“Ask Dr Neuman” Advice Column
Freud made popular the idea that various objects, by virtue of their appearance and function, could stand symbolically for other objects, usually sexual. When a woman dreamed about cleaning her house, for instance, she might be expressing feelings she had about her...
There are those who grow up feeling that they are not as good at anything as they should be. The reasons for having such low self-esteem are familiar to everyone. They add up to having had the experience, repeatedly, of being told one way or another by important...
Not everyone who is gay is possessed. Gordon Klingenschmitt, a Colorado state representative, became the latest in a long line of politicians who claim that homosexuals are possessed by the devil. He was provoked by a commercial for jewelry that depicted two...
I have written my own obituary, ahead of time, in order to guarantee accuracy. Obituary of Fredric J. Neuman, M.D. Fredric J Neuman, a man of great personal charm, died yesterday at the age of 104 surrounded by family and friends and some young women who wandered in...
Possible nicknames for Donald Trump Tit for tat. Donald Trump feels it gives him an advantage to bestow nicknames on his political opponents. So, we have taken note of “Low-energy Jeb” “Small Mario,” Lyin’ Ted” Cruz etc. These opponents have fallen by the wayside, so...
Democrats in Support of a Republican Proposal A petition There is a lot of bad feeling in the country between the two major political parties. The enmity between them is regrettable and in the long run not in the interest of the country. For that reason, any chance...
Chicken Phobias and other matters of concern A demand for quick thinking. The Anxiety and Phobia Clinic that I direct has seen over four thousand patients during the forty-three years of its existence. There are individuals with a specific phobia, such as snakes or...
And in the genital election. A hidden agenda? Imagine you are in the fifth grade—no, make that the third grade. I’m sure this is hard for most of you to do, since you probably have been doing lots of different things since the third grade, and your mind, I’m sure, is...
Does Justice Scalia have to give up his career because he is dead? Mr. Kory Langhofer, a “prominent election law attorney” in Arizona recently suggested that we should count Justice Antonin Scalia’s votes on current cases before the Supreme Court despite the fact that...
Exactly what do you mean by that? In trying to understand people, psychiatrists are in a privileged position. Patients speak to us in a setting of confidentiality. They know their secrets are safe with us. And they expect us to be sympathetic. They have no reason to...
No More Sex until… The kids go off to college. Parents don’t like to have sex in front of their children. I take that as a given. Maybe it was different in prehistoric times. Maybe back then when a committed couple (I assume there was no marriage ceremony in those...
Making America Great Again By getting rid of death and taxes It is often said that something is as sure as “death and taxes,” meaning that nothing is more sure than death and taxes, including, for example, the sun coming up tomorrow. This is hyperbole. Taxes...