In recent years we have witnessed a great deal of interest by researchers and therapists in the factors that are common to most emotional disorders, which are referred to by professionals as the Transdiagnostic Factors, that is, factors that are common to various emotional problems. First of all, a short explanation: Why trans-diagnostic? David Barlow, the famous psychologist, suggests in his trans-diagnostic protocol developed in 2008 that instead of focusing, for example, only on depression, or only on anxiety, or on isolated symptoms that vary between different emotions, it is […]

During the school year our children get constantly evaluated and appraised in grades, successes, being (or not being) invited to parties; and at the end of the year, in a report card as well for all their assignments, homework essays and of course tests during that year. This is a good opportunity to give ourselves, as parents, a report card, a certificate in which we notice whether we are satisfied with our parenting style, whether it matches our parental expectations, and our children’s expectations of us; What do we wish […]

I’m watching my firstborn on his first day in first grade. A gleam in his eye, his cheeks are flushed… he is excited. Standing in the first row, waiting for his name to be called. I notice that he is afraid; he is seeking eye contact with me, my validation for his feelings, my presence. This is a special moment for him and me. Thoughts rush through my mind, my eyes well up with tears and strong emotions overwhelm me. I see my daughter; my little daughter; all grown up. […]

We live in a world in which success is everything. We all want to be as beautiful, as successful and as smart as we can. And even more so – we want our children to be successful. From an early age, we invest and nurture them – we send them to private tutors and after-school courses, enroll them in private schools – anything that may help them succeed and realize their potential. But doesn’t this kind of success, or realization of cognitive potential, make us miss something important?! Studies have […]

Everyone perceives themselves in a certain way: talented, lazy, smart, beautiful, egotistical, funny, etc. Our collection of traits affects our self-image. In addition, each one of us has their ‘ideal me’ – representing who we want to be. We all compare ourselves to our ideal me. A person with high self-esteem, will have a self-image that is very similar to their ideal self; a person with low self-esteem, will have a significant gap between the two. It is evident that both the self-esteem and the ideal self are subjective concepts, […]

When Sophia is sad, she closes in on herself; she is unable to communicate with the world around her; occasionally she cries, and it takes a long time for her to be willing to let go of her sadness, sometimes even a whole day. When Jacob gets angry, it happens in seconds, abruptly; following something someone said, or even a look he didn’t like, which he interprets as hostile; he suddenly turns red, and in a matter of seconds he is completely furious. People who know him say that Jacob […]

Emotional Regulation – Definition According to Professor James Gross, a leading authority on emotions, “Emotion Regulation refers to the processes by which individuals influence which emotions they have, when they have them, and how they experience and express these emotions” (Gross, 1998b p. 175). According to Eisenberg, emotional regulation involves the processes “of initiating, avoiding, inhibiting, maintaining, or modulating the occurrence, form, intensity, or duration of emotions and emotion-related physiological states” (as cited in Wegner, 2012). In this process, the emotional regulation directs attentional capabilities, motivation levels and other behavioral […]