Vancouver Psychologist Dr. Gordon Reid

When asked why life is stressful, we often talk about the demands of our work, the responsibilities of being a parent, paying our bills and so on.  Yet as I discuss here, every time we interact with another person it introduces an element of uncertainty into our life, and under certain conditions can generate remarkable levels of stress. This article examines the fundamental basis for this stress response and how it  connects to conflict, anxiety, and depression.

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In the last article I suggested that most people  have only a limited awareness of their own experiences.  Rather than utilizing our capacity to be aware of and learn from those experiences we are effectively blind to most of them, and don’t even know we are doing this.  This article examines one of the implications of how this limited approach to our own experiences effects our lives. Read More

In my previous article I was arguing that we cannot truly make choices and therefore changes in our life, if we are not aware of, or conscious to, our own experiences. Since most people seem to think they are already quite aware, then either I am making a weak argument, or we are talking about very different things. This article focuses on my definition of this notion of our lack of awareness in an attempt to clarify that position and also to look at some of the implications which flow from it. Read More

The only reality we have is this living moment. The only possibility we ever have to make a different choice, to alter a course of action, or to change our mind, resides in “this” moment. Yes, we can plan on doing something tomorrow, but both that decision to wait and the action itself when it occurs will be choices made in present tense, “now” moments.

Oddly, it seems to me for most people the significance of “this” moment pales in comparison to how important we consider our past and future to be. This at least seems to be true given how much time we spend there. Indeed, “this” moment seems to have has little meaning, and little value. Read More

Over the course of twenty plus years I have worked with thousands of individuals, a good number who either report as being depressed, or anxious. The really odd thing is, that other than having somewhat similar symptoms, these people were so remarkably different from each other I wonder if we (those who label and treat others) might often be guilty of a fundamental perceptual error.  Let me explain. Read More

The first worldwide comparison of depression with four other non-fatal chronic diseases shows that feeling seriously blue is the most disabling of all, according to a recently study. Read More

Studies indicate that 15-30% of adults in the general population experience depressive episodes often of moderate severity at some time in their lives. While many individuals will be seen by their family physicians and G.P`s, only only a minority of people with clinical depression seek professional health from psychologists, psychiatrists, and other mental health workers. Because of difficulties in gaining access to treatment, financial disadvantages, stigma and shame etc., most people suffering from depression do not receive professional help.

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