Health & wellbeing
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Who’s in control?
“Incredible change happens in your life when you decide to take control of what you do have power over instead of craving control over what you don’t.” ~ Steve Maraboli, Life, the Truth, and Being Free “She’s/He’s a control freak!” I hear the phrase all the time, and I’ll bet you do too. Anytime we encounter folks who can’t resist taking over the wheel, or get wigged out when things don’t go according to their plans, we call them control freaks. Control freaks typically insist on taking the lead, and will even clean up our mistakes while they explain how to do it better the next time. Control freaks can…
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What are we really missing?
“The fear of missing out (FOMO) is the enemy of valuing your own time.” ~Andrew Yang Do you often have a nagging sense that there’s something better or more fun happening somewhere else? Do you feel a little anxious when you can’t check your social media feed? If so, read on because Dr. Andrew Weil has a cure for your FOMO. In his latest newsletter, Weil discusses the epidemic of loneliness in our country, and how, ironically, our social media obsession is making it worse, not better. Citing a brand-new study conducted by Iowa State University, Weil suggests that limiting social media time may have significant psychological benefits. “During a…
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How to get what you want
“Whatever you want emotionally, you have to start giving away.” ~Mary Karr In her best-selling memoir, The Liar’s Club, Mary Karr chronicles her deeply troubled childhood and her descent into alcoholism. Published in 1995, the book’s raw emotional honesty and humor resonated with readers — and topped the NYT bestseller list for a year. At the heart of Karr’s message is a simple reminder for everyone: We must find the courage reach out for what we want — and stop expecting others to read our minds and automatically fulfill our needs. In other words, if you want honesty and authenticity in your relationships, be honest and authentic. If you want…
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How to comfort a grieving friend
“If you’re my age, you’ve probably had your heart broken many times. So it’s not that difficult to unpack a bit of grief from some little corner of your heart and cry over it.” ~Emma Thompson Losing our parents and other loved ones is a reality of life as we age — a reality that’s easier to face if we have a nurturing support system. But sometimes it’s hard to know how to help and comfort friends who are grieving a new loss. That’s the topic of my newest column in The Sunday Oakland Press. You’ll find it in the Homefront section in the print edition (July 2) or you…
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Moving in another direction
“Taking a step back to walk away from situations that threaten your peace of mind, values, morals, or self-worth, is almost always a healthy and necessary step forward.” ~Marc and Angel Chernoff Growing up, we were often lectured about the importance of “sticking with it” — even when we suspected it wasn’t right for us. Of course, there’s merit in staying the course and working through difficult times and rough patches, but sometimes it’s better to slow down and reassess what’s really going on, as today’s quote reminds us. We might decide that it’s wiser moving on to something else. Loyalty to anyone or anything isn’t a virtue if it’s seriously messing…
