Death as a reminder of life

Death as a reminder of life

A friend’s husband is in the hospital at the moment, surrounded by loved ones to bear witness to his last breaths. Likely the breaths will stop in the next day, for sure by the end of the week. I met my friend during a RW weekend, at a vulnerable time of my life. Responding in … Continue reading »

I could have been a killer’s psychiatrist

Part of the blog post from the HuffPo entry: Currently the public has little information about the mental status of killer Adam Lanzus, though much has been speculated.  Since the December 14th shooting of six adults and 20 children ages six to seven at Sandy Hook Elementary, the public outcry for gun control and increased awareness about mental … Continue reading »

Caring for our children affected by trauma

Today was a sad day for children around the world.  An estimated 20 children and 6 adults were killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut. And at least 22 children and one adult were injured in stabbings at a primary school in Chengping village, central China. These children are our children, and belong to … Continue reading »

Dying from igituntu: the push for a dynamic culture

Dying from igituntu: the push for a dynamic culture

“The most common disorder that I can treat successfully is igituntu, uvula disease, in children. I take a knife and a spoon, to cut and catch the uvula.  When it bleeds, I use herbs to stop the bleeding.”  A traditional healer (mpfumu) in Burundi continues to explain his healing practices, “the problem is when there … Continue reading »

Language and identity in refugee parents

Tonight I gave a parenting workshop to Iranian refugees in our community.  Most came to the States within the past six months, and a few have been here for more than a year.  Initially hesitant, by the end of the workshop, parents didn’t want to end. One 29 year old man discussed how his world … Continue reading »

Supporting our black communities

This week I was reminded of a local community deeply in need here at home. Often I become immersed in communities abroad at the expense of local issues.  Attention was called towards the life and death of 17 year old Orlando resident, Trayvon Martin. Holding a can of skittles and iced tea, he was targeted by … Continue reading »

Needing to look afar

This has been a weekend of communities, both far and near. From the continued Kony drama with the lewd public behavior of Invisible Children’s founder, to the responses of local Ugandans to said video. Where are all the Ugandan voices? I keep asking.  How do Ugandans feel about the video and aftermath? Sometimes it’s easier … Continue reading »

The KONY Awards

The KONY Awards

   I finally had time to breathe and watched the viral KONY 2012 video. The initial reaction was two-fold:  disheartened with the    organization, and impressed at the production.  My assumption was that they would use their amazing PR, outreach, fundraising, and media skills to educate the public about a complex and disturbing issue.  Disheartening are … Continue reading »

Living in the internal vs. external worlds

I am not a writer, but am trying to come to it, as what better place to turn than internally.  If you had to write a book, would it be non-fiction or fiction?  With this blog – do I write about factual, academic research and report facts to educate?  Or more process-oriented, interpretive comments about … Continue reading »

Medicating our children

There’s a lot of hype about stimulants (like Ritalin) and prescribing medication for children, as the controversial Sunday New York Times article mentions.  Everyone has their own opinion, so I’ll just give my two cents: 1. A reminder to all that the field of child/adolescent psychiatry is itself in adolescence. There’s a ton we don’t know … Continue reading »