If depression is a symptom of being stuck in the pain of the past, and anxiety a fear of the future, the obvious answer is to align oneself in present time. Your physical body is the vehicle by which you enter present time, but in order to do so you must also have mastery over…
A few days ago I received an envelope of letters from a group of young people in recovery I’d taken out and introduced to the sport that literally saved my life. It’s always been my intention to share my love of ice so that it may help others. I think I might be on track……
“If you are dependent on something outside yourself to feel good, you are addicted.” When I was offered the choice of trading in my cocaine habit for a lithium habit, I knew the only difference was a legal one. I knew in my bones that I needed to face the uncomfortable feelings I had been…
A recent Harvard study dovetails nicely into what Dr Gabor Mate has been asserting for years. In the words of the researchers themselves, “childhood abuse leads to permanent changes in a seahorse-shaped area of the brain that can cause adult depression and drug abuse.” It also dovetails nicely into a recent surge of anecdotal evidence,…
Capacity is defined as “the ability to receive, hold, or absorb; the maximum amount that can be contained.” For the first four decades of my life, I was completely self-absorbed in that all of my resources were put toward the goal of keeping myself as emotionally stable as I possibly could. And this was a…
When my lawyer edited the best stories from my book I was devastated. But life has a way of balancing itself out, and true to form I get another go around when I speak at Canmore’s Night of Lies on November 26th, along with nine other presenters. Although I’ve never been to one, it comes…
You never know who’s changing your kid’s diapers… Alison Osius reflects on our first meeting back in 1996 in this article for Rock and Ice. Enjoy.
In ancient mythology the Gods and Goddesses lived atop the highest mountains, thus imbuing these places with supernatural qualities that humans dreamed of possessing. It was thought that those who scaled the heights were as close as they could possibly be to the heavens, and they were looked upon as heroes. Thousands of years later…
There are many indigenous groups that believe the state of one’s hair is a reflection of one’s inner state of affairs. That’s why I think it’s important to let it go wild: no shampoo, no dye, and no brush. It’s step number one if you are thinking of enrolling in my finishing school for girls,…
Last month marked the fifth anniversary of Karen McNeill’s disappearance on the upper reaches of Mount Foraker, where she and partner Sue Nott were attempting the Infinite Spur. In my latest article for Alpine Athena I pay tribute to the woman who inspired me to become a better person: I can still remember the first…