Words Shape Emotions
Part of my upcoming product for Generation Zen, Introvert’s Guide to Fear of Public Speaking.
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All posts by cristine
Working Theory: Human Potential and Limitations
The solution to chronic stress is not individual Psychology
I’m a big proponent of self-care and other individual tools that we teach as mental health professionals. Yet I’m also acutely aware of its limitations. I think of people back in Manila now who are feeling rage and helplessness over the rising COVID cases. I think of our Asian American community who’s feeling fear due…
Mental Health: What are we striving For?
We are in the age of A.I., where everything is about optimization and increasing capacity. It is easy to mistake functioning like robots as the pillar for being a healed person. But what constitutes technological growth is not the same as human growth. We are living creates who feel, who laugh, who grieve. We feel…
5 Ways to Endure Separation from Loved Ones
If you feel like you would rather be in a place that’s not where you are now, this post is for you. 1.) Rest, But Don’t Stop Prolonged Separation with no end date can turn even the sanest person into a ball of anxiety. It is not easy to love when you are so far away…
A Guide for Developers: Building Consumer Technology for Mental Health
Consumer wearable and sensor technology present unique opportunities for out-patients and providers to check on important biomarkers in real-time. For instance, the movement tracking feature available in most consumer wearables is useful for patients who can benefit from increased activity. A meta-analysis looking at the effectiveness of exercise in treating depression shows that movement is…
Shadow Leads to Light
My shadow lead me to my light. for I wouldn’t have gazed up if it weren’t for the darkness below My restlessness walked me to the path of stillness. for I wouldn’t have smelled the beautiful roses if it weren’t for my ankles begging for a reprieve My loneliness shone a light that navigated me…
Evolutionary Mechanism Behind Overachieving
I want to be all because I can be all. This is a very appealing narrative. However, instead of arguing the feasibility of attaining perfection, the more important question is why—why want to be all? Answering the question of utility before feasibility allows one to save time and energy. Not knowing why we are doing certain things is…
Nietzsche as Solace During Times of Uncertainty
Amor fati: Lover of Fate. That one wants nothing to be different, not in the future, not in the past, not for all eternity. Not only to endure what is necessary, still less to conceal it — all idealism is falseness in the face of necessity — , but to love it…” -Friedrich Nietzsche Nietzsche’s…
Moving Back Home during the Pandemic: 5 Tips to Gain Back Control
Transitioning from a life of independence to moving back home because of COVID-19 can initially make you feel like you are losing control of your new identity. It’s a constant internal debate as to who you need to be in this old, but new environment. Acclimating feels like stepping on eggshells where you constantly ask…
Camus’ The Plague and Religion
The plague in Oran has disturbingly turned a classroom, a safe sanctuary for young children to learn and create, into an auxiliary where the only lullaby is the intolerable shriek of innocent lives. In the corner of the room, a small kid who was all too young to contemplate his own suffering was seen struggling…
How to Maintain Friendships Without Going Insane
Your ability to connect with people is your superpower. It’s incredible how you have a 50-year-old best friend from China and an 18-year-old pal from New York. Having a social circle that resembles the United Nations is marvelous to have. You get to have friends to enjoy a good meal with everywhere you go. What…
The 42 Books That Shaped My 2019
“In the quiet spaces opened up by the prolonged, undistracted reading of a book, people fostered their own ideas. They thought deeply as they read deeply.” -Nicolas Carr My Top 5 Books 2019 Simone De Beauvoir by Deirdre Bair (Biography): Recommend this book to anyone interested in how Simone turned from Sartre’s doll to a…
Stillness Requires Intention
“Stillness is what aims the archer’s arrow. It inspires new ideas. It sharpens perspective and illuminates connections.” -Ryan Holiday Our generation is conditioned to believe that things can be achieved in an instant. There is a funny story related to this in Brene Brown’s Netflix special. She said that someone once approached her after a…
Silence: My Year Under Buddhist Monks in Taipei
“Erase all thoughts”, the buddhist monk in front of us said. I was in a large classroom with over 30 people, none of whom were near my age. I did not tell my millennial friends that the reason I was skipping night outs was that I wanted to spend my Friday evenings meditating in the…
Another Existential Tale
She imprints her existence through writing. She freezes time through photographs. She plays with eternity by wasting her days. I can live forever. And then the human condition catches up. Her body decays. The once magnificent homo sapien is forced to tremble at the force of nature. She reaches out to other social creatures. Pull…
Who is to Blame for Social Media Comparison- Humans or Technology?
Have you ever wondered why you start sounding like the person in front of you after hours of conversation? Neuroscience shows that humans are creatures of the environment. The existence of mirror neurons allows humans to observe and mirror the behavior of others actively. These social neural networks are what enables us to survive in…
Humans: Gods with Anuses
“Man is literally split in two: he has an awareness of his own splendid uniqueness in that he sticks out of nature with a towering majesty, and yet he goes back into the ground a few feet in order blindly and dumbly to rot and disappear forever.” Ernest Becker Imagine our world in 100 years.…