A Guide To Anger And Conflict Resolution
Welcome to From Insults to Respect. Today we take a close look at one reason some folks have a low level of respect for people who are viewed as having a mental illness–the belief that such people are avoiding responsibilities. There are two other main reasons for the stigma associated with being labelled mentally ill that we won’t dive into today, but I’ll just briefly mention….
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Welcome to From Insults To Respect. Today we explore the question, Is it helpful or harmful to view our anxiety and grief experiences as painful? Let’s begin this exploration with a diary entry from a mental patient that appears on page 224 in Richard P. Bentall’s fine book, Madness Explained: Rhoda [a friend] asked me if I were spoiled and I angrily said no, but feel…
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Welcome to From Insults To Respect. In two recent posts I aimed to encourage folks to consider learning to deal with anxiety in a manner that can improve their self-respect. The first of these, “The Nature of Anxiety,” provides a general overview of the topic. The other, “Anxiety, Guilt, and Responsibility” makes the case that anxiety is an enormously helpful state of mind when acted upon responsibly,…
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Welcome to From Insults to Respect. Recently, I wrote a post titled, “The Nature of Anxiety” (see HERE). It provided a general overview of this natural, enormously helpful, state of mind. The point of view that I described is in stark contrast to the common view in our society that looks upon anxiety as a negative, destructive, “abnormal” experience, a symptom of mental illness, one which…
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Welcome to From Insults To Respect. Today, with some of us deeply concerned about family members dealing with the aftermath of the catastrophic hurricane, it seems to me this is an apt time to take a few minutes to think about what family means to us. For many of us, during times when we find ourselves in rough waters, our family is a lifeline, members pulling lovingly…
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Welcome to From Insults to Respect. One day, upon striking out in a baseball game, the F-word leaped from my mouth. I immediately looked around to see who was in earshot. I knew my teammates wouldn’t take offense, but my curse was shouted, and I feared it might have reached the ears of my coach, or some in the stands who might be wounded by the…
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Welcome to From Insults to Respect. Today’s topic–anxiety. What brought me to write about it? Well, recently I published a post titled, “The Nature of Depression and Melancholy” (see HERE). Shortly afterwards, one of my readers commented that rather than depression or melancholy, he is more likely to experience anxiety, and therefore, wondered if I might write a post on it. Since how people handle anxiety can influence…
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Welcome to From Insults to Respect. Today we take an interesting look at two states of being, depression and melancholy. A central difference between the two has to do with throwing insults at ourselves; when we are depressed we spend a great deal of time doing that, in melancholy, not so much. To better understand what I mean by this, and to clarify the natural…
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Welcome to From Insults To Respect. These days, many are performing their jobs from home and are missing the camaraderie of their workplace. Such drastic changes in their lives, and that of their families, give us reason to reflect on what work means to us. Given the main focus of this blog, you might wonder what work has to do with respect. Well, many people…
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Welcome to From Insults To Respect. My last post, Baseball and Respect, aimed to provide keen insights about the nature of respect, insights that are relevant way beyond the world of baseball. To this end, we looked at the reasons some players and fans have given for singling out ballplayers they particularly respect. As I was getting ready to finish that post, I felt frustrated because I had…
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