Author Archives: Sophia
Neurobiology of Human Connection Workshop Readings – General Health Clinicians
Part I: The neurobiology of human connection (i.e., what does evolutionary biology and neuroscience tell us about the human-to-human encounter) Adler, H.M. (2002). The sociophysiology of caring in the doctor-patient relationship. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 17: 883-90 Adolphs, R. … Continue reading
Letting go with love
Recently my father’s first true love contacted me – she had found me on the internet and was wondering if I was his daughter. The internet allows for extraordinary connections to take place because my father has been dead for … Continue reading
Mindfulness for health professionals
I will be running a mindfulness course for health clinicians in June 2018 (Wednesdays: 13/6, 20/6, 27/6 and 4/7 from 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm). Generally people have two main questions when it comes to mindfulness: 1) What is it … Continue reading
Healing the darkness within
In the last few months I have been struggling with the news that several prominent people in the field of psychology and psychiatry have been behaving inappropriately. This will not be the last time that our field is rocked by … Continue reading
Befriend the wolf
For many people anger is seen as an intolerable emotion. This may be particularly true for women who are often socialised to be soft, compliant, nurturing and supportive. For some, anger has been deemed unacceptable because they grew up with … Continue reading
The neurobiology of bedside manner
One of my main interest is relationships. Relationships are a source of fun, joy, excitement, meaning and intimacy as well as confusion, despair, rage, frustration, longing and pain. Whether intimate, supervisory or clinical, brief or long lasting, connections with other … Continue reading
A little math
Some researchers spend their lives working on equations to capture aspects of human behaviour. To be worth anything, the numbers – whether an equation or a ratio – has to be able to predict future, most likely behaviour. Here are … Continue reading
GMF
GMF usually stands for Genetically Modified Foods. However in my life it stands for the three things that I need to do most days to stay okay through life’s ups and downs. G stands for Gym. I try to get … Continue reading
Rejecting help
“..human thinking is deeply flawed. Not only that, but we are capable of holding onto our false beliefs for a lifetime in the face of considerable evidence to the contrary. Not only do people come to us for help, but … Continue reading
What’s your anesthetic?
Many people (most?) have a preferred way to numb uncomfortable emotions. We don’t like feeling disappointed, shame, anger, fear, grief or loneliness and so we find something to take the edge off – to allow us not to feel anything … Continue reading