Time Lapse Film of Lotte

This is a wonderful short video of a girl named Lotte as she grows from an infant to a 12 year old. It was made by her father, Frans Hofsmeester.

What is most amazing is watching the way the "Lotte-ness" of Lotte remains the same.



We all have an essence as Lotte does. If you feel you're not fully living out of yours (or if you think something is wrong with it), good counseling can help/

Catherine Boyer, MA, LCSW
Psychotherapy for Change

Disconnect to Connect

This is a beautiful one and a half minute video that says – powerfully – something we mostly know already but don't do enough of: Disconnect to Connect.

I usually try to summarize or describe videos for readers here, but... the only words in the video are at the end, and they're in Thai, and the video says it so well...

Catherine Boyer, MA, LCSW
Upper West Side Psychotherapy

The Best Thing You Can Do for Your Health

What's the one thing you can do that will improve your health and reduce your risk of:

• Dementia
• Depression
• Diabetes
• Death (yes, death)

And those are just the D's. To learn more, watch this terrific video by MD Mike Evans, whose emphasis is preventative medicine. The video is an animation - so it also has humor.



The punch line is: Exercise. But it doesn't have to be that much or that much at any one time. This is a video that is very worth watching.

Catherine Boyer, MA, LCSW
Psychotherapy on the Upper West Side

31 Ways to Take Care of Your Brain

Earlier this year, Sharon Begley (one of my favorite science writers) wrote an article for Newsweek called Buff your Brain.

Sharon always does a great job of summarizing current research – and the recommendations that come out of it – in language that is understandable for non-scientists. A great example is her list of 31 Ways to Get Smarter from the Buff your Brain article.

Good news for word game lovers is that games like Words with Friends can reduce the risk of Alzheimer's and other dementias. There is a recommendation to create time offline, off the phone, off gadgets (this will probably not be a popular recommendation).

More sleep is also important for the brain, but you've heard that here before. And dark chocolate is reported to have memory-improving flavonoids. That one makes up for the less gadget recommendation!

Catherine Boyer, MA, LCSW
New York City Counseling

A Neuron as Private Investigator

This film noir takeoff was one of the entries in the 2011 Brains on Film competition conducted by UCL's (University College London) Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience.

It dramatizes what happens in addiction, with the neuron playing the part of the world weary private investigator. The drug of choice stars as the femme fatale.



It does a good job of explaining the arc of addiction, doesn't it? If you're looking for an addictions specialist, I recommend my colleague, Gail Appel. Neurofeedback can also be helpful with addictions.

Catherine Boyer, MA, LCSW
Psychotherapy for Change

Expressing Emotions through Music

Psychologist Dan Levitan went to a performance of a classical music composition he normally loves - Mozart's piano concerto - and didn't enjoy it. Same notes played, but a very different experience.

He and a graduate student designed a study to figure out what made the difference between a lackluster performance and a spectacular one.

It turns out it was all about how the performers expressed emotion through music. The link will take you to a Psych Central blog with two short videos about how this phenomena was studied, and how Levitan hopes the research results can be used. I found it fascinating and hope you enjoy it, too.

Catherine Boyer, MA, LCSW
Upper West Side Counseling

What is Eusociology?

If you do a search for the term eusociology you won't find much - yet. That may be changing. I just read a fascinating article about the subject in last week's Newsweek, titled What's Your Tribe? 

It's about our quite powerful drive to identify with a group and what we are willing to do for the group.

Think about what happens around sports loyalties, for example.

A eusocial group is multi-generational, and its members are willing to perform altruistic acts for the benefit of the group - to fight for the group. This is contrasted with individual-promoting behavior, which tends to be selfish.

Apparently, there are three species besides humans who are very good at eusociology:

• Ants
• Bees
• Termites

Not such impressive company, perhaps, but it is part of the explanation for why we have been so successful as a species. Like these insects, we will sacrifice for the good of the group. We organize around doing the tasks the group needs done to survive.

This might shed some light on why our species tends to be so short-sighted and yet so capable of acts of compassion. Food for thought regarding what I've seen so much of in my work as a counselor: the striking contrasts in human behavior, what we're capable of - for both good and ill.

Catherine Boyer, MA, LCSW
Psychotherapy on the Upper West Side