悲伤 (Sad/Sorrow) VS 抑郁 (Depressed)
在英文，抑郁 (depressed) 这字是很被滥用的，动不动就说自己患上抑郁症。在中文可能还没到那个程度，但是学学分辨抑郁和悲伤，还是挺有用的。这是我早年制作的一个表。
Self-Hypnosis & De-Hypnosis
催眠 (hypnosis) 与去催眠化 (dehypnosis)
开始前，先说说关于英文 “dehypnosis” 这个字的翻译，让我纠结了好一下的一个词。面对广大群众，其实我会偏好＂反催眠＂（听起来比较酷？！），但却也因为＂反＂，它带有误导性，感觉像是抵抗被催眠，阻止人家给你催眠，阻止自己接受催眠师的任何暗示*？所以我还是选了＂去催眠化＂。
所谓催眠，就是集中注意力，去关注一个＂单一＂的想法（或主意，画面，感觉等），比如提升自信的想法，在演讲过程中轻松自在的表现的想法，看见巧克力的时候可以抵抗把它放进嘴巴的画面，把疼痛想象成柔和的颜色逐渐消失散去的画面，看见心爱的女神可以坦然自信的画面等等。在这过程中，你全神关注。
所以每一天，我们都在给自己催眠而不自知。比如驾车回家途中，想起今早会议的情况；洗澡的时候，想起刚刚和老婆吵架的画面；并久久沉浸在这些画面里。你被自己［短暂的］催眠了。
那怎么个＂去催眠＂呢？简单来说，就是认知行为疗法(CBT)里的认知解离／认知距离化(cognitive defusion, cognitive distancing)。注意到自己沉浸在这些想法里了，注意＂这些想法就只是想法，它不是事实！＂让自己走出来，反催眠自己（看吧，＂反催眠＂是比较适用的）。这也是我最爱的接受与承诺疗法(ACT)的提倡之一－－改变自己和想法的关系，而不是改变想法本身（因为为了改变一个想法，你可能更关注它，更沉浸纠结其中，最后更痛苦！）。
大多时候，我们的目标，是多给自己催眠于自信、积极、正面的想法**，去催眠自己消极，负面的部分，这包括回忆痛苦的过去，和对未来的担心和焦虑，让自己可以真正的活在当下！
*如果你想问，那怎么做到＂抵抗被催眠，阻止人家给你催眠，阻止自己接受催眠师的任何暗示＂？那还不简单，人家说的话，你都别相信，他要你干嘛，你偏不干嘛，那他怎么能给你催眠？
**当然首先必须能够解离认知，而且不过于沉溺于正面积极的情绪（毕竟正面或负面，它都是生活的一部分，都让我们的生命更完整）
N.B. 配合８月我会到北京参加心理学家大会，用中文写了这篇＂催眠与去催眠化＂，非常非常基本的概念，往后会深入写些实用技巧。
Medicine side effects vs the illness itself – Which is worse?
The illness itself, or the medication side effects – which is worse? Perhaps people who are taking medication can share their experience?
I’d always thought it’s the illness. Of course, it’s something that you don’t get to choose and can’t control. To many people, it just happened, then their lives changed.
So whenever people complained about side effects of medication (e.g. many anti-psychotics cause so much drowsiness that patient can sleep all day; or some antidepressants cause dry mouth, constipation etc), I’d tell them the gains are much greater than the losses, or that you get more advantages than disadvantages out of it. So tolerate with it, and it’s going to fade away anyway (when patient gets better the dosage can be reduced, or maybe when their body get used to the drug then the side effects diminish!)
Till this morning when I saw this young girl. She was completely disorientated, perplexed, restless, with limited response, almost zero eye contacts and tremor hands when I held her. It’s not possible to hold a brief conversation with her, leave alone doing psychotherapy. I knew it’s a psychosis case, but in my mind i kept wondering why her presentation was like that. It’s hard to believe she was once a happy and easy going girl, doing well in the schools, despite her kind of difficult family background.
Then I recalled what her auntie told me in the emails – the medicine she was taking from the hospital following the first onset and admission couple of weeks ago. Suddenly it became much clearer. I have seen this quite many times, most of them are patients who were already taking medicine when they first came to us. It’s not the presentation of the illness itself. It is the side effects of the medication (you can perhaps email me to ask what drug it is; I think to many people, the answer is obvious) given by the GH.
