Author Archives: Susan Heitler

On Whom Can I Depend? How Relationships Support Well-Being

"If I should get sick, who would take care of me?" It's a good question—and one that could lead to positive life changes.

Needless Angers: Can They Be Eliminated?

Whether it's low-level irritation or high-intensity rage, speaking or acting in anger can poison relationships. Fortunately, this simple system can end needless anger.

Options for the Unhappily Married

Country music group Pistol Annies poignantly sings about how marriage can become a trap. At the same time, the words suggest ways to open the trap and find routes to happiness,

Pakistan Could Use a Therapeutic Intervention

A Pakistani scholar of international relations has proposed a strategy for helping her country shift from a culture of violence to a culture of collaborative dialogue and cooperative conflict resolution. The program she proposes is remarkably similar to the work I do as a therapist with couples in conflict.

Oy, The Holidays: Anticipating An Emotional Rollercoaster?

Use this guide to managing negative feelings if you are expecting that emotional challenges lie ahead.

Overcoming BPD: 3 Vital Ways Parents of Teenagers Can Help

What can you do if one or more of your children, young or grown, shows the emotional hyper-reactivity and excessive anger that characterize borderline personality disorder?

Our COVID-19 Pandemic Strategy-Makers May Need a CBT Upgrade

Faulty thinking by decision-makers may be preventing better results in fighting the pandemic.

Narcissism or Aspergers: How Would You Diagnose These Cases?

What do you think: narcissism, Asperger's, both, or neither?

Narcissism in Parental Alienation: Clarifying Examples

An alienating parent who behaves narcissistically may do lasting harm.

Mom Loved You Best! The Rise and Fall of Sibling Rivalry

When and why did you experience sibling rivalry? With hindsight, what do you know now that you didn't understand then that makes the rivalry vanish?