Unhealthy, neurotic people “need” a crisis. Because they’re irrational and neurotic, they can’t stand happiness. Their subconscious generates a disaster for them, something for them to manage so they can feel self-sacrificial and heroic. They find no heroism in happiness, … Continue reading
I am a psychotherapist. I don’t prescribe medication. Rather, I talk to people about their emotions, their relationships and (sometimes) their mental disorders. Lately I’ve been asked for my psychological take on COVID-19 and the resulting lockdowns. My answer has … Continue reading
The vast majority of America continues to follow a zero-risk policy re: coronavirus. This means: “Not even the slightest risk of catching this is permissible. All life must stop until we have a cure.” This morning on Fox Business, everyone … Continue reading
Nobody wants to talk about the psychological impact of open-ended lockdowns of the citizens by the government. It’s because psychology pertains to INDIVIDUALS. Our tyrannical governors and government doctors don’t care about individuals. They only care about numbers, abstractions, and … Continue reading
From the perspective of a mental health professional who still counsels people every day: What’s going on psychologically in this crisis? Stir-craziness. Cabin fever. People have been denied their sense of purpose. They also have lost their sense of choice. … Continue reading
Dictators and tyrants are weak, neurotic and fragile people. What keeps them afloat is attention and fear from others by exercising power over them. They are children in adult bodies, with adult cognition and hopelessly immature emotional responses. Giving them … Continue reading
Some couples seek marriage therapy for the wrong reasons. Often subconsciously, one or both parties doesn’t want a solution. Instead, one spouse wants to see the other humiliated, shamed and/or corrected. By whom? By the therapist. On one level, it … Continue reading
A recent study described at Psychology Today confirms the obvious: People with greater self-control are more likely to achieve their goals. “Goals” mean anything from planning your day to having a rewarding career to losing weight. The less obvious question: … Continue reading
“There are few habits as infuriating as someone making us wait. But, despite what may be running through your mind as you’re kept waiting again, it’s unlikely your friends and colleagues are just being selfish. A look into the psychology … Continue reading
Gratitude is not an empty obligation. It’s not something you express as a duty. You’re grateful because you want to be, and you let yourself be. Gratitude is an expression of justice. It’s a way of acknowledging: “I know someone … Continue reading
We all have a conscious mind and a subconscious mind. The conscious mind refers to what we actually THINK. The subconscious mind contains all kinds of things — what we used to think, what we sometimes think, what we agree … Continue reading
Everybody wants to be a victim. It pays psychologically, in our culture, to be a victim. But why? What value or virtue is there in being a victim? Sometimes we admire people who really ARE victims in what they overcame. … Continue reading