august 2010 buddhist carnival: right action

every month i delve into the buddhasphere to come up with interesting tidbits in buddhist writing. this time around i was interested in the concept of right action. the poem we start out with today is the famous shin jin mei poem the perfect way knows no difficulties except that it refuses to make preferences;… Continue reading august 2010 buddhist carnival: right action

mental health, addiction and self medication

on tuesday i had the honour of hosting the #mhsm (mental health and social media) chat. that’s a weekly one-hour conversation about mental health on twitter. the topic we discussed was mental health and addictions. it was very lively, and perhaps the biggest topic was self medication, a topic that sprung up within the first… Continue reading mental health, addiction and self medication

alcoholism and everyday addictions

the 12 steps of alcoholics anonymous are sometimes summarized in these seven words: i can’t god can i better let god these pithy words come from the first three steps: 1. we admitted we were powerless over alcohol, and that our lives had become unmanageable 2. we came to believe that a power greater than… Continue reading alcoholism and everyday addictions

my mental health camp talk: insanity in the workplace

my talk at mental health camp yesterday: it’s not about mental illness. it’s about mental health. in 1996, 510 murders occurred in canada. taking a prevalence rate of about 3% of violent crimes committed by people with mental illness, at most, 16 of these people were killed by someone with a mental illness. i’m mentioning… Continue reading my mental health camp talk: insanity in the workplace

focusing: body and mind at the murky edge

please enjoy this guest post by my good friend jael, who is currently studying a fascinating therapeutic technique called focusing. when i was in my early 20’s i decided to switch from social science to computer science and math at university and live at home with my parents. when the offer of admission arrived, my… Continue reading focusing: body and mind at the murky edge

living on purpose, being on purpose

this is a guest post by my friend garfield, for whom i wrote the posts on goal setting a few weeks ago. thank you isabella for inviting me to write a post on your awesome blog! i am a voracious student of human potential, and personal, spiritual, and professional development. i eagerly consume the teachings… Continue reading living on purpose, being on purpose