Corking the Bottle

[First published August 15, 2018] I heard a riddle at today's A.A. speakers meeting. How many alcoholics does it take to change a lightbulb? One. He just holds it and the world turns around him! I find that particularly humorous in light of one of my character defects I have identified and work to change every day -- self-centeredness. According to Freud, "Whoever loves becomes humble. Those who love have, so to speak, pawned a part of their narcissism." If I pawned my narcissism, I have yet to receive any cash for it, which suggests I am still hanging on to some of it. When I was lying in intensive care after drinking so much I was unresponsive on the floor, a social worker told me about A.A. and gave me a list of local meetings. I told her thanks, but no thanks. What I didn't tell her was that I knew the kind of people who attend A.A. meetings, and I'm not one of them. I have a college degree. I retired after being a professional for 35 years. I have a...

[First published June 7, 2018] As I understand Freud, he spent a lot of time discussing childhood, relationships with parents, and the Oedipus complex. My psychiatrist turned me onto a book he thought might be helpful. Boy, he was right! I am now reading it for a second time. It is full of good stuff to help me get to the real root of my hangups. It's about cognitive therapy, which says my relationship with my father isn't all that significant. The book is  The Feeling Good Handbook , by Dr. David D. Burns. It would be difficult to delve into many specifics because the theory is hard to explain in a few short blog posts. (Burns' book is two inches and 729 pages including the index.) Maybe a website on cognitive theory will pique your interest. O ne to try is  https://www.cognitivetherapynyc.com/What-Is-Cognitive-Therapy.aspx . That site describes cognitive theory this way: "Cognitive-behavioral therapy is a relatively short-term, focused psychotherapy for a wide r...

I heard a riddle at today's A.A. speakers meeting. How many alcoholics does it take to change a lightbulb? One. He just holds it and the world turns around him! I find that particularly humorous in light of one of my character defects I have identified and work to change every day -- self-centeredness. According to Freud, "Whoever loves becomes humble. Those who love have, so to speak, pawned a part of their narcissism." If I pawned my narcissism, I have yet to receive any cash for it, which suggests I am still hanging on to some of it. When I was lying in intensive care after drinking so much I was unresponsive on the floor, a social worker told me about A.A. and gave me a list of local meetings. I told her thanks, but no thanks. What I didn't tell her was that I knew the kind of people who attend A.A. meetings, and I'm not one of them. I have a college degree. I retired after being a professional for 35 years. I have a nice home and never have lived in a...

As I understand Freud, he spent a lot of time discussing childhood, relationships with parents, and the Oedipus complex. My psychiatrist turned me onto a book he thought might be helpful. Boy, he was right! I am now reading it for a second time. It is full of good stuff to help me get to the real root of my hangups. It's about cognitive therapy, which says my relationship with my father isn't all that significant. The book is The Feeling Good Handbook , by Dr. David D. Burns. It would be difficult to delve into many specifics because the theory is hard to explain in a few short blog posts. (Burns' book is two inches and 729 pages including the index.) Maybe a website on cognitive theory will pique your interest. O ne to try is https://www.cognitivetherapynyc.com/What-Is-Cognitive-Therapy.aspx . That site describes cognitive theory this way: "Cognitive-behavioral therapy is a relatively short-term, focused psychotherapy for a wide range of psychological problems inc...