Worry

’Tis the season for ghosts and goblins and creepy crawlies real and imagined … so I want to talk about one of the human mind’s scariest inventions, one nearly all of us believe ... Read More

I think you have quite a bit of insight about your problem: your childhood experiences and past relationships have shaped your worldview in such a way that you don’t trust your current ... Read More

People I work with in psychotherapy often tell me how they manage bothersome thoughts or worries: “I just try not to think about it.” This process of mental avoidance—trying not to ... Read More

“As soon as I’m worried about something with my boyfriend, I blurt it out,” said one group member. Another agreed. “If I’m at the store and I feel anxious, I drop everything and ... Read More

More than a quarter of Americans experience mental health issues each year, and the World Health Organization reports that depression is the leading cause of disability worldwide. However, ... Read More

Picture a waiting room. What image springs to mind? How do the words “waiting room” make you feel? If you think about where people typically identify feeling anxious or worried, waiting ... Read More

Sometimes, anxiety feels a lot like riding too fast on a spinning carousel at an amusement park. It takes hold of a particular thought or fear and spins on it nonstop. It’s frustrating ... Read More

Though I’m not a big TV watcher, I recently found myself beached due to a prolonged bout with the flu. Channel surfing yielded nothing I actually wanted to watch, but I found myself riveted ... Read More

If you’ve ever tossed and turned in bed endlessly worrying about money, your career, or your relationship, you know that anticipation of stress can be just as bad as the stress itself. ... Read More

“I wanted a perfect ending. Now I’ve learned, the hard way, that some poems don’t rhyme, and some stories don’t have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Life is about ... Read More

Ferguson, Missouri has turned into ground zero for protests of police behavior after the shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed 18-year-old. Since the shooting, Ferguson residents have been ... Read More

The other day, I had an initial session with a person referred to my clinic for the treatment of her chronic worry. She spent the first 15 minutes reporting that she worries all day, every ... Read More