Is it better for your happiness and health to belong to an organized religion or to be more generically “spiritual”? Does it matter? Being religious generally refers to believing in a specific deity (or group of deities) and the regulations of a particular religion and tends to take place in a relatively formal, organized context. […]

Do you often say to yourself things like, “This experience means that I’m not a good person”, “I’m not good at math”, or “I’m not worthy of my husband [or wife]”. If so, this is a clue that you may have a fixed mindset, in which you see things fatalistically, as if certain qualities of […]

Short-term stress is a normal part of life and to be expected. Having bills to pay, challenges at work, relationship issues, and health concerns can all trigger anxiety. Our bodies are equipped to deal with temporary stressors by activating our “fight or flight response”, which causes our heart to beat more quickly, our blood pressure […]

At the beginning of a new year, we often review the high points and challenges of the past 12 months and make some resolutions for this current year. For many of us, those resolutions can be much the same as those we made last year. Why is it that some problems are so difficult to […]

In addition to containing many moments of joy, life clearly also involves hassles. Sometimes, in addition to everyday challenges, we find (or put) ourselves in situations which seem absolutely unbearable, and we’re overwhelmed by powerful feelings that if unchecked might cause us to act in destructive ways. It can be extremely difficult to think clearly […]

If you fear that self-care means being selfish, you’re not alone. This is unfortunately a common misconception which can get in the way of tending to your own physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual needs. After all, especially in today’s world, there is a lot of talk about narcissistic behavior, and most of us would not […]

Perhaps it’s those pesky migraine headaches, with the accompanying nausea, dizziness, and sensitivity to light, that threaten to incapacitate you on a regular or sporadic basis. Or maybe you struggle with chronic fatigue syndrome, a condition possibly connected with Epstein-Barr virus, that makes even taking a shower exhausting. Or you deal with rheumatic arthritis, an […]

As the New Year approaches, you may be evaluating what has transpired this year, and what you’d like to experience in the year to come. The following questions may help you to constructively and compassionately consider where you’ve progressed during this year, where possibly you’ve taken some unexpected or unhelpful detours, and where you’d like […]

In a world where our obligations to our family, friends, job, and community can seem overwhelming, tending to our own needs often falls by the wayside. We may feel guilty about taking time for ourselves, yet we neglect self-care at our peril. Reasons why self-care is important: 1) Self-care demonstrates that you know your personal […]

Many of us find that once we have everything we thought would make us happy, we still have a nagging sense that something is missing – yet we don’t quite know what. Or maybe we still haven’t achieved certain important milestones, are still struggling to do so, yet find ourselves blocked against moving forward. In […]