I want to share my thoughts in this blog post about the new normal imposed on us by the coronavirus. Through conversations with my patients, I have come to appreciate how prior experience in managing emotional and physical vulnerabilities equipped some individuals to adapt better to self-isolation. For example, a young woman who battled an aggressive cancer shared that she has already experienced the conditions the rest of us are grappling with. She faced an unpredictable disease; she lived through […]
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When Is Enough, Enough?
I recently had a conversation with a young woman in her midthirties about her fraternal twin brother. She and her brother got along well all their lives. They went to separate colleges and lived and worked in different cities until six months ago. Prior to her brother moving to the same city, they spent time with one another on family vacations and visited one another perhaps once or twice a year. Now that her brother lives close by, she feels […]
Thank You for Listening
I recently gave a presentation to the Phoenix Valley Mothers of Multiples. Thanks to the terrific event-planning skills of the organization’s workshop coordinator, the attendance was wonderful. Most notably, many dads and a few grandparents were present. I was surprised to learn that many of the families had identical twins. Usually, the numbers skew toward fraternal sets. This conference was advertised as a child development event, so I was more than thrilled to talk about my unique understanding of twin […]
The Intersection of Our Past and Present
Speaking to a lovely group of twin moms, I was struck by a dilemma plaguing one of the mothers. She related that, contrary to her own personal beliefs, her husband is passionately opposed to the idea that it is healthier for twins to be differentiated. He believes their six-year-old fraternal sons should wear the exact same clothes, and he does not see the value of spending alone time with each boy. He feels that the twin connection is sacred and […]
What If?
What if my twin falls apart and I am not there to pick up the pieces? What if my twin never gets married? What if my twin cannot forgive me for moving away? What if my twin decides to quit running the business with me? Many of my patients tend to be trapped by catastrophic thinking, which involves ruminating about irrational, worst-case scenarios that will result in disaster. Sometimes, persistent negative thoughts stem from old beliefs and core values. Helping […]