[DISCLAIMER] When attending graduate school for counseling, I was taught various tools for care regarding mental, emotional, and behavioral health (collectively “mental health”). As an example, I learned of the mirror technique, which the American Psychological Association (APA) thusly defines: [T]he conscious use of active listening by the therapist in psychotherapy, accompanied by reflection of the client’s affect and body language in order to stimulate a sense of empat

[DISCLAIMER] When providing psychoeducational lessons on Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), I teach people about the ABC model of self-disturbance (how people upset themselves through use of irrational beliefs). Now, I’ll address a finer point of this psychotherapeutic model of wellness. For context, REBT uses the ABC model to illustrate how when an undesirable Action occurs and you Believe an unhelpful narrative about the event, it’s your unfavorable assumption, n

[DISCLAIMER] When providing psychoeducational lessons on Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), I teach people about the ABC model of self-disturbance (how people upset themselves through use of irrational beliefs). Now, I’ll address a finer point of this psychotherapeutic model of wellness. For context, REBT uses the ABC model to illustrate how when an undesirable Action occurs and you Believe an unhelpful narrative about the event, it’s your unfavorable assumption, n

[DISCLAIMER] In 2003, the group Little Brother, then comprised of lyricists Phonte and Big Pooh, and producer 9th Wonder, released their debut studio album The Listening. Although 9th Wonder departed the group in 2007, Little Brother remains one of my favorite hip hop collectives till this day. The Listening contained track “Whatever You Say” that featured samples from several other songs, as was common of 9th Wonder’s memorable mixing style. Then, in 2007, the album 9th

[DISCLAIMER] When providing psychoeducational lessons on Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), I teach people about the ABC model of self-disturbance (how people upset themselves through use of irrational beliefs). Now, I’ll address a finer point of this psychotherapeutic model of wellness. For context, REBT uses the ABC model to illustrate how when an undesirable Action occurs and you Believe an unhelpful narrative about the event, it’s your unfavorable assumption, n

[DISCLAIMER] As Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) is informed by Stoic philosophy, this blog entry is part of an ongoing series regarding a book entitled The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living by Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman. The authors quote ancient Stoic philosopher Marcus Aurelius who stated, “Don’t allow yourself to be heard any longer griping about public life, not even with your own ears!” (page 344). When conte

[DISCLAIMER] In the early part of 2008, life was going rather well for me. I was comparatively fit, I had a high-paying job, I’d been paired with a relatively intelligent and conventionally attractive girlfriend, and I’d purchased a brand new Honda Civic that was completely paid off eight months later. While at work one day, I listened to an AM broadcast of a female evangelist whose name now escapes my mind. She said something to the effect of, “There’s a reason the winds

[DISCLAIMER] On his second studio album Resurrection (1994), by lyricist Common (formerly “Common Sense”), was the classic track “I Used to Love H.E.R.” which was produced by No I.D. and that sampled “The Changing World” (1974) by George Benson. It’s my favorite song by Common. In particular, the song serves as a metaphor for hip hop, using imagery of a woman in whom the lyricist is in love and who eventually transitions to someone he no longer recognizes when she opts fo

[DISCLAIMER] On the EP entitled Requiem for a Nightmare (2025), by lyricist Eclyse and producer Forge One, is the song “Unfathomable” in which Elyse states, “What can’t be fathomed, traveled lightyears with a telescope. To see the past, yo, we can’t imagine even a fraction.” Thereby, he addresses the term unfathomable (not capable of being fathomed). Here, fathomable regards that which is capable of being comprehended. Importantly, fathom merely means to penetrate and com

[DISCLAIMER] When providing psychoeducational lessons on Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), I teach people about the ABC model of self-disturbance (how people upset themselves through use of irrational beliefs). Now, I’ll address a finer point of this psychotherapeutic model of wellness. For context, REBT uses the ABC model to illustrate how when an undesirable Action occurs and you Believe an unhelpful narrative about the event, it’s your unfavorable assumption, n

