Communication Archives - Mental Health @ Home

Book Review: Stop Overthinking Your Relationship

August 31, 2022 August 10, 2022 / Book Reviews, Books, Communication, Relationships / 26 Comments

Stop Overthinking Your Relationship by Alicia Muñoz addresses ruminative thinking patterns that can damage relationships. The author describes rumination as a pattern of passive rather than active thinking, and she describes different kinds of rumination cycles such as blame or control-based rumination. These each relate to a shortage of “some important psychological nutrient.” There was …

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Reacting to Hurt: A Decision Tool

May 3, 2022 September 24, 2022 / Cognitive Distortions, Communication, Relationships / 45 Comments

If you’re anything like me, when someone close to you does something that feels hurtful, there’s a strong urge (sometimes a very strong urge) to react in a way that’s driven by that hurt. That reaction isn’t necessarily appropriate or useful, though, and sometimes it can involve some pretty dumb shit. I came up with …

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The Dudgeon-o-Meter: How High Is Your Dudgeon?

April 7, 2022 August 24, 2022 / Communication, Emotions, Language / 81 Comments

I love words, which I suppose is part of why I love writing. Certain words/phrases in particular really float my boat and give me no end of amusement. Earlier this week, I wrote about intending to wait until I was no longer in high dudgeon to send a complaint email (about the rodent infestation on …

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Book Review: The Better Boundaries Workbook

November 3, 2021 September 2, 2022 / Book Reviews, Books, Boundaries, CBT, Communication, Psychology, Relationships / 25 Comments

The Better Boundaries Workbook by Sharon Martin uses a cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) approach, incorporating mindfulness and self-compassion, to help readers establish boundaries to function better in relationships. The author is a psychotherapist, and if you’re into mental health on Pinterest, you’ve probably come across some of her pins. The book begins with a look …

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Is There Such a Thing as Too Much Honesty?

January 19, 2021 August 14, 2022 / Communication, Judgment, Psychology, Relationships, Society / 34 Comments

Honesty is the best policy, right? I say no, no, no, no. And let’s add on one more no, just for good measure. I would also like to propose two kinds of “honesty”, only one of which I think actually involves honesty. Objective truths First, you’ve got things that can be answered or described objectively. …

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Book Review: Nonviolent Communication

June 10, 2020 September 16, 2022 / Books, Communication, Judgment, Relationships, Social Interaction / 15 Comments

Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life by Marshall B. Rosenberg describes a form of compassionate communication. The foreword is by Deepak Chopra, which wasn’t a great start for me, as New Age really isn’t my thing. Rosenberg and I seem to look at the world very differently, so this is less book review and more …

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What Is... Series (Insights into Psychology)

What Is… Personal Boundaries

May 29, 2020 August 16, 2022 / Boundaries, Communication, Psychology, Relationships / 31 Comments

In this series, I dig a little deeper into the meaning of psychology-related terms. This week’s term is personal boundaries. Kind of like our skin acts as a boundary to separate the insides of our bodies from the world, personal boundaries allow us to maintain separation in our interactions with other people. Types of boundaries …

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Normalizing Mental Illness Symptoms: The Good & Bad Ways

April 13, 2020 August 14, 2022 / Communication, Mental Health, Mental Illness, Relationships, Social Support / 67 Comments

I got thinking about this recently because my best friend is a normalizer, and it really doesn’t feel very good sometimes. But there are other times when normalizing aspects of mental illness can be helpful. So what’s the difference? The invalidating way A little while back, I told my best friend that I was heading …

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Ring theory diagram: comfort in, dump outRing theory diagram: comfort in, dump out

Ring Theory: Comfort In, Dump Out

February 13, 2020 August 3, 2022 / Communication, Grief, Psychology, Social Interaction, Social Support / 34 Comments

I recently came across ring theory, an approach to supporting people in times of crisis, loss, and grief that involves the notion of comfort in, dump out. It was first described in an LA Times article by Susan Silk and Barry Goldman. The development of ring theory Ring theory was developed by clinical psychologist Susan …

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Mental Health @ Home book review: F*ck No by Sarah Knight

Book Review: F*ck No: How to Stop Saying Yes

January 22, 2020 September 2, 2022 / Boundaries, Communication, Psychology, Social Interaction / 29 Comments

F*ck No is written by Sarah Knight, who is also the author of The Life-Changing Magic of Not Giving a F*ck. This book covers a variety of situations, including social, work, partner, and family, and helps you to get more comfortable saying no to others’ demands. The book includes a variety of fun diagrams in …

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