I have decided to dedicate a post on Thursday to therapy, and offer you the many tips I have learned on the couch. They will be a good reminder for me, as well, of something small I can concentrate on. Many of them are published in my book, “The Pocket Therapist: An Emotional Survival Kit.”

Maybe it’s because I live less than a mile from the United States Naval Academy, but there exists within my brain’s limbic system a drill sergeant that yells orders in the same fashion as the company officers at the academy.

And that’s not all bad.

Because sometimes all I need is a little motivation–plus maybe the threat of something bad happening–to get me out interviewing different doctors, researching why too much of the hormone prolactin makes you cry and lactate (simultaneously!), finding out why my lips have turned a pretty violet shade, looking up all my medication side effects … to see if I come across anything like “propensity to stuff your face and gain 20 pounds,” reading up on the benefits of vitamin D and Omega-3 fatty acids, trying a different recovery path.

So I apply to my health the same rule that I abide by on my runs around the academy: no stopping until I’ve run the first mile, which is always the hardest.

This means I can’t throw up my arms in defeat at my leaking aortic valve until I’ve made an appointment with the best cardiologist in my area and researched my valve regurgitation with the persistence and resolve of a midshipman studying for his final exams. I can’t relinquish control of my pituitary tumor–and resign myself to a life of nausea and dizziness caused by a medication–until I’ve met with at least ten different endocrinologists to discuss all my options.

And I can’t give up on sanity until I’ve found the right psychiatrist, therapist, and med combination; added the right foods and vitamins to my diet; cut out the crack-cocaine fix in the morning (only kidding); experimented with a dozen or so relaxation and deep breathing techniques; forgiven all of my enemies (tried to anyway); studied the brains of people who wake up happy; an until I’ve tried every other technique and tool in my recovery program.

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