Ben Michaelis, Ph.D.

Time is running out. Seriously. I'm not just being an alarmist. I mean it. Right now -- even as you read these words, you are losing time. Stop reading this and get started. Okay, fine if you insist that this article is just too gripping, you can finish reading this...

I recently had two new patients come into my office and ask me how many sessions this "therapy thing" would take to get them "fixed." I was tempted to respond, "This may not be the right place for you." But I didn't. Instead, I explained that from a psychologist's point...

Congratulations. If you are reading this article you've officially made it to the other side of the winter holidays. Give yourself a round of applause with the one functional hand you have left -- you actually can clap with one hand, it just doesn't sound as loud as...

Therapy sessions this time of year tend to sound more like meetings between theatre critics during award season than exchanges between doctor and patient. Regardless of how stable or erratic your life tends to be the other 11 months of the year, there's no avoiding drama in December.

The reason...

There are many ways to add stress to your holiday season. Consider the following five suggestions:

1. Go to as many holiday parties as possible

2. Travel excessively using air, land,and/or sea-based vehicles

3. Drink Olympic amounts of alcohol at all professional holiday events

4. Hang out at malls, superstores...

Have you noticed that the glass of wine that you use to unwind has suddenly turned into two? Or has your last beer morphed into just the second of three? It's not just your imagination. That's actually happening. And you are not alone.

In my practice I work with many...

There's a big difference between being trapped and being stuck. When you are trapped, you are in quicksand: When you struggle to get free, you seem to sink further into the mire. Being stuck, on the other hand, is more like getting caught in mud. You might be there for...

Well, it was a good run... summer has unofficially been over for just about a month and now you are starting to think about your vacation.

Whether you are ignoring a boring document to think about some ice cold, bright red concoction poured into an awkwardly-shaped glass while you...

So there I am, letting my infant son eat ricotta cheese right out of the container -- yes, it is still lodged within the crevasses of his highchair and no, my wife has still not forgiven me -- and suddenly, he wants out. While taking the tray off I accidentally...

Yes, you read it correctly. I am suggesting that you add stress to your life in order to reduce anxiety. Stress is good for you. It just needs a new publicist.

Stress and anxiety are different from each other, yet the terms are often used interchangeably. Say it with me:...

It's back to school time in America. As you read this article, millions of kids are inhaling the scent of recently bleached floors, doodling on their first spiral-bound pages and smiling -- or snarling -- at petrified, seasoned or cynical teachers. They may already be preparing for their first tests...

As Labor Day approaches and the Hamptons look less like the beaches in Pepsi commercials and more like the beaches in "LOST," you may find yourself thinking more about what's next in your life. If it's back-to-school, back-to-work or back-to-a-job-search, you may feel a tinge, a pang or a wallop...

America is in an acute state of anxiety. For those of you who were concerned during the debt ceiling discussions, have been fearful during the stock market gyrations and are now panicking about your job, family and future, take a moment, take a deep breath and imagine that there is...