|
|
A Guide to Relationship Quizzes
Sometime in the 1950’s, women’s magazines started publishing relationship quizzes in their pages with a complex scoring system that arrived at a number. This number was then plotted on a scale and the reader could determine, based upon that number,...
Emotional Freedom - At YOUR Fingertips!
What would you say if I told you I know of a simple method that can make emotional stress such as upset, anger, fear, concern and distress simply melt away in a few minutes and all you had to do to achieve this is simply touch a few "magical...
LEARNING TO LOVE OURSELVES
LEARNING TO LOVE OURSELVES
Our doubt concerning our self-worth is the main obstacle to our emotional and inter-relational harmony. This doubt is the cause of our greatest fears such as being rejected, laughed at, ignored, unloved, and most of...
THE ENCHANTED SELF, That's Each of Us!
In my years as a psychologist, I have come to believe that most people seeking psychotherapy are unhappy. This is not only due to earlier hurts and traumas, as well as present frustrations and problems, but because they cannot access earlier happy...
To Be or Not to Be: Forgiveness
Forgiveness is a complicated issue for many of us because it revolves around anger, which is a VERY complicated topic for most of us.
We’re all a little weary of classifications, but let’s throw one out that works as well as any of them do....
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
No Picnic In Sight
Upon being diagnosed with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, I saw the reality behind the greatest myth of mental illness, the myth that The Victim Is Unaware of His or Her Own Condition. A childhood flooded with media depictions of the mentally ill had lead me to believe that the afflicted had somehow been robbed of their objectivity, thrown into a dark hall-of-mirrors beyond the realm of rational perspective.
Nonsense. My rational mind remained intact, albeit uncomfortably so. From the lighter corner of my mind, I watched darkness flow in. Obsessive images of violence and amorality. Urges, or rather, "pseudo-urges" to do things I didn't want to. Yin (the rational mind) duking it out with yang (the imbalanced, irrational mind) on a daily basis. The word "Hell" was used often when describing this state.
I'm certain that the suffering of many leads to punctured objectivity and the loss of rational self-awareness. Fortunately, I remained aware. No matter how awful I felt, I could at least articulate what was going on. The power of descriptive articulation should not be underestimated. It keeps the disorder in context as a disorder, preserving a firm boundary between the right mind and the ill mind. For me, imagining such a boundary was a vital survival tool. I focused on finding a day when Yin overran Yang, so
to speak.
The afflicted mind has difficulty inspiring itself to seek assistance. What a complex entity the mind is; even in sickness, it has only itself to rely upon. Unlike somebody with a broken leg, a person with an anxiety disorder cannot lean on his or her other mind. Overcoming mental duress is like trying to kiss your own lips. Quite tricky, but possible with enough imagination.
Imagination and resourcefulness, that's what it comes down to. These strange ailments go just as they came. I knew that elements of my mind were strong; the challenge was getting these elements to positively influence the weaker ones. This required many analysts, many appointments, many schools of healing. Psychology, psychiatry, homeopathy, reflexology, reiki, energy healing-- these were all thrown in the pot to little avail. Finally and unexpectedly, acupuncture provided balance. I've improved significantly. I thank acupuncture and I thank my supportive family, but, most importantly, I thank counter-mythology: even when afflicted, the human mind sees itself. And in itself, it sees solutions.
About the Author
Eric Shapiro is the author of "Short of a Picnic," a collection of fictional stories about people living with mental disorders.
shortofapicnic@aol.com
|
|
|
|
|
Encyclopedia of Psychology - Psychology Websites |
A hierarchical database of links to psychology resources. |
www.psychology.org |
  |
Psychology - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia |
Psychology differs from the other social sciences — anthropology, economics, ... Health psychology is the application of psychological theory and research ... |
en.wikipedia.org |
  |
American Psychological Association |
Monitor on Psychology · gradPSYCH Magazine · PsycPORT News Wire ... APA Monitor on Psychology. psychology news. More news from PsycPORT ... |
www.apa.org |
  |
Psychology.Com |
Psychology.com provides online counseling from your choice of therapists. From depression to anxiety, relationships to parenting, we can help you work ... |
www.psychology.com |
  |
psychology virtual library |
from the site of the Psychology World Wide Web Virtual Library at. http://www.dialogical.net/psychology/index.html/. If you are not redirected automatically ... |
www.clas.ufl.edu |
  |
Intute: Social Sciences - Psychology |
Searchable database of Internet resources that have been reviewed, described, and categorized by area. Includes organizations, reference materials, ... |
www.intute.ac.uk |
  |
Psychology Today: Find a Therapist and News to Use |
The Therapy Directory and News to Use at Psychology Today: Find a Therapist, Psychologist, Psychiatrist and Counselor, Test Yourself and Read Articles on ... |
www.psychologytoday.com |
  |
Social Science > Psychology in the Yahoo! Directory |
Find sites dealing with branches, organizations, psychologists, research, intelligence, and general information about psychology. |
dir.yahoo.com |
  |
Social Psychology Network |
Thousands of searchable psychology links on a huge variety of topics. Definitely worth a visit! |
www.socialpsychology.org |
  |
Psychology and mental health at Psych Central . |
Mental health and psychology resources - Articles, essays, blog, support forums, Ask the Therapist, chats, website reviews, frequently asked questions, ... |
psychcentral.com |
  |
Psychology - Student Resources - Psychology Articles |
Find psychology articles, student resources, and psychology study guides. Explore psychology definitions and theories. Learn more about the history of ... |
psychology.about.com |
  |
Google Directory - Science > Social Sciences > Psychology |
Science > Social Sciences > Criminology (45) Recreation > Humor > Science > Psychology (9) Kids and Teens > People and Society > Psychology (55) ... |
www.google.com |
  |
Open Directory - Science: Social Sciences: Psychology |
Health: Medicine: Medical Specialties: Psychiatry (141); Health: Mental Health (5469); Kids and Teens: People and Society: Psychology (53) ... |
dmoz.org |
  |
Stanford Psychology Department |
One specialty of the Department of Psychology is cognitive sciences, with strength in the areas of visual science, cognitive neuroscience, ... |
www-psych.stanford.edu |
  |
The Higher Education Academy Psychology Network |
Information about events, publications, projects and research related to the teaching of psychology; database of resources. |
www.psychology.heacademy.ac.uk |
  |
APS Psychologist: Home |
The Australian Psychological Society (APS) is the largest professional association for psychologists in Australia, representing around 15000 members. |
www.psychology.org.au |
  |
Classics in the History of Psychology |
Offers full texts of documents significant in the history of psychology by author or by topic. Includes ancient, medieval/renaissance, and modern thought; ... |
psychclassics.yorku.ca |
  |
Psychology, Department of |
Information about the department's areas of research, facilities and resources, academic programs, and people in the department, as well as undergraduate ... |
www.psych.ucla.edu |
  |
Internet Public Library: Psychology |
This is a comprehensive site of psychology resources including hundeds of categories. ... Includes links to sites on specific social psychology topics, ... |
www.ipl.org |
  |
PsychCrawler |
The mental health disorders search engine of the American Psychological Association. Type a search request and click the "Get Results" button for a fully ... |
www.psychcrawler.com |
  |
|