top of page

Andrea Anderson Polk’s Blog
Clinically Practiced, Biblically Informed
Most Recent Blog Post


What I Learned From a Robin About Calming Anxiety
We don’t always need a breakthrough to find peace. Sometimes, all it takes is a quiet moment outside. In this reflection, I share a...
May 54 min read
23 views


What I Learned From a Robin About Calming Anxiety
We don’t always need a breakthrough to find peace. Sometimes, all it takes is a quiet moment outside. In this reflection, I share a...
May 54 min read
23 views


Do You Need More Alone Time? 10 Signs You Do
From a Therapist Who Gets It I have to be alone often. I need a lot of personal space. I say no—a lot. And I’m socially selective— not...
Apr 1710 min read
121 views


Who or What is Your Source of Success?
The greatest indicator that I have given my power away to someone or something outside of myself is reaching a point where I have no joy...
Mar 86 min read
36 views


I Discovered My Secret to Success + You Can Too
I recently watched the Netflix documentary, “Martha,” and found it inspiring and validating because of the life lessons I’ve learned over...
Feb 115 min read
47 views


Boutique Intimate Retreats + When God Moves Suddenly
I’m thrilled to announce I am now offering Boutique Intimate Retreats for women! Specifically, for you and your close friends. I’ll come...
Jan 710 min read
57 views


Wearing Men's Boxers + My Worry Brain
I wear men’s boxers as pjs. When I got married, I confiscated Dan’s boxers. I’ve never been the cute matching pajama set kinda girl....
Oct 26, 20248 min read
104 views


My Rage Meltdown + My Beet Juice Breakdown
Helpful tools from a therapist on dealing with rage. Mom rage. Marriage rage. God rage. Career rage. PMS Rage.
Oct 5, 202412 min read
72 views


My Experience + Therapy Thoughts on Sleep Anxiety
Helpful tools from a therapist on overcoming sleep anxiety.
Aug 11, 20245 min read
24 views


A Day Date With My Husband + Balancing Priorities
Everything for me these days is about energy. What things drain me and what things excite me...
Jul 10, 202411 min read
90 views


What I Learned About Feeling Embarrassed
Take some time to think about who you are and what you really want for yourself without feeling embarrassed.
Jun 15, 20246 min read
88 views


When Jesus Had a Firm Boundary + So Can You
Sometimes when I’m feeling overwhelmed with the demands of the day or I need a word of encouragement, I pull out my Bible and randomly...
Jun 15, 20245 min read
52 views


My Hidden Season
Helping you embrace seasons of quiet, rest, and reflection when you're an ambitious woman who wants to write and create.
May 5, 20247 min read
112 views


25 Helpful Boundaries for the Holidays + All Year Round
Are you dealing with the stress of navigating difficult friends and family members this holiday season? You are not alone. All year round...
Dec 9, 20238 min read
95 views


The Need-To-Know-Syndrome
Do you need to know, right NOW? I call this the Need-To-Know-Syndrome. When a solution to a problem is not obvious or knowing the answer...
Sep 10, 20232 min read
44 views


Do You Have an Egyptian Mindset?
God answered your prayer: You got that promotion, new opportunity, new home, new business endeavor, new baby, or new relationship… But...
Aug 14, 20232 min read
58 views


How Anger Helped Julie Overcome Anxiety
This is the final post in the series on anger. Read the first three posts here: When Anger is a Gift, Ways You Avoid Anger and Why, How...
Jul 23, 20236 min read
112 views


How to Deal with Anger and Set Boundaries
Learn practical ways to from an experienced therapist on how set boundaries and stick with it! Including how to practice self-care.
Jul 9, 202315 min read
222 views


Ways You Avoid Anger and Why
Did you know anger is a gift and serves to protect you? In the last post, we looked at Kate’s story and how avoiding anger can cause you...
Jun 13, 202315 min read
160 views


When Anger is a Gift
Did you know that anger is a gift and serves to protect you? Kate has been consumed by her work as the CEO of an organization she is very...
May 16, 20238 min read
190 views


5 Things I'm Loving Right Now
For those of you who have been with me for a while know that my blog posts are about the integration of mental health and faith where I...
May 1, 202310 min read
174 views


My Gratitude Journal Changed My Life
When I first started my gratitude journal, I felt silly because what made me grateful seemed insignificant, frivolous, and maybe even weird.
Apr 11, 20239 min read
199 views


Overcoming Your Fantasy Friend
When you feel hurt, lonely, rejected, abandoned, ashamed, anxious, jealous, inadequate, or like an imposter, your Fantasy Friend makes you
Mar 27, 20237 min read
104 views


Rachel and Her Fantasy Friend
We all have a Fantasy Friend we turn to that keeps us feeling safe, needed, loved, special, and important. Your "Fantasy Friend" can look...
Mar 13, 20235 min read
89 views


Who's Your Fantasy Friend?
We’ve all been hurt and we’ve all experienced painful situations and relationships such as heartbreak, the loss of a dream or a loved...
Feb 21, 20237 min read
113 views


