Dr. Castro is a clinical psychologist and educator specializing in teens, women's issues, and young adults in transition. She is currently seeing clients at two convenient locations in Farmington Hills and Ann Arbor, Michigan. For more information on locations, rates, or how to make an appointment, contact drjillcastro@gmail.com.
Dr. Jill Castro
For the May issue of CoSozo Living, I contributed an article on learning to communicate with your body. Communicating with our bodies is so important, and if you’re not accustomed to doing so, this article provides some great tips for getting started.
CoSozo Living’s April publication features my article on emotional breast health. Check out the article to learn more about emotional breast health and how it can be improved! This article may be especially helpful for women going through a bodily transition, considering breast reduction or augmentation, or women preparing for breast cancer treatment.
For the March issue of CoSozo Living, I contributed an article exploring body dissociation. The article elaborates on the spectrum of dissociation, symptoms and signs, and tips on when to seek help.
Next month’s contribution will feature an article on emotional breast health!
Click the link to check out my contribution to the February 2013 edition of CoSozo Living, a wellness education and advocacy publication. Next month’s contribution will feature an article on body dissociation.
On February 7th, I will be presenting along with my colleagues, Diana Quinn (naturopathic doctor), and Abby Humphrey (acupuncturist) on how holistic medicine can help people with cancer. The presentation, taking place at the Cancer Support Community of Ann Arbor, is free of charge and open to the community. Topics include therapeutic nutrition, making informed decisions about supplements, stress management, body awareness, and acupuncture for the immune system. Details are below, along with the rest of CSC of Ann Arbor’s February event calendar:
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Title: Integrative Oncology: How Holistic Medicine can Support People with Cancer Date: February 7th Time: 6:00-7:30pm Location: Cancer Support Community of Ann Arbor, 2010 Hogback Rd, Suite 3, Ann Arbor, MI 48105
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http://cancersupportannarbor.org/images/pdf/jan-feb2013printable.pdf
Confession: I am one of those people who buys a gym membership in January, uses it for about a month, and then forgets about it. I’ll admit it, I’ve made the New Years resolution to “get healthier” for the past 10+ years, and every year- without fail- my resolution loses momentum at the end of the month. Last night, I attended a panel on meeting wellness goals in 2013. The panel, facilitated by my colleagues at Hygeia Center for Healing Arts, Deb Rhizal (wellness coach) and Diana Quinn (naturopathic doctor), addressed common reasons that most people have difficulty sticking with their yearly resolutions. These are a few of the take-aways:
1) Make sure your goal is specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely. In hearing this, it occurred to me that “getting healthy” is really too broad to be an attainable goal. A more specific, measurable, and attainable goal would be “To take a brisk walk 3 times per week for 15 minutes.”
2) Everybody (especially women) needs support in attaining their goals. Despite popular belief, we are not super-human. This one is especially salient for me, as I tend to be the type of person who has difficulty asking for support.
3) Stop ragging on yourself for not being perfect. Attaining goals is hard, and just because you aren’t on point with your goal all the time does not mean that you should give up on it.
As a psychologist, helping other people attain their goals is part of my job. In 2013, I am going to practice what I preach and be kinder and more compassionate to myself in regard to goal-setting. Working toward goals is not about succeeding or failing, it’s about trying. In the words of Oprah Winfrey, “I am a woman in process. I’m trying just like everybody else. I try to take every conflict, every experience, and learn from it. Life is never dull.”
