The Power of Being Broken I’ve recently come across an article written by Julie Peters that introduced me to a very interesting figure that I wanted to pass on. Meet Akhilandeshvari, (pronounced ah-kee-LAN-desh-va-ree) we’ll call her Akhilanda for short. She is the Hindu goddess of Never-Not-Broken. She derives her power from always being broken; in [...]
I recently saw a post on 15 things emotionally healthy people do, or don't do. But what is emotional health and why don't we teach it? I mean really teach it. We learn much in our families as we grow up. Parents want their children to be confident, have good self-esteem, get good grades and [...]
In the last couple of years, we have seen a significant increase in media coverage of sexual assault and abuse. From institutionalized sexual abuse in places of worship, membership organizations, schools, and universities, it seems impossible not to come across another story of another victimization. Despite such increased awareness, there is still much to be [...]
George Carlin once joked that the evolution of the term Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) removed the impact of the condition, essentially meaning the more syllables and words we add, the more detached from the issue we become. To a certain degree, he was right, however what we have now understood as PTSD has come a [...]
We have some excellent parenting advice for you. Do you ever wonder what kids Birthday parties are about? Is it a show? Who will do it better? Is it a social event for the parents or is it really about a group of 6 years old running around and eating pizza and cake? Make an [...]
Gestalt Therapy is a very useful tool in a therapist's arsenal. While most substance abuse treatment programs would agree that the support of others is most beneficial in helping one to stay sober, it is through one's personal journey that the change really starts to occur behaviorally, cognitively, and emotionally. I have found that there [...]
Anxiety and stress can affect how we perceive reality. We all react to our “imagined reality” of a situation, not the “reality” of it. Imagined reality is our perception of something. If you think that people are thinking negatively about you, you react as if they are in fact thinking negatively about you. This is [...]
Alcoholics Anonymous, usually abbreviated as AA, is a 12-step recovery program that has helped many people stop the use of alcohol. Basically, it is a meeting where people go and talk about their alcohol use and get support from others. Participants are usually told to accept a sponsor from the group. This is a person [...]
Executive functions are those aspects of our mental functioning that enableuse to get things done. A seminal writer on ADHD, Russell Barkley, also has a book entirely devoted to executive functions. He defines executive functions "as self-regulation to achieve goals". In his book on childhood ADHD, Barkley states that there are six executive functions and [...]
This post centers around the poem, Kids Who Are Different, by Digby Wolfe. Everyone wants to fit in, right? No one wants to be identified as the one different from all the rest. This is especially the case with adolescents. As adolescents try to claim their own independence away from their families they are looking [...]
