Blog
The opposite of moralism isn't amoralism, it's creativity
I'm not a fan or moralism. Morality, yes. What's the difference? Morality, which seems inarguably worthwhile, is about being committed to engaging in a struggle over who we want to be, as human beings. It's the grappling with the questions, large and small, in and among the many relationships in which we exist, about what is the most just way forward. It's more like writing a poem than looking a…
Mar 28, 2011The blame game
Isn't it much easier to decide who's fault it is than to stick your neck out and lead?Here's a neat trick: Next time you're setting out the pieces to play a round of the blame game, skip it. Instead, call out, "You know what, it was my fault." (You've gotta mean it though--no sarcasm!) And then, quickly, set to work with the vastly more important question: "What are we going to do about it?"Don't…
Mar 24, 2011Theraphobia: A therapist walks into a Christmas party
A few years ago at a holiday party in Manhattan, at the home of an actor friend, a giddy young woman asked, "Are you an actor like everyone else here?" I replied: "No, I'm a psychotherapist, actually." "Ah! That's great! Hilarious! So... actor."She walked away, laughing.Being mistaken for an actor was a first, but the walking away part wasn't exactly new. Even in such a seemingly…
Mar 21, 2011For Christ's sake: Stop trusting your gut!
There are days when (according to my twitter stream, at least) it would seem as though all of psychology and psychotherapy is intent on discovering the biological origins (in evolution, in genetics, in the inner workings of our brains, or all three) of just about everything we do:Men cheat on their spouses because of the evolutionary necessity of perpetuating their genes.The ruminations that…
Mar 10, 2011
But why?
Last night I finally got around to watching the stunning documentary Man on Wire, chronicling Frenchman Philippe Petit's astonishing 1974 tight-wire walk between the recently erected twin towers of New York City's World Trade Center. The feat took years to plan (not to mention a lifetime of practice on Petit's part). Petit and his crew of supporters plotted every detail of the seemingly…
Feb 22, 2011
Sometimes crazy is a 12-lane superhighway
I had a friend in high school whose parents wouldn't let him drive on the highway for the first year after he got his driver's license. In New York City, where I now practice therapy, you could get around okay, but in Columbus, OH, it takes a hefty amount of creativity to get anywhere you want to go avoiding the highway. My friend got to know the side streets pretty well. I spot a metaphor at the…
Jan 31, 2011
Two meanings of catastrophe
I've had a number of conversations in the past few weeks with folks who's lives, in one way or another, are falling apart. Being a psychotherapist, it's not so unusual. What seems different is in just how many of these cases what fell apart needed to fall apart:A pursuit of a PhD 9 years on, without much progress but at great expense (and opportunity cost). A business that's been making everyone…
Jan 25, 2011So this guy built a toaster...
...and tells us an awful lot about who we are (and a bit about group therapy).. His name is Thomas Thwaites, and I first saw the video where I find a good deal of smart things, on TED. Check it out: Pretty terrific, right? Just sharing it with you is exciting, but I'd like to say a bit about it, hopefully without sounding too much like an academic and ruining the whole thing. I'll try.If you…
Jan 18, 2011
The root of resolutions
Everyone told me their resolutions last week. It was nice. I see the sharing as an invitation (to help, to push, to hold accountable).This week, I'm following through, and thinking about the root of resolutions: resolute.Resolute. It's less flashy, resolute. The architect designs the building--beautiful, sweeping, innovative--and she gets most of the credit. Then the builders build it. At times,…
Jan 11, 2011
Other people, who are a pain in the ass
When I was a freshman in college things were bad, and I dragged myself to therapy. I'd stopped being able to cope with the depression I'd just barely coped with most of my life. College was hard, and I didn't have a clue. There was this girl who was into me and then not into me and then into me again. And I had this roommate... It was college.Dr. R. and I talked about a lot of things. We talked…
Jan 04, 2011
Psychology (Today) on the NYC Subway
I did a double take when I saw this magazine rack on a New York City subway platform Saturday morning.[caption id="attachment_870" align="alignright" width="535"] Magazine Stand: NYC Subway Platform[/caption]No, it wasn't Cher in a leotard. Look a bit further down and to the right. That's Psychology Today alongside (and fitting right in with) Lucky, Cosmo, and Glamour.At first glance, I thought,…
Nov 09, 2010
Listen, body, you work for me.
Your body's telling you it doesn't want to get out of bed (go on the job interview, the date, the networking meeting, the get-together with friends). It's tired. Or wrapped in that familiar warm blanket of depression. Hiding out is the only thing on its agenda.Only your body works for you.Depression can be pretty powerful. The trick is, if you want to get out of being depressed (and this works…
Nov 08, 2010Browse all Tribeca Therapy topics
Connect with one of our senior therapists to make a plan to get started
If you prefer not to fill in a form, you can also email us (or type email@tribecatherapy.com into your preferred email tool).