It’s Not Just Who You Let In… It’s What You Let In
I’ll be honest with you. Most of the damage we carry? It’s not random. It’s not bad luck. It’s what — and who — we allowed through the door. I recently read a book that stirred something deep inside me. It’s called “Who’s In Your Room?” by Dr. Ivan Misner and his co-authors. The premise is disarmingly simple — and deeply uncomfortable: Your life is like a room. There’s one door. It only opens one way. Once someone walks in, they can never leave. Let that sink in for a second. Every person...
Who Were You Before the Diagnosis?
"What inspired you to do this work?" It’s a question I’ve been asked many times. And every time, the answer takes me back — not to my years in medical school, not to my certifications or degrees. But much earlier. To a small street in Romania. To the gentle, wise presence of my godmother, Moașa Alexandrescu. She was not a psychiatrist. She was not a doctor. She was, as I now understand, my first mentor in healing. The Teacher Across the Street As a child, I often crossed the street to visit...
🕰️ You’re Not Tired. You’re Time-Disoriented.
It was a Tuesday morning. Or at least I thought it was. I was in my third year of residency, working 28-hour shifts back-to-back. My badge said “doctor,” but I felt like a ghost moving through hospital halls. The fluorescent lights above flickered the same way they did in the on-call room — No sunrise. No sunset. No sense of time. Just alarms, patients, adrenaline, coffee… and confusion. I remember washing my hands, looking into the mirror, and suddenly not recognizing my own eyes. They...
Does Your Skin Hold the Key to Your Mind?
What is it that our bodies know, but we so often forget to notice? That question stayed with me the entire day after Ana left my office. She had walked in looking pale, tired, and emotionally flat. Her skin was dull and dry. Her thoughts were foggy. Her energy was gone. She had this weight in her chest that felt more like a cloud than a rock — something that followed her from morning to night. She told me she didn’t know how she’d gotten here. “I used to be sharp,” she said. “I used to laugh...
Not Sick. Just Human.
What We Miss When We Rush to Treat the Pain She walked into my office with a neat handbag and tired eyes. A retired nurse. Sixty-seven. Slender frame, hands clasped tightly in her lap. She didn’t want to be there. Not really. But the panic attacks had become unbearable. “They always come at night,” she said, looking away. “I wake up, heart racing. I feel like I’m going to die.” She had no history of anxiety. No trauma to speak of. Just silence. Long evenings. A too-quiet home. She had spent...
When Freedom Becomes Confusion: A Psychiatrist’s Inner Conflict
I stood by the door of my son’s kindergarten, holding his tiny backpack in one hand and his even tinier fingers in the other. It was a typical morning. Warm smiles. The buzz of children’s voices. Shoes kicked off near the door in a chaotic little pile. And then I saw it. A two-year-old boy twirling in a pink glittery dress, sequins catching the light like a disco ball. Another child - also a boy - had on a blue ruffled dress with bows and beads. The staff greeted me with ease. "We support...
The Old Red Bathrobe: A Story of Healing and Self-Acceptance
I’ll never forget the day I met her. She walked into my office, her shoulders hunched, her eyes heavy with years of exhaustion. She didn’t say much at first. But when she finally did, it was a whisper, a question so familiar that I could feel its weight in the air. “Why am I like this? Why can’t I just… be better?” Her voice cracked, and for a moment, there was silence. Not the kind of silence that feels empty, but the kind that is full - of pain, of longing, of a soul shouting for help. She...
Stop Hiding Your Gift: How Embracing Your Strengths Can Protect You From Burnout
The air in the room felt heavy. He sat across from me, head down, exhaustion etched into every line of his face. “I don’t know what’s wrong,” he said, voice barely above a whisper. “I’m doing everything they told me to. Hustling. Putting in the hours. But I feel… empty.” It wasn’t the first time I’d heard those words. As a psychiatrist, I’ve worked with countless professionals who come to me not because they’re failing but because they’re succeeding - and it’s destroying them. The truth?...
The 1% Shift: How Small Steps Create Big Change
I want to share a story with you. A story about airplanes, mental gardens, and how the smallest changes in your daily habits can transform your life. Imagine an airplane taking off from New York, bound for Los Angeles. The pilot adjusts the heading by just one degree - barely noticeable to anyone onboard. But by the time the plane reaches the West Coast, it’s not in Los Angeles. It lands somewhere in Mexico. One degree. That’s all it takes to change the destination entirely. This principle...
Turning Anger Into Healing: The Connection Between Trauma, Borderline Personality Disorder, and Mental Health
Anger can feel like a wildfire, unpredictable and consuming everything in its path. For those living with borderline personality disorder (BPD), anger often becomes a familiar, overwhelming presence. It spills over into relationships, decisions, and even how they see themselves. But what if this anger, instead of being a destructive force, held the key to healing? Let’s explore the deep ties between trauma, BPD, and mental health, and how anger can be transformed into a tool for growth. The...
The Truth About ADHD: 5 Myths and Misconceptions Unveiled
Let me take you to a scene I’ve witnessed countless times in my work. Imagine a middle-aged professional - let’s call her Anna - sitting across from me. Her posture is tense, her hands fidgeting with a pen. Her voice trembles as she confesses, “I’ve always felt like something was wrong with me. I can’t keep up. I forget things. I’m drowning at work, and no matter how hard I try, it feels like I’m failing everyone - my boss, my family, myself.” Her words are heavy with self-blame. She thinks...
Happiness Begins with Selfishness and Ends in Meaning
Clara sat across from me, her fingers wrapped tightly around her coffee cup. She looked exhausted. Not just physically, but the kind of exhaustion that settles deep in your bones. The kind that comes from living for everyone except yourself. “I should be happy,” she said, forcing a smile. “I have everything I wanted. A good job. A family. Friends who care about me.” She paused. Her eyes drifted toward the window. “But I feel... empty.” I let the silence stretch between us. Then I asked her...
True Addiction: When the Brain Hijacks Your Free Will
The smell of warm cinnamon rolls filled the kitchen. My friend Ana had been talking about her diet for weeks. “No more sugar,” she had said confidently. Yet, here she was, standing in front of the oven, eyes locked on the golden pastry. “I’ll just have one bite,” she whispered. One bite turned into a whole roll. Then two. By the time she looked up, half the tray was gone. Her face flushed with shame. “Why do I do this to myself?” It wasn’t about hunger. It wasn’t about willpower. It was...
Therapy Isn’t for the Weak – It’s for the Brave
Life has a way of testing us. Problems grow like shadows, stretching larger and darker, eclipsing the light we once relied on. When you’re in that place—lost in the overwhelm—it’s easy to wonder: Is help even for me? Is therapy for me? Let me start here: therapy isn’t for the weak. It’s for the brave. It’s for those bold enough to look at their challenges head-on, no matter how daunting they may seem. It’s not a retreat from the battlefield; it’s a recalibration. A safe space to refocus,...
Are We Treating the Person or the Label?
Have you ever wondered how many prescriptions are written, not for the person sitting across from us, but for the diagnosis they’ve been assigned? This question has been on my mind since a course I attended recently - a course that felt deeply personal to me, touching on themes that align with my heart and purpose. I’ll share more about the course in a future post, but today, I want to explore one idea that has stuck with me ever since. It’s an idea that challenges the way we approach mental...
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