[ DISCLAIMER ]   From half of my seventh grade year to the end of my freshman year of high school, I was a resident in a children’s home. Thereafter, a family took me in to live with them until halfway through my senior year. I then returned to finish out my high school term in the children’s home.   By the time I graduated in 1995, I had little understanding about why my mindset was better adjusted to institutionalization than to that of most other children not in my situati

[ 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 A ction occurs and you B elieve an unhelpful narrative about the event, it’s your unfavorable a

[ DISCLAIMER ]   “I already know what you’re going to ask me,” is a phrase that I often hear when providing psychoeducational lessons on Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy  (REBT) to the clients with whom I work. “You’re going to ask me what I’m telling myself,” I’m then informed.   For context, REBT uses the ABC model to illustrate that when an undesirable A ction occurs and you B elieve an unhelpful narrative about the event, it’s your unfavorable assumption , not  the occ

[ DISCLAIMER ]   When listening to an electronic dance music (EDM) DJ set  by Xenia Dia earlier today, I heard her spin the track “ House It Goes ” (2025) by Spartaque and As Ide . The song represents the genre of progressive house , a variant of my favorite EDM genre house music , as the lyrics state:   I heard this house is so much fun. Is that true ? They say it’s wild when it’s one o’clock. It’s one. Is that true? Do people really come from miles around just to feel th

[ 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 A ction occurs and you B elieve an unhelpful narrative about the event, it’s your unfavorable a

[ 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 A ction occurs and you B elieve an unhelpful narrative about the event, it’s your unfavorable a

[ DISCLAIMER ] Photo credit , fair use   When practicing Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy  (REBT) with client X recently, I used the analogy of how one’s life is similar to cake. As well, I engaged professional use of self  (a psychotherapist’s intentional and skillful use of one’s whole self as a tool for understanding ).   For context, I’m not typically fond of lemon-flavored food items. As an example, I enjoy cake quite a bit. However, I dislike lemony foods to the degre

[ DISCLAIMER ]   I recall listening to rapper Lil Wayne ’s ninth mixtape, No Ceilings  (2009), and hearing the track “ Sweet Dreams ” which featured vocalist Beyoncé and rapper Nicki Minaj . Thus, it was around the time of hip hop label Young Money Entertainment ’s reign that I became familiar with Minaj.   Personally, Minaj is a rapper and not a lyricist. For context, a lyricist concentrates on the art of storytelling, devotes attention toward written lyrics, experiments wi

[ DISCLAIMER ]   * PLUR1BUS  (2025) spoilers contained herein. Photo credit , property of Apple TV, fair use   Personal Anecdote   Before knowing anything about tools of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy  (REBT), namely the ABC model  (a scientific method  of disputing one’s irrational beliefs ) and unconditional acceptance  (UA; a philosophical method  of tolerating unpleasant events), I suffered quite a bit.   From a young age, I was always different (partly or totally u

[ DISCLAIMER ]   Too Bad   On the 2024 EP She. , rapper ARDN  featured the track “ Too Bad ” in which he stated, “Too bad I… too bad, I know. Too bad I know. Too bad, I gotta get going. She too bad, I know. Too bad, I know. Too bad, I gotta  get going.” Considering the cited lyrics, definitions may be helpful.   The phrase “too bad” may be used to show that one is sorry or feels  bad about something. For example, when departing from a location in which his romantic partner

[ DISCLAIMER ]   Earlier this morning, when conducting my daily physical training activities, I heard the song “ Roaches ” from the album Punken  (2018) by groovy Houston lyricist Maxo Kream . At the end of the track, a woman believed to be Maxo’s mom states:   Punken, pull your pants up, boy But you know what? Punken, I’m so proud of you You came a long way Keep it up with your music You doin’ good, keep doin’ you   The vocal tone and inflection of the woman at the end of “R

[ DISCLAIMER ]   When recently listening to an electronic dance music (EDM) DJ set  by DJ Ellika , I heard her spin the track “ How I Feel (Am I Wrong) ” by Faul & Wad , Nico & Vinz , ALTÉGO , and Old Jim . Lyrics include the following:   So, am I wrong ? For thinkin’ that we could be something for real? Now, am I wrong? For tryna reach the things that I can’t see? But that’s just how I feel  (ooh) That’s just how I feel  (ooh) That’s just how I feel Tryna reach the things th

[ DISCLAIMER ]   On lyricist Vinnie Paz ’s album Burn Everything That Bears Your Name  (2021) is the track “ Digital Veil ” that features M.A.V. and a vocal sample of an origin unknown to me. The man on the snippet appears to be speaking to a group of people, as the introduction of the song states:   Everything, as far as I’m concerned, everything is predestined . Everybody’s scared shitless of that word—predestined. It’s all predestined. Everything’s…this is predestined. We

[ DISCLAIMER ]   When I was a child, my late mom visited a fortune teller  (someone with the supposed ability to foretell future events and especially the details of a person’s future). While my sisters and I weren’t allowed to enter the fortune-telling establishment, my mom shared what she learned.    “She told me that [my older sister] would be married and have children,” my mom gleefully stated as we sat in the parking lot. When my younger sister asked what was in store fo