I’ve developed a fondness for discovering creative ways to implement non-violent resistance…non violent resistance being understood as strategies to resist things that aren’t right, but doing so in ways that don’t accuse or shame or manipulate or humiliate or harm another. Non violent resistance can be dangerous and requires courage. I saw the movie, Lee …
A letter to the man on the bridge
And so, man-on-the bridge, I’ve been thinking about you for days. Hoping that if you were contemplating if life was worth living, that someone acted on their courage and let you know that they noticed you, and that you mattered.
Asking for Help Part 2
My travelling buddy for my Oprah Lifeclass adventure in Chicago last week, J, is quite simply, a force. J and I sat in on the taping of two episodes featuring Dr. Brene Brown…and it was a moving experience for the audience…most of us caregiver types. Being J’s friend is a little risky and a lot …
Asking for help Part 1
I had a blast on Monday at the taping of Oprah’s lifeclass with Dr. Brene Brown. Oprah and Brene are both witty, smart, engaging women who create interesting and engaging conversation. The tapings flew by. The audience had about 150 people..and to be honest, we weren’t there to see Oprah (though, to be equally honest, …
Oprah and Brené…and me!
I come from steady, stable, secure stock. My parents both worked hard within the same organization their entire careers. We lived in only two houses when I was growing up. They looked–twice (very carefuly)–before they leaped. I was taught to always pay one’s credit card bill at month’s end, never spend what you didn’t have, …
The cost of the beauty brainwash
Our culture today has made it hard to see true beauty. Folks are literally bombarded with thousands of images per day of “beautiful women”. Problem is, those beautiful women in the ads don’t exist. The women that posed for those ads, wished they looked like the women in those ads. Beauty that is unreachable and …
Meet Deanna Carpentier
Vulnerability sucks. No getting around it. It’s hard to be vulnerable. However, as a person who witnesses the courage of folks who daily choose vulnerability, I also see the incredible rewards of folks who choose to dare to be vulnerable. It’s good to be smart about vulnerability…to choose a place that is safe. Counselling can …
Do we treat addiction?
Often on our contact page, or on the phone, folks ask us, “Do you treat addiction?” Sooooo many folks struggle with extreme and disordered behaviour, when spending too much, working too hard, eating too much (or not enough), drinking too much, using and abusing street drugs, abusing prescription medication, or consumed with electronics…facebook, gaming, …
Taking the Mask Off
There is the very real dilemma and tension of needing to put on a mask and to armor up against fear and vulnerability on the job, and then find ways of reversing that to be emotionally available to his family: The brain is affected by trauma…we know what the names of the brain are …
The Truth about Guys
I’ve been reading The Power of Why by Amanda Lang lately…an interesting, creative book laced with interesting stories that encourage curiosity, risk taking, adventure and even mistakes as ways of developing the human spirit and furthering human development. One of the stories this book follows is Canadian Tire’s year long exploration to find out why …