The Symptom Is Not the Problem

Alfred Adler spoke about symptoms as having purpose—sometimes serving to safeguard the ego. For Adler, emotions were not simply things that happen to us. They were not accidental storms we are caught in. They were, in many cases, used—often outside of...

Living on Vesuvius

How could an ant know it is living on Mt. Vesuvius? It moves across warm stone, feeling only what touches its body—grain, heat, the faint trembling of the ground beneath its feet. It knows the path to food, the scent of its colony, the urgency of its small and...

The Four Belonging Priorities

An Adlerian-Informed Framework Understanding Your “Priority” In Adlerian psychology (especially in the work of Rudolf Dreikurs), we understand that people organize their lives around a primary psychological priority. This priority is not conscious.It is...

Why People Really Come to Couples Therapy

When people come to therapy asking whether they should stay, leave, or deepen a relationship, they’re rarely asking, “Do I care?” More often, they’re asking something quieter and more complex: “Is this the right relationship to build a life in?” This question...

The Machines That Learn Us

Recently, a Los Angeles jury handed down an unprecedented decision: a young woman successfully sued Meta and YouTube, arguing that the platforms were intentionally designed to be addictive and that this addiction harmed her mental health. She was awarded $6 million in...