Despite the good cheer that they bring, holidays can and do often dial up stress.  As we move through a holiday season unlike any we have ever seen, here are three pointers for managing it: Agency You get to decide how you want to lead yourself, how you want to show up.  You can take...Read More

The enormity of this global moment hits when we learn that in Jerusalem, the church of the Holy Sepulchre (above) had to close its doors due to a pandemic for the second time ever this week.  The first time it was locked for this reason – using the same key – was in 1349, during...Read More

Friendship is one of life’s most important healthy pleasures, and one too often taken for granted. A Harvard study found that having no friends (or feeling lonely) is as deadly as smoking, suggesting we ought to pay more attention to who we surround ourselves with. The theory of Dunbar’s Number posits that 150 is the number of perpetually changing...Read More

One day you finally knew what you had to do… and began. -Mary Oliver The metaphor of a frog* dropped in boiling water will jump out, but if heated very gradually will be boiled to death, applies to our health too. The gradual degradation hardly gets noticed until one day, we are confronted with the...Read More

When my sister was in the throes of addiction, I did everything I could to try to fix her, make her different. No matter what I did, the outcome was the same: chaos and heartbreak. A client spent hours leading a search for a new director. A well-qualified candidate was selected, but the boss said...Read More

He who sows hurry reaps indigestion. Robert Louis Stevenson, Scottish philosopher 1850-1894 An interesting study at the Princeton Theological Seminary tells a troubling story about how well-intentioned humans can behave when we are in a rush. The students were given a lecture on the parable of The Good Samaritan, and then were told they had...Read More

When I was growing up, I was one of six kids and my father owned a toy store in Hackensack, New Jersey. What I learned as a teenager, was that his leftover inventory became our Christmas presents. While I slept, the delivery truck from his store would back up the driveway late Christmas Eve. What...Read More

One Person’s Experience with Integrity Comfortable shoes and the freedom to leave are the two most important things in life. –Shell Silverstein A colleague of mine accepted a senior clinical position at a large research hospital She quickly saw that the culture was focused on conducting research, with attention to patients as a secondary priority....Read More

 As countries get richer, they do not get happier.                                           The Easterlin Paradox The 2018 World Happiness Report is out and while America’s income per capita has increased markedly during the past 50 years, well-being...Read More

“We don’t absorb the energy of others, we match it.    Wayne Dyer   I’ve written about emotional vampires before: those people around us that are victims, know-it-alls, or complainers. Lately, my thinking on how to best deal with these people has evolved. If we feel drained after interacting with one of these types, it’s...Read More