One tool that makes a major difference in managing everyday life is resilience. It's a skill that we begin to learn as children. Yes, it's one of my favorite topics and it's the focus of our new project, Elastic.

When will we learn?  We've had so many shootings this year. Everyone wants to control guns. Yes, gun control is critical (even though we have so many already, I am not sure it will make a difference).

But what about the people who do the shooting?

One of my friend's daughters is a stylist. I probably need to pay her a visit. Every time I think of my friend, I think about her daughter--a woman who has singlehandedly gotten training in place in TN to help stylists...

How often do you see the word "trauma"? You know, a celebrity (or not) reports they've been traumatized by something that to the rest of us is like, "Really?" or an athlete, or a student, or someone we don't care...

In a recent blog, I wrote about the reason therapy goes slowly, which is to make sure that we can tolerate what we experience in the process. Now, there are tools and techniques that can make the work go more ..

What's burnout got to do with it? Simple. Lower resilience means higher vulnerability to burnout. What contributes to resilience?  These are the most frequent characteristics cited:  Having a realistic sense of ...

Yes, thankfully, Spring is coming. Two weeks ago we had things blooming--and the next day it was freezing--I mean well below 32. But, bless them, the little plants are resilient, and just this morning I noticed some new ...

St. Valentine is going to have his way with us in the coming days.

Animated eyes with hearts glitter across GIFs and heart-shaped cards and candy fly off the shelves and through the ethers of what used to ...

This is the time of year when it is a little harder to manage a good mood for many people. Yes, the days are getting longer; yes, spring is coming, and we're only a month into winter.,,

Who likes change? Not many people that I know! Most of us dig a rut and are pretty happy with it. Me? I dig it, take my recliner down there, add a TV and a cooler, and I'm happy. Then the only difference between it and ...

It's holiday season. The time of year, when no matter what holiday you celebrate, there is ample opportunity for hurt feelings, hard times, and heartache. Believe me--I know. And if you're from some parts of the ...

Tendayi Chirawu's new book, The Glitter Horn, is a multi-continent and -culture novel that describes a woman's journey through an emotionally abusive marriage. The Glitter Horn covers Malaika's life  ...

Every culture honors those who have gone before in some way. Halloween--October 31 started out as a Celtic tradition called Samhain, when people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off ghosts...

Splitting hairs word-wise is a long-standing tradition: everyone wants to "own" creating a new term or word. That way we can be "unique." Sometimes, though, there's a relationship between or among .....

Work is changing, and in ways, we can't predict. We have no idea what "career" or "work " will look like in a decade, maybe not in five years.

Work. We work for income. We trade for goods and services. We work ...

Have you ever seen hair stand this much on end or a cat on its' tiptoes so elegantly? Look at those eyes! You'd have to work hard not to see this tiny kitten trying to be very big. Oh, I have spent so much time like this...

It's hard to maintain hope in the face of COVID, natural disasters, economic injury, and the long-term grinding pressure we felt before these happened. If you have "traumaversaries" in your life....

Do you ever feel this way? As if you are emerging from being trapped in (o perhaps trying to walk through) a wall? Traumatic experiences can leave us feeling stuck--or sometimes in cycles of "stuckness.: ...

 If you're a provider instead of a patient, you know the patients your office sees that no one wants to see. Noncompliant, whiny, combative, or just generally difficult. You have schedules they just don't ...

Long cold winters during pandemics make for lower levels of joy, happiness, and optimism for a lot of people. For some, it's the darkness, the shorter days. For others, it's restrictions on outdoor activity. 

I remember that feeling--I wanted it to be over, to be "fixed."   "What is wrong with her?" I thought. "Is she scared of what I have to say? Or does she not know what she's doing?" Ouch. Not the thoughts you want to have when...

I don't know about you, but I feel like a piece of taffy that has been pulled sideways, forwards, backwards and then sideways again about fifty-leven times. You can trust that little pup to tug sixtyleven ways to get that rope..

If you took Civics or American History you might recognize the founding Fathers. How about the founding Mothers? In some lists Martha Washington is four down the list, after Abigail Adams (feminist wife of John..

There's a new meaning for HOPE. Now, I've heard a lot of explanations:

How Everything Probably Ends,
Hold on with Prayer Every Day,
Hang On with Positive Enthusiasm,
Hold On Pain Ends...

Adults used to say "snug as a bug in a rug" to talk about being cozy and warm. Cats are heat-seeking creatures. They love being warm. They may or may not like being cuddled, held, snuggled, wrapped or clothed.

This week is Christmas week. In every tradition, there is some celebration focused on light. I know some of them: Diwali, the Hindu celebration of light come among us; Hannukah, ...

People who help others with self-care and resilience know that you have to "put your oxygen mask on first"  before helping others. In an air emergency, that seems like a natural reaction...

Tendayi Chirawu's new book, The Glitter Horn, is a multi-continent and -culture novel that describes a woman's journey through an emotionally abusive marriage. The Glitter Horn covers Malaika's life  ...

Is this person holding out eyeglasses for you to put on? Or holding them away from their own face to see if they need cleaning? Or maybe using them to magnify something? Perhaps they picked them up off the ground.....

In every culture, there are methods to help us remember "who we are." I'm imagining that these folks in Kargi, Kenya have elaborate systems of identification. I wonder if each beaded pattern, each element in their .....

In an article in Forge.medium.com, psychologist Dacher Keltner explains that "because of how our brains are wired, when we give hope to others, we derive pleasure that’s as strong as when we receive hope."....

You know they say water seeks its' own level. The #traumatwisties do too. If you've had overwhelming experiences in your life, the chances that you may believe lies about yourself is high---as it is if you've ...

I have never jumped on a trampoline--except the little mini-tramps with handles. I have knees that dislocate and are very loose, no kneecaps.... ooh enough about me. Let me get to the heart of the matter....