A PSYCHOLOGIST RETIRES

For the past 41 years I have been practicing psychotherapy and have thoroughly loved being a psychologist.  I recall my very first session with a client, how I spent so much time in my head, worried I wasn’t appearing open enough, that my body language needed to indicate how receptive I was to what she was saying, etc.  Truthfully, whatever my body language said, I was too self-conscious to listen.  Over these years and hundreds of thousands of hours of seeing clients, I learned how to get out of my own way and start listening.  What a journey. 

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WHAT if the PANDEMIC HASN’T MADE US FEEL BAD, BUT WE ALSO DON’T FEEL QUITE RIGHT? – PART 2

As with other forms of psychological distress, naming it is the first step towards dealing with it.  By identifying depression, anxiety, addiction, and other struggles due to the pandemic (see previous blogs), we can begin to take counter steps, including seeking help. The same is true for languishing.

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HOW EFFECTIVE ARE COVID-19 VACCINES, REALLY?

HOW EFFECTIVE ARE COVID-19 VACCINES, REALLY?
The most basic measure of the effectiveness of the COVID 19 vaccines is simple:  thus far, only two people have died after being vaccinated, according to reports available. One death in Florida was due to a rare blood disorder, not COVID. One death in California is of still undetermined causes. 

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HOW DOES LAUGHTER HELP WITH COVID 19?

In basic biochemical terms, laughter releases nitric oxide, which reduces blood pressure, decreases clotting, and relaxes blood vessels.  A study of older men and women in Japan associated laughter with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease.  A Norwegian study found an association between humor and a longer life, especially for women.  Dr. Miller “prescribes” a “deep psychological laugh that elicits tears of joy and relaxation” each day.

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OVERCOMING PROCRASTINATION

You’re doing it again. You’ve starting to write the report the night before it’s due. Three weeks ago you thought about doing it, but you felt tense and decided to relax instead. Always looking for the right time, it’s never the right time–unless it’s imminent. Now you’re downright panicked.

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