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How the Negative News Cycle Can Impact Mental Health
The expression, “If it bleeds, it leads,” has been used to characterize media coverage of lurid stories since the early days of newspapers, and today’s around-the-clock news cycle ... Read More
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Your Therapist Is Not Your Friend
There is something special and unique about the relationship between a person in therapy and his or her therapist. It is a professional relationship, one in which the therapist is providing ... Read More
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Two Studies Explore Effectiveness of Online Therapy
Two new studies suggest online therapy may be effective for treating mental health issues. Online therapy is increasingly popular, particularly among people who live in rural areas and ... Read More
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Fat-Free Buddhism: Is Mindfulness Becoming a Religion?
In the 21st century, as mindfulness-based practices become more mainstream, our society and psychotherapeutic community may be more willing to accept that Buddhism could be a valid psychological ... Read More
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Is Being ‘Thick-Skinned’ Your Strength or Your Weakness?
You’re strong. You’re thick-skinned. You don’t take it personally when someone vents emotional distress on you. These are admirable, useful qualities. Having thick skin makes it easier ... Read More
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Dos and Don’ts for Parents of Children with Selective Mutism
This is a picture of a child experiencing selective mutism—children who speak to certain people in certain situations (most commonly immediate family members inside the home) but are ... Read More
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Will Spanking Gain Your Child’s Respect?
As a family therapist, I have helped families work with benign issues, such as a teens refusing to clean their rooms, as well as extreme ones, such as revelations of sexual abuse. One ... Read More
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How to Reach Out to a Person Stuck Behind a ‘Wall’
Intensive short-term dynamic psychotherapy (ISTDP), like all psychotherapy models, is a set of ideas and strategies used to form a healing relationship with another human being. Like therapists ... Read More
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Beware the Bubble: Must All Good Things Come to an End?
’Tis the season for ghosts and goblins and creepy crawlies real and imagined … so I want to talk about one of the human mind’s scariest inventions, one nearly all of us believe ... Read More
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8 Mindful Ways to Deal with Your Unpleasant Feelings
One of the principal aspects of mindfulness is acceptance of one’s experience in the present moment. This practice has numerous mental health benefits—but as you may have realized, ... Read More
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Conflict in Relationships: Do You Own Your Responsibility?
Conflict in relationships is inevitable, but it doesn’t have to be destructive. Many partners struggle to find ways to avoid hurt feelings without avoiding discussion altogether. ... Read More
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Epigenetics: 5 Ways Your Environment Modifies Your Genes
The nature vs. nurture debate is well over a century old, yet that question still makes many scientists and psychologists wonder today. Which impacts people more: environment or genetics? ... Read More