http://shilpagupta.com/pages/2010/10iwanttolivewithnofear.htm

How Fear Grows

The only time most people enjoy feeling afraid is in a scary movie or on a roller coaster. There are moments when we actually feel more alive and excited and truly connected to our physical selves because we have allowed a manageable amount of fear in our lives. And then, there are those fearful feelings…

That Meditation Video

I have found that meditation (or, as I practice it, prayer) makes a huge difference to person’s state of mind. I’m going to post a little video I often recommend to people. A warning- it does have a slight Buddhist flavour, so if you are uncomfortable with that, please don’t watch. The point is to…

Rethinking the News

The last two posts have covered some ways to avoid being harmed by the news. But sometimes I need to do more when a story starts really bothering me. Here are a few good questions to ask yourself when you are reeling from something you heard on the news. 1. Do they have the whole…

Good News, Bad News. Which do you want?

This is the second in a series. The last post, No More News? introduced the idea that consuming news can harm your mental health, and explored a few reasons why people might want to continue taking in news. So, once you know yourself, the next step is . . . 2. Know the Media Once…

No More News?

When I am anxious, or troubled, one of the worst things I can do is to watch the news.  Or read a news site.  I have gone through periods when I felt I had to check the news regularly to make sure nothing horrible was happening. And I have had periods of time when avoiding…

Before You Leave the Island

Suppose that you find yourself on a desert Island. It’s pretty good there at first. There’s sun and surf and no-one to bother you. It’s a little cold and creepy at night, but you soon get used to it, and build yourself a shelter. And it’s all okay. Until it’s not quite as okay anymore.…

What can a park for rats teach us?

When I studied addiction in grad school, I was introduced to the work of Bruce Alexander, and it completely changed my understanding of the causes and treatment of this very common problem. I read his excellent book “The Globalization of Addiction”, which is a long, but fascinating look at the problem. Alexander describes the Western…

Just Winging It?

I recently read a very interesting post by Oliver Burkeman in the Guardian called “Everyone is Just Totally Winging It“, which tells one of the basic truths of life. We are all just doing our best. Pretty much no-one actually feels like a fully competent adult who is confident all the time that they are…