How to Read Your Emotions Part II: Put on Your Spec’s

Reading your emotions is all about perspective. Perspective is just a place from which you are looking at something – it’s a point of view from which you observe things as they happen. Your experience of an event can be dramatically different depending on how you view that experience. If you’re watching a movie but … Read more

How to Read Your Emotions Part I: Don’t Judge a Book by Its Cover

Sometimes when you first start having a feeling, your brain will very quickly make up its mind that the emotion is somehow dangerous or bad. Then it tries to escape from the emotion or control the emotion by turning your attention elsewhere and getting you to do something that makes the emotion go away. Because … Read more

Chinese Finger Traps: What a Novelty Item Can Teach Us about Acceptance

Let’s start with the obvious. In most cases, human beings want to minimize pain and discomfort. This is doubly true for emotional pain. While some people enjoy extreme temperatures, endurance sports, and pushing their body to its limits, it’s very rare that anyone enjoys anxiety, panic, or depression. Unfortunately, the inner experiences we want to … Read more

ACT and body image difficulties: Maybe not liking your body isn’t the problem

“Why doesn’t anyone tell us that it’s normal to feel bad about our bodies?” What?!?  It’s “normal” to feel badly about my body? No, that can’t be right. It’s “wrong” to have a negative body image! I need to think more positively about myself and my body! Right? Or maybe not… Why do so many … Read more

What Makes Us Unique

Portland Psychotherapy is a clinic, research & training center with a unique business model that funds scientific research. This results in a team of therapists who are exceptionally well-trained and knowledgeable about their areas of specialty.