Happiness in this World » problems

Why We Don’t Know Better

Alex Lickerman — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 23:31:48 +0000

Several years ago, someone I know told me he was contemplating divorcing his wife. I wasn’t surprised. He’d been unhappy in the marriage for some time—and, in my opinion, with good reason: his wife was jealous to the point of being neurotic, often behaving in ways that were shockingly inappropriate, offensive, and stress-inducing.

Or [...]

The Power Of Resolve

Alex Lickerman — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 19:34:22 +0000

Photo: Randy Son Of Robert

People all over the world know the story of Helen Keller, the deaf-blind girl Annie Sullivan taught to communicate by spelling letters on her hands, whose story was depicted in the play and movie The Miracle Worker. What most people don’t know is the story of how Helen’s [...]

When Everything Seems To Be Going Wrong

Alex Lickerman — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 00:24:02 +0000

Photo: Robert S. Donovan

For me, this last week has been a little rough. I’ve been working as an attending physician on an inpatient service populated with incredibly sick patients, several of whom are intensely angry about their diseases and are projecting their anger toward me and the team of residents with whom I work. [...]

The True Cause Of Depression

Alex Lickerman — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 00:04:43 +0000

About two years ago a patient of mine, Mr. Burndt (not his real name), committed suicide. When his wife, who was also my patient, told me the news at one of her visits, I was shocked. Fully aware that 40% of older patients who are suicidal visit their primary care doctors within one week [...]