Psychology
In Human Parts. More on Medium.
LIVED THROUGH THIS
For way too long, I responded to danger by freezing
“The worst thing you can do is the thing you’ll want to do most,” the park ranger explains.
I’m standing with three friends under a tent at Apgar ranger station in Glacier National Park, allowing mosquitos to dance around my legs. …
Maybe I never did
When my two youngest kids were 3 and 5, my then-husband and I moved into a beautiful neighborhood with big oak trees and oversized yards. I’d wanted to live in this neighborhood for years. It was highly sought after and ‘the place to be’ in my…
I’m lonely but I’m also not.
Wikipedia explains that Shrödinger’s Cat “is a thought experiment that illustrates a paradox of quantum superposition. In the thought experiment, a hypothetical cat may be considered simultaneously both alive and dead as a result of its fate being linked to a random subatomic event that may or may not occur.”…
HUMANS 101
Five things you need to know in order to help yourself
Two weeks ago, I was kneeling to pull up ivy in the backyard with my sweetie, and when I stood up, I didn’t feel real anymore.
I don’t really know how else to describe it.
I wrapped my right hand around my left wrist, trying to feel real again, but…
LIVED THROUGH THIS
Why is it still okay to comment?
When you turn 50, if you’re normal and not pathologically overly positive, you fall into a depression. Regrets hit harder; the knee you busted trying to impress a boyfriend 20 years ago hurts more; and you start obsessively checking your retirement account and panicking.
But there are benefits too, mostly…
So few interactions give us unbridled permission to imagine
Six months ago at Café Gratitude in Venice, California — while deliberating between an “I Am Immortal” latte and an “I Am Stellar” blue smoothie — a thought popped into my head and I blurted it out.
“I’m going to stop wasting money on psychics.”
Across the table sat my…
Lived Through This
Moments when ‘everything’s going to be ok’ isn’t true
Everything is going to be okay.
We whisper it to our children when they skin their knees or have a fight with a friend. We proclaim it to those who have lost their job, their partner, their health. We post it on Instagram, showcasing our optimism. …
Humans 101
There are so many ways we accidentally make ourselves feel bad
Do you remember that time something on your bike was broken, so the mudguard rubbed against the tire, creating a consistent and terribly obnoxious grinding noise whenever you pedaled? And then you thought, “Hey, I should fix this.” But then you thought, “Hey, I don’t know how to fix this.”…
Express Yourself
Language’s sordid history with words that contradict themselves
I’m not going to try to convince you that black is white, but…
Have you ever wondered why the words “black” and “blank” are so similar, despite having virtually opposite meanings? It’s not a coincidence. …
Lived Through This
Sometimes our bodies are best left alone
For several years in my twenties, the main thing I did was itch. And scratch.
The “itch cycle,” they call it. Irritants cross the skin barrier, causing the sensitization of immune cells. When you scratch, your nails damage the surface barrier of the skin, allowing more allergens to enter. And…
Human Parts
A publication from Medium about humanity: yours, mine, and ours.
