Larry Winter

Christmas has come and gone. We now turn our attention to the New Year (Catholics celebrate the Christmas season from December 25, 2023 – January 8, 2024). During this time a mix of emotions arises for many of us to circumstances that occurred in the last year or even longer. For instance; the loss of […]

Due to Christmas and New Year’s falling on the next two Mondays, there will be no blog posts on those days. A few times within the past week the topic of self-care has stimulated conversations with people in my support network. I am curious if it has anything to do with the events in our

My wife and I enjoy a regular prayer routine before laying our heads down for rest. We will celebrate our ninth wedding anniversary. I am unsure when we started our nightly prayers in our marriage. The first thing we do is acknowledge any blessings that come our way during the day. These moments are special

Kwik Trip is a local gas station and convenience store in our area. They are predominately located throughout the Midwest. One of their marketing strategies is to tell us to feed our physical Urges. From time to time I admit I have a hankering for a hot cup of coffee from Kwik Trip. Urges often

To quote the great novelist Leo Tolstoy, “There is only one time that is important: Now! it is the only time when we have power.” To build a purpose-driven life, we need to move forward. The power to move is in the present moment. The past is done, and the future has not happened yet,

Emotions are like a teenager-they’re always present and forever changing. They constantly waver, from meek to heightened, agreeable to unagreeable, anticipated to unforeseen. A mood is the general tone of emotion across a duration of time. Thus a “bad mood” is like a grumpy teenager throughout the day, whereas a particular emotion such as anger

I have a long record of deeply entrenched self-judgment, self-hatred, or self-loathing, self-compassion might in the beginning trigger anxiety. It is a revolutionary way of relating to myself. My mind is skeptical: “This is uncomfortable. I have not thought this way before. What is this?” You may not notice those thoughts-you might think it’s like

Self-compassion according to Russ Harris is, “Acknowledge your pain; Respond with kindness.” If a friend or relative were in emotional pain and you did things to support them, would that be weak or stupid? Your obvious response is “no.” So neither is it weak or stupid to treat yourself that way (even if your mind

Yesterday was my book signing at the Whirlybird Cafe in Chippewa Falls Wisconsin. When I set up for the event, I told one of the owners that selling three books was my goal. I was pleasantly surprised that I sold three books in the first hour. Throughout the morning there was a steady dose of

During the support groups I have attended my peers offer suggestions on behaviors I can implement to help manage my mental health. In return, I will offer ideas that I have found beneficial to aid my Recovery. I woke up Friday morning with a little sore throat. I thought to myself here it comes since