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Lawyer Well-Being & Mental Health: Massachusetts LAP Blog

Getting Through the Holidays – Maintaining Sobriety

(Originally posted on 11/25/14)

The holiday season is upon us and it is a good time to review some helpful tips about avoiding pitfalls and setting yourself up for success this time of year. The trifecta, as it is often called (Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s), is historically a more challenging time of year for many of us. If the holiday season represents happy times with family and friends; then that’s great, enjoy. For many of us, this time of year brings with it social engagements with friends and family members that often include potentially risky, if not just uncomfortable, situations where your resolve is tested. It should come as no surprise to anyone that there is a higher likelihood of being offered, gifted, or simply being in the presence of more alcohol and substances over the holiday season. Here are some helpful tips to keep in mind as you make holiday plans. The tip that underlies all of the rest is, “Plan ahead!” As the saying goes, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”

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Tips on winning the fight against anxiety – Tip #4: Beat it to the punch

As we have discussed previously in posts (Tip #1, Tip #2, and Tip #3), anxiety attempts to gain control over you by suggesting a feared future outcome. The more you try to prevent that feared outcome from occurring, the more anxiety grows and the less control you feel. The desire to live a life free of problems or mistakes is not a bad desire in and of itself. The problem starts when we begin to believe that we need our lives to be problem/mistake-free in order to have an enjoyable life. To be blunt, this is a lie.

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Fake It ‘Til You Make It – Part 1

The suggestion to fake it until you make it is one that has been used for many situations over the years. Many people have strong reactions to the suggestion, either they hate the idea because it seems disingenuous and an admission of inadequacy, or they love it because it helped them get over a barrier of doubt and allowed them to persevere. In many ways, whether you love it or hate it, your opinion of “fake it ‘til you make it” is usually influenced by what the suggestion symbolizes to you.

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Argument: Law School Changed Me

Law students and lawyers often tell me that law school changed them. This realization usually occurs after numerous friends and family members tell them that they have changed. “You’re more argumentative” is often heard. Typically, the law student does not feel like they have become a different person, but instead they have been learning new skills. One of the most prevalent experiences about law school is the way that it changes the way you think about everything. Whether you are thinking about an argument to make or about the intention behind a law, law school teaches you that there are no right and wrong answers. It is all about the argument you can make. This is why the Socratic Method is used in almost every law class that you take. The Socratic Method uses a series of questions to help explore potential answers or avenues of thought. The point of the method is to ask questions and engage in the process of exploration. It is not about determining the one and only right answer.

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