I have spent the majority of my doctoral training working with college-aged individuals in university and college counselling centers. Although many college graduates reflect back on their time attending college with revery, students of today are experiencing suicidal ideation and self-harming behaviors at an increased rate. Suicide risk assessments, safety planning, and harm reduction have […]
What is our darkest hour? How dark does it have to get before you choose a path of light? The split in the road is that choice. It is a choice that everyone has. Is there a speck of belief there is light? How do you know you’re in darkness? To know darkness there must […]
Ever since I was a young child, I was drawn to a scripture passage in the New International Version of the Christian Bible which is: “You are a lamp to my feet and a light to guide my path” (psalm 119:105). I never really understood why I felt drawn to that passage until I began […]
As suicide rates rise in the United States, questions abound as to how therapists can adapt to an increasingly challenging and complex world (Marshall, 2024). Viktor Frankl’s (2020) work, Yes to Life, has much to offer today’s clinician. Taking us on a journey of postwar Europe, Frankl suggests that his clients had become “spiritually bombed […]
In a recent interview with a writer for the Reader’s Digest, she asked me about the meaning of Easter. I told her that Easter means hope, quoting my own writing on Easter (Wong, 2002): “Easter never fails us. Even in the worst of times, amidst destruction, death and despair, Easter arrives as surely as daybreak, […]
Imagine standing at the edge of a cliff, looking down at the breathtaking view of nature. That is where my passion began for finding the meaning of life. My name is Nermin Matta, I am a dedicated full-time family physician and a mom to a beautiful daughter, my Rachel. I’ve been fortunate enough to have […]
I still hate separation; however, it is like a curse that I can never run away. The major depression that I experienced several years ago, triggered by the failures in both my previous romantic relationship and academic career, transformed me and gave me a new life. This was after the seemingly endless dark days when […]
*This is an excerpt from a longer article titled Making an exit: Secular, Christian, and Islamic perspectives on euthanasia Palliative care patients often face many challenges when making end-of-life decisions. This is especially true for people of faith, such as Christians and Muslims, who need to consider the spiritual consequences of such decisions. The Government […]
In line with one scientist’s predictions, the 20th century saw man-made horrors beyond comprehension (Holdsworth, 1947, p. 125). In light of these horrors, two prominent thinkers of the 20th century were led to remarkably disparate conclusions. For Austrian essayist Jean Amery (1912-1978): a rejection of the “logic of life” that insists we must go on […]
In this Christmas session, the world is full of bad news, from devastating wars and humanitarian crises to mental health problems (CBC News, 2023). But we can hope again because Christ was born in a manger more than 2 thousand years ago. My 2002 Christmas message reflected hope. I want to share it again with […]