Talkin Therapy

Hugh:   I’ve been thinking recently about how some of my clients see me as an authority figure.  I think that’s problematic. Even more problematic is that I sometimes relate to myself in that way.  As a psychiatrist, I was trained to think of myself as a keeper of truths, a judge of what behaviors, attitudes or reactions are right and wrong, normal and abnormal, good and bad.  If I’m not attentive to what I’m doing, I can fall into old habits. I really don’t want to play that role, because it stifles human connectivity and gets in the way of

Hugh:  I’m thinking a lot lately about psychiatric medications – specifically, I’m thinking about HOW to think about them.  It’s not just a theoretical question…one of my new clients says he’s “desperate” for me to prescribe something to “even out” his moods – he gets into states of depression, seemingly “out of nowhere,” and can’t concentrate at work.  At night these moods often interfere with his sleep.  Of course I want to alleviate his distress.  At the same time, I’m concerned that in the long run medications may do him more harm than good. Ann:  I’m so glad you’ve brought

Hugh:  One of my clients, I’ll call her Carla, came into group the other night and told us that she was very upset over a situation at work, which had left her feeling angry with herself for being – as she put it – “not true to my authentic self.” This led, eventually, to a conversation about what we mean when we talk about ourselves in this way: what is an “authentic” self, and what is it to be true (or not) to it? Ann:  Sounds like a juicy conversation, philosophically speaking.  And important, too. The self looms very large

Ann: Some of my friends are into special diets to eliminate artificial ingredients, or preservatives, or whatever. They’re trying to cut down on all the crap, and that means reading the labels. Hugh: I got caught up in a traffic jam at the supermarket, because people were standing in the aisles studying the contents on every box. And I get it -- it’s good for us to know what’s in the food that’s sold to us. Ann: Labels work when they’re on packages. But when they’re on people…not so much. By the way, I liked the workshop that you and

Hugh: Let’s talk about something everyone does – including people who love each other – but that lots of people think they shouldn’t be doing at all (which is one of the things that makes it hard to do well): arguing about their differences. I recently read a thought-provoking piece in The New York Times by Daphne de Marneffe, a couples therapist, who teaches newlyweds how to get closer when they disagree or see things very differently (The Secret to Happy Marriage Is Knowing How to Fight). Ann: I read it too, and I liked it a lot! She questioned