Embracing your desert

There is a story in the Bible that I frequently share with my clients. I originally heard the story and the following interpretation of it in a sermon given by Rabbi David Cantor a few years ago. I find that this story and the interpretation of it helps us think about our lives and the journey we take in a really helpful way.

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Forgiveness and Grief

In the video Brene Brown talks about forgiveness--something that is extremely hard to really define or understand because it has so many aspects to it. In her work, she found that a major component of forgiveness is actually grief. This doesn't make a bit of sense at first glance but as you think about it, as you listen to her talk about it, it begins to actually be kind of obvious. We cannot fully forgive without grieving.

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Medications

As long as drug companies aremaking money on these highly addictive substances and even more money on remedies for dealing with the side-effects of them, nothing will change dramatically. I would love to see alternative methods (whether it be some natural substance or advances in therapy) that are healthier than our current methods of dealing with pain, anxiety, depression, ADHD... today's society seems to be one where "there's a pill for that" and we never have to feel a moment of discomfort.

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Confidentiality

As a psychologist, confidentiality is something that I take extremely seriously. It is so serious that I could even be severely reprimanded by the Board of Psychology (the licensing board for psychologists in the State of California) if I violate the trust that is placed in me by my clients. I'll simply define confidentiality as the requirement to keep your private stuff private.

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Lack of Sleep

I want to emphasize the findings of a recent study which suggests that even ONE NIGHT of sleep deprivation can lead to an overestimation of importance that is assigned to all stimuli, not just emotionally laden ones but neutral ones as well.

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The Importance of Diversity

I have, in the past, written about the benefits of taking an "information vacation" and I'll advocate for that again now, but at the same time, its important not to bury our heads in the sand and ignore all these messages that the media is presenting. It is imperative that we speak up when we hear fear mongering and recognize the agenda of those that are proposing outlandish ways to decrease diversity in this country.

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Friendship

If you have only one best friend or if you have several, research shows that talking to or hanging out with a true friend like that is one very effective stress reliever. Having a friend with whom you can be yourself, whether that person is a friend like Sheri, or a spouse or a sibling, is a wonderful feeling. 

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Feeling Stuck

The traffic this morning got me thinking about how clients (and all of us, really) feel stuck sometimes. We've been doing one thing one way forever and we THINK its the best way even though its far from ideal but to do it a different way is to take a big risk and maybe it will be even worse than the way we were originally doing it. The result is feeling stuck (and wishing someone would invent a device that would allow you to see the future already!) 

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