self

There are no more beautiful and moving stories of healing than those told by Rachel Naomi Remen. Kitchen Table Wisdom is one of those books I come back to again and again. Each of its brief stories renders a moment of discovery that reveals a life’s meaning to someone lost in pain or rigid routine. […]

Recovery should aim at restoring psychological well-being as well as ending the symptoms of depression. Naturally, you get into treatment to stop the pain of those symptoms. It’s a huge achievement if the treatment works, and you can keep depression from ruining your life. But so many people relapse after initially getting better that full […]

Recently, I’ve been reading about the blending of Buddhist psychology with western psychotherapy, especially the ideas about desire. I used to think that Buddhist teachings considered desire itself to be the cause of suffering and dissatisfaction with life. Not so, according to western interpreters like Jack Kornfield, Phillip Moffitt and Mark Epstein. They describe desire […]

This is a new version of an early post about how my wife and I were able to keep our relationship together despite the impact of depression. It discusses a therapeutic approach to emotional awareness that helps eliminate barriers to closeness by drawing on ideas about acceptance. More than 20 years ago I stopped believing […]

I’ve tried to stop talking to myself, but I haven’t had much luck. I’m referring to the silent internal conversation that accompanies almost every waking moment when my attention is left on its own. I’ve often wondered why the talking has to keep going. Listening with Awareness As part of dealing with depression, I’ve worked […]

The boy took careful aim with his lever-action BB gun and fired off the first shot. The tiny pellet pierced one of the windows of the tall tree-house, and jagged cracks radiated from the pinhole it made. The house was nestled securely in the giant crook of an oak tree that stood right next to […]