Emotional Health and Well-Being

I've long believed that the words we choose in everyday conversation and correspondence play a significant role in shaping our relationships.

For example, from the time that our boys began asking questions to which some parents might answer "because I said so," Margaret and I have tried to preface our answers with "because from my experience, that would lead to..." Read more »

Over the holidays, we had a chance to visit some old friends at their new Mixed Martial Arts facility just north of Toronto. We had a great time catching up while our boys tore up their massive gym (there's just something that works about letting kids loose in a wide open space covered with premium gym mats). Read more »

Many years ago, I found myself in a beautiful town in the San Francisco Bay Area for a year-long residential internship. I had long wanted to live in the Bay Area, and having just completed two years of running a clinic in the arctic of Alaska, I had a little nest egg of savings and felt as free as a bird. Everything I owned fit neatly into my trusty Honda Civic. Read more »

As I approach the last few years of my fourth decade on planet earth, I find myself feeling grateful for some of the conclusions that I've been able to draw from all of my life experiences. One in particular that I try to hold close to my heart, especially in times of triumph and disaster, is this: Read more »

Originally posted in May, 2009

Close friends and family members are typically surprised - shocked, even - when they learn that my wife Margaret and I have had a good number of fights over the years. At first glance, both of us are generally viewed as being kind, thoughtful, and maybe even a bit shy. So jaws tend to drop when people find out that we're far from being the Cleavers. Read more »

I've long been a believer in the idea that all of us are born to be creative artists. Playing music, drawing, acting, dancing, writing, designing, building, even playing sports at a high level - when we nurture our creative instincts through any of these artistic experiences, we stand a good stance of feeling deeply fulfilled, and we almost certainly add value to other people's lives. Read more »

Originally published on August 17, 2010

They say that you can learn a lot about yourself from your own children. I'd say that they're absolutely right.

Our older son Joshua, now four and a half years old, is sweeter and more gentle than we could have wished for. These days, he lives to experience new and exciting things with his family. Things like riding the subway in Toronto for the first time, discovering the magic of helium balloons, and meeting new characters and worlds through trips to our library. Read more »

As a follow-up to last week's post on Six Questions to Ponder in Choosing a Life Partner, I thought it would be a good idea to create a post where our readers can chime in with thoughts on how to sustain a life partnership once you're all in.

Clearly, all relationships face their own unique challenges. And I've been around long enough to believe that sometimes, it may be best for two grossly mismatched personalities to end a long term relationship and begin anew the quest for a mostly peace-filled life. Read more »

I've long felt that choosing a life partner should be a subject that is thoroughly discussed sometime in high school and perhaps even in university. It amazes me that so little time, if any, is given to considering this topic on a meaningful level in school. Read more »

Every once in a while, I receive requests for references to back up some of information on self health care that I provide throughout this web site. If a post doesn't have citations for published studies, some people refuse to consider its contents. Believe it or not, some of these folks get downright ornery about this issue.

My response is two-fold: Read more »