January 1, 2025
The ancients knew there were many times of the year – and in our lives, that signaled a time to slow down. These were the hours and days for quiet reflection. Clearly, those days are over in “modern times.” The reality of life today is the amount of time reserved for rest has diminished dramatically. Another “casualty” of modern life […]
February 14, 2024
I continue to be surprised by the lack of understanding we have about what we humans need to thrive. Of course, we know this. Modern psychology has studied and confirmed that without social connection, humans simply cannot thrive, They may, in certain cases, even die. Yet, many of us do not live as if we truly know this. This, I’ve […]
January 1, 2024
When was the last time you experienced joy? To answer the question it helps to remember what joy feels like in your body. Like all other emotions, joy has its own unique biological signature. We memorize emotions in our bodies. With those emotions we experience less often, we may have to work a little harder to recall how they felt. […]
October 17, 2023
There’s lots of compelling information that has emerged from neuroscience about compassion. That’s good news because, frankly, we need it. You see, the really good news is that we’re hard-wired for compassion. Speaking at a conference in Telluride, Colorado, The Science of Compassion: Origins, Measures and Interventions, sponsored by Stanford University Medical School’s Center for Compassion and Altruism Research, Stephen Porges, Ph.D. presented […]
April 11, 2023
In truth, we all start, somewhere, within a family system. The experience is universal and lifelong. We all bring it – we all have it. It is a matter of degree – and awareness. In every interaction we have at work, we bring our internal and interpersonal dynamics to the table. Family, culture, generation and other demographic imprints with us. […]
March 14, 2022
Writing in The New York Times, Tara Parker-Pope wrote in (Go Easy on Yourself, a New Wave of Research Suggests) “Do you treat yourself as well as you treat your friends and family? That simple question is the basis for a burgeoning new area of psychological research called self-compassion – how kindly people view themselves. The research suggests that giving […]
March 11, 2022
Pulitzer Prize winning poet Mary Oliver’s haunting question should become a mantra for life in the 21st century. Seemingly inured to stress, too many of us speed through each day without taking the time to stop and ask – what have I traded a day of my life for today? Jumping on the mindfulness bandwagon dozens of articles still ask, “Can […]
November 11, 2021
Looking around it’s common to see the signs of an increasingly weary and anxious world. There appears to be little room left for the joys of wonder. Asked to identify the “malaise of the moment,” a prominent New York psychiatrist declared, “Generalized anxiety. That is by far the most common complaint voiced by my clients.” The antidote? Well, that’s a […]