Search Results for: critical inner voice

The Deadly Recession: Dangers of a Down Economy

…a result of unemployment are more vulnerable to self-attacks, or “Critical Inner Voices,” that in their most severe form can lead violent acts toward the self or others. Understanding the warning signs behind suicide and violence can help us save lives. With today’s uncertain economic climate, there has never been a better time to educate ourselves on these important issues. Common behaviors that can indicate violence risk: 1. History of violent b…

Learn More

It’s Not You It’s Me: The Truth Behind The Excuse

…ionships and fears of intimacy, explaining how one’s defenses and critical inner voices negatively affect romance. I am always struck by how many people come up to me after my presentations to thank me and tell me that the fears of intimacy and defensive traits I have been outlining perfectly describe their partner. These people are essentially saying, “Yes, I know defenses are hurting my intimate relationship, but it’s not my defenses, it’s their…

Learn More

Five Things You Don’t Expect When You’re Expecting: How Parenthood Impacts Your Mental Health

…y identifying where these negative thoughts, which I refer to as “critical inner voices,” came from, the man was able to challenge himself by taking actions to care for his son. He found he was not only competent in doing so, but that he also really enjoyed the tender moments between them. 3. The Fear of Becoming Your Mother or Father While we are aware of fears like not waking up to the baby crying or forgetting to put wipes in the diaper bag, th…

Learn More

Fear of Intimacy

…They can be immature, self-hating, irritable, angry, suspicious or overly critical. And regrettably these limitations tend to impact how they parent their children. From this less than perfect experience, children grow up with a less than perfect image of themselves. As a result, people arrive at adulthood psychologically equipped to survive in the type of emotional environment that they have come from. But it is a whole different world out there…

Learn More

Destructive Relationships

…rents were generally loving, the subtle or incidental times that they were critical or irritable or insensitive effected us, making deep impressions in our psyches and leaving us with unfavorable attitudes toward ourselves. We enter adulthood programmed to relate to the world at large just as we related in our original families. So when the treatment that we received in our childhoods was bad, that is the treatment we seek today. Even though we ar…

Learn More

"Get by With a Little Help from Your Friends"

…his past year and of how the friendship and concern that have developed among these “dinner guests” is supporting each of them through these hard times. She wrote, “What will save us? I don’t know, but the one thing that helps, from week to week, is dinner with friends…We try to believe that, somehow, we’ll survive this present crisis. But for now, dinner together feels like our last best hope.” Newsweek, Nov 24, 2008 Just before Thanksgiving, Ali…

Learn More

Letting Go of Anger

…ning it on ourselves. We may then start to experience an onslaught of self-critical thoughts. For example, if your partner or spouse tends to nag at you about practical matters, you may initially feel infuriated at being intruded on or criticized. Your heated response may strike you as irrational. Getting mad would only rock the boat, so instead, you disregard your emotional reaction. Soon enough, you may start to turn this frustration on yourself…

Learn More

How Jealousy Destroys Relationships

…hreatened in reality or are they just feeling threatened emotionally? What critical thoughts are they experiencing toward their partners and what critical thoughts are they having toward them selves as a result of these perceived threats to their relationships? By exploring feelings of jealousy and understanding why people react (or overreact) to the things they do, we can learn more about ourselves and limit behaviors that our destructive to our…

Learn More

How Divorce Impacts Children

…ing up means for adults. In fact, most of us are all too familiar with the critical thoughts that tell individuals who have just split up that they are failures, that they will never meet anyone or that they are unwanted or alone. But what effect does a break-up or divorce have on children? What critical thoughts are they hearing about themselves, and how can we help them cope with the real pain of the situation? Here the Mayo Clinic outlines a ba…

Learn More

Psychoeducating Parents to Defeat their Child’s OCD Monster! By Jenny C. Yip, Psy.D.

…has a noticable impact on family functioning. In addition, families play a critical role in the patient’s treatment readiness, compliance, recovery rate, and relapse. Thus, consideration of the familial context, developing healthy collaborative relationships among the patient, his/her family, and the therapist, and integrating the family into treatment is vital to treatment outcome. The level of involvement of families in patient’s OCD varies. How…

Learn More