New Perspectives, Inc.

Well i'm a-gonna raise a fuss, i'm gonna raise a holler About workin' all summer just to try an' earn a dollar Everytime i call my baby, to try to get a date My boss says, "no dice, son, you gotta work late" Sometimes i wonder what i'm gonna do 'cause there ain't no cure for the summertime blues' (Eddie Cochran) In a previous posting, I discussed the joys of having a stress free summer vacation, but I have noticed a significant trend among patients this summer. A trend, which at best, seems to be growing in a very rapid pace over the past few summers. This trend is the emergence of what the National Institute of Mental Mental (NIMH) has termed "reverse SAD" or reverse Seasonal Affective Disorder. SAD is most commonly asociated with the dark and gloomy days of winter where afflicted people suffer symptoms of depression including, but not limited to, fatigue, lethargy, excessive sleep, hopelessness, social withdrawal, decreased in...

Can you feel it? Do you notice anything different? I think Country singer Kenny Chesney sums it up best..... "Summertime is finally here That old ball park man is back in gear Out on 49, man I can see the lights School's out the nights roll in Man, just like a long lost friend You ain't seen in a while You can't help but smile." Ah yes, Summertime. I can remember (vaguely because it has been awhile) being in grade school during this time of the year and listening to friends as we discussed our plans for summer vacations. Some friends would go to the beach (yes, in Delaware we went to the beach and not the shore in New Jersey), some would go to camp, some would visit relatives, and some of the lucky few would fly to Disney or other really cool vacation spots. I could remember how we all made plans to play baseball and go to the swimming pool everyday, but it was that word vacation that gave us the biggest smile. It seemed like a magical time of youth. Su...

April 20, 1999, for educators, students, parents, and most of the nation, will always be known for what became this nation's fourth deadliest school massacre. On this day, 10 years ago, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, both Columbine High School students in Jefferson County, Colorado, embarked on a massacre, killing 12 students and 1 teacher, wounding 23 others, committing suicide, and forever changing the way this country views high school security and violence. This single action by the two gunmen provoked political and social debate regarding gun violence in teens, gun control laws, the availability of guns in the US, violence in music, film, and video games aimed towards teens, and the ideas of bullying. The memories etched in American history from that day echo 10 years later. The students of Columbine High school, at the time 14-18 years old, are now in their mid to late twenties with families, careers, hopes and dreams. The memories of that horrific day burned in ...

Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, “We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power to love. There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies.” In my practice, I have seen the hurt, pain and sorrow of many people. I have watched, sometimes in shear horror, man’s inhumanities to man, but I have been intrigued, and somewhat mystified, about the power of forgiveness. Humanistic Psychologists contend forgiveness is achieved when compassion replaces the desire for revenge. Compassion replaces the desire for revenge? Really? What does that mean? On the face value of it, something must happen inside of us to change, but what makes the change? People who have a higher sense of self esteem and self value seem to fair well with forgiveness. Religious or spiritual people seem to forgive more readily than nonreligious people. People ...

I was involved in a conservation regarding religion. Religion is, at best, a taboo subject which should only be discussed with the knowledge no one is right and no one is wrong. Anyway, the conversation dealt primarily with the idea that religious affiliation is the conduit for spirituality. Spirituality, in my terms, is the belief in a higher power or the belief in someone or some thing is out there controlling all that is going on. Well, I got a little lost in thought last night and my thoughts were confirmed this morning. The question, “to what extent will I believe in someone?” burned in my brain all last night. I departed from the idea of religion and started looking at humanity; more specifically, the people in my life who I should believe in. I try to be a true person whether it is to friends, family, or loved ones. I try to be a person who people can trust, count on, and respect. Lately, I have questioned myself, but I am coming to an understanding th...