I sometimes introduce myself as YodaNinja. "Yoda on the outside, Ninja on the inside." Outside, I seem calm and composed. When I speak (or write), what I say can be profound, perplexing... or both. But my inner world is another story. Deep inside of me is a Ninja battleground where thoughts, emotions, ideas, and utter randomness all fight for my attention. Every once in a while, they actually cooperate and I have to say, I'm deadly. But then they go at it again... and "Everybody is Kung Fu fighting." I'm a dad, a husband and a guy whose mind has a mind of it's own. My recovery from my addiction to numbing myself (with pretty much anything I can get my hands on) is a lifelong journey. I live with depression, anxiety and adhd... and sometimes they don't get along very well with my family, or with the rest of my life. Professionaly, I make my living as a Counselling Therapist in Edmonton, Canada. I teach on addiction and psychopathology at City University, and I have a small counselling practice where I use superheroes and other geeky stuff to help people make peace with their own personal YodaNinja. This blog is part of my healing and writing keeps me grounded. I hope that something I have written may add a little bit to your journey. Keep it Real
If you are looking for creative ways to express yourself, look no further! ___ This post is a little different than my regular posts. Fear not, I just wanted to have a little weekend fun. Hope you enjoy it. For more fun or humorous posts, use the search box on the top right corner of … More 5 Old Words that Give Us a New Way to Express Ourselves
It’s 2018. How’s the year going for you so far? Whether this year will be kind or a pain in your backside, you will not know until this time… next year. Sure, you cannot change 2017, but right now you can do something to improve your chances for a better year, a better you. A … More Four Questions that will Set Your (Recovery) Direction for 2018
According to an article by the BBC, how you use your smartphone will have a huge impact on your mental health and well being. Sorry folks, it doesn’t matter if you have an iPhone, a Samsung or a generic fone. Right now, about 40% of the world’s population have a smartphone and use online social … More 11 Ways that Your Smartphone May be Chipping Away at Your Mental Health
In the past few days, we have been talking about recovery and how to respond to difficult life experiences. This article is a little like a first aid kit for when you feel like you are ready to lose your mind because you are facing painful thoughts or emotions, difficult memories or trying situations. Can … More The 3 Most Important Things You Can Do When You Feel Like You Are Going to Lose Your Mind
Your most difficult experiences can be your greatest teachers. According to research, there are at least five ways that you will grow after trauma, challenging experiences with shame, depression or anxiety, or from addiction recovery. Appreciation and gratitude for your life, your work, your relationships and your experiences. Relationships with others, a deeper sense of … More 5 Ways that You Will Grow From Your Most Difficult Experiences
Growth and learning from your most challenging experiences can help you to excel ___ This article is part of my series on growth after trauma or other difficult experiences. For other related articles, see the links at the bottom of this article. • • • If you have faced trauma or other difficult experiences, more … More 4 Habits that will Make Your Every Day Experience More Valuable than College
Life has a job to do and sometimes once in a while, it will cooperate with your plans. Life can be difficult and at times it may be devastating. We may try to overcome all of our circumstances, emotions and challenges but sometimes the best thing we can do is admit that life is not … More Being Inflexible is The Most Unhealthy Response to Your Situation
I came across this in my photo file. I hope that you enjoy it. Happy weekend!
What’s the answer? Often we hear that “Tough Love is the answer.” But what can you do when tough love just isn’t the answer? “My family’s tough love approach played a big part in my attempting suicide,” he said. “It’s not their fault I attempted suicide, but their words and actions put me over the … More So Someone You Love Isn’t Making the Changes You Want Them to Make?
Click on photo for article Photo by Fred Mancosu
Getting High on Recovery 