By Natalie Ryder Redcross, Ph.D., MFT-I
June 5, 2024: The beginning of summer, when for many the pace of life shifts into a slower or at least altered mode, can be a good time to pause and consider where we’ve been, where we are now, and where we would like to be. It can also be a time to cultivate gratitude--for the people and circumstances that make our lives rich and challenging and filled with hope, even joy.
Gratitude That Flows Freely: Sometimes, once we stop to take stock, an appreciation of the many positive aspects of our lives fills us with gratitude. We might be grateful for a teacher or colleague who helped us reach a new goal, a spouse or child who gave us joy and new insight. We might acknowledge a challenging situation that seemed to bring nothing but trouble and ended by taking us to new and welcome places of achievement or awareness. Feeling gratitude can be humbling and uplifting both at once.
Gratitude that Reframes a Situation: Other times, we find ourselves in difficult situations. Taking a moment to identify positive elements within it, and being grateful for them, can help us reframe a situation that filled us with despair into one that offers glimmers of hope. By identifying and giving weight to the good aspects of our circumstances, we are sometimes able to perceive that the bad aspects don’t necessarily need to weigh so heavily upon us. Gratitude can show a way forward.
Gratitude that Lightens a Load: Even if the sources of gratitude aren’t strong or specific enough to reframe the situation, sometimes gratitude can lighten the load we carry so that we’re able to travel further down the path to a better place. A boss is making our daily work life miserable, but we’re grateful that the job pays the bills and offers a chance to pay for a son’s further education. A medical diagnosis has left us reeling, but the support of family and friends offers assurance that we can manage the tough road ahead.
Gratitude Expressed Through Action: In busy lives, gratitude is often felt, and less often expressed. And yet, it is sometimes the thing we most crave from one another—to feel valued. v erbal expressions of “thank you,” and “I appreciate that,” can be the easiest and simplest ways to express a sense of value to loved ones and strangers. Deeply meaningful, true gratitude, however, often takes the form of intentional action.
When we want an important person—a friend, colleague, child, parent, relative, partner, spouse, neighbor or the like—to deeply feel and know our gratitude, these acts are examples of ways to reach beyond words:
-When you say, “No thanks, I can do it alone,” we show up and help anyway.
-We commit to do a chore we know you dislike—without requests or reminders!
-We practice patience in moments of irritation or discord.
-We come through—we’re reliable and dependable.
-We watch, listen and are observant.
-We learn to anticipate what you’d like, want, or need.
-We truly hear you by putting down the phone or turning off the music/TV; we show that you have our full attention.
Gratitude can be our not-so-secret power as we navigate through life. All it requires is taking time to identify and acknowledge it, and then deciding what to do with it: record it in a journal, pick up the phone, or just savor the feeling.
The Counseling Center in Bronxville, a nonprofit organization, offers therapy for individuals, couples, and families, through video platforms, telephonically, and in person. Please feel free to reach out if we can help, by calling Dr. Jennifer Klein, 914 793 3388.
To keep abreast of ongoing information and activities at The Counseling Center, or to make a donation, please visit our website at https://counselingcenter.org/.
Sunrise Senior Living
500 North Columbus Avenue
Mount Vernon, New York 10552
914-667-5660
www.sunriseseniorliving.com
The Osborn
101 Theall Road
Rye, New York 10580
914-921-2200
The Bereavement Center of Westchester
670 White Plains Road
Scarsdale, New York 10707
(914) 787-6158
The Maxwell Institute
The Maxwell Institute of St. Vincent's Westchester offers outpatient chemical dependency treatment and education services for adults, adolescents and their families. Treatment includes individual and group psychotherapy, couples counseling, and psychiatric evaluation and medication management when indicated. The Institute welcomes individuals and family members who are experiencing marital and/or work-related distress as a result of alcoholism and other forms of chemical dependency.
The Maxwell Institute also offers community education services through its programs in drug and alcohol prevention in the schools. For persons wishing to become credentialed alcoholism and substance abuse counselors (CASACS) in New York State, the "Maxtrain" program provides the 350 classroom education hours that are an important part of the credentialing requirements.
The Maxwell Institute is grateful for the support of The Community Fund of Bronxville-Eastchester-Tuckahoe.
92 Yonkers Ave
Tuckahoe, NY 10707
(914) 337-6033
Counseling Center
Founded in 1971, the mission of the Counseling Center “is to provide a wide range of psychotherapeutic and counseling services to individuals, couples and families by a staff of highly trained, experience and dedicated psychotherapists.
Director: Virgil Roberson
The Counseling Center
180 Pondfield Road Bronxville,
New York 10708
914-793-3388
Dr. Henry A. Blom
10 Studio Arcade
Bronxville, New York 10708
914-337-1157
Bronxville Dental Care
Jenny A. Kanganis, D.D.S.
