VistaBlog

By Emi Gilbert, LCSW

“Habituation” is the phenomenon where we become desensitized to the same repeated stimuli. Right now, take a moment to notice the feeling of your clothes on your body. For the majority of us, we were not attuned to this sensation until we deliberately drew our attention to it. We experience the stimulus of our clothes on our skin all day long, so it becomes undetectable. For any stimulus that the body experiences consistently, our brains deem it unnecessary (and overwhelming) to respond. It’s a nifty trick our brains often do to keep us from being constantly overstimulated. However, this is also what makes staying mindfully present so challenging. If we wake up in the same bed, make the same coffee, take the same route to work, sit in the same office, and go home to the same living space, we become more “habituated” to our own lives. The stimuli we are so used to do not warrant our attention. They fade into the background. 

We can break this “habituation” by drawing our attention to our surroundings with mindful intention. Can you pick up the coffee mug you use everyday and find every little thing you have never noticed about it before? Can you feel your chair underneath your legs? Can you even feel your own breath? These are invaluable mindfulness exercises. And yet, in my experience, the more familiar my surroundings, the more challenging it is to remind myself to practice. 

The most natural moments to engage in mindfulness are when I am having a new experience and therefore receiving new stimuli. We may feel this most starkly when we make grand changes – moving to a new house, starting a new job, or traveling to a new city. We are more acutely aware of how everything feels anew. However, substantial changes are not required to evoke this sense of “newness” and vivacity. We have the opportunity to foster this sense in our everyday lives. If I’m walking down a street I’ve never seen, listening to a song I’ve never heard, or rearranging my bedroom in a new way, I am instantly more awakened to the present.

A personal challenge I have set out for myself this summer is to find opportunities to experience something new. It can be anything from a new route on my walk, a new menu item I have never tried, or a new place to read. This is a practice that does not require any particular landmark to begin, so give yourself permission to participate on any random day and tune into your new experience. The more variety of experiences we have, the wider life gets. The more mindfulness we practice, the deeper our present experience gets.

By: Collin King, LPC and Mindy Laroco, LPC

For many Oregonians, SUMMER (in all caps!) is what we’ve been waiting for.

“This is what I invested in during mid-February!” we might feel. “I’ve got to soak it up!”

But in the glory of all that Vitamin D, it can be easy to over-extend socially, or to feel pressure to make the most of every beautiful day. 

Here are some check-in questions you can explore to help you craft a summer that leaves you both fulfilled and refreshed before the leaves start to turn:

What are your top one or two non-negotiable summer activities that genuinely bring you joy?

How do you typically feel after social gatherings during the summer? If you feel more drained, you may be somewhat introverted, or perhaps the setting isn’t your preference. How can you honor your social battery?

Beyond planned activities, what small, everyday moments of summer bring you peace or a sense of presence? How can you intentionally incorporate more of these moments into your week?

What does genuine rest look like for you in the summer?

Imagining yourself at the start of fall, what would make you feel that you’ve had a truly fulfilling and refreshing season?

“Checking in” doesn’t always mean thinking. Here are some creative ways you might learn to check in with yourself, both for these specific questions and more generally:

Rate your day: How many stars would you give your day out of 5? 

At the end of each day, take some time to reflect on the day and give it a rating. Then, think about what that means to you (everyone’s rating system will look different!). For example, if today was a “3 star day”, what does that mean? What makes it higher than a “2 star day”, but not quite a “4 star day”? 

Don’t be afraid to get creative! 

There are various ways to cater this “rating system” to what you like! If not stars, use grades! (or whatever you would like!) Was your day an A+? B? C-? Why’s that? Make this system work for you so that checking in with yourself becomes a habit. 

Having a “rating system” can be so helpful to continue to check in with yourself. It can be done at the end of the day, at the beginning of the day, or both! This is also a great way to start setting intentions for you day. If today started out at 5 stars, what could you do to keep that momentum? Conversely, if your day started out at 2 stars, what could be done to up that rating? 

