Granted – it can feel reassuring to come determine a reason why we or other people behave in certain ways. However, just having insight and knowing (or thinking that we know) the reason underlying people’s motivations does not always lead to taking effective action regarding the situation. While, to quote Socrates, “The unexamined life is […]

Very few of us are strangers to depression or anxiety in some form, whether it be a mild but unpleasant funk for a few days or a more serious mood disorder lasting months or even years. After all, just being alive usually means that we’ve ridden the emotional rollercoaster, be it due to a personal […]

Having a panic attack can be one of the most frightening and almost unbearable experiences you may ever suffer. Panic attacks, which can hit you at any time and any place, and which generally last ten minutes or less – can truly be traumatic. Common physical symptoms of a panic attack include: Heart palpitations Shortness […]

How do you usually respond when life just isn’t going the way you want it to? Maybe your spouse forgot your birthday, you got a flat tire on that day when you simply have to get to an important meeting, or you received a scary health diagnosis. What to do? Yes, you could yell at […]

How do you cope when you’re rejected by that college you’d pinned your hopes on attending? How do you pick yourself up off the floor when your marriage of 15 years falls apart? And how do you manage when you’re facing a grim medical diagnosis? Life can be challenging enough when we’re just dealing with […]

Our minds are meaning-making machines. First and foremost, our minds try to protect us by figuring out how to avoid danger. Our minds are interpreters of our world and immediate circumstances. It’s a fact of nature – we are instinctively on high alert for danger, because first and foremost we want to survive.  After all, […]

Maybe you’ve been thinking about moving on from your current job. Or going back to school. Or getting up an hour earlier, so you can actually eat a real breakfast and enjoy your coffee before the kids are up. And maybe you’ve been contemplating these changes for a month, or a year, and yet you […]

A 2010 study of over 2200 people found that about 47% of the time people are not thinking about what’s going on in the present. What’s more, the Harvard University researchers found that when our thoughts are focused in places other than the present moment, we are not as happy as when we’re in the […]

Although the Thanksgiving holiday serves as a good reminder for us to pause and count our blessings, the truth is that gratitude represents an attitude and actions that we can seek to cultivate every day of the year. In addition to improving our relationships with others, expressing our thanks offers many other benefits. Some quotes […]

Have you ever flown off the handle and said or done things you later regret? (Almost all of us have.) Or have you been so much “in your head”, focused on facts and figures that you lost contact with your feelings or those of other people? (Probably.) In the first case, you were in what […]