Guy N. Minoli, D.D.S.
Since 1994, Dr. Kanganis and Dr. Minoli of Bronxville Dental Care have been leaders in the dental community, providing exceptional dentistry to generations of Bronxville families. They have a long history of excellence and have earned a reputation built on trust, compassion, and dedication. Drs. Kanganis and Minoli believe in a conservative, holistic, and minimally invasive approach to dentistry. Bronxville Dental Care welcomes patients of all ages and offers a comprehensive range of services, including cosmetic and restorative dentistry, implants, and pediatric dentistry. Dr. Kanganis especially loves treating children. As a mother herself of two recent Bronxville High School grads, she understands the importance of helping children to feel comfortable during their visits, while earning their trust and teaching them to become active participants in their oral health.
20 Studio Arcade
Bronxville, New York 10708
(914) 337-6536
www.bronxvilledentalcare.com
Dr. Anthony Fiore
44 Pondfield Road
Bronxville, New York 10708
914-337-3863
Dr. Quentin M. Murphy
77 Pondfield Road
Bronxville, New York 10708
914-337-1004
Scarsdale Pediatric Dental
777 Post Rd.
Scarsdale, NY 10583-5000
Phone: 914. 472. 9090
http://www.scarsdalepediatricdental.com/
Dr. Michael J. Vitale
1 Pondfield Road
Bronxville, New York 10708
914-337-8430
Dr. Lesa Kelly
77 Quaker Ridge Road
New Rochelle, New York
914-637-2663
Dr. Neil Goldberg
77 Pondfield Road Ste 2
Bronxville, New York 10708
Dr. Mark Fox
ENT and Allergy Associates
1 Elm Street
Tuckahoe, New York 10707
Lawrence Home Care of Westchester
670 White Plains Road
Scarsdale, NY 10707
(914) 787-6158
www.lawrencehomecare.org
Jansen Hospice and Pallative Care
670 White Plains Road
Scarsdale, New York 10583
(914) 787-6158
NewYork-Presbyterian Lawrence Hospital
In July 2014, Lawrence Hospital and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital established a new relationship aimed at enhancing care, improving access and lowering health care costs for residents of Bronxville and surrounding communities in Westchester County. Lawrence was renamed NewYork-Presbyterian Lawrence Hospital.
Lawrence Hospital Center was founded in 1909 and is a 291-bed acute care facility with over 1100 employees and 400 physicians. It provides emergency care to approximately 35,000 individuals every year. It became a designated New York State Stroke Center in 2006. Its physicians provide expertise in virtually every area of medical specialty and include over 100 primary care physicians. And, Lawrence delivers about 2000 babies every year in the home-like setting of newly designed Labor and Delivery recovery rooms.
Outpatient services include diagnostic testing and laboratory services, ambulatory surgery options, and rehabilitation and sports medicine services. The Hospital has a Women`s Imaging Center where female patients receive diagnostic services in a private setting. Outpatient physical therapy, lymphedema therapy, speech and occupational therapy services are provided both on-site at the Hospital and at Lawrence`s satellite center, The Center for Rehabilitation and Sports Medicine, in Scarsdale.
The Hospital is accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. The Hospital is fully licensed by the New York State Department of Health. Lawrence`s laboratory is accredited by the College of American Pathologists.
55 Palmer Avenue
914-787-1000 (main number)
Dr. Anne Galloway
77 Pondfield Road
Bronxville, New York 10708
914-337-4986
Dr. Kerrianne Page
14 Studio Arcade
914-779-9066
Dr. Raymond Chow
700 White Plains Road
Scarsdale, New York
Dr. Polly Kanganis
4 Studio Arcade, Bronxville, NY 10708
Bronxville, New York 10708
914-771-9441
Dr. Thomas J. Rubeo Jr. MD
Bronxville Women's Care, Pllc
One Pondfield Road, Suite 302
Bronxville, NY 10708
Dr. Patricia Halloran
55 Park Avenue
Bronxville, New York 10708
914-337-1239
Dr. Joseph Ciccio
1 Pondfield Road
Bronxville, New York 10708
Dr. Peter Rizzo
77 Pondfield Road
914-337-1118
Dr. Michael Elia
1 Stone Place
Bronxville, New York 10708
Westchester Health Pediatrics (formerly Children’s Medical Practice of Bronxville)
1 Elm Street
Tuckahoe, New York 10707
914-337-7474
Scarsdale Pediatric Associates
2 Overhill Road Suite 220
Scarsdale, New York 10580
914-725-0800
Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine
495 Central Avenue
Scarsdale, New York