We’ve come to the end of another year – end of the decade. As I’ve mentioned before in this blog I’m a big believer in making goals at the end of the year. I’m a believer in using this time to reflect and take stock of the year that was.
And in that spirit, this, the final blog of the year will be used to let you know about my favourite blog posts in the year. I’ve written 45 posts in 2019, but I’ve selected the five (or so) which I like the best. Earlier in the year I made a list of the most viewed posts for the blog’s first anniversary. If you’re interested the top five most-viewed posts this year were: 1. Welcome, 2. Emotional Deprivation Schema, 3. Unrelenting Standards Schema, 4. Abandonment Schema, and 5. Self-Sacrifice Schema. A lot of schemas there!
So here it is, the totally objective, non-biased list of the best articles of 2019😊
5. The Social Isolation Schema, March. Some of us feel different to others. This article tells the story of Jia who felt alone in a crowd. More than introversion, the Social Isolation Schema is a system of beliefs and expectations about our ability to fit in socially and be accepted by others.
4. The Defectiveness Schema, February. When we are young we are not good enough for full membership to the adult world. Not good enough in the sense of incompetent and also not “good” enough; not socially or morally aware. Sadly, sometimes, some people carry this sense of being not-good-enough to adulthood usually due to the messages of authority figures during childhood. Shame is the key emotion that people with this schema experience.
3. Social Media Anxiety, February. And Mindfulness/Mindlessness, April. These two posts comment on how our use of devices serve to separate us from uncomfortable emotions in the short-term with the result of causing more distress in the long-term.
2. Thinking Traps VII: Mental Filter, September. And Thinking Traps IV: Catastrophising, July. These were my favourite examples of the thinking traps series. Catastrophising – perhaps the most common thinking trap for anxiety disorders. Mental Filter – the process of selective (but unconscious) use of attention to create and recreate our expected reality.
1. Anti-fragile Living Part I: Creating Some Slack, November. My number one for 2019. Our society encourages us to be ever more productive, ever more efficient, ever moving, ever growing. This article argues that ever-striving leaves us vulnerable to shocks and blind to opportunities.
See you in 2020!