Musings from the Therapist's Chair

The Verdict Is In: Social Media Is Detrimental to Your Mental Health

Facebook was founded in 2004, Twitter (now “X”) in 2006.  The Apple iPhone was launched in 2007.  Since those seminal years, wireless devices and social media have dramatically...

What is Mental Health in a Time of War?

The past year has been tumultuous for the world. In a span of weeks, things seemed to have further fallen into disaster. Carnage, destruction, chaos spread like vicious ripples across the globe...

Respite from Road Rage: A Mantra for All Drivers

I live in a densely populated urban area. Traffic clogs the roads. Construction makes for long delays. I walk out onto the street and hear irate drivers leaning on their horns. As the daily commute...

Tyranny of the Screen: Tips for Moderating Phone-Use

I used to remember all my friend’s phone numbers. Indeed, there was a time when my working memory served a practical utility. I could pick up the phone and dial friends and family at will, no...

Meal Ordeal: How to Survive the Holiday Dinner

“Baby, please come home,” pleads Darlene Love in her Christmas classic. We can imagine Bing Crosby’s rejoinder: “I’ll be home for Christmas, you can count me.”  Every year, millions of travellers...

The Grass is Greener on this Side of the Fence: Gaining Perspective on Life.

My wife and I have a favourite pastime. We take leisurely walks through unfamiliar neighborhoods, admiring the houses that we pass. Minimalist, modern homes tend to catch our attention. From the...

The Right Metaphor for Difficult Moments in Life

Ruby drops onto the couch, sighs as if she had been holding her breath for three days. Although only 43, fatigue traces the lines on her face, despair shades her complexion. Her vitality spent, she...

Discovering Joy of Every Day Life

I have the habit of collecting moments of delight and wonder. These are quiet, unassuming encounters that uplift my soul and reveal the brightness of life. Sometimes I chance upon a small kindness...

This is It! Mindfulness for an Ordinary Day

In his autobiography, Speak Memory, Vladimir Nabokov wrote that “life is a slim crack of light between two eternities of darkness.” Take a fraction of that briefest spark, and we arrive at...