I’m scared of downtime. That’s right, relaxation is downright uncomfortable for me. Part of me craves it like every other human being. Yet as soon as it is here, I twitch. I pace the house. I don’t know what to do with my hands and my legs — even more importantly, my brain. Sometimes the […]
I debated whether or not to publish this one, as it is not becoming. I hate everything about smoking and have never wanted to be associated with it. That’s why, to the best of my ability, I hid it. However, given all of the touching birthday wishes from readers, especially those thanking me for my […]
I have many favorite prayers, but I have been reciting these six lately. I thought I’d share them with you. The Serenity Prayer by Reinhold Niebuhr God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference. Living one day at […]
Hi, I’m Therese, I’m a recovering alcoholic, former smoker, and past anorexic; a depressive and bipolar; and a graduate of two inpatient psychiatric programs. I’m also intelligent, driven, compassionate, sensitive, creative, playful, and loving. Although the world has erected a solid wall between the above two statements, I’m on a mission to tear it down—not […]
Of all my symptoms of depression, stuck thoughts are by far the most painful and debilitating for me. The harder I try to move the needle from the broken record in my brain, the louder the song becomes. Ruminations are like a gaggle of politicians campaigning in your head. Try as you might to detach […]
If it seems like I’ve been writing about mistakes a lot, it’s because I feel like I’m making a lot of them and am trying my best to sift through the uneven emotions felt in their aftermath. Fortunately, I’m in good company. On my post The Value of Our Mistakes, a reader wrote: My beginning […]
I find the last two weeks of February the most challenging time of year in terms of weather and mood. Although inching closer to spring, we’re still hit by freezing temperatures and threats of school closings. Everyone has turned a pasty white, and snow flurries lose their wonder. They mean more schedule adjustments and time […]
None of us like to fail. But some of us find it especially difficult to rebound from a mistake. We beat ourselves up for months, even years, rehashing our blunder. We ruminate about what we could have done differently. We are stuck on what we lost. However, with time, we often discover that our failures […]
For Valentine’s Day I was going to post “A Recipe for Married Life” by Anthony Coniaris that a reader recently sent me. Its wise bits include: An exhaustive study of police records showed that no woman ever shot her husband while he was doing the dishes. Learn to serve each other in humility and love. […]
Twelve years ago my voice joined the chorus of whiners griping about the evil ways of Big Pharma. I agreed with those accusing pharmaceutical companies of profiting from the weak and taking advantage of the sick. I uttered an Amen when reading angry editorials lambasting pharma reps for pushing drugs on vulnerable peeps to meet […]
Last week I picked up a part-time job at a dress shop in downtown Annapolis. Some would say that this gig makes absolutely no sense. It doesn’t advance my career as a mental health writer and consultant. I have no retail experience whatsoever. My compensation as a sales associate hardly matches what I was making […]
I was in fifth grade when I learned the power of heavenly signs. My parents had just separated and my mother was despondent. She was praying a novena to St. Therese the Little Flower, whom I am named after. Tradition holds that on the fifth day of the novena, the person praying will receive a […]
Over the weekend, my husband and I participated in a marriage retreat. We were given many writing assignments. The last one was to answer the question “Why do I want to go on living?” The following is what I wrote. Three months ago, I sat at this same desk, in a small, private room at […]
