Can you imagine that helping professionals and other caring witnesses are still suffering trauma responses a decade after the 9/11 tragedy? That certainly speaks to how insidious the effects of vicarious trauma can be! It also demonstrates a saddening lack of compassion and absence of resources for our heroes. Continue reading
Tag Archives: anxiety
Suicide and the Client Who Never Was
If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, please remember that suicidal thinking is the result of being in an extreme shame attack. The suffering person is grappling with life-issues or events that provide a context of seeing oneself as unlovable and worthless. Continue reading
Virtual Vexation: Is Social Media Endangering Your Health?
Last week, I shut down my computer, packed a small bag and headed for the mountains to hang with my dear friends and let my brain stop aching. I felt like I was coming down from a serious binge and had to heal from a heavy hangover. What was the drug? Social Media; a “drug” … Continue reading
The Mad Ramblings of a Pedestal Professional
When I come into the door after a long day at the office, I am emotionally inverted. I feel as though my feelings have been sucked into a vacuum and I can hardly connect with my own family who needs my attention as well. Sometimes I feel numb. Sometimes I think that if one more person asks one more thing of me I will scream. Continue reading
Relationships and Attachment
Some people make attachments with others that go from one extreme to the other: “I don’t want you; please don’t leave me!” They overshoot that midpoint of secure attachment and don’t get much joy or comfort from their connections with others. Continue reading
Divorce and Children: Protecting the Innocent
Divorce can become a very self-centered time for parents. I do not mean this judgmentally. There, but for the grace of God, go I. During my divorce, which took place over 25 years ago, I became so anxious for my own future, I didn’t take the time to empathize with my children’s experience and I believed they suffered as a result. Continue reading
The Precious Spirit of Aloha
Aloha is a commonly used word for “hello” and “good-bye” that we say when we are fortunate enough to visit the Hawaiian Islands. However, “Aloha” means much more than hello or good-bye. Aloha is an extension of your loving inner spirit and it leads us to a powerful way to resolve a problem, accomplish a goal, and to reach a peaceful state of mind. Continue reading
Stress andTrauma: Second-Hand Shock
We think Second-Hand Shock Syndrome needs to be identified and treated as its own illness. Lots of folks are treated for illnesses such as arthritis, cancer, heart, disease, obesity, anxiety and depression, who we believe began their downhill descent with some form of Second- Hand Shock Syndrome. Continue reading
Love and the Long Hot Summer
Sometimes our love-relationships are like the long, hot desert summer. Love can be intense and searing with hot passion. It can include dry spells that leave us, as partners, quenching for replenishment. Continue reading
Blended Families: “Growing Up” Together
Statistics demonstrate that more Americans are living in step-families than in nuclear families. Blended families are clearly a key ingredient of our culture; so how can we make them more successful in the long haul? Continue reading
