By Larry F. Waldman, PhD, ABPP A parent tells their young child to brush their teeth. The child responds, “I don’t want to; I don’t feel like it.” It is perfectly normal for children to believe that they must be in a certain mood state (feel like it) to do something. Most parents, though, tell their child that they are sorry they don’t [...]
By: Larry F. Waldman, PhD, ABPP Prior to retiring in 2018 I worked in the family law arena for two decades. There I saw too many unfortunate children stuck in their parents’ ugly divorce. It was sad but common for these angry parents to use the child/ren as tools to hurt their ex. At times, a parent would even [...]
By: Larry F. Waldman, PhD, ABPP During my tenure in family law for over two decades I often encountered the heart-wrenching spectacle of children entangled in their parents' bitter divorce. Parents wielding their offspring as pawns in their battles with their ex was distressing and tragically common. These children suddenly found their world turned upside down. The cherished image [...]
By Larry F. Waldman, Ph.D., Phoenix-based psychologist Depression and anxiety are, by far, the most common mental health problems. Nearly 20% of the U.S. population struggles with or will struggle with one or both of these problems. The most common treatment today for these issues is medication — typically prescribed by the primary care physician (not a psychiatrist). This [...]
Larry F. Waldman, PhD, ABPP Clinical, Forensic Psychologist When I began counseling parents in the early 70’s, then as a school psychologist, it was often necessary to warn of the harmful effects of spanking and/or paddling as a common discipline method. Today, the pendulum has swung to the other extreme, as parents are not effectively addressing their children’s inappropriate [...]
By Larry F. Waldman, PhD, ABPP Psychologist, Trainer Resistance training (weight lifting) is far more popular than yoga. It is rare, especially among men, to find people who do both. Having spent thousands of hours in the gym for the past 50 years and a hundred hours on a yoga mat this past decade, it is unfortunately clear [...]
By Larry F. Waldman, Ph.D., ABPP Clinical, Forensic Psychologist As you approach the age of our nation’s life expectancy, it’s natural to begin to consider end of life issues. How you might “pass,” is one of those considerations. My Zeide, as we called him, my paternal grandfather, was a strong, active man till the day he died. I [...]
The pandemic has changed the way psychotherapy is currently provided. My local listserve is burning up with colleagues talking about the problems, ethical factors, insurance questions, the extra energy required, and more, regarding telehealth. In business it is said that in a crisis many people suffer but some people become wealthy. For example, delivery companies (of packages and restaurant [...]
A major revelation to me from the current virus is the sad state of our digital system. Because many of us are house-bound, we are using the Internet more often for information, entertainment and socialization. Presumably due to this significantly increased demand, I regularly experience sites that don’t work, buttons that don’t function, pages that freeze or disappear, and [...]
For some time the divorce rate in the USA for first marriages has held at about 50%. This is a national tragedy. This statistic also means that many people have subsequent marriages. Common sense suggests that someone who remarries is older, wiser, more mature, has learned from their mistakes, and knows better what they want and need in a [...]
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