Athlete or Not, Science Says to Do This if You Want to Keep Your...
A free throw in basketball is an intensely stressful situation. All eyes are on the player. Will they or won’t they sink the shot? Merely watching is anxiety-provoking for me. It’s hard to imagine...
Reflect, Don’t React
According to the old adage, if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say it at all. (As an aside, growing up, my parents had a needlepoint pillow that occupied prime real estate...
The Benefit of Keeping Your Feelings to Yourself
Whenever Abraham Lincoln felt the need to give someone a piece of his mind, he would fire off a harsh letter. Putting pen to paper was his way of unloading his fury. A classic example is...
The Problem With Labeling People as ‘Toxic’
Toxic is a word that gets thrown around a lot these days. As a psychiatrist, I hear it frequently during therapy sessions—to describe parents, siblings, neighbors, exes and co-workers.
Once primarily used to describe plants,...
Forget Work-Life Balance
Have you ever met someone who has actually achieved work-life balance? I haven’t. As Oliver Burkeman wrote in the best-selling book Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals:
“Nobody in the history of humanity has ever...
When It Comes to Venting, Sharing Is Not Caring
It is no wonder that my patient felt drained after spending a weekend with an old friend who was known to be a relentless complainer. Grumbling about what’s bothering you may feel like a good...