Blog

Peggy Drexler, PhD As social media has mutated into a ravenous, many tentacled time-eater, news from our friends about their families’ triumphs and trials has become omnipresent, and unrelenting. It can be a never-ending vacation slide show from hell. As a result, every day there’s a new complaint from those who follow: too much self-promotion in my feed. Too many photos of other people’s po…Read More

By: D. Harrison, PhD 1. Save your major worries until about midnight, then start heavy thinking. Suggested topics include your age, losing your job, the mistake you made at work last week that they haven’t discovered yet, that suspicious wart you’ve had for five years, or radon in your basement. You can work up a good panic by 1 AM. 2. Keep an inventory of your faults. Ignore strengths. Focus …Read More

“It just never works to be in contact with my mother,” said my client as she started our session, wiping away tears. “I don’t want to cut her out of my life completely, but I can’t keep going back to be sniped at again and again.” This client and I had already strategized ways to talk to mother assertively, addressing the hurtful comments, to no avail. Her mother flatly refused to admi…Read More

Always begin with a visit to your doctor or health care provider to ensure that there is not an underlying medical cause to your symptoms. Don’t self-diagnose. Panic attack symptoms include: Shortness of breath Tightness in the chest Rapid heartbeat Inability to relax NOTE: since these can be symptoms of other medical emergencies, DON’T self-diagnose. Seek emergency medical care if this is the…Read More

1. Push for quick involvement: comes on very strong, pressures for an exclusive commitment almost immediately 2. Jealousy: Excessively possessive: calls constantly, visits unexpectedly; prevents you from going to work because “you might meet someone:” checks your mileage 3. Controlling: Interrogates you intensely, especially if you’re late, about whom you talked to and where you were. Keeps …Read More

If you’ve never talked to a counselor, social worker, or psychologist—and you should ONLY put your life in the hands of a licensed professional-- it may seem like a mysterious process. What actually happens in there? Why can’t I just talk to my buddy instead? Let’s take those questions one at a time. Should I go to therapy? If you think you might need to, that’s a good indicator that you…Read More

“What is it?” Although the specific diagnosis is complicated, these symptoms may indicate signs of Seasonal Affective Disorder: craving for carbohydrates, excessive sleeping, lack of energy, weight gain, and all of the symptoms of depression that go along with it: excessive guilt, irritability and others. “Who’s at risk?” People who live at higher latitudes have a higher risk, as do peop…Read More

When the Holidays Aren’t So Merry—Making it Through the Season “What’s wrong with me?” my patient (fictional) asked, shredding the tissue in her hands as she wept on my couch. “Shouldn’t this be a happy time of year? Why can’t I feel Christmassy and jolly?” And she is not alone. When you think of all of the people who are grieving and/or going through their first holiday season a…Read More

By: Elizabeth Scott, MS Holiday perfectionism is one of the main causes of holiday stress. We want things to be perfect for our loved ones and for ourselves. They (and we) deserve the best, right? We have the best of intentions. But whether it’s due to the impossible standards of holiday bliss sold to us by various marketing campaigns, to the exaggerated memories of holiday greatness that we’r…Read More

Following Your Plan of Care Many times, patients quit their treatment prematurely because the immediate crisis is over. This is equivalent to quitting a two week antibiotic prescription after the second day’s dose; the SYMPTOMS are eased, but what about the root cause? It will surely return later because it hasn’t been thoroughly addressed. Momentum toward recovery will be lost as well. Depres…Read More