Who needs a therapist when you have self-help?

Exactly. Who really needs a therapist when you have all the knowledge from the self-help section at the book store?

Yesterday I was picking up a poetry book for book club [The Subject Tonight is Love: Sixty Wild and Sweet Poems of Hafiz] when of course I wandered into my favorite section. The book that caught my eye this time was Don't Sweat the Small Stuff - and it's all small stuff by Richard Carlson.

Here are a few pointers that I was drawn to while flipping through:

Life is not an emergency

Learn to live in the present moment

Set aside quiet time, every day

Resist the urge to criticize

Be patient --> create "patience practice periods"

These points will probably all make my 2009 New Years Resolution list. I'm going to start working on them now, it's just hard right now because I'm so busy. Where will I fit in quiet time? I can easily give up some evening TV, as I've already done due to my obsession with the Twilight saga - can reading and quiet time go together? Resisting the urge to criticize is surely difficult. This is something we all do without thinking about it. I'm going to have be very conscious of that one. Living in the present, coincidentally, is something I've been working on all year. Why do I feel the need to always be thinking two years away from where I'm currently at? Patience will be the hardest. Short temper and non patient......maybe I should see a therapist for that one....

Lastly, I need to slow things down. Life is not an emergency. Enjoy each moment, no rushing, no stress, no anxiety......