Author Archives: jamesmatter

About jamesmatter

Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT) in private practice in San Francisco. I work with adults, adolescents, and couples, with focus on substance use and abuse and co-occurring disorders (having both a mental illness and an addiction).

Mental Health Awareness Month

Posted on May 19, 2019

  Recently I was with a group of people getting involved with Mental Health Awareness Month by discussing the question, What is mental health?” As the only full time professional there, I thought it would be good to remain silent and … Continue reading →

Posted in behavioral health, mental health awareness month | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Acceptance, Action, Self-Compassion

Posted on May 5, 2019

I can never get enough of this stuff. I don’t have time to add some of my own thoughts right now, but I can’t let this one pass without passing it on: it’s always helpful to accept yourself, especially when … Continue reading →

Posted in behavioral health, mental health, physical health, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Stigma, Mental Health, Addiction, Cannabis

Posted on April 23, 2019

THIS INFORMATION  UPDATED May 16; see bottom of the post.. IF YOU SEE THIS NOTICE THE MATERIAL POSTED MAY CHANGE IN THE NEAR FUTURE, PLEASE CHECK BACK. Mental illnesses and addictive disease are sometimes lumped together under the category “behavioral … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Your Sense of Self is Behind the Times

Posted on March 29, 2019

I was reminded about this when I saw a post on NPR about insects changing their behavior situationally. It turns out that shy, solitary grasshoppers turn into swarming locusts under stress. Same critter, amazingly different behavior. I first identified the issue … Continue reading →

Posted in change, mental health, Recovery | Tagged | 1 Comment

Take Good Care of Yourself

Posted on January 29, 2019

  I have had a couple of things I have been working on, don’t have anything I feel ready to publish just yet, but ran across this from Center for Greater Good on how getting enough sleep is good for your … Continue reading →

Posted in behavioral health, physical health | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

The Parable of the Shopping Cart

Posted on December 27, 2018

Have you ever gone to a supermarket, gotten a shopping cart, started to push it up the aisle, and realized that it tended to pull to the right (or left)? It’s like a car that needs the alignment done. At … Continue reading →

Posted in behavioral health, choices, Distress tolerance, mental health | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Did You Plant Cotton?

Posted on November 29, 2018

Sooner or later,  people come to some issue where they may want to go it alone, but they need help. I sometimes confront people, but in a way I hope is gentle. I take hold of my shirt sleeve and … Continue reading →

Posted in behavioral health, mental health, Uncategorized | Tagged | 2 Comments