The Key to Getting through School
When I was 32 years old, I decided to go back to school and study something I was interested in – Psychology. It had been 10 or so years since I dropped out of Long Beach State, but wanted to get out of the construction trade and knew that I needed to finish my Bachelor’s degree. In my first class back, the teacher told us we needed to read something 10 times to memorize it. 10 times!...Learn More
Bottom Line – Healing Through Effort
I was looking through my files and came upon this article that hadn’t been published. Perhaps something more important was on my mind. Re-reading this I realized that, bottom line, this article is very important because it gets down to the root of my therapy strategy. For almost 30 years I’ve struggled to find “the solution”. You know, something that will fix everybody, so that they won’t...Learn More
What to Expect from Therapy
If you have never gone through counseling and wondered what happens in sessions, then this article was written for you. I remember the first time I went to a counselor and could feel my heart pounding in my neck and was looking for an excuse to sprint out of there. Though to be honest, I just found myself talking about myself, which was strange since at that time, all I wanted to do was...Learn More
The Epic Battle of Right vs Wrong
Way back in 1890 Sigmund Freud was developing the science of Psychology and popularized “Ego Defenses” or the mechanisms we used to keep the mind free from shattering. “Denial” makes us believe something didn’t happen, and “Repression” makes us believe the bad events that happen to us will go away if we don’t think about them. Sigmund Freud started a revolution that is common in our everyday...Learn More
Using Your Innate Power
In graduate school, they kept on telling us that our mind is very powerful and we just needed to learn how to channel this energy. Coming from a background of powerlessness it was hard to imagine, but as I started to use the tools they were teaching us, things in my life began to shift for the better. I remember the first time I realized this when standing in line at the bank. I hated...Learn More
Reframing – A Positive Twist
Reframing is a major tool that helps to keep me centered. Reframing is basically looking at a situation that may be bad and putting a positive twist on it. In school, they told us that Reframing is basically seeing a problem as a blessing for learning and growth. Can you think back to a situation or event that was painful when it happened, but as you view it now, it was perfect for your...Learn More
Missing My Guide
Knowing nothing is a great place to start. I hope you end up there. -Roshi Norman Fischer “The goal of expressing kindness and compassion to one’s self & others is enough of a challenge until we leave this plane(t)” – Dr. Noah The above quote and Dr. Noah’s response was the last email that I received from my long-time teacher in 2013. Dr. Noah Young left this planet too soon....Learn More
Stepping Out of Your Comfort Zone
In continuing the series of improving motivation, it just happens that I recently went through some emotional issues with motivation as I prepared for an upcoming trip to Europe. When something out of the ordinary happens to me, I first get overwhelmed, then make to-do lists. Looking at the whole picture can become overwhelming, but when I list things out and go one item at a time, it tends to...Learn More
Caught Between a Rock and a Hard Place?
Have you ever been at a crossroads in your life? When we are faced with making a decision to do one thing or another, it could be very difficult. Then the “what ifs” begin. This happens when we are faced with a new job, leaving a current relationship, or even starting one, also with addiction our inner battle will rage over whether to stop using or not. When faced with a difficult decision,...Learn More