Free-Range Psychology

Why flexibility and therapeutic range are the future of practice

Shauna H Springer Ph.D.

How to Support Those Who Protect Us

We love our nation's warriors, but do we really understand them? Many people think that combat trauma should be our focus. Yet combat deployment is not associated with suicide.

SOS From the ICU: Why Are Some Americans Not Practicing Social Distancing?

Why are some people not engaging in social distancing—and what can we do about it?

How Is America's "Coping" Muscle?

How are those in less fortunate countries who face stress every day coping with COVID-19? Does experience with past stress "inoculate" us or increase the impact of further trauma?

The Psychological Impact of COVID-19

The threat of COVID-19 has suddenly rewritten the unwritten rules that we live by. Yet operating in defense mode may lead to second-order effects we must address now.

Can Taking Therapy Out of the Office Improve Outcomes?

Research on communication, gender, and disclosure can help us make conscious decisions about how we practice to create optimal therapeutic environments for those we serve.

Why Marines Make Exceptional Social Workers

Marines have not only been some of my best friends—they have been some of the most exceptional partners I’ve had on the front lines of this mental warfare we are facing.

The Psychological Impact of Digital Overload

A new book brings new insights.

New Promise for Treating Trauma

Within minutes of receiving a stellate ganglion block injection, several patients have said things like, “it's like having a thousand-pound weight lifted off my chest."

Taking Shame Out of the Suicide Conversation

For multiple reasons, promoting shame-based messages is ineffective as a strategy in preventing suicide.

Becoming Tearful in Session with a Patient

Ever become tearful during a session with a patient? What did you do? If you are like me, you tried hard to inhibit any tearfulness. But I don't do that anymore.

A Tactical Analysis of the War on Hopelessness

Developing and deploying a tactical analysis of the war on hopelessness has profoundly shifted my work with veterans and first responders.

Career Transitions for NFL Players and Combat Warfighters

In the career transitions of pro athletes and military veterans, the individual resilience factors targeted for interventions are not the dominant factors.

How Therapists Can Manage Their Own Anxiety

One thing that determines how much patients will open up is how much anxiety a therapist transmits to them.

The Aftermath of the Thousand Oaks Mass Shooting

In the wake of a tragedy like the Thousand Oaks mass shooting, fear rises up and distorts the truth. As someone who is close to many Marines, here is what I know to be true.

The Reason to Go On After Serving in the Military

After being asked by several warriors to comment on Britta Reque-Dragicevic’s article, “When You Can’t be a Warrior Anymore…Is There a Reason to Go On," this is what I think.

Suicide Risk Among Society's Emotional First Responders

Do pastors and others in ministry roles have some underappreciated suicide risk factors?

Is Suicide Selfish?

Those who survive suicide attempts often look back on their crisis with a different perspective.

The Power of Tribe

The power of Tribe works for veterans and civilians alike. When we reach a tipping point in understanding this, we will see changes in our rates of suicide.

Leaving an Entire Caseload of Patients

When therapists think about termination, they generally focus on minimizing the negative impact for patients. But what happens when you have to say goodbye to many of them at once?

Crack of Dawn Workouts

By getting up at 4:30 a.m., I have already made a powerful statement to myself that I am willing to work for what I want in a single-minded, extremely determined way.

Accountability With Physical Fitness Goals

If you do a review of what has worked for you in the past, what can you discover about how to set the stage for success with your goals?

What Works for Me May Not Work for You

When it comes to fitness goals, if you find a type of movement that feels both good and right to you, it’s much more likely to become a habit.

Success, the Slow-Cooked Way

There is no shortage of crash diet options, but what if our bodies need time to acclimate? What if they actually need a slow-cooked method of change over a long period of time?

A Decision-Making Hack for Life's Forks in the Road

As we wrap up 2016 and head into a new year, is there a fork in your own road that you need to see with greater clarity and focus? Here's a decision-making "hack" that may help.

Social Anxiety: A Single-Session Cure

My patient never returned. Her father called four days later, delighted to report that I had “worked a miracle.” Yet I see what happened as a failure on my part.

Crisis Response Models for Suicide Are Not Enough

The suicide rate is at a 30-year high, and rising. Crisis response models try to plug the dam, but the dam isn’t holding. We need a total re-envisioning of crisis response.

Reflections on Veteran Suicide, Veteran Resilience and Tribe

Trauma may not be the that thing catalyzes despair but rather the combination of trauma with gaping attachment wounds that service members feel when they separate from their tribe.

What Leads Us to See Our Addictions for What They Are?

What experiences shape the moment of recognition that addiction is bondage and that freedom is worth clawing towards with every molecule of strength and courage that we possess?

10 Reasons New Love Is Like Crack Cocaine

Off-putting though it may be to some, here are ten reasons why I am sticking with “cocaine rush phase” as the best way to capture the first phase of new relationships.

Can a Harvard Degree Actually Reduce Patient Trust?

I have made a conscious decision to forgo hanging my diplomas. Here’s why.

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