mysteryshrink

I'm a psychologist who goes to way too many movies, for the same reason I chose this profession. I love stories. I use movies and novels working with people in my office and during speaking engagements. "You should write some of this down," I kept being told. So, this is it, folks.

Are You Better Looking than Most People?

MysteryShrink Short:  Who has the smallest rear, the youngest face, the finest clothes, the clearest skin? Who has the right skin color? Who are the losers? The winners? In the documentary, Come Back, Africa (1960) Zacharia, a man from ‘the villages’, comes to Johannesburg where his new employer, the wealthy …

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A Thanksgiving MysteryShrink Short

A Thanksgiving MysteryShrink Short A Quiet Man Shows the Rest of Us What Thanksgiving Really Means Sure, there was turkey and everything else that’s supposed to represent abundance and gratitude in the family. But it was John Bunch, a cousin of my late father-in-law, that who reminded us what it …

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When it Comes to Distant Mothers—This Lady Wins

When it Comes to Distant Mothers—This Lady Wins The movie, The Darjeeling Limited, is the story of one man’s attempt to save his own life and maybe those of his brothers who are equally crippled by their strange and emotionally distant childhood. **To make sense of the current story, first …

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“Yes, I Will Have a Drink and Half of that Pecan Pie, Please.”

“Yes, I Will Have a Drink and Half of that Pecan Pie, Please.” **To make sense of this article, first read Emotional Distance, Owen Wilson, and The Darjeeling Limited. The movie, The Darjeeling Limited, is the story of one man’s attempt to save his own life and maybe those of his …

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Emotional Distance, Owen Wilson, and The Darjeeling Limited

Emotional Distance, Owen Wilson, and The Darjeeling Limited Part 1. Brothers on a Train What would you do if a psychologist suggested that to truly resolve current self-destructive habits, you must get straight—comfortable and ‘real’– with your family? Would you: Demand your money back and accuse the therapist of conspiracy …

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MysteryShrink Shorts: A Soul Wake-Up from a Hungry Man

MysteryShrink Shorts: A Soul Wake-Up from a Hungry Man Last week I was picking up brochures in back of the Cathedral in San Luis Potosí, Mexico, when I was approached by a thin young man in ragged clothes with a familiar pleading look in his eyes. I tried to walk …

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