So often, our mental experiences spawn from physical habits we develop over time which reinforce our stress and anticipation. These habits can seem benign and necessary, but are in fact neither, for they only help set the groundwork for our anxieties to build. For me this week, I realized that much of my stress at... Continue Reading →
Healing Anxiety and Depression by Growing a Community
I watched a fantastic TEDtalk the other day dealing with the causes of the increasing prevalence of anxiety and depression amongst the Western nations. (Here is a link to the talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MB5IX-np5fE&t=393s) It really made me stop and think about our history and about how our societies have progressed through the Industrial and Information/Technological ages.... Continue Reading →
Learning to Recognize the Patterns of My Anxiety
Step one to solving any problem is admitting you have a problem, right? It seems so basic and yet can be so elusive if we lose focus. I was talking to my therapist this week about my anxiety and I told him that this week has been a decent week for me with managing stress... Continue Reading →
Humphrey’s Peak: A Test of the Body, Mind, and Spirit [photos]
Humphrey’s Peak has been teasing me ever since I moved to Flagstaff, AZ a couple of months ago. I knew at one point I was going to set out to climb the mighty peak, it was just a matter of when. I have fallen in love with the area since I have been here. Flagstaff... Continue Reading →
Death Valley: Getting Wondrously Lost in the Desolation [photos]
Part of the allure of discovering new places for me is putting myself in environments that are utterly strange and hostile to my normal way of life. I think putting myself in the desolation of deserts and other forms of inhospitable landscapes gives me a unique perspective into not only the diversity of our world... Continue Reading →
Feeling Lost in a Strange Place
It’s been a couple months since I moved to Arizona on my own and while I am elated by the sense of a new place and new adventures, I have recently been feeling homesick. It gets lonely here sometimes. I have new friends and coworkers I have met to keep me company but it’s not... Continue Reading →
I Want to Accept the Randomness and Chaos of Life
I want to embrace uncertainty. I want to be able to stare boldly into the randomness of this world and step forward with confidence and excitement. I want to thrive in a chaotic world, for a chaotic world it is. I want to be shocked, awed, and bewildered by the twists and turns of life.... Continue Reading →
Creating Something Beautiful Out of the Pain of Heartbreak
I have been known to board up my emotions during turmoil and tragedy. I can remember back in my early 20s breaking up with my first serious girlfriend of three and a half years. I was so jaded and exhausted by the time we broke up that I don’t ever remember crying afterwards. I pushed... Continue Reading →
My Angel’s Landing Hike: Where Danger and Marvel Collide [photos]
There are moments in nature that test your courage, condense your reality into your most immediate surroundings, and ensnare you in a world of blissful wonder all at the same time. This is how I felt this past weekend hiking Angel’s Landing trail in Zion National Park in Southern Utah. Zion is a canyon oasis... Continue Reading →
For Those Who Are Not Kind to Themselves and Want to Change
The stress of starting a new job and being in a new location has been getting to me the past week or so. There are a lot of unknown variables going into a new situation. What is the workload going to be like? What are the people I work with going to be like? I... Continue Reading →
