A Conversation with the Reluctant Therapist... Humans are energy beings, deeply connected to the natural world and to each other. How energy moves through our bodies can determine the quality of our physical and mental health. Reiki is an ancient healing technique that fosters well-being by altering energy fields.

The 27th Annual San Luis Obispo International Film Festival (SLOIFF) will be here soon and it will be one of our most unique Festivals ever — a predominantly virtual experience. This world-class annual festival, along with events throughout the year, provides a venue for international and local filmmakers, exposing an ever-expanding range of audiences to new ideas and experiences. This year’s film lineup will feature 111 presentations, including 30 feature films, 63 short films, and 18 music videos.

  For over 40 years mental health care has been dominated by the theme that "there is a pill for that" - in treating everything from grief to paranoid schizophrenia. The results have been life-saving for some and life destroying for others. It's in the failures to provide relief that has forced the helping professions to search for new treatments. “Functional Psychopharmacology" is one such approach, which pairs the short-term use of medications with Acceptance Commitment Therapy (ACT)—to promote functioning and symptom tolerance. In this paradigm, medications are often used short term. There are exceptions, like ADHD, bipolar d/o, OCD, and schizophrenia, where medications are needed long term to enable functioning. But the most common conditions, depression and anxiety, are best served by a functional psychopharmacology approach.