A reader asked for my comments on the psychology of ‘escapism.’ I’ve always found ‘escapism’ an interesting, if not misleading, concept. Usually, the term implies a value judgment. ‘You’re running away from something you should face, and that’s bad.’ Of … Continue reading
A reader writes: Once I asked my daughter (12 years old at the time) what she would do if she were stranded alone on a deserted island (I was looking for some drive in her). She said she would die. … Continue reading
Dear Dr. Hurd: I’m trying to understand why I recently had an affair. My wife found out and it hurt her greatly, as well as humiliating me. Can you help me understand why I did this? I’m not looking for … Continue reading
Dear Dr. Hurd: I work in the Washington Navy Yard, the scene of the recent shooting. I understand the reasons why I’m physically feeling the way I am (sleeping poorly, eyes scratchy, throat feels like I’m holding back tears, chest … Continue reading
Don’t you believe in flying saucers, they ask me? Don’t you believe in telepathy? — in ancient astronauts? — in the Bermuda triangle? — in life after death? No, I reply. No, no, no, no, and again no. One person … Continue reading
Dear Dr. Hurd, If someone who’s young and immature stops drinking alcohol, and abstains for years, and later becomes mature and mentally healthy, can that person now drink normally? Dr. Hurd’s reply: There’s honestly no way to know, unless you … Continue reading
A reader asked me if, in the context of our free will, that bad philosophy has the potential to push people toward madness or psychosis. Absolutely. Actually, people drowning in madness and psychosis are, by definition, drowning in mistaken or … Continue reading
Dr. Keith Ablow, a media psychiatrist, recently wrote some interesting comments about married people’s attitudes towards marriage: Marriage is so suffocating for so many people that it makes millions of people wish they could hit ‘rewind’ on their lives and … Continue reading
Conclusion of yesterday’s column. In a strange way, the subjectivist view could be considered on the route to reason and rationality. A rational outlook, unlike the subjectivist one, insists that the facts of reality are what they are, and they … Continue reading
A reader comments: Unfortunately, most people who believe in God have never bothered, and are probably afraid, to define ‘God.’ A word like that, left undefined, is, I think, a very destructive thing over time. After many years of not … Continue reading
Conclusion of yesterday’s column. Wisdom and Age Does wisdom have anything to do with age? Not all elderly people are considered wise, but many are. And by virtue of being old, an elderly person usually has the benefit of the … Continue reading
‘He’s wise.’ This means, perhaps, having knowledge one is not expected to have. As in: wise beyond one’s years. Sometimes you’ll observe the following about a person: ‘He’s highly intelligent. But he’s not very wise.’ Or, ‘He lacks common sense, … Continue reading