Archives For Life

What It’s Like to Live with a Depressed Husband

olive chan —  May 9, 2013 — 5 Comments

[May 6-12, 2013 is Mental Health Week in Canada. At least 1 in 3 Canadians experience challenges with their mental health each year. To grow empathy for people struggling with mental health and depression (and their families), Tim shared his experience with depression on Monday, and I am sharing my experience as a wife of someone with depression today.]

The first time Tim allowed me to see his depression, I was shocked. We had gotten married in the midst of my own recovery from burnout so I had come into the marriage thinking I was the one who needed mending. I hadn’t realized that he also walked with a limp. He hadn’t really mentioned it while we were dating or engaged (mostly out of fear and partly because he hadn’t come to terms with it himself yet), so when he told me he was fighting depression, and that he had recurring bouts of it, I was surprised.
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Befriending My Depression

tim chan —  May 6, 2013 — 3 Comments

[May 6-12, 2013 is Mental Health Week in Canada. At least 1 in 3 Canadians experience challenges with their mental health each year. To grow empathy for people struggling with mental health and depression (and their families), I am sharing my experience with depression today, and Olive will be sharing her experience as a wife of someone with depression on Thursday.]

When I first met Depression, I hated it right away.
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A Half-Truth: God Will Give You What You Ask For When You’re Ready

olive chan —  April 29, 2013 — 7 Comments

When I was single, people often tried to encourage me by saying, “Just keep waiting on God, He will bring about the right person when you’re ready.” It never really brought me comfort like the other party intended. I recently realized why. It’s only half-true.
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Courage Is: Daring To Be Different

admin —  April 22, 2013 — 3 Comments

["Courage Is" is a guest post series of readers sharing their personal stories of courage and what it means to live courageously. This Sarah Richardson's story.]

If you’ve talked to me for more than 10 minutes you’re probably inclined to think I’m fearless. I’m not, but somehow I still give that impression.
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What I Learned: Have You Celebrated Your UNbirthday?

admin —  April 15, 2013 — Leave a comment

“What I Learned” is a guest post series of lessons learned in relationships that matter the most (you can send us your story too). This guest post is by our friend Hannah Wong Greiner.

[Before you go any further, kindly click on this YouTube Link and let it play as you scroll down to read this post.] Many of you will be familiar with the story Alice in Wonderland, especially the animated Disney version released in 1951. The most memorable song for me is the “Unbirthday Song.” In that scene, Alice is shocked to see the Mad Hatter, March Hare and the very adorable Dormouse celebrating what they explain is an unbirthday party, which occurs 364 days out of the year. She soon joins the party and has a fun time singing and enjoying tea and cake.
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Facing The Disappointment That Was Our Book Launch

olive chan —  April 4, 2013 — 8 Comments

How do you face disappointment? When a relationship falls apart, or a friend lets you down, or something you were looking forward to (like getting pregnant or clinching the next promotion) doesn’t happen, how do you respond? I don’t handle it very well. My instinct is to run from the pain, to numb myself with distractions and to avoid that awful feeling at all cost. It’s too uncomfortable, unpleasant and painful for my liking. So I scroll through my Facebook feed for the tenth time in four minutes. I lose myself in a certain online game of matching coloured candies. I text my friends to see if anyone’s around to chat. I search for something, anything, to soothe the aching hole in my soul where my dream used to be. Then I come to my senses and I sit down to blog.
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6 Hilarious Pranks on Video

tim chan —  April 1, 2013 — 3 Comments

Happy April Fool’s Day! Last year I played a prank on my wife on April 1. I recorded it on video, just in case it turned out to be a super funny clip that would go viral. The prank backfired, and she got mad at me. Really mad. And I had no clue why. Needless to say, that clip never made it to YouTube. Fortunately, not all my pranks have backfired like this.
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The Inside Scoop on Self-Publishing a Book

tim chan —  March 28, 2013 — Leave a comment

With the release of our second book this week, I’ve gotten many questions about what it is like to self-publish a book. This blog post is a preview of a guest post with Salt+Light and interviews with The Bucket List and Daddy Blogger TV about self-publishing.
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How To Live With a Highly Sensitive Person

olive chan —  March 14, 2013 — 9 Comments

When Tim proposed to me, he had no idea he was signing up to live with a Highly Sensitive Person (HSP). I didn’t even know I was an HSP. We were both aware that I was more sensitive than your average person. I was sensitive emotionally, yes. But I was also sensitive to my physical surroundings. Certain places would be too loud, or too bright. Most perfumes and colognes would give me headaches. I would notice the slightest changes in my environment.
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When the Golden Rule Fails

tim chan —  March 7, 2013 — 2 Comments

The Golden Rule is found in all of the world’s major religions and ethical traditions, and is generally agreed upon as a good rule to live by. Unfortunately, the Golden Rule often fails to help others and can sometimes cause more damage than benefit.
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