Catastrophizing is a Pattern Of Thinking That Distresses & Debilitates There’s a small stain on the carpet. What if someone hacks into my computer and steals my bank details? Will I be late for work if the clocks in the house aren’t accurate? There’s a slight scratch on the car; you need to look very[…]
Category Archives: Willing Ways Articles
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Tackling The Misconceptions About Social Phobia Social phobia, also known as Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD), is not simply extreme shyness. Many people experience some shyness and discomfort, especially in new situations or with unfamiliar people. However, it’s generally tolerable once you warm up and relax after a while. Unlike shyness, such conditions are intolerable for SAD sufferers[…]
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The Value of Reality We’re a society of addicts. Just look around you. There are smokers, drinkers, drug abusers, degenerate gamblers. Then there are the slightly less obvious examples: compulsive shoppers, overeaters, workaholics, those endlessly glued to video games or Twitter. When it comes to addictions there seems to be no end to the possibilities. Why?[…]
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The Risk of Cross-addictions in Early Recovery A leading cause of eating disorder relapse is getting into a relationship too early in recovery. Early recovery is emotionally volatile; add in the additional ups and downs of a romantic relationship and you’ve got a recipe for relapse. In the vulnerable early stages of recovery, there is[…]
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Boredom Can Drive One to Drink, Or it Can Be a Catalyst For Change Most of us know what it feels like to be bedeviled by boredom. First encountered in childhood and expressed in the characteristic “I have nothing to do” whine, boredom grows up to be associated with depression and with emotional instability and neuroticism more broadly. Boredom is most[…]
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Men, Women, Cocaine Addiction, & Stress Current research indicates that a person goes through three phases when developing a drug addiction and that particular brain region is associated with each phase. The first phase occurs when a person tries an addicting drug for the first time and finds that the experience feels good—perhaps uniquely good. This positive[…]
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A Guide to Help Loved Ones Find The Motivation For Recovery People suffering from eating disorders are often ambivalent about recovering, which makes these types of illnesses harder to treat. Helping loved ones find their motivation for recovery can sometimes be hampered by the circumstances under which they “accepted” the need for treatment in the first place, i.e. was[…]
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Are Highly Sensitive Kids More Prone to Depression Last Monday, I was invited to teach a program to second-graders about “Emotions” and how to become happier. I have led this lesson countless times. So I began by introducing myself and connecting with the kids about what they do to feel happier such as skateboarding, singing,[…]
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It’s So Basic, But It’s Not Easy to Understand I have been thinking a lot about cravings lately. What is craving, really? What’s it all about? Craving seems to amount to a fundamental sense of being incomplete. When we crave, we want something to fill us up. We want to fill a hole, by taking[…]
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“Has Your Attention Become Narrowly Fixated on Your Work” Workaholism & Obsession In order to further understand one of the inner dynamics of workaholism—that perfectionism leads to obsession, and in turn, obsession leads to increasing levels of narcissism—our focus now turns to the role that obsession plays. The Thinking function has a single-focused awareness capacity that zeros in on[…]