THANKSGIVING?

I came across Julie Turkewitz's (her name is a bit timely for the holiday- turke-witz) article Thanksgiving for Native Americans: Four Voices on a Complicated Holiday.  This article

And When Thanksgiving is Said and Done:

And Then Comes BLACK Friday.

This is a challenging time of the year for mental health. Discussions of suicides increasing during the holidays along with loss and depression only add to our community's mental illness at the end of the year. 

After 50. Is Shacking up, living together, and marriage worth it?

There seems to be little discussion of the late bloomers starting unions and marriages after the age of 50.  As a couples counselor and marriage therapist in the Los Angeles and Beverly Hills area I do not hear about the aging process among the happily elder couple. With magazines and Film industry’s emphasis on youth is there a place for the aging in love? The individuals that joined the marital wedding party upon their own invitation vs. crashing into a disastrous union might have merit.  Who are the people who just married late or who found good matches late in the game?  Are there any thoughts other than “going down to city hall" in middle age?

It Could Happen to You

Long Term Love - Longevity and the Art of Happiness

There are happy couples, you know.  They exist right before us.  How timely to find the treasure in Poseidon's mortal consequences through Harvey and Irma’s romantic longevity.  Despite the flood and hurricanes of Harvey and Irma there exists a union with more depth than natural disasters.  Mr. and Mrs. Schluter’s longevity of 75 years will far withstand any tragedies of Harvey and Irma.

The Art of Love and How It Might Be Your Fault When You Conflict, Well Not Really.

He Completes Me- Happily Ever After- My Soulmate- She’s the Love of My Life- You Had Me at Hello!

The art of partnership is complex. Sometimes we think of bliss, happiness, the best-sex-ever, Snow White, Prince Charming, honeymoons, having families and children, shared bucket-list vacations, and maybe someone who is your best friend guiding you to powerful career choices as the sole part of coupling.  Moreover, these moments of false utopianistic pleasures represent social positives ultimately making you a better human being.  This discussion of blove (bliss and love) is commercial hollywood romance at its best.  Bliss is nothing more than the representation of the easy parts of the union.  Positive featured behaviors often create recognizable visual constructs of what made you connected to the Other (The capital O is a connection to the Self as it relates to someone who has stirred your soul; verses,

Can just one week of NEWS and a World Series Cause You to be Down?

Okay, as a psychologist providing therapy in Los Angeles the majority of my work is on the client analysis of Self, couples counseling, and relationships (in marriage, family, or social relationships).  However, lately, I have just recognized a theme in my blogs.  “Down, Blues, Depression, Grief, Masked Depression, In-a-funk.”  So for me, I have to ask why am I spending a lot of time on this subject when there are so many other interests in mental health and couples counseling?

The answer is this: