October 10th is World Mental Health Day. Every year this date calls our attention to a particular mental health priority. This year’s focus is Young People and Mental Health in a Changing World. The focus on young people is fitting given that half of all mental disorders begin by age 14 and given that suicide is […]

Imagine being diagnosed with breast cancer and being told that treatment services were not covered. Or maybe that half of the necessary chemotherapy sessions would be covered. The rest must be paid out of pocket. Or maybe that treatment is covered on paper but when you go to the list of in-service providers, you find […]

The most iconic moment of a Jewish wedding follows many beautiful and symbolic prayers and gestures that culminate in the much anticipated crescendo when the couple standing before their community break a glass – stomping on it and shattering it to pieces. It is then that their marriage is sealed. But marriage is a time […]

This week was Yom Kippur, the holiest of holy days for the Jewish people. It’s really big. Even those who don’t go to services regularly throughout the year take themselves to synagogue on Yom Kippur. It is the last day of the 10 Days of Awe. The Day of Atonement. A day for reflection and […]

Two kids grow up in the same home or same neighborhood. How is it that only one develops major depression? One kid grows up exposed to violence the other not. Who is more prone to anxiety? Poverty? Loss? Education? What do such circumstances and experiences mean for risk of mental illness? These are the kinds of questions […]

When I had the opportunity to travel to Ukraine with Project Kesher, I found myself recalling the magical children’s book by Kevin Henkes, Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse. The lovable Lilly is so awed by the world around her that many times her only words are, “Wow! That’s about all I can say –  Wow!” Project Kesher is […]

My first research assistant position was with Professor Catherine Garvey in the Psychology Department at Johns Hopkins University. It was all fun and games. Literally. Professor Garvey was a world expert on play. Traditionally, we have described play as an activity that we pursue for its intrinsicenjoyment and recreation rather than for any serious or practical purpose. But lest you […]

This week, the media went wild with commentary on Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani’s Meet the Press statement that “truth isn’t truth.” Giuliani’s jaunt into philosophizing about truth was highly impolitic, especially given the situation, but possibly not incorrect. And his assertion set me to ponder the science and psychology of telling the truth and its obverse, lying, […]

Ah! The joys of summer – sun, vacation, bike riding, swimming and hiking. All good things for our mental health. Generally. The thing is that lots of animals love this time of year, including ticks. And where there are ticks, there is Lyme Disease. The black-legged tick is the only organism that can transmit Borrelia […]

Last night five dear friends came over for dinner. We laughed; we told stories. We talked politics and kids in alternating breaths. We ran through summer plans, college drop-offs and future adventures and before we knew it, midnight struck. It was an evening filled with joy created by the strength of connection and community. Dorothea […]