A scientist explains how the pain of loneliness makes us sick: Companionship is an asset for human survival, but its mirror twin, isolation, can be toxic. The very cells of people who live through periods of chronic loneliness look different. More specifically, the white blood cells of people who suffer through chronic loneliness appear to be stuck in a state [...]
"It’s called attachment theory, and there’s growing consensus about its capacity to explain and improve how we function in relationships."
"My daily life is the working through of my losses. My daily life happens on account of what has been taken away. Everything I have and everything that I have lost is present. And if I can allow myself – that is my heart, body, soul, and mind – to traverse the terrain of myself. Then I am living. There [...]
"High-functioning depression is when someone seems to have it all together on the outside, but on the inside, they are severely sad. Carol Landau, PhD, a clinical professor of psychiatry and human behavior and medicine at Brown University, says she primarily sees this in women with a penchant for perfectionism—AKA the same people who are likely your colleagues and friends [...]
"Organizations like Toronto Psychotherapy Group, whose members provide professional help for a wide array of issues experienced by patients of all ages, are seeing a growing interest in talk therapy from millennials who are concerned about aspects of their mental health....."
"Current, medical treatments suppress symptoms but long-term use hinders the process of new self-construction…research tells us that we should use our medications carefully, sparingly, and temporarily. We should always use them in conjunction with serious psychotherapy that aims to help personal reintegration (not just superficial ‘counselling’ about ‘how to live with your illness’). Healing must involve a new integration of [...]
"...But here’s an alternative view, which should be obvious but apparently is not: playing is learning. At play, children learn the most important of life’s lessons, the ones that cannot be taught in school. To learn these lessons well, children need lots of play — lots and lots of it, without interference from adults."
"Finding a good therapist can be a daunting task. But with therapy, more than almost anything else, it's the relationship between client and therapist that matters most."
“Inattentive, hyperactive, and impulsive behavior may in fact mirror the effects of adversity, and many pediatricians, psychiatrists, and psychologists don’t know how—or don’t have the time—to tell the difference. ”
“...in order for therapy to be effective, both people are going to have to tolerate learning something about themselves they don’t already know. No one escapes therapy with their self-image completely intact. This is a good thing. Of course, just being alive in the world with other people also invites us to see ourselves as others see us. But therapy [...]
