Introduction. 12-Step Recovery Programs first appeared with the inception of “Alcoholics Anonymous,” a spiritual fellowship and structured path to healing, which later took on myriad forms that could address other …
Thoughts Anonymous Philosophy
Finding the Compass in Compassion: A New Model of Caring for Others and Ourselves
When I first came to therapy as a client at the age of twenty-one, I worried at the end of my initial session that my suffering would burden my therapist …
Anxiety Reader Feedback SpiritualCoping With Ambiguity (And the Trouble with Affirmations)
Coping statements are qualitatively different than affirmations, because they emphasize resilience, not perfection. I don’t believe in affirmations, but I do believe in coping statements. Affirmations are a form of …
Missing Pedophilia OCD: Don’t Let This Happen to You
Don’t let what happen to me? Did I read this right? Now that my title has grabbed your attention, I hope you will allow me to explain: By “you” I …
Anxiety Reader Feedback ToolsHealing Hypervigilance
If you suffer from hypervigilance, you may be engaging in an exhausting, never-ending strategy of scanning your environment for evidence of danger. Hypervigilance is not a disorder in and of …
OCD Popular Professionals Reader FeedbackSearching for Bad News: The Circuitous Path of Obsessive Thinking
I Believe Something Terrible. Many people are invested in “proving” the existence of something they are terribly worried about. Even though this would be the worst news imaginable – that …
Popular Reader Feedback SpiritualLook — You Are Not Your Mind
“You are not your mind,” I tell my clients. “You aren’t.” This statement is usually followed by a mixed look of skepticism and pity: “She’s a psychologist, and she doesn’t …
Anxiety Popular Professionals Reader Feedback SpiritualAnxiety and Co-Dependency
A Sign of Co-Dependence: Compulsive Giving. Anxious people tend to be co-dependent, often possessing a great capacity for empathy, a strong sense of responsibility, and a longing to channel their …