Category Archives: Recovery

Your Sense of Self is Behind the Times

Posted on March 29, 2019 by jamesmatter

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

Feelings About Feelings

Posted on October 20, 2017 by jamesmatter

Some time ago I noticed a common problem, or perhaps I should say problem about problems, that many clients shared– People would be down on themselves for being depressed, or angry with themselves about their anger problems, or would worry … Continue reading →

Posted in Depression, Emotions, Feelings, happiness, mental health, Recovery, Renewal, Sadness, spirituality, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Medication Assisted Treatment for Opioid Addiction

Posted on June 12, 2017 by jamesmatter

Just got done reading an interesting piece on the headline topic on NPR website: http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2017/06/12/523774660/a-drugmaker-tries-to-cash-in-on-the-opioid-epidemic-one-state-law-at-a-time Apparently the makers of Vivitrol are lobbying hard to get states to use their product at the expense of other products. This is just a heads-up … Continue reading →

Posted in Addiction, choices, Recovery, stigma of addiction, Uncategorized | Tagged , | Leave a comment

“I Wish I Wasn’t So Good at This”

Posted on January 2, 2017 by jamesmatter

This is just a quick meditation on recovery– or coping– or whatever name you want to give it. Happy New Year, by the way. For many of us, including folks who don’t necessarily carry a DSM 5 label, life is … Continue reading →

Posted in behavioral health, choices, mental health, physical health, physical health, Recovery | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Depression Forever?

Posted on December 2, 2016 by jamesmatter

Imagine (or recall) yourself as a second grader. It’s a Friday afternoon in May, and the weather is beautiful. After school is out, you will get to play late outside, and you have the whole weekend ahead of you. But … Continue reading →

Posted in choices, Depression, Distress tolerance, Emotions, mental health, Recovery, suicide, Suicide prevention | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Seeking Safety– You Are Not Alone

Posted on October 28, 2016 by jamesmatter

  Seeking Safety is a manual driven treatment for PTSD and addiction, developed by Dr. Lisa Najavits. It was originally designed for use with all female groups, but has since been used with a wide variety of different populations. Over … Continue reading →

Posted in Addiction, behavioral health, belongingness, Emotions, Feelings, group therapy, hope, mental health, Recovery | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Self Pity versus Self Mourning

Posted on April 15, 2016 by jamesmatter

Just a quick thought & a question– what is the difference between feeling sad about something bad in your life, and feeling self-pity? This came up recently in a session, where a client worried about sinking into self-pity. this is … Continue reading →

Posted in behavioral health, choices, Depression, Distress tolerance, Emotions, existentialism, Feelings, happiness, hope, mental health, mindfulness, Recovery, Renewal, Sadness, spirituality, Therapy processes, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Agency and Behavioral Health

Posted on March 21, 2015 by jamesmatter

Pretty dry sounding title, right? Well, sometimes things are just like that. But let me just make a short explanation. In this case, agency refers to the idea that a person is, or can be, an agent in life. An … Continue reading →

Posted in Addiction, behavioral health, change, Depression, Emotions, Frustration, Learning, mental health, Recovery | Leave a comment

Luxury Problems? Compared to What?

Posted on March 8, 2015 by jamesmatter

People who have been exposed to the world of AA & other 12-step programs will be familiar with these phrases. Let’s focus on the first one first. Frequently, someone who is relatively new to recovery will start talking about how … Continue reading →

Posted in cognitive therapy, Emotions, existentialism, Feelings, happiness, Learning, luxury problems, mental health, Recovery, Sadness, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Your Self-Concept Is Out of Date

Posted on January 28, 2015 by jamesmatter

For those of you who follow this blog, bless you. I have been quite busy, but have a backlog of topics that I hope to discuss. One really interesting one is a somewhat technical article on the difference between grief, … Continue reading →

Posted in behavioral health, change, cognitive therapy, dealing with change, Depression, Distress tolerance, Emotions, Feelings, Frustration, handling the unexpected, Learning, mental health, Recovery, Sadness | Leave a comment