Monthly Archives: January 2018

Day 1837: SAD

Posted on January 11, 2018 by Ann Koplow

What is your first association with SAD?

My first association with SAD these days is that it’s a negative and judgmental way to end a tweet. SAD.

My second association, these days, is Seasonal Affective Disorder, which is

a type of depression that’s related to changes in seasons — SAD begins and ends at about the same times every year. If you’re like most people with SAD, your symptoms start in the fall and continue into the winter months, sapping your energy and making you feel moody. Less often, SAD causes depression in the spring or early summer.

Treatment for SAD may include light therapy (phototherapy), medications and psychotherapy.

Don’t brush off that yearly feeling as simply a case of the “winter blues” or a seasonal funk that you have to tough out on your own. Take steps to keep your mood and motivation steady throughout the year.

I’m happy to quote the Mayo Clinic, above, about SAD. I’m sad to report that many people I know are currently dealing with Seasonal Affective Disorder. I may have some SADness, too, because I struggle to keep my mood and motivation steady during this time of year.

The steps I take to keep my mood and motivation steady include

sharing my thoughts and feelings,
helping others,
eating healthy and comforting food,

avoiding snow and ice,

being inspired by others,

seeking light wherever I can find it,

and listening to music.

At least, Lana Del Rey’s “Summertime Sadness” reminds me that summer is on the way.

Yesterday, in my therapy group, people talked about making gratitude lists to help themselves feel less sad. My gratitude list includes all those who helped me create this SAD post and — of course! — YOU.

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: Eggplant Casserole, group therapy, Lana Del Rey, Martin Luther King, Martin Luther King quotes, Mayo Clinic, psychotherapy, seasonal affective disorder, Trump tweets, tuna noodle casserole, winter blues | 21 Comments

Day 1836: The Way You Do The Things You Do

Posted on January 10, 2018 by Ann Koplow

Do you pay attention to the way you do the things you do?

I try to pay attention to the way people do the things they do, especially because I’m a psychotherapist.

I try to pay attention to the way I do the things I do, so I can learn from my mistakes and grow.

Here’s the way I do the blog things I do:

I often gain inspiration from the way I see the things I do.

I include music that does the things it does.

Please consider commenting the way you do, below.

Here’s the way I express thanks to the Temptations and to you, for the way you do the things you do.

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: "The Way You Do the Things You Do", gratitude, growing, learning from mistakes, the Temptations | 13 Comments

Day 1835: Different ways to say things

Posted on January 9, 2018 by Ann Koplow

Although we can get in a rut about how we express ourselves, there are many different ways to say things.

For example, somebody in therapy yesterday wanted to set limits with a intrusive co-worker. Her first impulse was to say “Get Out of My Face!” Because that might be experienced as unprofessional, we made a list other ways to say that.

Now I’m trying to think of a different way to say some of the same things I wrote in yesterday’s post:

I OVER SLEPT AGAIN and
Here are my other photos from yesterday:

There are different ways to say “Happy Birthday” to Elvis. Here‘s one of them:

There are different ways to make comments. I look forward to reading yours later.

There are different ways to express gratitude to all who helped me create this post and to YOU. Here’s one of them:

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: boundaries, Elvis Presley's birthday, interpersonal skills, setting limits, Yogi Tea | 20 Comments

Day 1834: Know yourself

Posted on January 8, 2018 by Ann Koplow

I know myself enough to know that

every once in a while I oversleep (like this morning),
I can’t be late for work,
I want to publish a post every morning,
I like to share photos, and
I’m proud of my son and his friends (who’ve known themselves and each other for a long time).

Therefore, this is my post today:

I’ve already published a post on being yourself. I do trust myself. Like most people I know, I’m working on loving myself.

If I know my readers, I know they’ll be themselves in their comments.

Knowing and purposeful thanks to Aaron, Cameron, Clark, and YOU!

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: be yourself, Know yourself, love yourself, trust yourself, Yogi Tea | 16 Comments

Day 1833: New Lows

Posted on January 7, 2018 by Ann Koplow

Let’s see what new lows I can achieve in today’s post, shall we?

The temperatures in the Boston area have reached new lows, here and now. It’s MINUS 5 degrees F, without the windchill factor.

I’ve experienced a lot of lows in the almost sixty-five years I’ve lived here, but that’s a new low for me.

Speaking of new lows, I’d say that the U.S. President achieved new lows in his tweeting yesterday when he described himself as a “very stable genius” and “being, like, really smart.”

I’m afraid to check the news for new lows, so instead I’ll look for new lows in yesterday’s photos.

Nobody wanted to play Coda with me yesterday, including Oscar, which was another new low. Earlier in the day, I reached new lows playing Othello with my son, when Aaron DESTROYED me, twice.

I guess I’m not the very stable genius I thought I was or, like, really smart.

