Self-help Menu

In everything you do . . . prove yourselves innocent and straightforward, children of God beyond reproach in the midst of a twisted and depraved generation— among whom you shine like the stars of the sky.

—Philippians 2:14–15

 
THE PAGES on this menu provide information about various psychological topics you can study to assist your spiritual growth.

Introduction to the Basic Concepts | Healing | Psychological Traps | Social Traps | Clinical Issues 
Relaxation CD | Books

NTRODUCTION TO THE BASIC CONCEPTS
	Outside the Box How to find freedom from social fraud and game-playing: The Nine Dot Puzzle; The Real Box: Fraud and Games; Contempt of the World; Detachment from the World: Chastity, Modesty, and Humility
	Self-help The Way of the Cross: Parables; A World Filled With Impiety; Psychology and Spirituality; Asking While Doubting; Sacrifice, Obedience, and Prayer; Where Has Love Gone; What You Can Do; Increase My Faith
EALING
	Desire and Motivation The psychology of motivation and how to overcome repeated impulses to sin: Acknowledgment and Regret; Forced to Act; Psychological Motivation; Pushed by the Drive; Pulled by Desire; Understanding Hidden Needs; Triggers for Impulses; Desire for the Holy; A Psychological-Spiritual Hitch: The Hidden Desire for Self-destruction
	Four Steps to Humility What humility really is: Humiliation; The Difference Between Humility and Masochism; Recognizing Emotions; Recognizing Psychological Defenses; Learning How the Past “Lives” in the Present; Learning New Behaviors
	Healing Emotional hurt and giving the pain to God: Spiritual Healing; Hurt; Anger and Revenge; Another Option; Transformation Through Prayer; About Child Abuse; Giving the Pain to God (Acknowledge the Pain - Relax - Be Transparent; Pray); “Offer it Up!”; It’s Really Hard Work
	Helping Children Heal Reality and Faith: The Mistake of Invalidation; The Proper Way
	Meeting Your Enemy in Heaven  (From the Q&A Section) Problems with healing because of an inability to forgive your “enemies”: Purified in Heaven; Forgiveness versus Reconciliation; Summary
	New Age Healing The errors of confusing healing with the divine life: The Chill; Seduction; Forgiveness and Transformation; The Goddess; The Real New Age; New Age Healing Practices (Buddhism, Centering Prayer, Reiki, Spiritism, Wicca, Yoga)
SYCHOLOGICAL TRAPS
	Being Wretched How falling short is nothing to be ashamed of: The Refusal to Acknowledge Wretchedness; Scrutiny; Wretched {period}; Hidden Spiritual Pride; Bypassing Denial; Wretched {gracefully}
	Children Fallen Away from the Church When children fall away from the Church: Things Don’t Just “Happen”; Drawn Away from God’s Will; Trust in God; What Your Children See; How You Lose Credibility; Exposing the Fraud; What You Can Do Now
	Disasters and Trauma Natural disasters and other traumas: Introduction; The Imaginary; The Real; Blame; Trust in God; The Symbolic Realm; Spiritual Growth through Tribulations; Breaking the Cycle of Blame and Hatred
	Disobedience How disobedience results from family hypocrisy: The “Stain”; Resistance to Authority; The Call Back to Faith; The Call Away from the World and Self
	Distractions and Fantasies How to understand and cope with fantasies and distractions during prayer: Understanding, not Ignoring; The Definition of Fantasies (a k a Temptations); The Relationship Between Thoughts and Feelings; Sexual Fantasies; Fantasies of Grandiosity; Evil Fantasies; Self-destructive Fantasies; A Benign Example; Practical Suggestions
	Evil How mental health, unconscious defenses, and demonic influence are all related: Evil as Something Harmful; Evil as the Refusal to Serve God’s Will; Why Did God Make Hell; Demonic Influence or Mental Illness; The Unconscious; Vulnerability to Evil through Psychological Defenses; The Desire for Revenge; What You Can Do; Three Final Points
	Fear How fear holds us back from living genuinely holy lives: Fear; Fear of Love; Do Not Be Afraid; Feeling Afraid vs. Being Afraid; Self-sabotage and Fear of Dreams; Accepting Love; Fear of God; Fear of Hell; Unforgiven
	Guilt How forgiveness depends on sorrow and love, not guilt: The Mockery Made of Baptism; God Forgives Anything; Reparation; Repentance is Love; When is Enough Enough?; Sorrow and Guilt; Perseverence in Love
	Sin  (From the Q&A Section) Why we sin: Original Sin; Concupiscence: Sin Feels Good; Missing the Point; Personal Sin; Catholic Psychology; The Deception of “Knowing”; It’s Your Choice
	Suffering and Obedience The role of suffering and obedience in spiritual healing: Job Wasn’t Self-righteous; Beyond Our Comprehension; A Dilemma—and a Mystery; A Testament and a Penance; Obedience Lets all Suffering End in Love; A Deliberate Decision of Free Will; The Subversion of Obedience: Quietism; The Defeat of Satan’s Bet; Postscript: Wisdom
OCIAL TRAPS
