, you tense up. Your physiology cannot help but respond to expectations of something bad. There are predictable and unfortunate cascades of physical, emotional, behavioral, relational and spiritual ramifications. The good/bad news about this entire situation is that your suffering is not necessary. Though your worldview was adaptive once upon a time, it no longer reflects the reality of your current life. Through exploring your life and your desires with a skilled psychotherapist, you free yourself from limiting beliefs and unhelpful patterns. You heal yourself and truly enjoy the present moment. You continuously grow toward more wisdom, more unconditional love and more fun. Experiences that once felt like frustration or failure become opportunities to fine tune a life that’s even more aligned with what you want.
My name is Dana Cason and I am a licensed clinical psychologist with more than 30 years of experience. I have helped clients heal around issues like:
A desire to live more joyfully and authentically,
A sense of being at home in one’s own body,
A persistent, nagging feeling of not being good enough or smart enough or brave enough,
Imposter syndrome,
Anxiety and unease from chronically low self-esteem and a poor sense of self efficacy,
Self sabotage regarding attempts to reach personal and professional goals,
Insecurity related to uncertainty about self worth and unidentified life goals,
Unhelpful relationship patterns resulting from childhood emotional abuse or neglect,
PTSD from childhood or adulthood experiences with physical, sexual, military or medical traumas,
Dissociation resulting in a lack of self awareness or self consciousness,
Confusion about how to understand feelings and incorporate them into decisions,
Anger and irritability exacerbated by chronic insomnia,
Behavioral addictions to eating, binge watching, gaming, shopping, drinking, viewing pornography, smoking, drinking alcohol, using recreational drugs, codependency and sex,
Frustration related to caregiving (for children and parents), friendship or romantic relationships,
Depression related to loss, grief, and loneliness,
Body image difficulties related to weight or physical appearance,
Adoption adjustment challenges for parents and adoptees,
Hopelessness and helplessness related to chronic pain and the management of medical syndromes, and
Identity disruption following a transition in a life stage (e.g., retirement, disability, or the successful maturation of formerly dependent children).