Gestalt Therapy was developed from theories of perceptual psychology, in which the concept of “foreground” and “background” are quite important. Human needs are experienced as “gestalten” (German for “whole things”) which become stronger in awareness (in the perceptual foreground) until we meet the needs, and then they recede into the background. A well-adjusted person is […]
When I went to school, it was generally accepted that – just as in adult society – there was a sort of stratification of children’s social world. Adults separate themselves through varying amounts of money or group themselves by profession (white vs. blue collar, etc.). Kids separated themselves by groups, too – older vs. younger, […]
… and we’re not talking about Billie Holiday. “The Holidays” have begun. Before candy and costumes were on the shelves, Christmas stuff was flooding the stores, as if no one could wait long enough to briefly tolerate Halloween and Thanksgiving en route to the big, important holidays (well, important to retailers at least). Television and […]
Pain is considered to be chronic if it has remained essentially unrelieved for 6 months or longer. Chronic pain can be of many types and locations, and may or may not have specific tissue damage associated with it. This is in contrast with Acute pain, which is temporary, is related to specific tissue damage, and […]
The brief article which I wrote for this website explaining the psychological approach to chronic pain management cannot begin to cover the extensive territory of psychological research into the causes and treatment of chronic pain conditions. I understand that there are conflicting approaches which are promoted and used by members of the medical and psychological communities to […]
A Family Intervention is a well-planned, rehearsed meeting in which the alcoholic or addict (the “subject”) is lovingly but firmly confronted about his addiction by a group of people who are important to him and who have been directly affected by his drinking or drugging. The Intervention is prepared in secret, without the knowledge of […]
Our relationship with food begins with the first drops of milk we swallow, and continues all of our lives. Because food becomes closely associated with the people who feed us, and who come to be seen as offering or withholding love and emotional sustenance, food becomes a powerful unconscious symbol of our relationships to our […]
Depression is something that most people experience at some time in their life. It can be part of a normal, natural reaction to a loss, a major life change or a tragedy, in which case it is classified as a “Reactive Depression.” As the grieving process proceeds, over the next few weeks or months the […]
There is a lot of information on the Internet about Asperger’s Disorder or Asperger’s Syndrome (“AS”). It was named after Hans Asperger, a German pediatrician who first described the syndrome. From Wikipedia: Asperger published the first definition of Asperger’s Syndrome in 1944. In four boys, he identified a pattern of behavior and abilities that he […]
or Wake Up and Smell the Feedback One of the latest innovations in corporate life is the “360-degree evaluation.” Instead of a yearly evaluation written mainly by an employee’s direct supervisor, feedback about a particular employee is gathered from those in positions above, below and at the employee’s level in the organizational chart. The information […]