	Catholic Compassion When they tell you that the Church is wrong about sexuality: Compassion; Chastity; Responsibility; Serving the Self; Disobeying God; Identity; To Die in All Things; The Proof
	Educating Children The price of being lukewarm in faith: How the devil undermines the Church by brainwashing children in school
	The Father The psychological consequences of a missing father: The Role of a Mother; The Role of a Father; Lack; Unconscious Consequences of Lack; Saint Joseph; The Remedy; Prayer to Saint Joseph; Modern Prayer to Saint Joseph
	Judgment The false accusation of being judgmental: “Don’t be judgmental!”; Silenced by “Diversity”; Necessary Judgment; Forbidden Judgment; Judgment can be Negative or Positive; Lying to Evade Judgment; Summary; Psychological Counsels
	Love The real relationship between love and sin: Love’s Opposite: Sin; Forms of Love; Charity Raised to the Divine; Sin’s Antidote
	Modesty Christian Modesty: Sexual Morality and the Body; Purity of Soul and Body; The Body as a Temple; The Body’s Role in Our Salvation; Lust of the Eyes; The Body Serves Love and Holiness; Modesty; Summary
	Peace The truth about peace on earth: Men of Good Will; Willing to do God’s Will; Either Peace or Division
	Politics The current realities about the State vs. the Church: The Illusion; Diversity; Activism; In God We Trust; Holiness is a Personal Struggle
	Protest The vanity of protest: Compensation for Injury; To Condemn the World; For the Sake of Love; A World Littered with Corpses
	Responsibility How to overcome victimization and take real responsibility for your life: Liability and Tort Law; Lawsuits and Christianity; Christian Spiritual Liability; Purification, not Compensation; Responsibility; Victimization; Blame and Hiding
	Sexuality, Romance, and True Love Real Christian love: Goodness; The Call Away from Sin; Love is of the Spirit; Eroticism; The Allure of Common “Love”; Erotic Arousal in Romance; The Emptiness of Common “Love”; Holy Matrimony: Real Love in Real Marriage; The Call to be Holy; Freedom, not Repression
	Tattoos  (From the Q&A Section) What’s wrong with tattoos: Cain’s Mark; Tattoos: Then and Now; By the Hand of God
	Witnessing the Faith  (From the Q&A Section) How to defend the holy: The Martyrs; Preaching, Teaching, and Witnessing; Elements of Witnessing the Faith; A Quiet Refusal, Not a Public Protest; The Real Battle; The Psychology of Responsibility; Taking Responsibility for Your Own Behavior; Explaining Yourself; Summary
LINICAL ISSUES
	How to Stop Masturbating  (From the Q&A Section) The truth about masturbation: Demons and Wolves; The Theological Issues; The Psychological Issues; The Actual Failure; The Urge to Masturbate; Sexual Addiction; The Healing Process; The Spiritual Battle
	Smoking Cessation Step-by-step instructions to stop smoking with visualization and prayer: Enslavement; Stopping Smoking through Faith and Prayer; Visualization and Prayer Technique; Coping with Cravings
	Treatment of Bipolar Disorder Recommendations for the treatment of mania and hypomania: Mood Stabilizers; Expansive Fantasy; Healing from Grandiosity; A Complication to the Healing: Religiosity; Deceived by “Trust in God”; Psychotherapy—not Arguing
	Treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder Recommendations for healing feelings of abandonment and rage: The Rage from Feeling Abandoned; The Rage Continues: Pushing Away; “It’s Your Fault!”; To Heal the Rage; Love: The Imitation of Christ; The Mystical Price of Love
	Treatment of Depression and Anxiety Recommendations for healing the failure to trust in divine providence and justice: The Unconscious Aspect of Emotional Trials; Encountering Emotional Trials with Faith; Medication vs. Self-Scrutiny; Self-help Recommendations
	Treatment of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Recommendations for healing feelings of repressed anger and guilt: Unconscious Guilt; Healing Guilt through a Holy Lifestyle: Christian Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment, Understanding Emotional Hurt, and Desire for the Holy
	Treatment of Personality Disorders Recommendations for understanding personality gifts and correcting their misuse: The Problem with “Personality”; Personality Disorders; Personality Gifts; Catholic Treatment Recommendations
	Weight Reduction Step-by-step instructions to lose weight with visualization and prayer: Body Mass Index Calculator; Points to Ponder about Overeating; Weight Reduction Assisted by Fasting; Weight Reduction through Faith and Prayer; Visualization and Prayer Technique; Coping with Cravings
ELAXATION CD
	Guided Imagery for Relaxation and Healing This CD guides you through a psychological experience of relaxation and healing that is faithful to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church
OOKS
	Books, Booklets, and Prayer Cards By Raymond Lloyd Richmond, Ph.D., the author of this website.

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