I just returned from the first secular psychotherapy conference Ive attended in years. I loved it. It felt like coming out of the cave of narrow-minded religion into the sunlight of free thought. Well, almost.

My personal highlight was meeting renowned existential psychiatrist and prolific author, Irvin Yalom. He seemed so at ease with himselfnothing to prove and much to share. He encouraged us to look beneath symptoms for the inevitable collision of personal yearnings with the...

Work of God pressing my mind into the shape of the mind of Christ as the years go by.

He has said that His thoughts and ours are not the same. It is amazing how, in spite of that teaching, we so often think God is like us in His opinions and positions. He keeps sounding pretty American and a very successful evangelical in His ways. Traveling to third world countries and dialoguing with their occupants has opened my eyes a bit more to who this God really is. Frankly, He is quite...

The brainchild of Dr. Madan Kataria, a Physician from Mumbai, India, launched the first Laughter Club at a Park on March 13, 1995, with merely a handful of persons. Today, it has become a worldwide phenomenon with more than 6000 Social Laughter Clubs in about 60 countries.

Laughter Yoga combines Unconditional Laughter with Yogic Breathing (Pranayama).

Media coverage
This innovative concept has a worldwide...

I formerly had patients who wanted their medications added to the water supply. Now, they are afraid of the water. Congressional hearings, recent studies, and recent celebrity rants (see Tims article at the end of this issue) have patients generally worried about the safety of all medications. This kind of apprehension and worry has always been the case for psychiatric medications. Sadly, this is now worsened by the current climate and requires a renewed discussion that seeks to...

Even within the Church, we hear voices telling us that we must water down the pulpit ministry of the Word (biblical preaching) and dilute the personal ministry of the Word (biblical counseling) to suit our post-modern culture. Those offering this advice frequently imply that the insistence upon theologically-founded ministry is a throw back to modernity rather than a command of Scripture. Two pre-modern Christians (among a great cloud of possible witnesses) argue otherwise.

The...

A recent federal court opinion on the wrongful use of the MMPI as an employment screening tool could have big implications for churches, mission agencies, and counseling clinics throughout the country. The 7th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals (Karraker, et al., v. Rent-ACenter, Case No. 04-2881, 6-14-05) ruled in June 2005 that the MMPI was a medical/psychiatric test and therefore impermissible for use as a pre-employment screening tool under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990...

This is a study of how couples talk to each other about not feeling well. Kandi Walker and Fran Dickson reported on 53 couples who provided interview and questionnaire information having been contacted through convenience sampling procedures. The couples reported an average age of 43 years (range = 22 to 81), and the majority was Caucasian (83%), followed by Native American (7%), African American (5%), Hispanic (3%), and Asian (1%). The average length of time married was 17 years (range...

I have always struggled with the delicate treatment dance involving medication¦ especially involving kids. But you dont have to work with patients very long to realize that some need medication and lots of it (smile), that others are under-medicated or over-medicated, and that some need to get off their medication.

Passionate debate around these issues can go on for endless hours. But what follows is a snippet of the tension-filled interview in late June with actor Tom...

Mental health organizations are also involved in the cultural discussions. For example, the American Psychological Association (APA) recently weighed in on the two topics of marriage and adoption, with the Council Representatives voting in favor of policy statements that support gay marriage and homosexual adoption.

The leadership of the American Association of Christian Counselors (AACC) felt it important that our organization consider the topic of homosexuality and offer some...

Through my work with those who have experienced childhood sexual abuse, I have come across an issue that has only recently been discussed publicly—self-injury. It is an area full of shame for those who struggle with it, and as a result, it has been kept well hidden. In recent months, I have been confronted more than usual with terrible and painful situations in the body of Christ. I have seen Christians destroying other believers, Christians behaving unethically and immorally,...