Untangling Our Wired Lives: A Plan for Parenting On and Offline

If you find yourself wondering if your time on the Internet and social media is harming your child, then you’ll want to read on. According to recent research, children as young as eight are experiencing a host of problems due to social media use. Even Randi Zuckerberg, sister of Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg, wants to help us untangle our wired lives. She recently started an online community called Dot Complicated and has published a new children’s picture book Dot., about a little girl … [Read more...]

Inspiration: Top 10 Ways to be the Best Person You Can Be

Shortly before leaving Monmouth Medical Center in June of 2013, Dr. Allan R. Tunkel, then Chief of Medicine, gave a talk to the medical honor society at Drexel University College of Medicine.  He delivered a riff on David Letterman’s Top 10 and spoke about the top ten ways to be a successful physician. When I had a chance to look at his speech, I was struck by the fact that it was not only a list of ways to be a great physician but a code of conduct for being a great human being. I found his … [Read more...]

Self-Examination: Key To Life After Divorce

For many, after living as a pair for so long, it’s important to recognize that you are a unique and valuable person on your own. I often tell my clients, “You are a whole person by yourself and not half of anything.” You may have some work to do to get back to recognizing that and the point when you begin to enjoy living life post-divorce may depend on where you are in the timeline of recovery. You may have children to care for, or you may not. You may be under 40, exhilarated and ready to … [Read more...]

Cognitive Therapy: Taking Control of Your Negative Thoughts and Feelings

Maybe a few of these situations sound familiar? Does bad luck creep into your life often? Do you find it hard to shake off a passing comment from a friend? Do you frequently anticipate aggravating conversations with coworkers? Are you physically tired due to a lack of sleep from feeling depressed and anxious? Do you overreact when your child misbehaves? Your frustrations and feelings of sadness, anger, and anxiousness may seem uncontrollable, but did you know that you could learn tools … [Read more...]

Back-to-school, Back-to-Busy?

Back-to-school: It’s exciting (New clothes! New notebooks! Structure! Childcare!), but stressful too, because it brings with it: homework, the sleep schedule adjustment and, of course, an overwhelming array of afterschool activities. I believe that parents should expose their children to a broad range of activities, so that a child can develop a passion. But I warn parents to be on their guard, especially in the new school year, that they don’t let their children become involved in too many … [Read more...]