Texas Tragedy: A Mother's Pain

We often think of childhood fondly and some would love nothing more than to return to those idyllic, carefree days with mom and dad and their siblings. Not every family, unfortunately, and not all children have such wonderful experiences and today's news carries information about another family tragedy.

A young mother of four daughters, ages 5, 3, 2 and an eight-month-old infant, decided to end all their lives. I can only assume, having worked with parents who killed their children, that she believed it was for the best and that she was saving her children from something. The only survivor is the infant who was still alive when a relative went to the home because she had some concerns.

The stress on young parents can be enormous. Not all of these families are brought to the attention of mental health workers who might be able to help. For some, it's a matter of shame about their situation and for others it's the fear of letting strangers know about family matters. Then, too, severe depression and stress distorts our ability think clearly and see that hope and the ability to cope is there in their community.

My concern is that this latest tragedy won't be viewed through the filter of understanding of emotional turmoil and there will be those who will paint this woman as a heartless murderer. I think it is absolutely the opposite; she loved her children and wanted to protect them.

Related Topics:

• Postpartum Depression
• Stress Management Tips for At-Home Parents

Technorati Tags: texas, news, depression, stress, parenting, family

How to Be Your Own Therapist at B&N

Those wonderful book folks over at Barnes & Noble have picked up the rights to publish my book, How to Be Your Own Therapist, and have included it in their new spring 2007 line. So, you'll be able to find it in their stores where they stock their titles.

Interesting that when I was a student at New York University in NYC, I bought my books at a bookstore called The SBX (still don't quite know what that meant) and it was opened by a graduate student named Len Riggio. Well, Len rose to be a major force in college bookstores and, eventually, bought the Barnes & Noble stores and became its CEO. Small world because later, when I worked in magazine publishing, I sat in a small 16-seater plane coming back, in a snowstorm, from Syracuse University where I'd attended a college bookstore meeting. Guess who was the guy sitting next to me as we looked anxiously at those ice-up wings? Len Riggio. Now, I'm one of his authors. He has his own jet plane.

I'm really happy that they've picked up my book because I've always had a fondness for the store. I also remember that once I had lunch with the last of the family owners who eventually sold to Len. I went on a tour of their cavernous lower Fifth Avenue store in NYC and just loved it. If you love books, this was the place to be and, if you're looking for self-help/self-improvement, I have to recommend my book because I know it's solid and it can help a lot of people.