I'm not really a dog person but when someone says this is a rescue dog, I know what they mean. I know that if a door slams and the dog goes nuts, it's not about the door. I know that the dog has history and the best thing to do is make it feel safe again. I don't go on about how harmless the door is. Instead I gently soothe the dog with kindness and compassion. So here's the thing. We're all a little bit rescue dog. Sometimes something will happen - a sound, an image, an interaction - and...

The immune system, in managing our biological interactions, does not focus on learning everything about every organism it encounters. Instead it learns intimately about us, what we need to thrive, what our vulnerabilities are, and the responses that are most or least helpful. In this way, it can differentiate between threats and opportunities; know when to be tolerant, when to embrace opportunities, and when to be defensive. We can be the same. When we shift our focus from trying to...

Research into the mental health impacts of climate change is leading to an array of treatment approaches. But I wonder if the task ahead is not to treat climate distress, but to respond to it. To resist being complicit. To elevate what is important to us. In my work with those who experience climate distress, I always ask "what are you already doing that gives you relief, that makes life ok?" Inevitably, it is something that reflects their values - family & friends, nature, connection,...