stress

How can your commitment to health affect your commitment to the one you love?

Summertime is meant for lounging by the beach, enjoying the sun, and trying to avoid showing the entire world your every physical insecurity. Come autumn, the temperature drops, the leaves change, and everyone’s best friend, the over-sized sweater, makes its triumphant return from the depths of the closet. Just because the temperature is dropping, that doesn’t mean that your waistline will too. With the colder temperatures come the hectic, sleepless schedule filled with holiday parties and filling holiday meals with their seemingly limitless supply of every artery clogging treat your struggling heart can handle.

While many resolve to make up for their holiday splurging with a promise to do better “next year”, it may not only be your body that’s paying the price for your poor physical health. While your gym membership and a full 8 hours of sleep may have been a top priority when you were unattached – a committed relationship, work, or even kids, can have a way of taking time from things that were once considered essential. The black coffee in your hand and soaring 3-digits on the scale don’t lie! As those numbers get higher, so do your chances of marital dissatisfaction. How can a commitment to get physical lead to better marital health?

Dr. Kristen Wynns is a child and adolescent psychologist who owns a specialty private practice in Cary, North Carolina called Wynns Family Psychology.  She earned her Ph.D. and Master’s in Clinical Psychology from UNC-Greensboro. Dr. Wynns has been frequently sought out as local expert on child psychology and parenting issues for radio shows, magazines like Carolina Parent, as well as TV shows like My Carolina Today and Daytime. Dr. Wynns has also founded the parenting website, No Wimpy Parenting, providing services for parents struggling with behavior and discipline problems. Married for 15 years with two young children of her own, Dr. Wynns likes to say she is “doubly qualified” to offer parenting and marriage advice.

To find out more about Dr. Kristen Wynns and her practice, Wynns Family Psychology, you can visit their website Wynns Family Psychology or call (919) 467-7777 for an appointment. For information regarding the services available to help parents struggling with behavior or discipline problems at home, you can visit Dr. Wynns other site, No Wimpy Parenting.

Conflict is a part of life; do you and your spouse know how to handle the stress?

Stress is all around us, all the time. Family responsibilities, hectic schedules, and a never-ending to-do list make it difficult for couples to slow down and take a breath. When stressful situations arise how do you keep your cool?

When we add stress on top of stress it compounds and festers until it’s dealt with. Couples often lose sight of themselves and focus on the various distractions and priorities that consume their lives. When we can’t take time out for ourselves and we can’t dedicate time to our relationship, our mental health suffers. Go ahead, put yourself and your relationship first and de-stress from the chaos in life with these five simple steps.

Founder of Cognitive Psychiatry of Chapel Hill, Dr. Jennie Byrne is a board-certified psychiatrist specializing in adult cognitive issues like dementia, attention deficit and anxiety disorders. Dr. Byrne works with individuals and couples to optimize mood and thinking patterns that promote self-improvement and goal achievement. Earning her doctorate in neurophysiology from NYU’s School of Medicine, Dr. Byrne completed her residency at the prestigious Mt. Sinai School of Medicine.

To find out more about Dr. Jennie Byrne and her practice,you can visit their website  Cognitive Psychiatry of Chapel Hill,  or call (919) 636-5240 for an appointment.

How can you make quality time for your relationship when you can’t even make time for yourself?

“I wish there were more hours in the day.” Every single one of us has uttered this phrase at least once in our lives. Between family, work and children competing for our attention and time, it’s easy to see how we often are unable to carve out time for ourselves, let alone our better half. All too often our relationships get pushed to the side while we focus on what’s directly in front of us. But how long can a relationship sit waiting in the sidelines before it runs out of gas completely?

When a night on the town or a movie date on the couch have become distant memories it’s time to take a hard look at your priorities as a couple and take back the quality time.

Dr. Gabriella Johr is a licensed clinical psychologist with Orenstein Solutions in Cary, NC. Over the last 10 years Gabriella has found herself working with people in various hospital, school and private practice settings. Specializing in child and family therapy, Gabriella has had a great deal of experience working with couples to manage their family and priorities while still finding time for their marriage.

To find out more about Dr. Gabriella Johr and Orenstein Solutions, you can visit them online at  or call 919-428-2766 for an appointment.