Though it’s mostly unconscious, many people have a strange affinity for feeling rejected, abandoned, and unloved. Yes, this idea flies in the face of common sense. Who would want to bear the pain of feeling unloved any more than what life might force upon us? Our psyche is … [Read more...] about The Bittersweet Allure of Feeling Unloved
inner critic
Stop Smoking through Psychological Insight
I started smoking cigarettes when I was 17 years old. Luckily, I stopped within six years. I had become one of the “nicotine slaves” Willie Nelson sings about in his anti-smoking song, “Smoke Smoke Smoke that Cigarette,” who at the Golden Gate make St. Peter wait while they puff … [Read more...] about Stop Smoking through Psychological Insight
How Deeper Awareness Can Eliminate Shame
Shame is largely a mystery to those people who suffer from the painful affliction. It’s even a mystery to psychological experts who struggle to define it. However, we can get clarity and understanding about it when we go deep into our psyche. Better yet, with deep awareness we … [Read more...] about How Deeper Awareness Can Eliminate Shame
The Tyrant that Rules Our Inner Life
Much suffering is produced through our relationship with our inner critic. This part of our psyche is also called the superego or self-aggression. It’s an authoritarian aspect or agency in our psyche that holds us accountable for any real or imagined shortcomings or failures. The … [Read more...] about The Tyrant that Rules Our Inner Life
Get Rid of Guilt with Deeper Insight
Guilt is no fun. We can feel guilt for our slightest slip-ups or misdemeanors. We sense that we deserve our guilt because we have allegedly done something wrong. But often the guilt is produced when, deep in our psyche, we absorb negative accusations from our inner … [Read more...] about Get Rid of Guilt with Deeper Insight