by E.A. Gilmartin
Yes, yes, I know, this makes me a heretic in the world of psychotherapy and maybe I will have my license revoked, but two decades of serving clients coupled with witnessing our current state of affairs have convinced me of this.
If you have not been in individual therapy before, I am sure you can still imagine the typical prompts given during a session, something along the lines of, “So how did that make you feel?” and “What were you feeling when that happened?” and so on.
Introspection is often a healthy endeavor in measured doses. Reflecting…
Resentment is the Fuel for the Trump Supporter, So Why Do We Still Resort to Logic?
E. A. Gilmartin
I do not anticipate that anyone planning to vote for Trump in 2020 will be even remotely inclined to read this, but what the heck, here I go.
Let’s be honest;
You see the economy as the most pressing issue when it comes to voting and yet select a leader who demonstrably cannot keep from running his own businesses into the ground.
You purport to value truth and yet vote for a confirmed liar.
You claim to value commitment and yet…
NO SHIRT, NO SHOES, NO SERVICE
Imagine this. You go to your local restaurant and are seated with your family perusing the menu when a commotion erupts near the hostess podium. Curious, you look up to see a middle-aged man wearing nothing but boxers, his ample belly hanging over the elastic, one bare, callused foot stomping with great indignation. The anger on his face is palpable as the words issue from his mouth in a vituperative stream, “But it’s my constitutional right!”
Much to his chagrin, he is not seated, while you and your family share a collective sigh of…
By E.A. Gilmartin
Disclaimer: This is not to malign Damon, the person, but rather to make a point.
I noticed the movie, The Martian, was on cable again recently. I had seen it a few years earlier having come across it when mindlessly flipping through the channels.
What I thought would be a fantasy story of survival on a hostile planet turned into a sad and infuriating commentary on our feel-good culture that entirely ignores real pain and suffering.
I know, I know, it’s just a fantasy movie, get over it. But what movies are selected to be produced, the…
Character is revealed when pressure is applied.
Alas, I’d like to take credit for that quote, but it’s not mine. I share it here as it is quite apropos given our current extraordinary circumstances. Living under duress as we all are during this pandemic certainly tests our resolve. Whether or not one is directly challenged by COVID 19 as a patient, a health care provider, a beleaguered family member, the impact is felt as any semblance of a predictable daily routine is upended. For many, the floor of economic stability has fallen out with no determinate end in sight. We…
by E.A Gilmartin
Okay, no, I am not referring to the actual embodiment of some red-toned, dual-horned, pitchfork carrying creature of the netherworld, although orange-toned, phone carrying, twitchy-Twitter fingered creature does come very close.
This essay is not to imply the existence of a biblical beast out of the Book of Revelations. This is simply a character study in which two extremes are placed in juxtaposition for illustrative purposes.
One need not be a Christian to have a general sense of the qualities imbued and espoused by Jesus; whether or not one believes he ever existed or if he did…
by Elaine Gilmartin
Yes, congratulations on this past week’s victory! How proud you must be!
Yes, yes, it is hard and thirsty work to defy conventional wisdom on the merits of a valid and thorough trial. Not so easy to swallow any sense of values and commitment to truth and oath of office, not so easy to choke out that ‘Not guilty’ with a tenuous smile on your face, no, not at all. But you did it! Kudos to my Republican brethren!
And so what have we won?…drum roll, please!
Well, firstly, you parted ways with your pesky soul and…
Elaine Gilmartin
I’ve become convinced that ‘because it’s not me” is an actual syndrome. Its core symptoms involve hyper-emotionality, lack of reason, heightened anxiety, illogic, stubborn adherence to flawed ideology, and grim desperation to keep those blinders on no matter what comes knocking on the door.
In my naivete or just my pathetic optimism, I have always believed that a solid, logical argument could provide the cure for the malaise of those afflicted with this syndrome. But that requires receptivity to reason devoid of passion and personal agenda and is contingent on emotional health and wellness. And that apparently may…
By: Elaine Gilmartin
I was born into a Catholic family. Irish Catholic, to be more specific. That, of course, entailed weekly attendance at Sunday mass, confession every few months whether you had sinned or not, and regarding the Pope as God’s “right-hand man.”
But mine was a critical thinking Irish Catholic family and for that, I thank my parents. My dad grew up Brooklyn poor, GI bill got him to college and then he went to law school, my mom Brooklyn rich, went on to be a school teacher after college, and so they both highly valued education and debates…
It is more than an unfortunate reality that people who are overweight are maligned, denigrated, publicly excoriated, and generally dismissed as weak-willed and indulgent. Family and friends offer a litany of unsolicited and often unwelcome advice, strangers will pass judgment through looks of condescension and outright disdain. Women considered to be overweight tend to be the recipients of said negativity more so than their overweight male counterparts, who once lauded their ample bellies as a sign of good living. Because, as we all know from years of social indoctrination, ultimately, the value of a woman lies in her looks.
But…
Elaine Gilmartin
A therapist by profession, a runner by passion, a writer by necessity.
