The Poignant Dichotomy of Old Age
Every Thursday, my husband and I drive 10 minutes to my mother-in-law’s well-appointed retirement community to have dinner with her at...
top of page
Finding Meaning
Seeking clients who want to step more fully into their lives.
Finding Meaning
For clients with existential concerns.
I am a Licensed Professional Counselor-Supervisor (LPC-S) in Austin, TX as well as a writer. I like to work with individuals who are committed to being true to themselves. This takes courage and risks disappointing others—but is important in terms of embracing one's sense of self. People-pleasing is a self-sabotaging, soul-killing behavior.
I am an Attachment-based therapist with a focus on meaning-of-life concerns.
Education:
Bachelor of Arts in English
Master of Arts in Counseling
Home/About: Welcome
Home/About: Subscribe
Home/About: Contact
Search
When Our Bodies—and Time—Betray Us
Recently, our daughter, Owen, 28, followed by her older brother, Jesse, 30, got married within two months of each other. While both were...
Jesse/Wedding Speech
It is not easy to describe one’s child. As parents, our perspectives are skewed by blind love, fear, frustration, hope, tenderness,...
I Am the Cosmos*
Our daughter Owen got married a few weeks ago. It was, by all accounts, a joyous occasion. It was the one cold, damp evening of the...
Why I Left New York By Elizabeth O’Brien, LPC-S
I was keen to stay home and raise our three children. Happily, in New York City, where we were living in the 80s and 90s, it made more...
The Empty/Emptying Nest
The Emptying/Empty Nest: Part I By Elizabeth O’Brien, LPC-S Many of us baby boomers are in the throes of launching our young adult...
Rapprochement at BurgerFi
By Elizabeth O’Brien, LPC-S We have a family tradition of gathering on Sundays at BurgerFi in South Austin. BurgerFi, a small and...
The Pets We Love—and Mourn
By Elizabeth O’Brien, LPC It might sound silly to some that certain individuals would actually visit a therapist to help them process the...
‘Tis the Season
The holidays are fraught with angst. Since late October, clients have been coming in with anxiety over upcoming family visits, tales of...
Social Reciprocity
Social Reciprocity By Elizabeth O’Brien, LPC Do you ever go to a party or dinner and spend the entire evening putting out a lot of...
Mirroring
By Elizabeth O’Brien, M.A., LPC Mirroring is one of the most important concepts in psychology; it is a lynchpin of Attachment Theory....
Smart Parenting
By Elizabeth O’Brien, M.A., LPC We often have to “wing it” as parents, especially with our first child. Like many parents, there are...
Reciprocity, or the Golden Rule
By Elizabeth O’Brien, M.A., LPC Reciprocity is one of my favorite concepts—in therapy and in life. Parents do well to model this...
Mid-Life Crisis
By Elizabeth O’Brien, M.A., LPC I had my “mid-life crisis” at 30. I began questioning my journalism career, my life in New York, even my...
Failure to Launch
By Elizabeth O’Brien, M.A., LPC Last fall, I was asked by veteran therapist Mark White, LCSW/LMFT, to co-lead a parent group called...
Dogs
Buffett Leigh O'Brien Dogs of Our Dreams I have always loved dogs. In almost every snapshot of me as a child, I am clutching a squirming...
Launching Ourselves
By Elizabeth O’Brien My husband and I are decidedly uncool in the eyes of our teenage son. Even though it’s only been a couple of years...
Home/About: Blog2
bottom of page