If this were one of my family members, I wouldn’t want it. I’d rather to have her having difficulty sleeping, some hallucinations and being a bit paranoid – ok, this might be equally bad I can’t deny it. But It’s really difficult. Isn’t it?
What would you choose? Do you have any experience tolerating side effects of medicine that you take?
N.B. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not asking everyone to stop their medication due to the side effects. Most of the time I still think that medication would be beneficial and helpful despite the side effects. However, if you suffer from intolerable side effects (another common one from anti-depressants – sexual dysfunction, ranging from changes in drive, arousal, erectile/orgasm problems, satisfaction), do speak to your consultant, quite often there are substitutes.
Introducing “The monk who sold his Ferrari”
This is my second Robin Sharma’s book, following “The Leader who had no title.”
I bought it with RM 34.90 (before 10% membership discount) at Popular bookstore. And guess what, I just happened to find its pdf file here, for free?!
Firstly, I have to say this is a very well-titled book. It doesn’t just tell you what the book is about, it also attracts people to pick it up, wanting to read the content. I’ve taken quite some time to read it, though it’s such a small book. I wanted to slowly digest it, and practise what it says whenever possible.
So the book is written in the form of a story, saying to…
- master your mind
- follow your purpose
- practice kaizen
- live with discipline
- respect your time
- selflessly serve others
- embrace present
It’s practical, it is practicable. I don’t like so much of theories and meaning and quotes, when they tell you this and that, without telling you how to do it, achieve it, without giving you the application tools. But Robin does tell you what to do. So the only problem is – whether you do it.
I think every house should have a copy of it. It might not help everyone all the time (though a friend told me Robin’s books have been with her through ups and downs), it should still be worthwhile to go back to it once in a while.
It’s not what you will get out of the books that’s so enriching – it’s what the books will get out of you that will ultimately change your life
-Robin Sharma
Introducing “Listening to Prozac”
Last year I bought this book for RM5 from the Popular RM5 book fiesta (by now you probably have realized that I bought a lot of books there, and yes you’re right, I do spend time to go through those non-fictions and try to pick some treasure!). It is written by an American psychiatrist.
This is really a book that I’d strongly recommend, to … certain people, like me – who know quite a bit about psychopharmacology, but not enough, not much about their history – who have seen how all those drugs are used practically and in day to day life, but not read much about the facts and dark stories behind them. It is an old book I have to say, but I learnt so much about the older generation anti-depressants (tricyclic like Imipramine, Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors which is not so common these days) and those that I’m so familiar with, i.e. the SSRIs (e.g. Prozac (Fluoxetine)!).
It made me think a lot about how those so-called legal drugs are prescribed, used and misused, how it can change a person from the inside (personality! how they see themselves all their lives simply changed after they started the medicine!), how vague the definitions of psychiatric diagnosis are, how tiny the difference between well and unwell could be etc etc. It may not be a book for everyone, I’m sure some might fall asleep reading it, but it’s probably the first time I’m reading such old book (published in 1993 -before I attended elementary school :P, some updates in early 21st centuries at the back) but still get so astonished and learnt so much!
介紹書＜實用催眠自助手冊＞
去年九月在台灣研究和了解當地的催眠時選下了這本書（作者是中國人，目前在上海作心理諮商），台幣300， 忘了有沒有折扣。當時只是抱著學習一些催眠術語和”看看別人怎麼用中文催眠”，才買下這本書。
寫的非常簡潔，主要是值得提倡的自我催眠（self-hypnosis），對外行來說應該不太難懂，可惜卻不能做入門的書，因為完成沒有最基本的解除催眠的謎思與誤解（myths and misconception），對我而言這是再基本不過的（比如應該要有類似這樣的東西，讓讀者進行自我催眠前多瞭解催眠）。另外，因為我買下這本書是為了學習中文術語，所以也特別注重作者對這些字詞的翻譯（作者執業前在美國深造），不難發現很多詞的翻譯不太准確，前後不一。最後就是作者可能和我一樣，”意見比較多”（哈哈），在這麼小的一本書，有些部份一大段的在分享個人的想法和意見，讀起來實在有失專業… 總結來說對外行和內行都不是太實用，市場上也會有更適合的相關書。