Love is more than a feeling. In this cast Seamus talks about some of the aspects of love as a transformative practice.

Seamus Thinks

LOVE - Seamus looks at love

The psychotherapist tells about his attempts to "get his mind" around the idea that some conditions may best be treated by a "spiritual" remedy. He describes:  His education in subjects he assumed he understood: the difference between religion and spirituality; the ancient wisdoms of the Greek and Roman philosophers; and the discoveries of Prince Siddhartha, of which he had been abysmally ignorant. How these wisdoms are so much more compatible with today's scientific understanding of life and energy in the Cosmos than his previous - rather superficial - approach. 

What on Earth is a Spiritual Remedy - and Why would someone need such a thing?

In this episode I look at time-tested ways of dealing with many common fears - whether we are calling them dreads, anxieties, worries, concerns, or insecurities. I look at how these are limiting our lives and undermining our good times. Overcoming these destructive and self-defeating tendencies is something humans have been pondering for thousands of years - leaving us their wisdoms.

Changing part 5 - Pushing Through Fear

Sometimes we are unaware of the degree to which our narrative - how we are describing things - is affecting our mood/feelings. We can become aware that often our catastrophizing descriptions are coloring our reactions and change them. Pain is inevitable; Suffering (my protest at having pain) is optional. 

Changing - Part 4 - Unfortunate Beliefs

We're not corks bobbing up and down on the waves of life. The important connection between how we are describing situations and our resultant feeling/moods. 

Changing - Part 3 - Thinking

Given our tendency to worry in response to situations and often in response to our mere imaginings, is there anything we can do about this?  Is there some way of looking at things; some wisdom  - particularly in this Corona virus emergency - that will enable us to lead peaceful and productive lives while taking prudent measures recommended by health professionals?  It is a time to revisit wisdoms that have been available for thousands of years.

Changing - Part 2 - Worry/Anxiety

Most of us have aspects of our lives we would love to change. But we somehow never get around to the process of changing them. In this first of a series I take a look at change in general. In subsequent talks I will look at more specific changes, some voluntary and some thrust upon us by circumstances or stages of life.

Changing - Part 1

This is the final episode in the series in which the psychotherapist looks at what seems to make AA work for so many, namely: the path of steps leading an individual from the futility of "...bombarding one's problems with will power," to finding effective power by aligning the individual's will power with that of a higher power. That it is a purely empirical process without requiring any preceding beliefs - replicate the process, see if you replicate the results we report - may be one of its most effective aspects.  Tune in here next week for the first in a New Series of podcasts dealing with Change.

A Psychotherapist looks at Alcoholics Anonymous - Part 5 (final episode in this series)

In this episode the psychotherapist looks into some of the most puzzling steps: Steps 2 & 3.  Though they may look and sound almost religious to those who have not studied them, the therapist was surprised to discover how down-to-earth they really are. 

A Psychotherapist looks at AA - Part #4

Continuing to look at 12 Step programs - AA in particular as the forerunner of the others.  Attempting to gain some understanding of their essential elements (the active ingredients, so to speak).  Uncovers some radical and often-overlooked aspects of their approach, concepts that harken back to ancient wisdoms and are far more profound than many trained in other disciplines imagine.

A Psychotherapist Looks at AA - Part 3

The therapist looks at the book, Alcoholics Anonymous - the guidebook for the 12 Steps - to see how it views alcoholism and what it provides as an answer to the problem of the alcoholic. 

A Psychotherapist Looks at AA - Part 2

These are some observations of the program of AA from the point of view of a psychotherapist who has worked over the years with many people in recovery from addiction.

A Psychotherapist Looks at AA - Part 1

Emotions - properly understood - can be the most authentic guides to our Life Choices.

The Role of Emotions in Life Choices

Some ways of dealing with reality that have been known for thousands of years.

Dealing with Reality

Gratitude is more than a feeling and it's evil twin, that free-floating discontent

Gratitude and Discontent

Thoughts about living and other popular pursuits

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Seamus Thinks

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