The Push-Pull of Closeness: Navigating the Claustro-Agoraphobic Dilemma

You know that feeling when you want someone close—but the moment they actually get close, something inside you recoils.

Or maybe you feel safer on your own—until the space around you gets so quiet it starts […]

The Push-Pull of Closeness: Navigating the Claustro-Agoraphobic Dilemma2025-04-22T06:13:50+00:00

When Longing and Protection Collide: The Push-Pull of Wanting Love

Sometimes when we need love the most, we push people away.

This isn’t because we don’t want connection—it’s often because a protective part of us learned long ago that reaching out for love leads to rejection. That […]

When Longing and Protection Collide: The Push-Pull of Wanting Love2025-04-16T05:18:43+00:00

Starting Over with a New Therapist 

By Mirel Goldstein

(This is a fictional story and is not based on work with any client.)

Leah comes to me after her previous therapist retires.

She has taken a break from therapy for […]

Starting Over with a New Therapist 2025-04-08T14:59:55+00:00

The need to be seen by others for who we are

Have you ever felt unseen or misread by the people around you?

All of us rely on feedback from others to form a sense of who we are. But when […]

The need to be seen by others for who we are2025-04-07T02:36:03+00:00

Attacking Others when Feeling Attacked

Defense mechanisms are ways we protect ourselves from psychic or emotional pain, often unconscious.

Some defense mechanisms are healthier than others, and some are more destructive to relationships than others are.

Attacking Others when Feeling Attacked2025-03-31T22:34:17+00:00

Blame as a Defense Against Grief: Learning to Sit with Reality

Many of us struggle with accepting the limits of reality—the disappointments, frustrations, and sadness that come with being human. It’s one thing to acknowledge these limits as painful, but it’s another to experience them with a sense of grievance, blaming others […]

Blame as a Defense Against Grief: Learning to Sit with Reality2025-02-17T02:37:20+00:00

How Overcontrol Can Keep You Stuck, Lonely, and Exhausted

Many people think of self-control as a good thing—something that helps us stay responsible, disciplined, and successful in life. And in many ways, it is. The ability to regulate emotions, plan carefully, and maintain high standards can be powerful strengths. […]

How Overcontrol Can Keep You Stuck, Lonely, and Exhausted2025-02-10T02:51:26+00:00

The duality between giving and receiving

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the dynamics of giving vs receiving, as well tensions between the need to express ourselves outwards vs. needing to retreat inwards. Sometimes we long to put ourselves out there and other times we yearn to take things in or sit with what’s inside.

The duality between giving and receiving2024-12-18T00:09:32+00:00
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