The thought of telling everyone that I did not successfully summit Ojos del Salado (Ojos), the tallest, active volcano in the world, scared me immensely. But, the more I thought about it, that is really what bothered me most, the judgement that would be passed at my failure. The more I thought, the more I realized, it didn’t actually bother me that I didn’t summit. I made the choice to turn back at 6,500 meters (21,325 feet), the highest I have ever climbed to because I was having to stop and catch my breath after every 5 to 10 steps I took. It was a good decision for me to turn back when I did because I had almost no energy to get back down even from that point. I had to stop continuously to rest. Even if I did make it to the summit at 6,893 meters (22,614 feet), I don’t know how I would have ever made it back down to base camp the same day at 5,255 m (17,240 ft).

Climbing that high on my own two feet was a success for me. I was also able to successfully summit my...

Have you ever said or thought any “I am” or “I am not” statements? Examples include:

• I am a procrastinator.
• I am fat, ugly, stupid, etc.
• I am too young, old, shy, scared, etc.
• I am not thin, pretty, smart, creative, outgoing, patient, etc.
• I am not a number, business, etc. person.
• I am not tech savvy.

Have you ever said or thought any “I can’t” statements? Examples include:

• I can’t do anything right.
• I can’t relax, sing, run, etc.

Have you ever said or thought any “I don’t” statements? Examples include:

• I don’t have time.
• I don’t know enough.
• I don’t know what I want.
• I don’t deserve happiness, love, etc.
• I don’t have enough experience, money, support, connections, etc.

Have you ever said or thought any “I must” statements? Examples include:

• I must not be good enough.
• I must do well on this exam.
• I must clean the house...

When you see a set of words strung together, like neuro-linguistic programming, it is no surprise why that mouthful of words is many times shortened to just, NLP. But, what on Earth is NLP?! It “describes the fundamental dynamics between mind (neuro) and language (linguistic) and how their interplay affects our body and behavior (programming)” (Dilts, 2016). Pretty cool, huh? The thought of having complete control over our mind and therefore how we think, feel and act is pretty flipping amazing! That’s just my opinion, of course.

But what makes me feel so strongly about NLP and the affect it can have on anyone’s life? As an anatomy and physiology professor, who also teaches neurobiology, I am simply awestruck by the amazing capabilities of our mind and body. Our mind is so beautiful and complex, yet very efficient. Our mind is bombarded by tons of information every second. It is able to sort, edit, delete and relay information based on what it thinks is best...

So you are struggling with some aspect of your life. You know you need help, but you’re not quite sure who the best person is to turn to for help. Let’s say you are someone who has experienced some kind of trauma in your past. It could have been sexual or physical abuse, watching someone die in front of you, or a whole host of other life events that can seemly break a person’s spirit. It would not be unusual to think that if you have a particularly painful past, that the person to help you would be a therapist. That might be exactly who you need if these traumatic events are constantly in the forefront of your mind.

A therapist can help you gain insight from your past; to focus on, to review, and analyze patterns from your past (Morrissey, 2016). They typically focus on unpacking your past in order to assess the emotions tied to those past experiences (Morrissey, 2016). This can free your emotions so you can gain more self-confidence, self-esteem, or help your make...

I live a spectacular life and I am grateful for every moment I have on this Earth. But it hasn’t always been this way. It’s hard for me to believe how often I used to contemplate suicide. It’s hard for me to believe that the real reason I never did was because I didn’t want my cats to go hungry and eat me. I have gone from a time of complete despair, to a time where I have never felt more alive. From a time when I felt I had nothing to live for, to knowing I had everything to lose.

I grew up in a very small town in Upstate New York, starved of culture and diversity. It is in this town that I first started to die inside and knew that there had to be more in this world than white, Christian people. I longed for experiencing more. When I caught a glimpse of what this vast world had to offer, vibrant cultures filled with people with generous hearts and stories that excited my soul, I wanted nothing more than to experience all that it had to offer.  I made it...