Safety-Trust
Listening through the Adversities
When people used to ask me how I could stand listening to people’s problems all day long, I always replied, quite truthfully, that I wasn’t actually listening to the problems. […]
Coming to Calm before the Conversation
My colleague Dorie Rosenberg shared this guided visualization with a group of psychotherapists considering retiring (or already have, as I already have). If I had known of it while still […]
The Resilience and Well-Being of Ordinariness
Whenever I mention the title of Ron Siegel’s new book, The Extraordinary Gift of Being Ordinary, folks respond, “Oh, I LIKE that!.” Perhaps the relief, the permission, to get off […]
Free Guided Practice – Create a Resource of Safety Before the Flak Hits the Fan
We can create many resources for resilience as we go through our days, imagining and rehearsing them ahead of time before the flak hits the fan. A very effective resource […]
This Is the World I Want to Live In…the Shared World
I recently taught a two-day training in Istanbul, Turkey on Resilience: Coping with Life’s Disappointments, Difficulties, and Even Disasters. The clinicians were well-trained in contemporary Western psychology and eager to […]
A Dog’s Love and Companionship Heals
I see a lot of “art house” films – mostly independent, many documentaries, many foreign. “Triumph over adversity on behalf of a noble cause” is my favorite genre. Two days […]
From Barely a Wobble to a Real Wallop
I teach and write about resilience as the underlying capacities that allow us to meet any level of disruption to our safety and well-being, from barely a wobble to the […]
Trusting the Intention to Trust Your Inner Intuition
A simple hunch. I was driving down a steep, curving street in a residential neighborhood near my home. Something tells me, “slow down, slow down,” so I brake the car […]
Cultivating the Wiser Self
When we’re facing a difficult decision – leaving a job that’s no long in alignment with our values and passions, seeking new possibilities but risking failure, or staying in a […]
Using Visual Memories to Create an Inner Safe Base of Resilience
Fully 25% of your brain’s real estate is devoted to visual processing in the occipital lobe. Human beings who can see navigate their world primarily by sight, more than touch, […]