FAMILY & CHILDREN'S COUNSELING SERVICES, INC.
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      • Brehanna Schweizer Supervised Visitation Monitor
      • Tiffany Runge, AMFT 112914
      • Emily Medina, AMFT 107900
      • Tyree Griffith MS APCC 7863
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      • Ginger Barros Therapist Associate 107604
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Back to Guide
Can therapy Help Me?

Associative Learning
 
Associative Learning is a psychological term used to describe the concept that humans learn to pair certain thoughts, feelings, actions or objects with other thoughts, feelings, actions or objects.    For example, we may connect the action of flying with the feeling of anxiety.  Just the same, we may connect the action of eating chocolate cake with the feeling of happiness, and the action of exercise with the feeling of pain.  This is why we may avoid flying or exercise or may enjoy frequent indulgences in chocolate cake.
 
Think about some of the associations you have in relation to diet, exercise and overall health.  What feelings or words pop up when you think of diet, exercise, vegetables, fiber, vitamins, jogging and weight loss, for example?  What feelings or words pop up when you think of cookies, television, potato chips, fast food and chocolate?
 
The associations we make affect the daily decisions we make.  The daily decisions we make affect our lives.  We therefore need to control our associations before they control us.  But how do we do that?  We’ve already learned that our eating habits and activity levels are the results of learned behaviors.  We can change our behaviors and the associations that invoke them through the process of re-learning.
 
The most powerful form of learning involves emotion.  When we learn things on an emotional level, we are more apt to first, remember, and second, to apply, the information to our own lives.  Since most of us have attached an emotional component to eating, we will work with emotion, rather than against it, to change negative associations and to break bad habits.
 
Every time you are faced with thoughts, feelings, actions or objects associated with health, weight loss, exercise, good nutrition, etc., re-condition yourself with positive thoughts, feelings, actions or objects in response.  For example, when you think about exercising, also think about the benefits of exercise and how you will feel and look once you have completed a work-out or a month of work-outs.  Train yourself to say things like, “I love working out” and “I can’t wait to work out again,” even if you have to fake it at first.
 
You can connect non-related thoughts, as well.  Try remembering your favorite vacation or the day you met your spouse.  You might imagine a beautiful sunset, a field of blooming flowers, or another pleasant thought.  Whatever thought or memory it is, it should invoke pleasant feelings in you. 
 
Conversely, when you think of things like eating fast food, lounging around watching television or eating high-fat treats, focus on the negative aspects of such behavior.  Think about fat thighs, clogged arteries and tight fitting clothes.  Think about the uncomfortable feeling of being seen in a two piece swimsuit.  When you are tempted to indulge in your favorite fattening food, imagine a fly crawling all over it or envision the treat soaking in vinegar- or worse! Use whatever mental imagery methods necessary to train your mind to avoid the pitfalls and to embrace the productive. 
 
Once you have learned to associate positive feelings/thoughts with healthful behavior, and negative feelings/thoughts with unhealthy behavior, you will be more inclined to follow through on the positive, healthful elements.  It may be difficult at first, but it will get easier and more natural as time goes by.  At first, you may catch yourself making old associations out of habit.  Before long, however, you will automatically make positive associations that will encourage lifelong health and a New You!  

​Back to LifeStyle Guide
​

This information should not serve as a replacement for therapy.  Please visit the Can Therapy Help Me page for more information if you think you may have an eating disorder, or should require individualized help.

​Back to LifeStyle Guide
​
​​

HELPING FAMILIES HEAL, PLAY AND LOVE!


Hours

M-F: 9am - 6pm 
and by appointment 

Telephone

800-430-4490
or go to Meet Us for individual direct contact

Email

info@healplaylove.org
or go to Contact for
department contact
Various legal disclaimers: The persons depicted on this site are models.  Photos do not represent or guarantee results.  Contact for service areas.  This site uses cookies. Your use of this site implies your agreement to the use of cookies. See Privacy Policy for more information.  California residents see the California Consumer Privacy Act.

FCCS is directed by Melinda Haynes, MA, California LMFT 102308.  Oklahoma LMFT 1153. North Carolina LMFT 2143.

​The National Supervised Visitation online training program is a subsidiary of FCCS and can be found at 
https://www.SupervisedVisitationTraining.com.  Professional consulting for mental and behavioral health professionals is available at www.MelindaHaynes.com.  

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#BlackMentalHealth #minoritymentalhealth #californiahealthandwellness #psychotherapist #childtherapy #childtherapist #familytherapist #teentherapy #mentalhealth #playtherapy #depression #anxiety #adhd #add #odd #separationanxiety #managingbehavior #behaviortoolbox #blackmaletherapist #healplaylove #counseling #familycounseling #childcounseling #BlackTherapistsMatter #teencounseling #parentchildtherapy #therapyworks #therapyhelps #BlackTherapist #blackmentalhealthmatters #healing #journey #betterhelp #mindfulness #CBT #associate #associateship #amft #apcc #acsw #intern #supervision #amftsupervision #therapyforblackgirls #EMDR #LGBTQItherapy #couplescounseling #familyandchildrenscounseling #bestchildtherapistnearme #findaprovidernearme #therapyforblackmen #therapyforblackwomen #coparenting #parallelparenting #sextherapist #infertilitytherapist 

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Try finding a therapist near me -  See our areas served. 

Find the best  Medi-Cal medicaid therapist by going to your county link. These links will take you off the Family & Children's Counseling Services, Inc. website. 


