“You were late because you got stuck on the D train? That’s odd, because the D train was closed for track work last night. I know that because I had to switch to the Q.” “Did I say the D? I meant the Q!” “But I thought you said you met your friend Bob at his office. How did you…
A world without water is impossible to imagine because…well, because we wouldn’t be here to imagine it. Water is essential to the existence of every living thing. It hydrates. Cleans. Purifies. Calms. Invigorates. You can swim in it, soak in it, float on it…even skate away on it when the temperature allows. It’s no wonder that water has so many…
The goal seemed completely ridiculous. Though an avid and dedicated Girl Scout in my youth, able to light fires and pilot my own canoe, I had been queried in my twenties concerning an upcoming camping trip, “What are you going to wear, a cocktail dress?” I was not an athlete, to put it mildly—more comfortable at poetry readings and pubs…
Gender generalizations make me uneasy. But after practicing psychotherapy for many years with women from diverse racial, religious, and socioeconomic backgrounds, there’s one that is unfortunately consistent: most women struggle with genuine self-care. Genuine self-care involves building into your life what you need to flourish—from providing an accepting home for your feelings, to pursuing your passions, to creating harmony between…
There is a real value to an optimistic “everything-is-fine” stance toward life. Studies have shown that pessimists seem to get sick more easily than optimists, experience higher rates of depression, and alienate those closest to them, while optimists—those who see the proverbial glass as half full—live longer than pessimists and are more mentally and physically resilient and productive. “While optimists-at-all-costs say everything…
On August 31, 2007, I woke up in the recovery room in pain. I had undergone an endoscopic ultrasound at Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, D.C., to learn more about the so-called mass that showed up on a CT scan of my pancreas. After nine years of debilitating illness, a doctor finally found the root cause. A resident came to…
I dodged a bullet. It was self-inflicted. But I didn’t even know it had been fired at me. I was walking down the street and felt a lump in my calf. It hurt a lot—my whole leg felt warm. I’d better keep an eye on this, I thought. When I woke up the next morning, the lump was gone. No…