Sadness to Joy: The Paradox of Grief, Part 2
In the previous blog post, I shared my story of loss. As a young girl, when my home life became unstable, I sought refuge at my...
Feb 6, 20236 min read
107 views


My Story: The Paradox of Grief, Part 1
We all experience loss. Loss of a loved one. Loss of a career. Loss of a dream. Loss of a relationship. Loss of ourselves. Grief is a...
Jan 30, 20237 min read
133 views


Struggling With the Winter Blues or Feeling Down and Dreary?
The holiday season has come to a close and the Christmas decorations are put away. The house seems bare which has a somberness that...
Jan 16, 20237 min read
88 views


Do You Have a Toxic Relationship with Yourself? 10 Ways We Self-Sabotage
In a previous post, I created 10 questions designed to help you identify if you are in a toxic relationship. The toxic relationship in...
Jan 3, 20236 min read
118 views


Christine's Story of Setting Boundaries with a Difficult Family Member
So far in this series on toxic relationships, I created 10 questions designed to help you identify if you are in a toxic relationship in...
Dec 4, 20226 min read
90 views


5 Steps to Dealing with Toxic Relationships
So far in this series on toxic relationships, I created 10 questions designed to help you identify if you are in a toxic relationship. I...
Nov 20, 20228 min read
82 views


7 Warning Signs of Your Partner’s Toxic Behavior in Therapy
In the previous post, I identified 13 warning signs of toxic therapy designed to help you know when a therapist is displaying harmful...
Nov 14, 20223 min read
98 views


What is the Purpose of Therapy and Do You Need It?
The previous post, identified 13 warning signs of toxic therapy designed to help you know when a therapist is displaying harmful behavior...
Nov 7, 20225 min read
63 views


What Makes a Therapist a Good Therapist?
In the previous post, we identified 13 warning signs of toxic therapy designed to help you know when a therapist is displaying harmful...
Oct 10, 20224 min read
64 views


13 Warning Signs of Toxic Therapy
As a licensed therapist, with over fifteen years of clinical experience counseling people, it saddens my heart to state the reality that...
Oct 3, 20223 min read
170 views


Should I Stay or Leave the Relationship? Part two.
In the previous post, we began to address the question: Should I stay or leave the relationship? The answer is neither straightforward...
Sep 26, 20225 min read
80 views


Should I Stay or Leave the Relationship? Part one.
You might be wondering, Should I stay or leave the relationship? The answer is neither straightforward nor black and white. It is complex...
Sep 10, 20225 min read
137 views


TV Interview on 100 Huntley Street
In a recent interview on the tv show, 100 Huntley Street, Andrea has an inspiring, deep, and meaningful conversation with Cheryl Weber...
Sep 8, 20221 min read
23 views


Andrea Published in The Science of Personality Magazine
In a recent interview with Karen Asp and published by Centennial Media, "The Highest Bar: If striving for perfection is making you...
Sep 1, 20222 min read
73 views


My Migraine Miracle: The Defense of Projectizing, Part 5
Thus far in this series about projectizing , a deeper form of perfectionism, showing up in a tendency to anxiously fix ourselves, we...
Aug 29, 20227 min read
194 views


Do you want to be fixed or be free? The Defense of Projectizing, Part 4
Thus far in this series about projectizing, a deeper form of perfectionism, showing up in a tendency to anxiously fix ourselves, we...
Aug 10, 20225 min read
83 views


Are You a Chronic Overthinker? The Defense of Projectizing, Part 3
Thus far in this series about projectizing, a deeper form of perfectionism, showing up in a tendency to anxiously fix ourselves, we...
Aug 4, 20224 min read
153 views


Andrea's Interview on 700 Club Interactive
Break Away from Self-Sabotaging Patterns and Mindsets In a recent interview on the tv show, the 700 Club Interactive, Andrea has a...
Jul 28, 20221 min read
21 views


The 700 Club Interviews Andrea
A Mission to Free People from Toxic Relationships In a recent interview on the tv show, The 700 Club," Andrea has a compelling...
Jul 20, 20222 min read
36 views


A Single Woman’s Story of Shame: The Defense of Projectizing, Part 2
Last week we discussed a common defense mechanism, projectizing, a deeper form of perfectionism, by making ourselves a project to be...
Jul 9, 20226 min read
120 views


Andrea's TV Interview on The Perspective
In a recent interview on the tv show, The Perspective with Mike Sherbino and Julie Stautland, Andrea discusses her new book, The Cuckoo...
Jul 5, 20221 min read
33 views


Are You Trying to Fix Yourself? The Defense of Projectizing, Part 1
Fix Me! Fix Me! Many of my clients seek counseling after having been in therapy for years and suffering without any significant symptom...
Jul 5, 20225 min read
172 views


USA Today Interviews Andrea on Successful Travel Coping Strategies
Everyone knows that although summer vacations are fun, they are not always restful and relaxing. Sometimes we return home needing a...
Jul 1, 20221 min read
15 views
bottom of page