Jazz Therapy

Hello, Jazz Lovers! Welcome to Jazz Therapy. Today, I am introducing a new feature, “Song Therapy.” In each short segment, we will choose one song to feature, talk about how it makes us feel, and what category of emotional listening the song would go into. My goal is to do this almost daily for the … Read moreSong Therapy

Hello, Jazz lovers! I hope you are all well. This week, I am feeling burned out and fatigued. I am tired. I also feel self-critical and immensely privileged to even talk about this, given the fact that a war still rages in Ukraine. Civil unrest continues in Sudan. Homelessness abounds, rampant in my own city. … Read moreSummer Burnout: It’s time to R-E-L-A-X

As the war in Ukraine continues, I continue to learn more about this complex conflict and the myriad, nuanced ramifications which are resultant from it. This week, I read an article about female soldiers in Ukraine (https://www.businessinsider.com/female-ukrainian-soldiers-suffer-lack-of-womens-resources-report-2023-7?am).  There are approximately 60,000 female troops in Ukraine.  These female soldiers are dealing with uniforms and body armor … Read moreHonoring Female Soldiers in Ukraine

This Monday, June 19th,  as we know, was Juneteenth. This holiday, as you probably know, commemorates the day when Union troops finally rolled into Texas and announced the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing 250,000 slaves in the state.  Though the rest of the country freed the slaves nearly two years earlier, Texas continued oppression and slavery, and … Read moreCommemorating Juneteenth

Thursday, June 1st, is Global Day of Parents.  This holiday was formally codified by the U.N. in 2012 to recognize parents around the globe and what a challenging job it is to be a parent. I am a parent, and parenting is a glorious, difficult job.  Often when I think about parenting, personally and in … Read moreGlobal Parent’s Day-June 1st, 2023

Earlier this month, Title 42 ended, a Trump-era immigration policy that prevented immigrants from coming to the U.S. due to the COVID pandemic.  Recently, thousands and thousands of immigrants have come to the U.S. border to seek entry and asylum.  According to this Newsweek article, “U.S. officials processed over 10,000 migrants arriving at the border … Read moreOn Immigration

This week, Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy outlined a federal policy to deal with another epidemic: loneliness (https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2023/05/03/new-surgeon-general-advisory-raises-alarm-about-devastating-impact-epidemic-loneliness-isolation-united-states.html).  Upon reading about this, I had myriad feelings about.  I felt relieved and validated, as I have seen and felt first-hand the effects of loneliness in my work as a therapist.  The pandemic was so arduous, especially … Read moreOn Loneliness

Happy Spring, Jazz Lovers! Today, we celebrate springtime, and another major religious holiday: Ramadan. When I was thinking about what to write about today, Ramadan popped into my mind.  This is the holy period for Muslims wherein they fast from sunup to sundown from March 22-April 20th.  Their fasting is fundamentally meant to deepen their … Read moreHonoring Muslims and Ramadan

Wondering what to write about this week for Jazz Therapy, I came across a few articles reporting that Florida-sized the Thwaites Glacier (known as the “Doomsday Glacier) is melting, faster that previously thought (https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/15/world/thwaites-doomsday-glacier-sea-level-climate-intl/index.html).  In Antarctica, this glacier is known as the “Doomsday” because of the catastrophic results that will occur when it melts, possibly … Read moreThe Thwaites Glacier is Melting: A Cry from Mother Earth

As you probably know, a devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck Northern Syria and Turkey, resulting in the deaths of at least 7,900 people, with that number growing.  (https://www.cnn.com/middleeast/live-news/turkey-syria-earthquake-updates-2-7-23-intl/index.html.  Rescuers are doing their best to look for more survivors; this search is also compounded by cold winter weather.  Survivors are left to grieve their loved ones, … Read moreHonoring Syria and Turkey in the Aftermath of the Earthquake