Maria’s Sunday Paper: Making Time for What You Value Most

This week was a good time to think about what you value in your life. France's President Emmanuel Macron delivered an impassioned speech to Congress this week about what he values and what he believes in. Hearing him speak got me thinking about my own beliefs and values. “Our stronge...

I’ve Been Thinking … Self Care in Troubling Times

You Are Not Going Crazy Since the early 1990s, when I started working with people dealing with acute stress and post-traumatic issues, the most frequently asked question I hear is, “Hey Doc, am I crazy?” In reassuring someone that his or her responses are appropriate for having survived o...

Doctor Ensures Health Care, Compassion and Spiritual Support for L.A.’s Homeless

President and CEO of Los Angeles Christian Health Centers (LACHC) since 2013, Dr. Lisa Abdishoo oversees a staff of 150 medical professionals plus nearly 100 volunteers per year for over 10,000 patients annually. Lisa takes pride in the fact that LACHC may be the only place where the ...

I’ve Been Thinking … Finding Purpose Projects for Today’s Youth

March for Lives is now one of the largest youth-led movements in the past few decades in America. Across the country young people are standing up for their rights and social change. Many students who weeks ago were politically apathetic or unengaged have found a cause. They have found a mean...

I’ve Been Thinking … Together Moving Forward

Walking up to the Seaport World Trade Center Boston to claim my husband, Jeff’s, bib for the 122nd Boston Marathon, I saw a banner depicting a sentiment that resonated with me the entire weekend and will perhaps for the rest of my life – Together Forward. Seeing those two words, so bold ...

I’ve Been Thinking … Making Authentic Connections

I had been known to put these massive walls up when it came to meeting new people. It was a defense mechanism that immediately went up like an invisible fortress. This was partly due to my years of being bullied as a kid as well as the experience I had living in Los Angeles. That city brough...

Maria’s Sunday Paper: Finding a ‘Yippee!’ Moment in Every Day

A profoundly simple idea came to me last weekend. It came way before I watched the Comey interview. Way before the Time 100 list came out. Way before Jeff Bezos told us how many Amazon Prime customers there actually are. (OMG.) The idea came to me as I was sitting in conversation with ...

Ivelise Markovits Makes It Her Mission to Find Community For Homeless Youth

Ivelise Markovits began her career as a placement officer for the Los Angeles County Probation Department and was responsible for finding residential treatment facilities for female wards of the court. Frustrated by the difficulty of placing teenage girls in foster care, she founded Penny La...

Instead of Processed Sugar, Try This Dessert Sweetened By Mother Nature

I wanted to share some of the research I did while writing “Food for Thought.” Please take the time to read this. It may get you to stop and think before you continue to consume foods that are filled with sugar, too much salt, unhealthy fats, processed and genetically modified (GMO). I’v...

Maria’s Sunday Paper: Feeling Anxious? Find Where You Belong…

I’ve been thinking quite a bit lately about belonging. It’s not something I recall thinking about much when I was a child. At that time, I knew where I belonged, and who I belonged to. (Although I must say, there were times I wondered how I ended up in the family that I did, haha.) Bu...