It was fall 1969 and I was in my dorm room at Kansas Wesleyan University. I was a freshman and just received my report card. I got four F’s and a C. I was amazed that I got a C and the professor told me later that I did well considering I only showed up...
I am a psychotherapist in the San Francisco Bay Area and have been working with grief and loss issues for over thirty years. During that time, I have worked with groups and individuals facing death and dying experiences. My clients shared what they feel are the worst and best things people have said...
It was November 1976 and I was living in Newton, Kansas. I had just quit my job as Executive Director of a runaway youth agency in Wichita. The corruption by the board of directors made it impossible for me to continue. I was burnt out and felt defeated. This was not my first foray into...
How many times have my clients learned something new about themselves and thought they had discovered the supreme solution to their struggles? How many times have I believed that I emotionally captured the central reason for feeling lost? Yes, it is easy to be excited by new insights about traumas such as child abuse, death...
I am a psychotherapist who has been in private practice in the San Francisco Bay Area since 1987. I interact with clients, friends, colleagues and acquaintances daily about the state of their moods. I am struck by how many folks are feeling overwhelmed. They are having moments (sometimes more than moments) of depression and anxiety....
Ten years ago, April 15, 2009, I passed out while running and almost died. I didn’t tell anyone about collapsing on the grass for a week. This silence is due to a combination of toxic masculinity and denial. I was terrified two weeks later when my wife, Gail drove me to the Hospital Emergency Room....
It was San Francisco November 1984. Sometimes glorious weather. Other times cold air blowing through my skeleton structure. Days watching the sun break through fog at Ocean Beach. I was 35 years old and wondering what my career path would be. I had worked for several nonprofit agencies and found them to have chaotic organizational...
My wife Gail and I drove away from Lawrence, Kansas on June 7, 1979. We drove to San Francisco excited about the possibilities that loomed in front of us. It took us three days to drive through the Midwest plains, the salt flats of Utah and the boringness of Nevada until we reached our destination....
What does Connecting mean? Connecting means interacting on a level that is pleasing for both parties. It leads to understanding and clarity through discussion. It requires a willingness to step inside the world of your child; another description of this action is called empathy. Sometimes conflictual topics are discussed when you are connecting. Hopefully...
What’s the definition of the word confront? According to Merriam-Webster Dictionary confront means to face someone especially in challenge. According to the Cambridge Dictionary, confront means to deal with a difficult problem, person or situation. I believe it also means standing up for yourself. Many avoid confrontations. They may have been raised in homes...
