Dr. Payton

I recently watched Julianne Moore’s moving and beautiful performance in “Still Alice.”  She portrayed the rapid progression of dementia symptoms in a 50 year old woman.  In the movie, she talked about how devastating it was to lose her memory and to lose her memories.  She felt that in many ways, her memories defined who…

I have helped many people who are bothered and consumed by trying to make sense of what other people say or do. It has become clear to me that feeling a need to understand others is risky because we can’t know about other people and sometimes if we can’t make sense of others it is…

Recently I was reading a number of studies about physicians listening to their patients.  On average physicians wait from 12 to 20 seconds before they interrupt their patients.  After this interruption, physicians may ask questions but often will not give their patients an opportunity to share more of their concerns, although will ask their patients…

Recently there have been two more killings that have been justified by claims of self-defense as the shooters felt “threatened.” One threat apparently was popcorn being tossed at the shooter’s face and the other based on loud music coming from a car with a number of young males in it. Previously a man in Florida…

Sabrina Tavernise reported in The New York Times on February 26, 2014 about a recent federal survey showing that obesity in 2-5 year olds was reduced by 43%. This is even more significant as 3-5 year old children who are obese are five times more likely to be overweight or obese as adults. This reduction…

I recently read about a study that improved on previous single country studies that showed that unemployment increases the suicide rate. This new study (Nordt C et al. Modeling suicide and unemployment: A longitudinal analysis covering 63 countries. 2000-11. Lancet Psychiatry 2015 Mar; 2:239) found that suicide rates increase 20-30%, 6 months before unemployment rates…

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…