Suffering and Wisdom

Perhaps the most moving artistic creation I have ever encountered was a four hour performance of Aeschylus’s The Oresteia produced by Robert Icke in the Almeida Theater in London. The performance itself was truly staggering, and I would pay an exorbitant sum to have a recording of the performance. I often thought that I would show it to every class of students I taught if I had the means. The interpretation of the canonical Greek tragedy was that impressive, that intricately woven, a near perfect artistic creation.

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Virginia Woolf

The first time I read Mrs. Dalloway, I was actually studying for a class on Faulkner. That said, Woolf’s novel left an impression that has hardly faded over the years.

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Natural Healing

Nature has always been a place where I have found peace, and now studies are coming out that support nature as a powerful force in recovering from PTSD.

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Defining CPTSD

One of my former students recently read my post on Emotional Flashbacks, accessible here, and asked me to differentiate between PTSD and CPTSD. I thought I would take this week to do so. Though not an official, DSM-5 diagnosis, Complex PTSD is becoming increasingly accepted in the psychiatric community. Pete Walker, the author of Complex…

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The Power of Music

Recently, a friend and fellow music enthusiast emailed me and asked if I would write a blog post about music that has helped me throughout my journey. I really liked the idea, so I want to take the time to do that now. Art is art, no matter the medium or sense with which it…

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Trigger Warnings

During one of my graduate school classes this summer, I faced a difficult question for the first time. Given the reading list for the course, I had no choice but to approach my professor and tell him about my CPTSD. Multiple books on the list were rife with triggers that could steal hours, days, or…

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Madness

Yesterday, a friend stumbled upon my website. I haven’t made much of an effort to broadcast my health struggles, and this friend was unaware of the recent discoveries in my life. He asked me what it was like living with mental illness. I must admit, I know he is going to read my response. That…

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Sleep and Nightmares

You get to know yourself really well at 3:00 in the morning. There’s something about that exact moment that is deader than the other hours of the night. 2:00 serves as the dregs of social nights. At 4:00 you can feel the still-hidden sun creeping slowly toward a new day. But at 3:00 you are…

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