Alameda | Alpine | Amador | Butte | Calaveras | Colusa |  ContraCosta | DelNorte | ElDorado |  Fresno | Glenn | Humboldt | Imperial | Inyo | Kern | Kings | Lake | Lassen | LosAngeles |  Madera | Marin | Mariposa | Mendocino | Merced | Modoc | Mono | Monterey | Napa | Nevada | Orange | Placer | Plumas | Riverside | Sa​cra​mento| San Benito | San Bernardino | San Diego | San Francisco | San Joaquin | San Luis Obispo | San Mateo | Santa Barbara | Santa Clara |  SantaCruz | Shasta | Sierra | Siskiyou | Solano | Sonoma | Stanislaus | Sutter | Tehama | Trinity | Tulare | Tuolumne | Ventura | Yolo | Yuba    
"Best child therapy" read here.   
"Best child therapist near me" read here 
How do I find a good child therapist for my child read here.

  • Home
    • Crisis Information
    • Good Faith Estimate
    • How You Can Help >
      • Social Media Support
      • Volunteer Opportunities
      • Donate >
        • Sponsor a Child, Parent or Family
        • Donate to Our Equipment and Supplies Fund
        • Donate to the General Fund
    • Privacy Policy >
      • California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)
    • Consumer Privacy HIPAA
  • About
    • Areas Served
    • Contact >
      • Referral Request
      • Satisfaction Survey
    • Who We Are
    • What We Do
    • Meet Our Team >
      • Jayme Schlager - Office Assistant
      • Bryony Hottendorf - Program Manager, Supervised Visitation
      • Roxanna Taylor- Supervised Visitation Monitor
      • Brehanna Schweizer Supervised Visitation Monitor
      • Tiffany Runge, AMFT 112914
      • Emily Medina, AMFT 107900
      • Tyree Griffith MS APCC 7863
      • Deb Auran, Therapist Associate
      • Ginger Barros Therapist Associate 107604
      • Erica Washington, MSW, ACSW Associate Clinical Social Worker 95523
      • Beth Perkins Therapist Trainee
      • Gabriela Leyva
      • Melinda Haynes, MA, LMFT. Executive Director
    • Our History >
      • Tour the Chico Office
    • As Seen On
    • Trauma-Informed
    • Mission Vision Philosophy
    • Values
  • Services
    • Brochures
    • Therapy or Counseling >
      • Family Therapy
      • Child Therapy
      • Teen Therapy
      • Reunification Therapy
      • Co-Parenting Therapy
      • LGBTQAI+ Counseling
      • Christian Counseling
      • Foster /Kinship
      • Post-Adoption
      • Family Maintenance
      • EPIC Family
    • Types of Therapy >
      • Online Therapy >
        • Online Therapy- Questions and Answers
      • Cognitive-Behavioral (CBT)
      • Play Therapy
      • Play Therapy for Adults
      • Multi-Sensory Integration
      • Parent-Child Therpay
      • Experiential Therapy
      • REBT
      • EMDR
      • School Based Family Counseling >
        • For Schools and Districts- PBIS Partners
      • E-Motion >
        • Movement- Stored Trauma Therapy
      • Mindfulness
    • Supervised Visitation >
      • Online Visits
      • Getting Started
      • Facilitated Visitation
      • Monitored Exchange
    • Family Preservation
    • Groups >
      • Confident Kids
      • Productive Parenting
    • Kids Behavior Coaching
    • Daycare / School- Based Services
    • Associate Clinical Supervision
    • Workshops
    • Online Learning Center >
      • Become a Supervised Visitation Monitor
    • PBIS Partners >
      • Why Do We Have Empty Chairs?
      • Signs A Student May Benefit
      • Why Should My School Collaborate with FCCS?
      • School-Based Services May Include
  • Insurance / Fees
    • Insurance Accepted >
      • Anthem Blue Cross Medi-Cal
      • TriCare
      • Health Net
      • California Health and Wellness
      • Cigna
      • aetna
      • Molina
      • Victim-Witness
      • Cash Pay
      • Important Note About Insurance
    • Superbills
  • Helpful Links
    • Community Services >
      • Community Services- Butte County California
      • Community Services- Sacramento County California
      • Community Services- San Diego County California
      • Community Services- Orange County California
    • Can Therapy Help Me?
    • Can Therapy Help My Child?
    • Helping Kids Feel Safe in a Scary World
    • Attachment Trauma Recovery >
      • Origins of Attachment Trauma
      • Signs of Attachment Trauma in Adults and Children
      • Therapy for Attachment Trauma
    • Mental Health Apps
    • Help! My Kids Have Been Taken by CPS >
      • California CSD
    • Places to Go- Family Fun >
      • Places to Go in Texas
      • Places to Go in California >
        • Places to Go in Butte County California
        • Places to Go in Shasta County California
        • Places to Go Suisun City, California
        • Places to Go in Fairfield, California
      • Places to Go in North Carolina
      • Places to Go in Oklahoma >
        • Places to Go in Tulsa, Oklahoma
        • Places to Go in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
    • Recommended Reading
    • Celebrity Psychology >
      • Amber Heard Borderline Personality Disorder
      • Serena Williams Post Partum Depression
    • Weight Management >
      • Why We Develop Bad Habits
      • Diets Don't Work
      • Mapping Out Success
      • Journaling
      • Making New Habits
      • Creating Staying Power
    • Can We Talk?
    • Life On Their Terms >
      • Is My Partner Abusive?
      • The Cycle of Violence
      • Dangers of Staying
      • Healing From an Abusive Relationship
    • What is a Treatment Plan?
    • Of Caterpillars and Courage
    • LifeStyle Wellbeing- Creating a New You
  • Career Center
    • What We Offer
    • Practicum Site
    • Now Hiring Remote LMFT LPCC LCSW Supervisor- CHICO, CA
    • Now Hiring Community Based Therapist
    • Now Hiring Therapist Associate
    • Now Hiring Family Support Specialist