“Waking up to who you are requires letting go of who you imagine yourself to be.” ~Alan Watts
For a long time, I felt like I was standing on a riverbank just watching the water of life go by, too scared to jump in and play. I was waiting for the perfect current to come along that I could ride all the way to the completion of my intensely detailed life goals.… Read More
“Perfectionism is the voice of the oppressor.” ~Anne Lamott
I had planned to write this post a month ago. The topic was interesting, and it was one that I was sure most people could relate to. I mean, who hasn’t wrestled at some point with the issue of perfectionism?
One after another, notions and examples of perfectionism flowed steadily from my mind onto my notepad.… Read More
“Fear is a natural reaction to moving closer to the truth.” ~Pema Chodron
Are you as scared as I am?
I’m terrified.
I’m not talking horror movie terrified either. This isn’t the kind of scared where you jump, but then realize it’s just your friend who’s surprised you. This isn’t even the kind of scared when you realize you left your iPhone in a public bathroom.… Read More
“Every day brings a choice: to practice stress or to practice peace.” ~Joan Borysenko
Right now I am in a tight squeeze. I am in the process of making some big changes, and it’s bringing quite a bit of chaos—uncertainties, insecurities, and fears—into my life, as changes will do.… Read More
“Worry never robs tomorrow of its sorrow. It only saps today of its joy.” ~Leo Buscaglia
For as long as I can remember, I’ve been the worrywart extraordinaire.
Worry: verb: To give way to anxiety or unease; allow one’s mind to dwell on difficulty or troubles.
Fret, be anxious, brood, stress, panic.… Read More
“Happiness is not a station you arrive at, but a manner of traveling.” ~Margaret B Runbeck
It had been months since I’d gotten a good night’s sleep.
I’d wake up gasping from bad dreams throughout the night, and I’d feel an immediate knot in my stomach as soon as it was time to get up and face the day.… Read More
“I know but one freedom and that is the freedom of the mind.” ~Antoine de Saint-Exupery
Stress, strain, tension, worry, overwhelm, nerves, feeling wound up, freaking out. Whatever we call it, the effects are universal.
Our adrenals rev up, uneasy thoughts cycle on the brain’s hamster wheel, butterflies flitter in the stomach, our moods swing.… Read More
“I have done my best. That is all the philosophy of living one needs.” ~Lin-yutang
Perfectionism—the word brings to mind images of order and organization, of effectiveness and efficiency. This is what society expects from a “perfectionist,” and this is what is projected as desirable and attainable. There is an aspirational value to being a “perfectionist.”
Many people believe that perfectionistic tendencies motivate people to do their best and achieve their goals.… Read More
“Each time we face our fear, we gain strength, courage, and confidence in the doing.” ~Unknown
As the days have continued on past the beginning of the New Year, my discontent has been growing as I’ve been thinking (or worrying) about how unmotivated I feel.
The holidays have come to a close, the New Year began, we made wonderful goals for ourselves, and yet, I’ve begun nothing.… Read More
“Every day brings a choice: to practice stress or to practice peace.” ~Joan Borysenko
Every day I meet with people who are stressed and want things to be different. I also encounter people who are so distressed they’ve accepted suffering’s dominion over their life. Almost all, however, are interested in the concept of change.… Read More
“Today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.” ~Proverb
A few months ago, I moved from the metropolitan east coast to rural Indiana and bunked up with my grandparents to help them sell their house.
The house has finally sold, and now I am faced with options for where to go next.… Read More
“I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it.” ~Nelson Mandela
When I was a trainee teacher at a Cambridge University, I attended one of the oldest, most sought-after colleges, where most of the other graduate students were astrophysicists and economists, and 90% male.
They also seemed to come from families that were in some way related to the Queen of England.… Read More
“We are not what we know but what we are willing to learn.” ~Mary Catherine Bateson
It was a balmy spring morning and I started my day as per usual, but I soon realized that my mind was entertaining fearful thoughts about my financial insecurity.
With many new ventures within the seedling stage, my income flow was erratic and unpredictable, while my financial responsibilities were consistent and guaranteed.… Read More
“If you worry about what might be, and wonder what might have been, you will ignore what is.” ~Unknown
I was entering a completely new stage in my life. It could have been the beginning of something great, but it was entirely foreign to me. I could handle being productive, I could handle struggling to survive, but what was hard to handle was wading through the unknown.… Read More
“Whatever you fight, you strengthen, and what you resist, persists.” ~Eckhart Tolle
Sunday started out with a panic attack.
It wasn’t little butterflies in the stomach like right before a first kiss. It wasn’t the feeling of anticipation as a roller coaster slowly climbs the big hill before the drop.
This panic attack felt like I was about to jump off a cliff while being chased by clowns.… Read More
“Letting go gives us freedom and freedom is the only condition for happiness.” -Thich Nhat Hanh
Most people I know are carrying extra weight—and I’m not talking about gaining a few pounds.
I’m talking about the mental and emotional weight we lug around with us. We carry it everywhere—like a backpack full of bricks—and it weighs us down.… Read More
Editor’s Note: This is a contribution by Kara Heissman
“Beware the barrenness of a busy life.” ~Socrates
A few years ago, the focal point of my life was my work. It took up and made up a huge portion of my life. In retrospect, I would even say that work became a sort of obsession.… Read More
“Sometimes the wrong choices bring us to the right places.” ~Unknown
I was fired via email as my plane touched down at LAX.
I am not the kind of person who gets fired, who gets dismissed, who is asked to leave and is not welcomed back.
This was not my track record, no.… Read More
“Patience is not passive; on the contrary, it is active; it is concentrated strength.” ~Edward G. Bulwer-Lytton
Patience sucks!
Well that is what I used to think.
I was taught growing up that it was a virtue, but I was never taught why.
In my experience, patience had meant I would miss out on something I desired.… Read More
“Since you alone are responsible for your thoughts, only you can change them.” ~Paramahansa Yogananda
In my second year of residency, I went through my internal medicine rotation. I had just been assigned to a particular patient and was responsible for his care during that part of his stay. His medical chart stated he had multiple systemic issues, including more than one terminal condition.… Read More
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