Far too often, addiction is viewed as a morale failing, or as a flaw in one’s character. Addiction is stigmatized and those who suffer from it are often criminalized and or relegated to the outskirts of society. However, journalist Johann Hari, advocates for a…
I’ve learned through my own experience that the relationship between quality sleep and mental health are reciprocal, where a lack of sleep can intensify symptoms of mental illness, and having a mental illness can in fact make sleeping more difficult. I myself was diagnosed with…
In life, there are often times when you need to have uncomfortable conversations. Assertively communicating in a way that is clear and direct is one of the most effective ways of minimizing conflict, preventing misunderstandings, and creating a positive environment. When you practice assertive communication,…
We often spend a great deal of time and energy avoiding negative emotions. Negative emotions feel uncomfortable and avoiding them provides us with short-term relief. However, if we avoid situations that make us uncomfortable we rob ourselves of important life experiences. For example, if social…
Often times, when faced with a negative emotion our initial impulse is to change our behavior in order to change the way we feel. In general, this strategy helps to keep us healthy and safe. For example, if we feel unwelcome or unsafe in a…
Even though negative emotions are unpleasant, it is important that we push ourselves to face them. Each time we face an uncomfortable situation it becomes less challenging. Likewise, each time we avoid a stressful situation, the situation becomes more and more overwhelming in our mind.…
In a recent blog series, we discussed the benefits of negative emotions. However, even armed with the knowledge that there are many benefits to these pesky negative emotions, we still frequently try to avoid them. When a situation becomes stressful we often attempt to avoid…
It is becoming more and more commonplace for athletes and performers to tout the benefits of mindfulness meditation. Legendary coach, Phil Jackson, likely played a key role in popularizing mindfulness as a method of performance enhancement when he hired George Mumford to teach mindfulness to…
Most of us have heard of obsessive compulsive disorder? However, what is obsessive compulsive personality disorder (OCPD)? Stuart Ralph, host of The OCD Stories podcast, interviewed clinical psychologist Dr. Steven Phillipson about the difference between OCD and OCPD. Phillipson explained that OCD is a disorder…
Photo credit: UW Health. In October 2010, a colleague and I went to hear Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn speak at UCLA. Kabat-Zinn developed Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and is a leading figure, researcher, and theoretician in adapting mindfulness for practice in psychotherapy, mental and medical healthcare. He…
Why do some people pull out their hair? Why do some people continue to pull out their hair even when they create large bald spots that leave them feeling embarrassed and ashamed? The TLC Foundation for Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviors defined trichotillomania as the repetitive pulling…
A great parenting book I highly recommend is Ross Greene’s The Explosive Child. Even if you wouldn’t describe your child as “explosive,” (i.e. tends to throw tantrums, show inflexibility and defiance, and generally cause frustration for adult figures) it can benefit anyone raising children. The…