The first of the big winter storms blew through the Bay Area today. Winds whipped up the already large waves and the pouring rain made it hard to see much more than a few feet in any direction. Of course, there were some hardy folk out there surfing anyway. But we assume that most of you recognize that when there …
Traveling
Traveling can be exciting, but it can also be very stressful. It is particularly important for people living with moods to do prepare for travel before they leave. A surprisingly high percentage of serious mood catastrophes, in our experience, happen during trips. And they are almost always preventable. First, if your traveling to some place without good medical care, it’s a …
Forum Update
Update– Our Forum has been gradually picking up steam, but the current setup, using Bublaa, has been difficult to administer. We are considering making a change to a system hosted by WordPress (the folks who host this site) called BuddyPress. If you have thoughts about this plan please let us know. If we do make the switch the Forum will …
Family Scapegoat
I had a conversation with two women today about their relationship with their husbands and children. They often find themselves feeling scapegoated for things that go wrong in the household. While I was talking with them, I recalled many other women who have described similar experiences. I started to wonder how this happens, and what can be done about it. …
Problems
We have begun to think of 2013. What does the future hold for this blog? Next year we plan to take the content from this site, revise it, add to it, organize it and make it the basis for a book. Then we will start working on a MoodSurfing app. Meanwhile, we really need your input in order to make …
ACT
The “hot” thing in the therapy world these days is something called ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy). The radical notion behind ACT is that therapy should not be primarily about reducing symptoms (like depression) but rather increasing our ability to have a valued life (a life that is based on our deepest values) even though we have symptoms. And, by …
Giving Thanks
A friend asked “What is Thanksgiving all about?” There is the traditional answer about the Pilgrims and the Indians, but Thanksgiving as a national holiday has a shorter history. The holiday was first celebrated on the same date by all states in 1863. The idea was largely the product of author Sarah Josepha Hale, who wrote letters to politicians for …
Talking to Yourself
Sometimes talking to yourself is a sign of health. Those of you who have been following this blog for a while, know that I am very impressed with how mood shapes our reality. One day I wake up and the world is bright and filled with hope, and the next day, nothing works, nothing feels right, and there is no …
What’s the Hurry
It’s been a very busy week for mental health professionals in the Bay Area. The holidays are ramping up. And it has been dark and rainy. Many people are feeling a great deal of stress. Last night, we got a call from a wonderful woman who we’ve been working with for several months. She said that she had had a …
Money and Security
How much money does it take for someone to feel really secure? This seems like a sensible question. Certainly, many of us have been dealing with insecurity because of a lack of money. In other words, there is a relationship between money and security. On the other hand, over the years, we have never run into anyone who managed to …
Forum News
On the second week anniversary of our forum I want to take a moment and thank all of you who have contributed to it. We have doubled the number of members in the past week. I hope that I can encourage all of you to select an avatar (it really does make the thing seem more personal, even if the …
Anger and Change: “It’s Wrong” Mentality
Anger and Change: “It is just wrong, I can’t accept it, I have to stand up to things that are wrong.” We were talking with a young man who was frustrated because he had to complete a year’s worth of general education requirements before he could graduate with his degree in film. He was very upset, and noted at a later point …
Depression: “I Can’t Do This”
One of the things that we spend a lot of time thinking about is the “I can’t do that” process. How it is that someone can’t get out of bed, or take a shower, or any number of other things… It is actually a step forward often when the other person says, “I can’t do that” directly. Most of the …
Reclaim Your World
Why You May Need to Reclaim Your World Threats from disasters, and other dangers in the world around us, can lead us to withdraw from normal activity and then we may need to reclaim our world from fear. I have always loved what I now call the territorial sports: the cross country skiing, running, hiking, bicycling, etc. These are sports …
Trust and The Kindness of Strangers
On this famous day, September 11th, it is worth reminding ourselves how much we all depend on the kindness of strangers. This has certainly never been more clear… we live in a world in which there is an increasing interdependence. Of course, being able to rely on the kindness of strangers has always been important. One of the hallmarks of …
Politics: How to Promote Mental Health in Government
I am back in Washington, DC for American Psychiatric Association governance meetings, and it is hard not to be thinking about politics in this incredibly political town. Ordinarily politics is a topic to avoid in a site like this one, but I am moved to ask you to help with one important and (relatively) non-partisan task – Join the entire …
All About Happy: Resources
What makes us happy? How can we have more happiness? Is happiness just the absence of sadness and depression? These are some of the questions that are addressed in an entertaining, informative and inspiring movie called “Happy.” Some ideas we saw – 50% of our happiness is determined by genes, 10% is related to life circumstances (financial situation, what country …
Aikido for Bad Behavior
We had an opportunity to visit Japan several times, over the course of a decade working with Japanese psychiatrists to improve how Japanese psychiatric hospitals work with potentially violent patients. During one of those trips, we came across a wonderful story that has stuck with us ever since. It is the story of a young man who is confronted by …
Retraumatization
After nearly 20 years of work in the field of post-traumatic stress disorder, one thing that continues to trouble and baffle me is the phenomena that was described by Freud as the repetition compulsion. Why is it that people who have been victimized in terrible ways are at much higher risk of being victimized again. One would think that they would be …
Disaster’s Aftermath
The recent hurricane that hit New Jersey and New York reminded us of the research on the aftermath of disaster conducted by a friend and colleague, Kent Harber, PhD. Kent has been very interested in posttraumatic stress disorder, and in particular, the work of Dr. James Pennebaker, on the value of sharing one’s story in the aftermath of trauma. Jim …