by Valerie Gillies
“Something came out from my heart into my throat and then into my eyes” – Jean Rhys
I always excelled at staring contests. It’s a cultivated skill. Without too much effort, I can turn everything off, blank out, and suspend time. It works great for balancing yoga poses. And I have to say that even though it’s probably not the optimal way to approach the milestones of life, it works for me in its own crooked way. […]
by Dr. Barb Depree, M.D.
The provider-patient relationship is delicate and fraught with opportunity for misunderstanding. On one hand, you have a busy professional in a somewhat risky, stressful profession who is pressed for time and is trained to speak a foreign language—medical mumbo-jumbo. […]
by Rachel Snyder
More than a feeling and deeper than any emotion, joy is a pure state of being. Joy is holding your child to your breast for the very first time and locking lovers’ eyes. Joy is being in love and sleeping in the sunshine and running down a mountain path with the swiftness of a deer in the springtime. Joy expands your heart and opens your soul until you know, really know, that death is simply the turning of another page. Joy is snowflakes and slipping on the ice and getting up so you can slip all over again and never even feeling the cold. Living in joy doesn’t mean putting on a happy face. It means that joy is at the core of who you are and always have been. Joy is strong enough to carry you through the darkness and the pain into a place where joy still resides in ultimate measure. Seek to find joy and let joy fill your life.
Dear Reader: Today is the the last day of school for my two youngest children. Tomorrow, they will begin the long summer wait for the next school year to start. This cyclical passing of time is short-lived, I know, punctuated by those all-familiar rituals which change as they (and I) age. This essay is in homage to them and the reality that time is truly fleeting…
Today, I waved to both my daughter and son as they rode away on the school bus. It was the silly kind of wave – two arms flailing, and me jumping up and down as if I was flagging down a passing ship. I made the heart sign to them and blew them both a kiss. We all continued waving until the bus was out of sight. Walking back to my house, I had a lump in my throat. I am so sad. The times they are a’changing… […]
by Phyllis Goldberg Ph.D. and Rosemary Lichtman Ph.D.
Have you noticed that your kids are becoming more attached than ever to television, video games and texting? And the season doesn’t seem to matter. During summer, with more free time and fewer structured activities, it’s easy to turn to electronics for stimulation. In winter, the shorter daylight hours and long, dark evenings allow less time for outdoor play. […]
Andrea Lynn
Father’s Day has never been a big deal in our house. My girls are too young to know the occasion exists, since they are still at home and sheltered from both Hallmark and earnest preschool teachers. But my legion of Single Mothers By Choice friends all have tales to tell about school projects mislabeled to “daddy” and efforts to substitute variations of grandpa and uncle on hand-written cards and macaroni photo frames. It is an annual discussion that is sometimes painful but mostly handled in stride. I’m pretty sure Jewish kids have more trouble with Christmas than fatherless children have trouble with Father’s Day, though perhaps I’m in denial. […]
by Dr. Barb Depree, M.D.
Dr. Sheryl Kingsberg is a MiddlesexMD advisor and a psychologist specializing in women’s sexual health. She talks to physicians a lot about why it’s important to at least ask about a patient’s sexual health and maybe take her sexual health history. So she’s very familiar with the view from the physician’s side of the desk when it comes to talking about sex with patients. […]
by Beverley Golden
Being an Aquarian with five other planets in air, I am challenged by the persistent desire to fly wherever I want to go. Of course not in the literal flying sense, but in the metaphorical craving to get where I’m going as fast as I can. It is a daily challenge for me to stay in my body and be on the ground. I believe this is partly why I’ve had so many physical health issues from a young age, a reminder that I need to pay attention to and be in my body. […]
by Barb Depree
I get occasional questions about erotic use of various household objects. I am, after all, long trained as a physician, so safety and hygiene are among my first concerns. And, since starting MiddlesexMD, I’ve seen some very well designed vibrators, dilators, and dildos that I know are safe, easy to clean, and designed specifically for older women’s pleasure. […]
by Rosemary Lichtman Ph.D., and Phyllis Goldberg Ph.D
The thought of sleep-away camp may stir up anxiety and ambivalence for you and your kids. As in any new situation there are unknowns, and it’s easy to let them get the best of you. Yet camp can be a great opportunity for kids to develop their interests, inner strengths, and independence. […]