Let’s see what new lows I can find on YouTube.

For new lows in new comments, please go below.

Was it a new low for me to stock up on thanks the last time I ventured out, when the temperatures weren’t quite so low?

Thanks to Aaron, Oscar, Middle Class Rut, and everyone else who helped me reach the new lows in today’s post and thanks — of course! — to YOU.

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: "New Low", Coda, Donald Trump, gas fireplace, like really smart, Middle Class Rut, Othello, record breaking temperatures, very stable genius, Yogi Tea | 26 Comments

Day 1832: I don’t want to

Posted on January 6, 2018 by Ann Koplow

I don’t want to

go outside when it’s “historically” cold,
move my left arm,
cook,
clean,
over-eat,
over-commit,
waste time,
watch the news,
check my mail,
worry about the future,
dwell on the past,
offend people,
get hurt,
squelch feelings,
read,
do much of anything, or
complain (too late!)

I do want to

blog and
share my photos from yesterday.

No offense, but do cats — modern or otherwise — really need a lifestyle magazine?

I don’t want to be judgmental, but people who say “No Offense” are often offensive.

I don’t want to listen to music, but I will anyway.

I don’t want to set the world on fire, but we could all use a little warmth.

I don’t want to end this post without expressing my sincere thanks to the Ink Spots, to everyone else who helped me write this post, and — of course! — to YOU.

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism, therapy | Tags: "I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire", "No Offense", historical cold, Modern Cat Magazine, New England weather, self forgiveness, subzero temperatures, The Ink Spots, Yogi Tea | 29 Comments

Day 1831: Bombs

Posted on January 5, 2018 by Ann Koplow

We’ve been dealing with a few bombs here on the east coast of the USA, including

While many people around us had to suffer through flooding, power outages, and loss of heat, we somehow avoided those bombs. Or, to quote another weapon-oriented phrase used by my bf (Boy Friend, Best Friend, Bomb deFuser) Michael: “We dodged a bullet, baby.”

Want to see some photos from yesterday and guess which one was not taken by me? Bombs away!

Here’s what happens when you search YouTube for “Trevor Noah bomb”:

Boom!

Gratitude incoming for all those who helped me write this post and — of course! — to you, no matter what bombs you’re dealing with today.

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: bomb cyclone, dodging a bullet, Fire and Fury, Inside our house, Inside the Trump White House, January 2017, Michael Wolff, South Shore of Boston, Trevor Noah, Trump administration, Worst I Ever Bombed | 31 Comments

Day 1830: Non-disparagement agreement

Posted on January 4, 2018 by Ann Koplow

Today, I’m waking up to news about a lawsuit regarding the violation of a non-disparagement agreement between Donald Trump and Steve Bannon.

Please don’t disparage me about this, but I didn’t know that non-disparagement agreements were a thing, much less legally enforceable.

In five years of writing this daily blog — even without the benefit of having a non-disparagement agreement with my readers — I can’t remember receiving any disparaging comments. Maybe non-disparagement agreements don’t have to be in writing. Maybe we can all just agree not to disparage each other, even when we don’t agree.

However, I’m thinking that written non-disparagement agreements might be useful for reducing self-disparagement. Here’s a first draft of that kind of non-disparagement agreement:

I agree not to disparage myself, silently or out loud.

Signed,

(your name here)

I agree not to disparage myself about my other photos from yesterday.

I don’t want to disparage the people in the news these days, but I wish they’d act more like adults. If they did, perhaps people in my therapy groups wouldn’t be focusing so much on self-protection.

Should we disparage this YouTube video?

What do you think about non-disparagement agreements? No disparagement here, even if we disagree.

As always, I agree to (1) write every day that I am able and (2) express gratitude at the end of each post.

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: adults, definition of "disparage", distrust, Donald Trump, group therapy, SAT vocabulary words, self-protection, Steve Bannon, trust | 23 Comments

Day 1829: Worry vs. Planning

Posted on January 3, 2018 by Ann Koplow

I didn’t plan to write about this today, but no worries.

In therapy, we often talk about reducing worry. A lot of people believe that worry is an essential part of planning. They confuse worry with planning and have trouble separating the two.

I suggest to people that

you can plan without worrying and
worry doesn’t help with anything, including planning.

Yesterday, we made a list of Worry vs. Planning:

I wasn’t planning to put that list in this blog so I didn’t write neatly. I’m not worrying about that.

You might not have planned to think about this today, but what do you think are the differences between worry and planning?

Here are some other unplanned photos from yesterday:

I didn’t plan on sleeping late this morning, but I did. I’m not going to worry about that, either. I’m just going to quickly find a video for this post, publish it, and get ready for work.

I always plan to thank everybody who helps me create these posts and who reads them. These days, I’m not worrying about how I express my gratitude — I just do it.