What a great way to kick off the year! Was a guest on Healthy Habits 4 Life with Dr. Carol Perlman! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/healthy-habits-4-life-with-dr-carol-perlman/id1560995497?i=1000548099355
Listen in as we talk about the importance of having a contingency plan and the five main stages of contingency planning. I’ve long believed that contingency plans take away the burden of dealing with an emergency that may arise at the very last minute.
The Advisory Perspective Series is an opportunity for you to meet professionals and learn about them. This week, I’d like you to meet Dr. Carol Perlman.
Dr. Carol Perlman is a Licensed Psychologist specializing in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. She is an attending psychologist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, MA. Dr. Perlman has maintained a private practice since 2005 and is owner of a health coaching business, Healthy4LifebyCarolPerlman (established in 2014).
She is a graduate of Emory University and received her doctorate from the University of Miami. Dr. Perlman has over 20 years of experience helping individuals and couples overcome difficulties and achieve their personal goals. She has published a dozen articles and presented over 20 papers at national conferences in the areas of bipolar disorder, depression, ADHD, PTSD, and childhood sexual abuse.
She is also a workshop presenter and trains professionals nationally on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. Dr. Perlman is the co-author of a series of Cognitive Behavioral treatment books for adults with ADHD, Mastering Your Adult ADHD – Therapist Guide and Client Workbook. Dr. Perlman utilizes her many years of experience as a Cognitive Behavioral Therapist to help clients improve their health, weight, and body image and make lifestyle changes to better manage medical problems such as diabetes and heart disease. She also teaches online courses on time management. Welcome Dr. Carol!
Question 1. What do you enjoy about working with your clients?
I simply love my work as a psychologist and health coach. Neither feels like a job to me; these roles represent who I am as a person. Even as a young kid, friends would come to me to discuss their troubles and I just knew how to listen sympathetically. Now of course I have professional training behind me that enables me to help my clients create change in their life. At the heart of it, however, is the fact that I truly care about the people in my life. If they are hurting, I want to help them make things better. So many people doubt their capability to change their circumstance, but from the outside I see so clearly that they can. I believe that it is my goal to showcase that vision for them and teach them how to make it a reality, step by step.
I love getting to know new people and putting the pieces of the puzzle together to understand why it is they are feeling or getting stuck. From there, I teach a variety of skills that will enable THEM to change their behaviors or change their mindset about their situation. I love to facilitate “AHA” moments and help my clients connect the dots in their unhelpful patterns. Even more wonderful is watching clients implement change in their life. I receive messages from clients all the time, telling me that they exercised that day because of me, or lost a significant amount of weight, or reduced their health risks by lowering a marker such as A1C, and that is just so gratifying to me. At the end of the day, I want to know that my life mattered and made a difference in this world, and my work enables me to do just this.
Question 2. How would you suggest a potential new client prepare for a 1st meeting?
The good news is they don’t have to do much! Just come to the meeting with an open mind and a willingness to proceed forward despite having some doubt. Usually when people first reach out to me they feel a mixture of optimism, despair and doubt. They are unhappy with their current situation and desperately want it to improve. YET. They have struggled for a long time and deep down they question whether they can really achieve their goals. They see others achieve goals, but feel on some level that they are different and will not succeed. I ask my clients to sit with this complex mix of feelings, and take the steps forward anyway.
Question 3. When someone agrees to become a client, what can they expect immediately? Over time?
I help them discover and articulate WHY this goal is so important to them, and then we get to work breaking it down into manageable steps. I explain my philosophy of creating small habits that over time add up to big results. I agree to serve as an accountability partner, and we define the actions they would like me to take to help them stay committed to their plan. Every client is different so I want to explore what will be helpful for each individual. I am not the boot camp type of coach. I am an endlessly supportive cheerleader who will continue to motivate my clients to continue and help them problem solve when they are stuck.
Question 4. What is your service philosophy?
I am with my clients 100%. I will never sign up a client, provide a program and then disappear. I stay connected, cheer them on, send reminders of encouragement, and teach them as many skills as I can to help them succeed. One of the most important strategies I teach is to play detective and observe their journey “from the outside.” Whenever they notice that they are getting stuck, I teach them to take some time to identify the root of the issue and then use problem solving strategies to work around it. There are ALWAYS ways to get through an obstacle! You just have to think objectively and identify them. Sometimes an outside person can do this better, so I am always available to have a conversation about this.
Question 5. What resources do you provide to assist “laypeople” with understanding what is being discussed?
I keep everything simple. Together we define a client’s goals and identify a program that will best help them reach their goals. We review the steps of the program together to make sure it is clear, and then break every step down into a manageable action item. I stay in close contact especially at the beginning so I can answer questions.
Bonus Question! If you were to relay one piece of advice to anyone reading this, what would it be?
It’s difficult to chose one, but I would say this: You have the ability to create the life you desire! Dream big, then break your goals down into small actionable steps you can take daily. Create habits so you complete these steps consistently with very little effort. Lastly, always work on personal development by reading, listening to podcasts, and journaling so you create and sustain the mindset necessary for taking action and achieving your desired goals.
Bonus Question #2: How does COVID-19 impact your interaction with clients?
In many ways COVID has enhanced my ability to connect with clients. Because we have been socializing less in person, many people are relying more on social media to stay connected. I have a consistent presence on my platforms (Facebook and Instagram) so I have actually been better able to find and connect with clients. I am a huge proponent of social media if it is managed well (unfollow any person or page that makes you feel any negative emotions, and limit your exposure to news and pop up news flashes). I find that I can have an even greater impact by “chirping” on social media throughout the day and consistently reinforcing my messages of hope and action throughout the day.
Thank YOU, Dr. Carol Perlman for sharing you with us this week 💗
What Are Your Plans?
If not now, when? That’s my question for you today. Taking care of important things in life is an ongoing exercise. Let’s get you situated and allow you to live fully!
Our work lives and personal lives intertwine. Taking care of business involves efforts at home and work to ensure your team knows about what you do and what you want.
When you’re ready (or not!) to take small action for you, your families, young adults, pets and your business, let’s go! Check out my online “courses” focused on People, Pets and Business! Home Page is: https://courses.thelivingplanner.com Have questions, email me: Lynn@thelivingplanner.com Or get your copy of my book here: https://www.e-junkie.com/i/u8ac
“Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small things brought together” (Vincent Van Gogh) –Lynn
#LifeHacks