“you promised me you would never hit me again” – read this story of a woman who heard her son utter these words exactly one year ago and decided to leave a violent husband. i had shivers running down my spine reading her story. i guess everyone would – but for me it had special… Continue reading breaking free of violent relationships
Category: emotional health
so relaxed!
i’m sitting here in my office. not alone. someone is in the chair across from me. very relaxed. is she asleep? (if you come to my office, will you fall asleep?) yes, i think she is asleep. just comfortably in the chair. how much i can learn from her! never ruffled, never offended, always relaxed,… Continue reading so relaxed!
healthy lifestyle strategies
A UCLA research study published in the June issue of the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry found that people may be able to improve their cognitive function and brain efficiency by making simple lifestyle changes such as incorporating memory exercises, healthy eating, physical fitness and stress reduction into their daily lives. Researchers found that after… Continue reading healthy lifestyle strategies
stress and the buddha
stress … it’s 9:15 pm and i’ve been at it since 7 am. i’ve had a 10-minute break. somewhere around 4 pm. look at me! i’m such a hard worker! what a bunch of baloney! driving my body, mind and soul like this is nothing to be proud of. and i’m very grateful that i… Continue reading stress and the buddha
mental illness, mental health, mental wellness
the public health agency of canada has a site on mental health – or mental illness, if you prefer that term. the definition is: Mental illnesses are characterized by alterations in thinking, mood or behaviour (or some combination thereof) associated with significant distress and impaired functioning over an extended period of time. The symptoms of… Continue reading mental illness, mental health, mental wellness
getting sick
i feel a cold coming on. i could ignore it. i could go to bed. i could get all panicky. i could have a hot bath. i could listen to my body. i could feel guilty about getting sick. i could be afraid that i’ve infected my friend who is weak from chemotherapy. i could… Continue reading getting sick
hopelessness?
“research convincingly shows that people come to therapy not because they have problems but because they have become demoralized about their chances of resolving particular challenges.” this is something i brought up in one of my earliest blog entries. there, i talked about how we face problems all the time, and how the “size” of… Continue reading hopelessness?
being invisible
back in the 90s, i took a women’s studies course and as part of that, i was supposed to participate in an event during women’s day week. the report on this still evokes a lot of feeling in me about being a woman artist, being (in)visible, trying to swim against the stream… here is an… Continue reading being invisible
the myth of keeping up
in a blog entry, the creating passionate users guys (three software/game developer geeks “passionate about how the brain works and how to exploit it for better learning and memory”) make a good point about the myth of keeping up. it’s really comforting to hear this from leading-edge people in information technology – if they can’t… Continue reading the myth of keeping up
headache, families and guilt
from WebMD: When one person gets a headache, the family may feel the pain, a new survey shows. The results show that headaches often run in families, with effects rippling through the family like waves on a stone-struck pond. The survey included the statement, “I am unable to tend to