Contributed by Martha Manning
Will I Survive My Therapist’s Retirement?
Breaking Up Is Hard to Do...When it comes time for your therapist to retire, hope like hell that it's not right after your marriage ends and your mother dies. Read more
Colliding into 70
Don’t Send Me a Sympathy Card!Getting old is hard. But sometimes, as the body becomes more vulnerable, the spirit becomes fiercer. Read more
Dispatches from the Yellow Brick Road
A Journey Through Delusion and BackA terrifying journey shows just how much psychotic delusions are embedded in the unquestioned essence of a person’s thinking—as true as ocean, ground, and... Read more
A Legacy of Living with Courage
Discovering the Watchful HeartThe legacies of extraordinary people we’ve lost invite us to embrace the examples they’ve left behind. But how exactly do we do it? Read more
The Unbearable Heaviness of Being
Learning to Celebrate a New ShapeRefusing to be defined by others can sometimes require an unexpected catalyst. Read more
Lost and Found
Scenes from a MiscarriageThe story of a miscarriage is often about crushed hope, but it can also bring unexpected possibility. Read more
We still don’t have a clear and reliable road map for navigating the unique grief that comes with losing a wanted pregnancy. Read more
Irish Whiskey
The Comfort of a Powerful LineageHow our family lineages weave a connection of giving and taking and giving again. Read more
In Search of the Perfect Office
A Therapist Moves On UpOur offices don’t make people well, but they extend an invitation. They provide a comforting consistency in the midst of hard, often unsettling work. So a... Read more
When Depression Runs in the Family
Being Haunted Isn't the Same as Being CursedMy family is haunted by depression. My mother can trace it back in her family at least six generations. When it hits, it hits hard. My own battle with... Read more
Comfort Me
Embracing Grief in a LaundromatConfronting grief in a laundromat. Read more
The Girl in the Railroad Pajamas
Lost Children and the Failure of EmpathyAs a psychologist and a mother, I’m haunted by the children of immigrants we’ve all been reading about, stolen from their parents and callously detained... Read more
A Journey Through Fire
Surviving When Your Self Is in AshesAt its worst, depression extinguishes your inner pilot light, depriving you of the substrate that makes you feel real. Sufferers complain of living in a fog... Read more
VIDEO: When Sorrow Mixes with Joy
Martha Manning Shares a Moving Personal Story of Hardship, Hope, and LoveA karaoke performance on a psych ward helps a mother and daughter find a way to reconnect. Read more
Karaoke on Five South
From an Evening of Storytelling 2018A karaoke performance on a psych ward helps a mother and daughter find a way to reconnect. Read more
The Shirt Off My Back
Losing control of your story can be a terrifying experienceLosing control of your story can be one of life's most terrifying experiences. Read more
Stop making sense and allow yourself the luxury of tears. Read more
Martha Manning
Martha Manning, PhD, is a writer and clinical psychologist who has written five books, including Undercurrent: A Life Beneath the Surface. She has published frequently in the Networker as well as other magazines.