Spirituality, Therapy, and the Good Life

I listened to an interview with Vicki Robin, activist, author of “Your Money or Your life”, and advocate for living simply and sustainably last night. During the interview Robin’s addressed happiness, “the enough point,” the importance of community, “the power of letting go of what doesn’t matter,” grief, where we spend our life energy, and living with purpose, significance, compassion, and so much more.
You can listen to it here

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I listened to an interview with Vicki Robin, activist, author of “Your Money or Your life”, and advocate for living simply and sustainably last night. During the interview Robin’s addressed happiness, “the enough point,” the importance of community, “the power of letting go of what doesn’t matter,” grief, where we spend our life energy, and living with purpose, significance, compassion, and so much more.
You can listen to it here

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There is a Sanskrit blessing that has been so meaningful to me from the first time I read it. It speaks to honoring each person that we encounter. It says, “I honor the place in you where the universe resides. I honor the place in you of love, of light, or truth, of peace. I honor the place within you where if you are in that place in you and I am in that place in me we are one.”

I am continually striving to do this…

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There is a Sanskrit blessing that has been so meaningful to me from the first time I read it. It speaks to honoring each person that we encounter. It says, “I honor the place in you where the universe resides. I honor the place in you of love, of light, or truth, of peace. I honor the place within you where if you are in that place in you and I am in that place in me we are one.”

I am continually striving to do this…

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There have been several studies recently published on the treatment of depression. Among the findings reported are:

According to an analysis published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, antidepressants, while still the best option in the treatment of major depression, appear to offer little benefit to those suffering from milder forms of depression.

Women are at greater risk of developing depression and face significant physical consequences including but not limited to compromised brain functioning, heart disease, and reduced bone density. You can read more here

The National Institute for Health and clinical Excellence recommneds mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for indiviudals who have experienced three or more episodes of depression. Mindfulness training reduced the relapse rate of those struggling with recurrent depression by half according to two clinical trials. You can read more here.

You can preview the book, Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy for Depression here

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There have been several studies recently published on the treatment of depression. Among the findings reported are:

According to an analysis published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, antidepressants, while still the best option in the treatment of major depression, appear to offer little benefit to those suffering from milder forms of depression.

Women are at greater risk of developing depression and face significant physical consequences including but not limited to compromised brain functioning, heart disease, and reduced bone density. You can read more here

The National Institute for Health and clinical Excellence recommneds mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for indiviudals who have experienced three or more episodes of depression. Mindfulness training reduced the relapse rate of those struggling with recurrent depression by half according to two clinical trials. You can read more here.

You can preview the book, Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy for Depression here

Read Full Post »

A man wrote me recently to let me know that he no longer felt the vigor of his youth, no longer felt motivated by the dreams that had sustained him for so long. He felt lost. He questioned everything and no longer trusted anything. He asked what was wrong with him, and why he should even “bother anymore.” He assured me that he wasn’t suicidal, just stuck in some “no man’s land.” Was he depressed? Perhaps. Was this a particular pathology or something more universal? Was it possible that the land he found himself stranded in was every man (and woman’s) land? Could be. If we’re blessed to live long enough, doesn’t each of us eventually find ourselves mired in the murk of doubt and uncertainty for a time?

I struggled with how to respond to his question, “why bother?” for a time and then I recalled a quote in Sue Monk Kidds book, “When the Heart Waits” by Janice Brewi and Anne Brennan from their book, “Midlife.” The quote read:

“When, one day in mid-life one comes to doubt oneself- and all one’s relationships and commitments, and when the pain and anxiety of this dropping away of… energy from all that formerly was so life-giving begins to overwhelm, there surfaces the depth question: Why bother? Lucky the one who lets that question stand…That question is a prayer.”

“Why bother?” can become a sacred quest if asked with an open heart, one that widens our horizens, and seldom satisfied with easy answers, often calls us into a deeper more meaningful way of seeing and being.

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A man wrote me recently to let me know that he no longer felt the vigor of his youth, no longer felt motivated by the dreams that had sustained him for so long. He felt lost. He questioned everything and no longer trusted anything. He asked what was wrong with him, and why he should even “bother anymore.” He assured me that he wasn’t suicidal, just stuck in some “no man’s land.” Was he depressed? Perhaps. Was this a particular pathology or something more universal? Was it possible that the land he found himself stranded in was every man (and woman’s) land? Could be. If we’re blessed to live long enough, doesn’t each of us eventually find ourselves mired in the murk of doubt and uncertainty for a time?

I struggled with how to respond to his question, “why bother?” for a time and then I recalled a quote in Sue Monk Kidds book, “When the Heart Waits” by Janice Brewi and Anne Brennan from their book, “Midlife.” The quote read:

“When, one day in mid-life one comes to doubt oneself- and all one’s relationships and commitments, and when the pain and anxiety of this dropping away of… energy from all that formerly was so life-giving begins to overwhelm, there surfaces the depth question: Why bother? Lucky the one who lets that question stand…That question is a prayer.”

“Why bother?” can become a sacred quest if asked with an open heart, one that widens our horizens, and seldom satisfied with easy answers, often calls us into a deeper more meaningful way of seeing and being.

Read Full Post »

Tonight on PBS from at 8 pm eastern standard time the first of the three part series, “This Emotional Life” airs. The series is scheduled for January 4th through the 6th and will explore relationships and emotional health, negative emotions such as anger and fear, and how we develop resiliency and achieve happiness.

The PBS offers the following description:

“Harvard psychologist and best-selling author of Stumbling on Happiness, Professor Daniel Gilbert, talks with experts about the latest science on what makes us “tick” and how we can find support for the emotional issues we all face.

Each episode weaves together the compelling personal stories of ordinary people and the latest scientific research along with revealing comments from celebrities like Chevy Chase, Larry David, Alanis Morissette, Robert Kennedy, Jr., and Richard Gere.”

I’m looking forward to it!

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Tonight on PBS from at 8 pm eastern standard time the first of the three part series, “This Emotional Life” airs. The series is scheduled for January 4th through the 6th and will explore relationships and emotional health, negative emotions such as anger and fear, and how we develop resiliency and achieve happiness.

The PBS offers the following description:

“Harvard psychologist and best-selling author of Stumbling on Happiness, Professor Daniel Gilbert, talks with experts about the latest science on what makes us “tick” and how we can find support for the emotional issues we all face.

Each episode weaves together the compelling personal stories of ordinary people and the latest scientific research along with revealing comments from celebrities like Chevy Chase, Larry David, Alanis Morissette, Robert Kennedy, Jr., and Richard Gere.”

I’m looking forward to it!

Read Full Post »