…survival. Responses involve a range of possible emotions including intense fear, helplessness, horror, disempowerment, anger or rage Shame/guilt/”badness”/embarrassment Grief/Bereavement Yes, you can reclaim your life after trauma! Trauma survivors don’t always know there is another way to experience life than to battle fear and symptoms every day. They may need to learn that in adulthood they can heal, nurture themselves with compassion, or even…
Learn More
…nsformation, and it is something every one of us can do for ourselves. You can learn more about the role of implicit memory and how to form a coherent narrative in the eCourse with Lisa Firestone and Daniel Siegel, “Making Sense of Your Life: Understanding Your Past to Liberate Your Present and Empower Your Future.”…
Learn More
…It means no longer having to be self-protective, or to avoid feelings for fear they would be overwhelming. It means recognizing that you are now an independent adult who has little to fear from others and who can tolerate strong emotions. The fourth step in differentiation involves developing your own moral compass, value system, and meaning in your life. What are your real beliefs and values? Are you living according to those values and with int…
Learn More
…e all, keep holding yourself accountable in your actions. Dare to be your own person, and the rest of the world will reap the rewards. Join Dr. Lisa Firestone for the eCourse “Overcoming Your Inner Critic.”…
Learn More
…ritic In their research, father and daughter psychologists Drs. Robert and Lisa Firestone found that the most common negative thought people have toward themselves is that they are “different from other people.” These self-limiting beliefs can keep you stuck in a cycle of loneliness. Your critical inner voices try to keep you from challenging yourself to step outside your comfort zone, then stab you in the back for avoiding taking action. When you…
Learn More
…k Schneider , author of The Polarized Mind, talks about romantic awe. Lisa Firestone: In your new book, The Polarized Mind, you describe romantic awe. Is this something partners could aspire to in their relationship? Kirk Schneider: I hope so. I mean, my wife and I have tried to aspire to that. Definitely. What does that mean? I suppose everybody has their own definition of that. But, what does it mean to take an adventure together? Travel, you kn…
Learn More
…following transcript contains part of an exclusive interview with Dr. Lisa Firestone and Dr. John C. Norcross. LF: And what do you think about all the new findings in neuroscience? Are they really informing psychotherapy or are they not so important? JN: Well, I’m excited by it. But my answer is, really; not much — and profoundly influencing it. The ‘not much’ comes from those of us who already believed there was a brain. I suppose if you started…
Learn More
Lisa Firestone: It seems like part of what you’re talking about is honesty. Carol Gilligan: Yes, that’s a good name for it. I mean emotional honesty, intellectual honesty, yes, absolutely, Lisa. That’s exactly right. LF: Because honesty doesn’t necessarily mean saying everything you think every moment but knowing what you think and letting yourself see what you see. CG: And discovering, you know, what you really think and at least knowing that. T…
Learn More
…shape them to conform to our vision of what they should be as adults. The fear of death figures prominently in this scenario of family life. In their book Beyond Death Anxiety, Dr. Robert Firestone and Joyce Catlett explain how many parents envision family continuity as a form of symbolic immortality — a kind of living on through their sons and daughters and their grandchildren in an endless chain of biological attachment. In one sense, our child…
Learn More
…pointment. In response, he withdrew from social situations and developed a fear that he would let a woman down. His “defense” did keep him from being rejected, but it also kept him from meeting someone he really liked. In addition, due to his passivity, the women he did meet tended to be more dominating, a trait that further replicated dynamics from his childhood. If we were hurt as kids in a certain way, throughout our lives we will tend to uncon…
Learn More