Rod White, Author at Circle Counseling

24Jul

By Rod WhiteNo Comments

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Emotional paralysis: What we can do about it

When we are experiencing a persistent sense of emptiness or numbness, an inability to connect with others on an emotional level, constant feelings of fear or anxiety, and a limited range of emotional responses, we’re in "emotional paralysis." I think this is a national issue right now. Instead of dealing with it, we are getting acclimated to it. A persistent sense of emptiness or numbness makes it challenging to connect with others on an emotional level. This leads to loneliness and a sense of detachment from the world. It also leads to fear or anxiety, to a state of heightened alertness, being on guard for potential emotional triggers. This vigilance is mentally and physically exhausting, which only makes things worse. Soon, emotional paralysis makes our range of range of feeling e...

Therapy Isn’t About Correction — Gwen M. White, PsyD

I often hear myself say to my clients something like, “Let’s try to set aside correcting your thoughts and your feelings and focus on noticing them fully so we can explore them together and see where that leads us.” So often, as I am getting to know someone, I find that we get sidetracked by a pervasive desire to correct everything that’s wrong. What’s wrong with me? Why don’t I feel happy with what I have? Why do I mess up my relationships so often? Why do I end up drinking myself into a kind of numb state? Can you help me change? This translates often to: can you help me correct my bad thoughts, my bad feelings and bad choices? I’ve found as I consider carefully how I listen (Luke 8), I hear far more accurately when I’m not looking for what’s wrong, but instead give my ...

Climate change can be deadly to people with chronic issues

Climate change is increasingly a mental health issue. More functional people experience it as a nagging threat of overwhelm. Those with chronic illnesses experience it as an existential threat. The Washington Post recently published an extensive article about people with schizophrenia, focusing on the high temperatures in Phoenix. They are especially vulnerable. People are dying. Here’s the link. Here’s an excerpt: “When temperatures surge, the effects of schizophrenia can be profound. During the record-breaking heat wave in British Columbia in Canada in 2021, for example, researchers found that an astonishing 8 percent of the people who died in the heat had been diagnosed with schizophrenia — rendering it more dangerous, when combined with heat, than any other condition studi...