Selfhelp

How simple ideas can resolve stress, and how questions can help you discover those ideas.

He was sitting in my office: tense, tired, stressed and depressed. He lost pleasure in the small stuff of life. There were plenty of complex interpretations that could be the source of his depression. I wondered if I would dive into them, but decided not to. I decided to look for more simple solutions to break the vicious circle. How to find out? Asking questions, simple questions, often help. So i gave it a try …

- “When exactly do you feel most stressed? What happens at that specific moment?

- “Well, phone calls are happening all day long and I do feel overwhelmed and not prepared to answer”. (He works in the financial sector and get phone calls from anxious clients who are worried about their investments during this financial crisis.)

- “How many of the phone calls you receive are from this type of overstressed clients?”

- “About six of them”

- “Are those mostly the same six clients calling you?”

- “Yes!” , he replied.

- “Ok, and how many of them are really important clients that you cannot afford to lose?”

- “Two, and they call me almost every single day”.

- “How much time would it take you to study their file as your first job when you enter the office in order to prepare your answer to their questions?”

- “I guess about 5 minutes for each of them, that means 10 minutes all together”

- “Would it make a difference to you if you prepare as your very first job in the morning their file and call them yourself before they call you?” , was my next question.

He smiled and said “Yes, of course. I would feel much better. I would not be afraid to be overwhelmed by their calls any more!”

read more »

Bookmark and Share

Did Harvard Professor in Psychology B.F. Skinner invent Online Self Help Coaching?

The famous pschologist Burrhus Frederic Skinner, Professor of Psychology at Harvard University from 1958 till 1974, was probably the first to use machines to change human behavior. He was not only the ‘father’ of important concepts in psychology like ‘operant conditioning’, but he also the first to develop machines that are designed to shape and change human behavior and develop new habits.

He studied the laws of operant conditioning with his famous “Skinner box”. Later he developed his first ‘teaching machine’, long before internet and personal computers were invented. He proved that machines can help humans correct behavior and develop new habits. In the following video, you can see how skinner used his teaching machine to teach students in a school.

read more »

Bookmark and Share

How do I know if I am depressed?

My latest post on how to recognise a depression:

Bookmark and Share

Can Optimism prevent Depression?

Today I want  comment you briefly about the relationship between Optimism, Pessimism and Depression. Please, listen to this video:

Bookmark and Share

The Origin of Depression: Is it Genetic?

Some days ago, one team member asked me some interesting questions about the origin of Depression and its conclusions for its treatment with selfhelp or therapy. I wanna share this video with you:

Bookmark and Share

Interview by Dr. Joszef Telkes in Budapest

Last saturday, I was interviewed in Budapest by Hungary’s psychiatrist & celebrity, Dr. Joszef Telkes about our new online e-therapy business:

Internet Assisted Psychotherapy interview by Jozsef Telkes.

Bookmark and Share