Psychology, Philosophy and Real Life

Lessons from the Land and Sharing With Friends

Dr George Simon, PhD — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 13:12:42 +0000

There are lessons to be learned about simplicity, wholesomeness, and sharing with friends. We glimpsed a few in the Tuscan countryside.

Tags: mindful awareness, relationships

But Is It Addiction?

Gordon Shippey — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 14:11:01 +0000

Is there really such a thing as "sex addiction," "food addiction," "shopping addiction," or "Internet addiction"? Addiction has less to do with what someone is addicted to and more about how their brain and behavior change over time. Recognizing the signature behaviors of addiction can save lives.

Tags: addiction, brain, drug abuse, neuroscience, therapy

Facing Life Fearlessly (Even at the Dentist)

Libby Webber — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 15:47:09 +0000

Sometimes fear prevents us from doing what we know we need to do. But why are we willing to hand over control of our decisions to what is, after all, an emotional response?

Tags: anxiety and stress, emotional memory, emotions, health, mindful awareness

Changing Our (Relationship to Our) Past

Evan Hadkins — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 14:50:44 +0000

The imperative to live in the here and now can be taken in two ways -- one, an invitation to broaden our awareness, and the other, a demand for the narrowing of awareness.

Tags: mindful awareness, relationships

‘Ask the Psychologist’ Publishes 2000th Reply

Dr Greg Mulhauser, Managing Editor — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 14:30:45 +0000

Today our Ask the Psychologist column reaches a new milestone, and thanks are in order -- thanks to our team, thanks to those who have written in, and thanks especially to our readers.

Tags: online mental health, site news

Parenting: Rules and Relationships

Gordon Shippey — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 13:51:12 +0000

Behavior-based parenting techniques have enjoyed a strong following for the last several years. Less well known are the long-term disadvantages of the behavioral approaches, as well as the the relationship-based alternative that predated behavioral parenting’s popularity.

Tags: book, parenting and children, relationships

The Grand Design

Dr George Simon, PhD — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 15:37:54 +0000

The giant crack in Earth that is the Grand Canyon has been here a long time -- a very long time, in fact, before we humans came along. And it's likely to go on for a long time, even if we do not.

Tags: emotional memory, history, mindful awareness

Parenting, Children and ‘Bad Seeds’

Evan Hadkins — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 12:18:49 +0000

Can good parenting really yield children who are 'bad seeds'? Are parents really at fault? Or children? Or is the reality just quite a bit more complex than that?

Tags: character disturbance, parenting and children, relationships, responsibility

The Adventure of Response-ability

Evan Hadkins — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 16:08:31 +0000

If the individual is totally responsible for their own experience, this lets other people off the hook for any consideration of the consequences of their behaviour.

Tags: history, mindful awareness, relationships, responsibility

Four Things You Can Learn from Your Computer

Gordon Shippey — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 15:56:42 +0000

You may think you have problems, but your computer has problems too: viruses, hackers, and a hard drive that's never big enough. How modern computers cope with their problems can teach us a lot about how we handle our own struggles.

Tags: boundaries, mindful awareness, relationships, work-life