When the COVID-19 pandemic began, I was unsure of how I would feel about seeing my clients online. It was so nice to sit in my real office, see their facial expressions and body language, and say goodbye with a smile, or perhaps a hug. And for the children that I treat, there was always a stuffed animal to take home or a puzzle to play with. Now that we are 5 months into working virtually, I can say that I truly appreciate the benefits of telemedicine, or telehealth as some call it. … [Read more...]
Helping Anxious Kids During the Time of Coronavirus
May 11, 2020 By
Most of the time, children are resilient. They bounce back pretty quickly. Of course, there are always those kids who have a harder time with change or with difficult circumstances, kids that Dr. Thomas Boyce refers to as the “orchids” in the greenhouse They are the ones who are more sensitive to their environment than usual and require more attention than the average child. Understanding the Orchid Child Today, however, it may feel like every child is an orchid. With the coronavirus … [Read more...]
Four Sentences That Lead to Wisdom
February 25, 2020 By
I love to read mysteries. Perhaps that is why I like being a psychologist so much. I think of each person as a puzzle with one or two pieces missing and try to figure out how to help each client find the right pieces to become happier, more productive, have better relationships, feel less anxious, or be better at what they do. Recently, I was reading a mystery by Louise Penny and found a few sentences that really got to me. Here they are. … [Read more...]
WOMEN – Are You Taking Care of Yourself?
April 22, 2019 By
Often, women do not make time to take care of themselves. We are so busy taking care of others -spouses, children, parents, neighbors, charities – that we find ourselves at the bottom of our “to do” list. A while ago I gave a talk to women on the board of a large charity about this very issue. All agreed that they had to do a better job; one woman, the husband of a physician, hadn’t had a mammogram or pap smear in years and said she just never got to it. While that may be an extreme example, I … [Read more...]
When Someone You Love Is Disabled
September 12, 2018 By
I confess. I was one of those people who never thought much about disabilities. Although I have had health problems through the years, none has left me unable to do the things I wanted to do. So my focus on disabilities was more about placards on cars and signs in parking lots. Then 16 months ago my husband had a stroke. It left him unable to use his left arm or leg, but we were lucky that his mind was fine and his speech, initially a little garbled, recovered quickly. Suddenly, things … [Read more...]