The x-ray displaying the neck and skull on the computer screen was enormous. While waiting in the surgeon’s examination room, I studied the image of the contorted structure. The saying goes, “Someone always has it worse”—well, this someone had it worse: the neck curved in the wrong direction, and a small kink at the base […]
Category: Family Life/Caregivers
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Healing
Needed: Mercy and Grace from Those We Love
I often wonder what it would be like to get through one day without a jolt of terror running through my veins. One day without experiencing an off-the-chart startled response would be heavenly. A soft knock on my office door or my husband’s gentle kiss to wake me in the morning can cause me to […]
Tools for Those in Need of Mental Health Support
An Interview with Joe Padilla
Few things are more acutely examined than the human body. Of all its organs, the brain is the most complex. No other organ controls human functioning like the brain. However, what makes the brain totally unique is its connection to our overall well-being. The brain affects how we function physically, emotionally, relationally, personally, and spiritually. […]
Continue readingMore Tag
How to Find the Upside When Life Lets You Down
It can take immense work and strength to find anything remotely positive in an awful situation. Years ago, my dad and brothers planned a wild adventure: a hunting trip in one of the most inaccessible parts of Alaska . . . The Downside While my idea of bonding is shopping for fabulous shoes or choosing […]
“The Dog Ate My Homework” and Other Dumb Excuses We Need to Dump NOW
After three years of marriage, my daughter and son-in-law found a little “fixer-upper” and asked me to help them fix it up. They know I’m all about DIY stuff, especially when I see the miraculous things people do when they flip houses on TV. Those hour-long, “trash-to-treasure” shows appeal to my creative side. I couldn’t […]
Two Principles That Will Change Your Life
My son Jon suspiciously scooted his way toward me while we were playing the card game “Go Fish.” I observed his slight, smooth movements knowing exactly what was happening. Slowly, he began to lean in. So I looked into his sly eyes and asked, “Jon, is there something I can help you with?” With a […]
Three Questions We Must Leave at the Cross
Where is God when life falls apart? This isn’t a new question, but a question we often ponder when it seems we have lost everything . . . or something . . . or someone. During these difficult times, we feel that God is so far away. Years ago, a dear friend of mine experienced […]
Courage for an Unknown Season
An Interview with Jan Silvious
It’s something we all long to possess yet it’s one of the rarest qualities to find. I’m talking about COURAGE. Courage is the internal fortitude to keep moving forward in the face of fear, hardships, and challenges. Courage enables us to cultivate endurance and resilience; it is the by-product of a tenacious spirit. Professional life […]
Continue readingMore Tag
The Root of Relational Joy
One winter, my son Austin and I sat on the patio warmed by the embers of a small fire. We laughed over his childhood memories that at the time felt far more chaotic. Back then, I wanted to be a perfect mother—as if there is such a thing. I was like most parents who want their […]
What Should I Say to Hurting People?
Ever wish you could reach out to a friend in crisis, but you’re just not sure what to say? Most of us tend either to avoid the person or situation altogether or to rush in and say too much. The list below demonstrates some ways you can effectively support people in need. Notice how these […]
Three Tips for Sitting Securely in the Suck
It was colder than the arctic when I stepped out for an evening walk. I needed space to breathe. Life was anything but balanced; I felt disrupted and tired. Layered in clothes, I resembled an irritated woolly mammoth roaming the frozen tundra trying to figure out which way is north. I don’t do well with […]
Seven Serious Game Changers When Your Plans Are a Bust
The New Year’s ball barely landed before our plans were busted. On January 1, 2018, at 5:00 in the morning, I walked my pale and feverish husband right into the emergency room. The sun wasn’t even up. My thought was, If the sun isn’t awake, no one else should be either. No one has gotten […]