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excerpt from 10 Simple Solutions to Worry
Why do worry exposure?
There are several reasons why purposely exposing your self to your worries can be beneficial:
excerpt from Little Ways to Keep Calm and Carry On
Oh the nerves, the nerves—the mysteries of this machine called man! Oh the little that unhinges it, poor creatures that we are!
—Alderman Cute, in “The Chimes,” by Charles Dickens
Simply said, anxiety is an emotion—but what an emotion it is! Anxiety, like all emotions, has three components: biological (your physical response), cognitive (your accompanying perceptions and thoughts), and behavioral (your actions) (Frijda 1986).
Your body braces for action when the big “A” takes its cue. In a matter of seconds, your body reacts biologically, cognitively, and behaviorally—all in response to a perceived threat. The key word here is “perceived.” As a warning system, anxiety alerts us that something may be wrong, not that something is wrong. When nature’s alarm bell sounds, we need to listen, reflect on it, and determine whether there’s actually a danger or it’s a false alarm.
excerpt from The Gift of ADHD Activity Book
The focus here is to help you juggle the competing demands any parent feels. You want to hold high standards, but you can see how the competition and pressure these standards can produce take their toll on your child. You know it’s best to stay positive, but you want your child to deal with life’s realities and be able to tolerate frustration. You’re committed to advocating for your child, but you worry that being his champion means he won’t take responsibility. This chapter will help you balance all of these competing demands and others.
I’m now going to begin challenging you to start asking a new question. Instead of either high standards or connecting to your child, you will begin to ask, “How can I have both?” Each time you are confronted with one of these dilemmas, push yourself to look for a solution that honors both sides of the tension. In doing so, you will learn the art and science of flexible thinking. Flexible thinking means you realize that in some cases you don’t have to put your chips down on one value over another. Flexible thinking means that you have the ability to find a way to honor seemingly competing demands.
How can you connect deeply with your child and yet still set strict limits? Some of the activities below will guide you toward answers to this question. One of the answers is that the more deeply connected to your child you become, the more you see his side, the more leverage you have to enforce standards and limits. Another piece of the puzzle is that your child will push limits just to get the much-needed attention he is seeking. If you give him what he really wants—someone trying to see from his perspective—he won’t need to push limits to get your attention.
by guest blogger M. Susan Roberts, co-author of Living with ADD
It is now 20 years since Attention Deficit Disorder first appeared in the 1980 version of the psychiatric diagnostic manual. In these two decades, much has been learned and much has stayed the same in our understanding and treatment of ADD. ADD is still defined by variability in three characteristics: attention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. Agreement is beyond reach on the many different forms of ADD —although there is recognition that not all ADD is alike. What has changed is a vast new understanding of brain’s contribution to these characteristics and how these characteristics appear in daily life, as well as how to live and work with them.
by guest blogger Leslie Cerier, author of Gluten-Free Recipes for the Conscious Cook
Do it like the Clintons. Chelsea Clinton had a gluten-free wedding cake. Why gluten-free? Because millions of people are over eating gluten (wheat, rye and barley) causing migraines, indigestion, fatigue, depression among other chronic ailments. Not only people with gluten-intolerances will benefit from diversifying their diet and including a new variety of gluten-free grains. They are nutritious, delicious and fun to cook with. In fact, I am not gluten intolerant but for over twenty years have been enjoying gluten-free cooking and baking because it has given my family and me increased energy, stamina and variety in our daily meals.
Eating a gluten-free diet is good for you and the planet. The majority of the wheat grown is genetically modified and heavily sprayed with toxic pesticides that are hard for humans to digest. Our diets have been built around these wheat varieties that yield the highest quantities instead of the highest nutritional content. This book celebrates the earth’s bounty in the kitchen. Being adaptive, creative and conscientious is part of our recipe for reducing our carbon footprint.
You don’t have to be the Clintons to enjoy gluten-free deserts. Here is a hazelnut- chocolate chip brownie that will become one of your favorite recipes whether you’re gluten-free or not:
excerpt from 10 Simple Solutions to Adult ADD
People with ADD have a higher rate of changing jobs and being fired. In many jobs, ADD works against you rather than serving as a strength. Not all jobs are created equal—at least not for people with ADD. People with ADD do best in jobs that are:
by guest blogger Lara Honos-Webb, Ph.D.
What if you defined yourself by what you are good at rather than by what you are not good at? What if you asked “What went right?” What if you believed that those talents that came as easily to you as falling off a log were your greatest gifts? Can you imagine the momentum you would generate if you called yourself or your child “innovative problem solver” rather than “stinks at math.” It seems easy to believe that the motivation and confidence you gained by defining your child by his or her gifts would make it easy for your child to plow through weaknesses – lack of focus, difficulty paying attention to details, impulsiveness, lack of stick-to-it-iveness.
I’ve always been amazed that though the word “ADD” and “ADHD” are bandied about like the latest fad in some circles or alternatively, as a life sentence in other circles, few have asked a deeper question fundamental to a disorder defined by an attention deficit.
excerpt from Loving Someone with OCD
The cumulative effects of OCD on marriage can result in a relationship burdened by stress and conflict. If left alone, the challenges of OCD moments combined with OCD’s threats to the couple’s emotional and physical intimacy, related financial stressors, interference in social relationships and activities, and fears for the future can shake the very core of your relationship.
Failure to communicate with each other openly about these stressors serves as a form of avoidance that, whether purposeful or inadvertent, creates the opportunity for the root of the problems to grow while creating even greater opportunity for devastating and painful effects on the relationship.
New Harbinger Publications
Susan Albers, Ph.D.
Ronald Alexander, Ph.D.
Lisa Firestone, Ph.D.
E lisha Goldstein, Ph.D.
Steven C. Hayes, Ph.D.
Lara Honos-Webb, Ph.D.
Susan Kuchinskas
Karen Leland
Pavel Somov, Ph.D.
Cassandra Vieten, Ph.D.
Barton Goldsmith, Ph.D. "Emotional Fitness"
Bill Knaus, Ed.D. "Science and Sensibility"
Cassandra Vieten, Ph.D. "Mindful Motherhood"
Jefferson Singer, Ph.D. "Life Scripts"
John P. Forsyth, Ph.D. "Peace of Mind"
Jonathan Kaplan, Ph.D. "Urban Mindfulness"
Karen Leland "The Perfect Blend"
Kelly McGonigal, Ph.D. "The Science of Willpower"
Lisa Firestone, Ph.D. "Compassion Matters"
Marilyn Krieger, Ph.D. "The White Knight Syndrome"
Mary Lamia, Ph.D. "The White Knight Syndrome"
Randi Kreger "Stop Walking on Eggshells"
Raychelle Cassada Lohmann, MS, LPC "Teen Angst"
Rick Hanson, Ph.D. "Your Wise Brain"
Robert Firestone, Ph.D. "The Human Experience"
Ronald Alexander, Ph.D. "The Wise Mind Open Mind"
Russ Federman, Ph.D., ABPP "Bipolar You"
Russ Harris, MD "The Happiness Trap"
Stephanie Sarkis, Ph.D. "Here, There, and Everywhere"
Steven C. Hayes, Ph.D. "Get Out of Your Mind"
Susan Albers, Psy.D. "Comfort Cravings"
Susan Pease Gadoua, LCSW "Contemplating Divorce"
Troy DuFrene "Fumbling for Change"
Elisha Goldstein, Ph.D. "Mindfulness & Psychotherapy"
Suzanne Phillips, Psy.D., ABPP "Healing Together for Couples"
Pavel Somov, Ph.D. "360º of Mindful Living"
a blog by Russ Harris, MD