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As if there weren’t enough reasons to avoid giving antipsychotic drugs to children, this article discusses research suggesting an increased risk of diabetes for children who use antipsychotic drugs (on top of the already known risk of weight gain – do a Google search on Zyprexa & weight gain for some disturbing reading.)

Let me be clear here: I think that our society significantly overuses psychotropic medications. I think it’s from a combination of factors: the drug companies continuing ...

Most of my clients can tell you that I’m a big fan of meditation. It was an invaluable tool for me while I was studying for my licensing exams, and has been helpful in my own efforts to manage stress, anxiety, & reactivity in my life.

This article from ABC news talks about some new research from Yale University on the benefits of meditation. From the story:

“Meditation isn’t a cure for mental illness, Brewer said, but he said his ...

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(This was originally posted on ‘Happy Now, Sad Later’ a couple of years back. It may be even more relevant now than it was then. This version is revised.)

Really, I mean it. Have we become so used to and so self-righteous about our ‘right’ to pleasurable feelings that we’ve lost sight not only of our ability to tolerate discomfort, but also the benefits that might come from pushing ourselves beyond our comfort zone?

Don’t get me wrong – I’m not some ...

Today’s post comes from my good friend, writer and former large animal veterinarian Christy Corp-Minamiji. (Yes, I’m not the only one with two careers that don’t obviously ‘go together’!) In this post, I think she does a great job of exploring the topic of helping, which is more complex than we often realize. You can find more of Christy’s writing at her personal and professional blogs.

If ...

(I posted a version of this article on my old ‘Happy Now, Sad Later’ blog on 12/30/2008. This version is revised.)

“I lied to her because I knew she’d be mad if I told the truth.”

Hardly a week goes by when I don’t hear this from a client in my office, explaining their reason for being dishonest with their spouse. This may be #1 on the list of ‘bad deals’ that we make in relationships.

In theory, if the lie ...

A while back, Brené Brown posted this excerpt from Margery Williams’ classic “The Velveteen Rabbit” on her blog:

“Real isn’t how you are made,” said the Skin Horse. “It’s a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but really loves you, then you become Real.”
“Does it hurt?” asked the Rabbit.
“Sometimes,” said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. ...

“Take time to deliberate; but when the time for action arrives, stop thinking and go in.” – Andrew Jackson

2000 was a difficult year for me. I had come to a point where I was very unhappy with my work in the IT field. I enjoyed some aspects of it, but found much of it to be frustrating, unfulfilling, and not terribly meaningful.  I had realized that it wasn’t really what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. ...

I grew up as the only child of a single parent and moved frequently until we settled down in Santa Cruz when I was 10. I was fortunate in many ways as a child, not so much so in others. Minimization was a tool that I used to help me cope with some of the challenges of my childhood. I always told myself that the things I had to deal with in childhood were ‘no big deal’. Relative to the ...

“The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change.” – Carl Rogers, psychologist

Acceptance, the second of The Three A’s is, probably the most basic one in concept. However, for many people, it’s the hardest to put into action. Since there’s a lot of ground to cover, I’m going to take two posts to talk about acceptance. In this one, I’ll talk about acceptance, what it is, why there’s such a lack of ...

I’m still working on part 2 of my ‘Awareness, Acceptance, Action’ series – it’s taken on something of a life of its own and isn’t coming together as quickly as I’d hoped. In the meantime, I wanted to share something a recent experience with my own awareness (or lack thereof) and a tool I’ve used successfully to improve my level of awareness.

While I’m probably not as much of a gadget geek as I used to be, I’m still rather ...