Take an inventory of your emotions

Keeping track of how you’re feeling is also an excellent way to check in with yourself. Start at the beginning of your day and write at least 3 feelings words that describe your current state. Then, at the end of the day, do the same thing and compare how your feelings have either changed or not changed from the morning time. (bonus points if you do this mid day as well!) 

This is a great practice to not only keep track of how we are feeling, but to continue to practice being in tune with ourselves and our emotions. If the feelings you logged at the beginning of the day have changed, at what point do you think they changed? Why? If they stayed the same, what do you think helped you maintain that state? The cool thing about these exercises is that after a while. You’ll have a log that you can look back on! You’ll be able to see how you were feeling at certain times, what contributed to those feelings, and understand yourself in different ways. Happy Checking In!

By Christy Maeder, LCSW and Nooshi Ghasedi, MA

The mental health world is so full of abbreviations that it can sometimes feel like learning a new language. Whether you’re navigating therapy, reading about treatment options, or filling out forms, acronyms like EMDR, PTSD, and LPC pop up everywhere. We know this can be confusing, so we created a quick reference to help break it all down. This guide is here to make the language of mental health more understandable and less intimidating—because everyone deserves to feel informed and empowered when it comes to their care.

1. Diagnostic & Clinical Terms

• DSM – Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
• ICD – International Classification of Diseases
• MDD – Major Depressive Disorder
• GAD – Generalized Anxiety Disorder
• PTSD – Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
• OCD – Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
• ADHD – Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
• BPD – Borderline Personality Disorder
• ASD – Autism Spectrum Disorder
• PDD – Persistent Depressive Disorder
• SUD – Substance Use Disorder
• ED – Eating Disorder
• BP – Bipolar Disorder

2. Therapeutic Approaches

• CBT – Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
• DBT – Dialectical Behavior Therapy
• ACT – Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
• EMDR – Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing
• IFS – Internal Family Systems
• TF-CBT – Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
• MBCT – Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy
• MI – Motivational Interviewing
• PE – Prolonged Exposure (for PTSD)

3. Assessment Tools

• PHQ-9 – Patient Health Questionnaire-9
• GAD-7 – Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item scale
• ACES – Adverse Childhood Experiences Scale
• MMPI – Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory
• BAI – Beck Anxiety Inventory
• BDI-II – Beck Depression Inventory II
• SCID – Structured Clinical Interview for DSM
• PCL-5 – Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Measurement for DSM-5

4. Children’s Mental Health Acronyms

• IEP – Individualized Education Program
• 504 Plan – Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (accommodations in school)
• FBA – Functional Behavioral Assessment
• BIP – Behavior Intervention Plan
• IDEA – Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
• SEL – Social and Emotional Learning
• LRE – Least Restrictive Environment
• RTI – Response to Intervention
• PBIS – Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports
• FTF – Face-to-Face (sessions, often used for children)
• PCIT – Parent-Child Interaction Therapy
• PMT – Parent Management Training
• DYAD – Dyadic therapy (child and caregiver)
• PANS/PANDAS – Pediatric Acute-onset Neuropsychiatric Syndrome / Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated with Streptococcal Infections
• DD – Developmental Delay
• SPD – Sensory Processing Disorder

5. Licensure & Professional Terms

• LCSW – Licensed Clinical Social Worker
• LMFT – Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist
• LPC/LPCC – Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor
• PsyD – Doctor of Psychology
• MSW – Master of Social Work

6. Systems & Legal Terms

• EHR – Electronic Health Record
• HIPAA – Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act
• CPS – Child Protective Services
• DCFS – Department of Children and Family Services
• GAL – Guardian ad Litem
• IEP – Individualized Education Program
• FERPA – Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act

7. Crisis & Suicide Prevention

• QPR – Question, Persuade, Refer
• C-SSRS – Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale
• NSSI – Non-Suicidal Self-Injury 

8. LGBTQIA+ and Cultural Terms

• LGBTQIA+ – Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer or Questioning, Intersex, Asexual (and others)
• BIPOC – Black, Indigenous, and People of Color
• DEI – Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

SOGIE – Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Expression