Index to My Articles by Topic — Danell teNyenhuis Black

The anniversary I didn’t get to celebrate Today is an exciting day for me. After 2+ years, I am moving back into an office and working there four days per week. Since the pandemic started, I have changed jobs and worked at home for all but a handful of days…

Before I was overweight, I was obese. — On March 1, 2022, I hit the 6-month mark on my weight loss journey after gastric sleeve surgery. I’ve reached many milestones, and I should hit 100 lbs lost in the next few weeks! I’m currently down 97.4 lbs, and it has been a tremendous change for me, but with…

Doing and sharing are the best way to provide comfort — I don’t feel I have a tragic life, but I have witnessed quite a few tragedies, starting during my childhood. Witnessing trauma doesn’t make me an expert, but I think it has given me practice and the ability to remain calm. Sadly, I still haven’t learned any magic words to…

Everyone has the right to be safe in public — Last week a federal judge blocked the Texas anti-mask mandate. Unfortunately, Governor Greg Abbott’s attempt to ban mask mandates is a continuation of the politicization of the pandemic. Frankly, I’m confused and disappointed that this is still happening. I have no illusions that I can change people’s minds, but I…

She took that to heart — “Can this class help her have less drama?” I’ll never forget Back to School Night when my oldest daughter, Sierra, was in the 7th grade. After her drama teacher finished her presentation, my husband Patrick approached her. “Can this class help her have less drama?” he asked. He may have…

My new life began 60 days ago. Nearly two months ago, my life changed drastically. Of course, that sounds much more dramatic than it is, but my surgery was a significant change. I underwent a sleeve gastrectomy on September 1st, and things are going well. However, I’m not going to…

Drastic times call for extreme measures — I was a runner before it was cool to be a runner. And I never really appreciated it. Through the end of high school, I never had to worry about my weight. And I didn’t appreciate that either. I had no clue that weight would become a life-long struggle for…

Please stop making assumptions There is a Facebook post about privilege that’s popped up on the threads of several of my friends. The post makes me angry, and I want to respond to it, but I’ve learned that it’s usually pointless to argue with someone on Facebook, especially since last…

My experience learning to practice EMDR therapy — My client watches the movement of my wand as I softly use the cadence comments, “just notice” and “that’s right.” After 15–20 passes of my wand, I ask her, “what’s coming up now?”