For much of his life, Luciano Hernández has faced the constant threat of financial insecurity. Saving and planning for the future of his family—his wife Irma and five children—seemed out of reach. But in recent years, Luciano has found hope and opportunity in his community of Coatecas Altas in Oaxaca, a southern state in Mexico. He says “My life has changed a lot. I started working at age 12. When I got married and had children, I emigrated to find work so that I could feed them. I came back to get my wife and children and take [...]

The winter Olympics are in full swing, and one of the most notable names on Team USA is snowboarder Chloe Kim. When asked about the pressure placed upon athletes competing in the games, the 17-year-old simply stated, “I don’t really think about it as pressure. Pressure is a byproduct of expectations, and expectations mean that people believe in you.” Only a few days later, Kim would go on to win the gold medal in the snowboard halfpipe, but not before tweeting “Wish I finished my breakfast sandwich but my stubborn self decided not to and now I’m getting hangry.” [...]

“Addiction” is often used to refer to abuse of substances, but it can also include other behaviors such as: gambling, eating, video games, sexual obsessions, working, religiosity, codependency patterns, etc. Some experts define it as, “Anything one does excessively for the purpose of avoiding a thought or emotion.” Addiction is a cycle of use, recovery, and relapse and involves dependence in three key areas: physiological, psychological, and emotional. To break the cycle, all three of these areas must be addressed.  The physiological component of addiction is explained well through a concept often heard in recovery programs: “It is not [...]

Guilt and shame are two incredibly powerful emotions. Often used interchangeably, guilt is specific to regret regarding an action or decision. However, in the words of Brené Brown, shame is “an intensely painful feeling or experience of believing we are flawed and therefore unworthy of acceptance and belonging.”  Guilt is about something we’ve done; shame is about who we are. Sometimes, these emotions arise due to an action, decision or belief of our own. Other times, these emotions come up based on the words or actions of those around us. An important practice with these emotions is separating the [...]