What Burning Out Taught Me About Work/Life Balance

I learned a lot of important lessons from my experience of burning out at work. Though following these lessons is easier said than done, your happiness -- and mine -- depends on putting them into practice.

A Tale of Two Therapists

Being in therapy can be "the best of times," and "the worst of times"; it can bring "wisdom" or be the epitome of "foolishness" (i.e., a waste of time). My first two adventures in therapy are good examples of each type of possible experience. As I've mentioned previously, I've likely suffered from some form of …

Things You Never Say to a Depressed Person

Be careful what "words of comfort" or "advice" you give to the depressed person in your life. Regardless of your intentions, you could do more harm than good. The following are just a few examples of things NOT to say to someone with depression. Trust me on this; I've heard most of 'em. 1. "Just think positively/look on the bright …

With Mental Illness, Silence Can Be Deadly

Why doesn't everyone know that May is Mental Health Awareness Month in the United States? Because many people still see mental health as a weakness of personality instead of a disease of the mind/brain.

Nature’s Transformative Freedom

"Real freedom lies in wilderness, not civilization." - Charles Lindbergh I'll never forget the first time I went hiking by myself last June. My little hiking booklet discouraged against hiking alone, but I was irritable, restless and bored, and could barely stand my own company, much less anyone else's. My husband, Matt, wasn't home, so he …

Solace Found in Nature, Music

Music can be a powerful weapon in your arsenal when battling depression. Upbeat music, however you personally define it, can bring relief, even if only momentarily.

Communing With Trees, Part 2

Does the idea that trees can communicate sound crazy to you? Think again. Studies have proved that plants "talk" to one another. Maybe, just maybe, they talk to us as well.

Communing With Trees

Trees have always captured people's imaginations, stimulating the spiritual part of the brain that instinctually seeks a higher power and desires to commune with that power. Why do trees affect and inspire us the way they do?

Hard Lessons Learned on the Trail

  As I've mentioned elsewhere in this blog, my love of hiking comes from my father, who used to take my siblings and me for hikes when we were kids. Dad had two rules on the trail: KEEP UP and LOOK DOWN. If you didn't keep up, you could be separated from the group and …