In the Little Prince by St. Exupery, the fox tells the little prince his [the fox’s] secret, that is very simple. The secret is: “it is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is essential is invisible to the eye.” The Little Prince was written in french and the quote above in…

An OP-ED piece in the June 6, 2015 New York Times by Carl Safina sheds important light on alpha male wolf behavior. In contrast to the notion that the alpha male is dominant and in control in the home and aggressive outside the home, the alpha (dominant) male wolf helps get food for the entire…

I recently saw the movie “Inside Out” with my wife and two of our friends.  The mother of a 9 year old that I treat had recommended that I see the movie.   The movie is about the feelings that a 11 year old girl named Riley has as she leaves behind her home in Minnesota…

Over and over recently I have seen how listening can reduce stress in our lives and help us to be more confident.  So, how can listening help reduce stress and improve our confidence?  My initial awareness of the significance of listening came when some of my patients talked about trying to help their friends deal…

Recently my business manager noticed that a question was raised about my prescribing Lamictal [lamotrigine] for a 9 year old girl.  I realized then that I needed to clarify why I made this choice.  I have blogged about it in the past but I felt that I needed to write about it again. Lamotrigine was…

Recently a woman who I am treating for PTSD told me that her two year old child repeatedly would ask “where are we?”  As we talked about this it seemed that her child was responding to her mother being preoccupied and not available to her child.  It seemed that her child was sensing her mother…

Abilify [aripiprazole] and Seroquel XR [quetiapine XR] are called atypical antipsychotic medications with their atypicalness relating to the fact that they increase levels of the neurotransmitters serotonin and norepinephrine as well as decreasing the neurotransmitter dopamine which the typical antipsychotics do as well.  Research studies have shown that Abilify and Seroquel XR can treat bipolar…

I have previously blogged about how the two year old child of a mother who sees me started to ask “where are we?” and this question seemed related to when his mother was starting to cope with a percieved threat by removing her awareness from the situation as if she were not there.  This coping…

I have previously blogged about ADD/ADHD [attention deficit disorder/ attention deficit hyperactivity disorder] and the amount of stress that can occur because of significantly limited amounts of sustained concentration and attention.  I am frequently reminded of this when I work with people with this disorder, especially if they have not had treatment or their treatment…

One of my children asked me about how I help people who come to see me.  I began reflecting on the different ways that I provide support and encouragement for my patients. I was able to identify a number of different things that I attempt to do. I believe that my first effort is to…