Imposter syndrome won’t go away just because you achieve more.
 
Instead, try these four steps:
 
1.Name the narrative: Recognize the ‘part’ of you, or the inner voice, that tells you, “I’m not good enough.”
2.Try to identify the feelings and needs of that critical ‘part’ of you. For example, is there a need for stability? Perhaps this comes from a childhood growing up in an unstable life.
3.Identify alternative ways to meet that need and self-soothe.
 
Does any of this resonate with you? If you would like to explore how this applies to you, contact me via this page or book online for a time when I should call you back.
 
Chris Warren-Dickins
Therapist in Ridgewood, New Jersey
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Do you downplay your achievements?
Do you avoid applying for opportunities you were qualified for?
Do you spend many days at work feeling like you have to ‘earn’ your place there?
 
If so, you are dealing with imposter syndrome.
Don’t worry, you are not alone. Many of us feel this way, and no matter how hard others try to convince us, we still don’t believe in our worth.
 
Sometimes this is a belief handed to us from a young age. If you were neglected as a child (emotionally, physically, or both) you can take on this message that you are not good enough. The longer you have held this belief, the longer it will take to challenge it.
 
But it is possible.
 
I work with professionals, entrepreneurs, creatives, and students to help them realize their value. What they tell me is that it has been helpful to remember that feeling like an imposter doesn’t make you one. In fact, the ‘imposter part’ that you carry can serve a purpose; to keep you vigilant for opportunities for growth.  
 
Does any of this resonate with you? If you would like to explore how this applies to you, contact me via this page or book online for a time when I should call you back.
 
Chris Warren-Dickins
Therapist in Ridgewood, New Jersey
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“I just got lucky.”
“I don’t belong here.”
“Any minute now, they will figure out that I have no idea what I am doing.”
 
These are classic phrases spoken by someone with imposter syndrome, and, in my work as a psychotherapist in Ridgewood, New Jersey, I hear them all the time.
 
Imposter syndrome is the internal belief that your success isn’t earned, and that one day soon you will be found out as a fraud or an imposter.
 
Here’s the truth:
Intelligence and self-doubt can (and often do) coexist.
You don’t have to feel confident to be capable.
Feeling like an imposter doesn’t mean you are one.
 
In therapy, we work on rewiring those critical thoughts and reconnecting you to your actual accomplishments.
 
Does any of this resonate with you? If you would like to explore how this applies to you, contact me via this page or book online for a time when I should call you back.
 
Chris Warren-Dickins
Therapist in Ridgewood, New Jersey
​

One of the many reasons why I love polyvagal theory is because it is visually stunning. I have found it immensely helpful to learn that our 'symptoms' are simply our body and mind trying to keep us safe. There is nothing intrinsically 'wrong' or 'miswired' about us. In fact, the opposite is true; our body and mind is doing what it was designed to do.

Understanding our responses is one big step towards regaining control of your life. Here is a fascinating article issued by the Polyvagal Institute, where they explain more about the responses of our mind and body.

If you would like to process this further, book online today.

Chris Warren-Dickins
Therapist in Bergen County, New Jersey

Many EMDR therapists use polyvagal theory to help someone understand that their body and mind are responding in a certain way because it is biologically built to do this. Your nervous system is responding to cues of danger or safety, and so symptoms of anxiety, depression, and trauma responses, are easier to understand when we view our nervous system as a ladder (as shown in the diagram below).
 
At the bottom of the nervous system ladder, in response to cues of danger, our nervous system can shut down. Here we can feel numb, blank-minded, even depressed. Think of how we might be caught by the saber-tooth tiger; our nervous system cleverly shuts us down so we do not feel the pain of the bite of the tiger. This is the work of the part of the parasympathetic nervous system that is known as the dorsal vagal response.
 
In the middle of the nervous system ladder, in response to cues of danger that we have a hope of escaping, our nervous system will respond by increasing our heart rate so we can fight or flee the danger. Here we can find outbursts of anger and anxiety, and this is the work of the sympathetic nervous system.
 
Finally, at the top of the nervous system ladder, we find the most evolved response, in response to cues of safety, when we can connect with ourselves and others. Thanks to our parasympathetic nervous system, this is the ventral vagal response.
 
Together, we will help you to notice and name the different states, and you can use this awareness to flex in and out of the various states as appropriate.

Get in contact today.

Chris Warren-Dickins
Therapist in Bergen County, New Jersey