[DISCLAIMER] When practicing Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), I often use irreverent communication (a style of interaction that deliberately disregards normativity standards or expected politeness, incorporating humor, sarcasm, frankness, and atypical observations). This includes expletives (exclamatory words or phrases, especially those which are obscene or profane), also referred to as cusswords, profanity, swear words, and obscenities. For example, the term “m

[DISCLAIMER] When providing psychoeducational lessons on Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), I teach people about the ABC model of self-disturbance (how people upset themselves through use of irrational beliefs). Now, I’ll address a finer point of this psychotherapeutic model of wellness. For context, REBT uses the ABC model to illustrate how when an undesirable Action occurs and you Believe an unhelpful narrative about the event, it’s your unfavorable assumption, n

[DISCLAIMER] I stated in a blogpost entitled We Gotta Stop Killing Each Other, “I joined the [United States] Marine Corps to escape the gang path upon which I was likely heading.” Before graduating high school in 1995, I’d befriended Bloods, Crips, and Sureños gang members for a number of years. At around that time, hip hop duo Watts Gangstas (also known as Watts G’s), consisting of rappers D-Dope and Felony, released their debut album The Real (1995). It featured an expl

[DISCLAIMER] On the debut mixtape Indigoism (2013), by hip hop duo The Underachievers (rappers AK the Savior and Issa Gold), is the song “Play Your Part”. Also referred to as ‘play your role’ or ‘play your position,’ one source states that this phrase means to “check yourself’, or ‘act right.” As an example, the hook of “Play Your Part” states, “Better play your part, nigga, or you won’t get far. Started from the bottom, we was swimming with the fishes. Now, we the New Yo

[DISCLAIMER] When providing psychoeducational lessons on Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), I teach people about the ABC model of self-disturbance (how people upset themselves through use of irrational beliefs). Now, I’ll address a finer point of this psychotherapeutic model of wellness. For context, REBT uses the ABC model to illustrate how when an undesirable Action occurs and you Believe an unhelpful narrative about the event, it’s your unfavorable assumption, n

[DISCLAIMER] Piche, Awwwready In 2015, I sat with a work colleague (“Piche”) who was a fellow military veteran. I once served in the United States (U.S.) Marine Corps, as she once served in the U.S. Army. While working for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, we discovered that we had various commonalities. For instance, Piche and I were both assigned to Fort McClellan at one point. I was there due to military police training, as she was there for chemical, biologic

[DISCLAIMER] Photo credit, property of Women’s National Basketball Association, fair use Why on Earth Would I Pay Attention to Reddit? To strengthen my practice of providing care for mental, emotional, and behavioral health (collectively “mental health”), I often peruse Reddit to obtain knowledge, wisdom, and understanding about social trends affecting the field in which I work. “Why?” you may ask. For better, worse, or otherwise, artificial intelligence (AI) mechanisms

[DISCLAIMER] The above photo of me was taken during my senior year of high school, when I resided in a children’s home for the second time—after being kicked out of a house by the matriarch of a family who’d invited me to live in her home during the summer after my freshman year. When looking at the picture, I’m reminded of rapper Paul Wall’s line “all real, homie, not kinda, not sorta” from the song “Goin Live” that was featured on his album Mind over Matter (2020). For

[DISCLAIMER] Photo credit, designed by Magnific, fair use When I attended United States (U.S.) Marine Corps Recruit Training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, three brothers comprising hip hop trio TRU (rappers Master P, C-Murder, and Silkk the Shocker) contributed to Silkk the Shocker’s debut studio album The Shocker (1996). One of my favorite tracks from the anthology is “Why My Homie”, which was produced by Mo B. Dick and features a sample of Patti LaBelle’s “If

[DISCLAIMER] In a post entitled Problem Solving in Regard to Anger: How to Eat an Elephant, I stated, “I was taught to provide for and protect girls and women.” Both male and female caregivers relayed this lesson to me, as the stamp of a man regarded the standards and principles up to which I’d live. Recently, I listened to the song “Fraudulent Cloth”, for the umpteenth time, from the eighth studio album The Thief and the Fallen (2015) by hip hop group Jedi Mind Tricks (l