Ask Dr. Mike

The ongoing contentious debate over kneeling for the National Anthem escalated this past week in response to President Trump’s position that the act is disrespectful to our flag, our military and our nation as a whole.  Those in opposition to Trump’s position have argued that kneeling during the national anthem is their constitutional right and a symbolic statement of solidarity to call attention to serious social injustices in the US today – incidents involving police brutality, racism, inequality, etc. There’s no denying that the argument over kneeling for the National Anthem isn’t going away anytime soon, but regardless of your feelings [...]

Lights, Camera…Suicide! Enter stage right, “13 Reasons Why” a new Netflix television series about a teenage girl (Hannah Baker) who commits suicide and then leaves behind seven double sided audio tapes for her friends and classmates to listen to. Each tape depicts the harmful events (e.g., sexual assault and rape) that occurred for Hannah that culminated in her tragic demise. Based off of Jay Asher’s 2007 novel of the same name, the show has earned praise from critics for tackling the difficult subject matter of teen suicide in such a raw, gritty and real sort of way. But “13 Reasons Why” [...]

A Parable and Some Thoughts for a Happy New Year. One day in late summer, an old farmer was working in his field with his old sick horse. The farmer felt compassion for the horse and desired to lift its burden. So he left his horse loose to go the mountains and live out the rest of its life. Soon after, neighbors from the nearby village visited, offering their condolences and said, “What a shame. Now your only horse is gone. How unfortunate you are!” You must be very sad. How will you live, work the land, and prosper?” The farmer [...]

“Did you hear about the three kids that were killed last week by clowns?” and “Clowns are capturing children and dragging them into the woods” and “The police are looking for two clowns that were in the woods by my school’s playground” are just a few of the many comments my young clients have reported to me these past few weeks.  And with Halloween just around the corner, it seems that the anxieties and concerns for many children (and parents) about creepy clowns is only increasing. As a child psychologist in private practice, I’ve witnessed the negative impact of creepy clowns on [...]