Our mind is a wonderful thing—except when it’s out of control, replaying painful, embarrassing, or shameful events from our past. Rumination isn’t just unpleasant, though. It retraumatizes us and reinforces negative beliefs (even though our mind is actually trying to help!).

Here’s a five-step approach to healing and growing where necessary, so you can stop dwelling on the past and start charting a new path forward.

If you’re stuck not knowing what to do next, because you aren’t sure what the right choice is, that’s not entirely bad. Before you flip a coin, react unwisely to the emotions you’re feeling, or pretend you know what you’re doing, consider staying with the uncertainty for a while.

Even in situations where it seems like your choices are equally good—or bad!—and you’re feeling confused and worried, arriving at your “I don’t know” is an important step in not just finding the right answer, but mastering your life.

Regret is your mind's way of keeping you from repeating mistakes, but when it hangs around it can do more harm than good. Here I cover how your mind lays the groundwork for regret and how you can nip it in the bud. 

If you’ve ever had to contend with a toxic coworker, a relative who gives you a hard time, or someone else you feel stuck with, who torments you, then you may have felt helpless to do anything but fight fire with fire. But there’s another option: be wise and strategic in your response, to defuse conflict and use the situation for your personal growth. Here’s how to do it.

Here’s are the top three ideas that, if you can internalize them, can help you bring resilience, performance, peace, and happiness into your life, and keep it there.

As good as social connection can be, it also leaves us vulnerable to being hurt by others. Here's how best to cope with it when it happens. Also, how hurt feelings can point to things inside you that could use some attention.

When you're in a toxic relationship with a friend who has an "all-access pass" to you, the pain can cut right to your core. Here's a framework for rationally assessing the situation and moving forward with a minimum of distress. 

Your mind is an important part of your body, so be sure to include it in your fitness program. Mindfulness meditation provides a wealth of mental and physical health benefits, and helps you achieve whole-life fitness. 

Relationships seem easy in the honeymoon phase . . . and it's easy to fall into bad habits. It's actually the perfect time to establish healthy communication styles that will bear fruit for years to come.

Everyone is afraid of something or other, but too much of it can be debilitating and keep you unhappy. Here are five quick tips for conquering your fears and taking your life back. 

Moms often feel internal and external pressure to be perfect. Here I break down the "perfect mother" myth and give some tips for taking care of yourself, and appreciating how good you are already. 

If you've ever been awestruck by something you witnessed, and saw the world in a new way afterward, then you've experienced the aesthetically sublime. Turns out, the conditions you need for those experiences happen to be similar to those for a sublime life. 

In this follow-up, I propose considering difficult people separately from their deeds. It's how you can approach (and leave) your relationships with them in a wise and compassionate way works for you.

So-called "toxic" people act in opposition to happiness and healthy functioning—theirs and yours. Here, I explore how you can begin to understand and work with such people, and the dangers you face.  

Society's emphasis on independence sometimes minimizes our fundamental connection to each other. Whether you're walking down the street or talking to your partner, every action and non-action affects them, and you.

Recent research explores how viewing baby animal pictures helps you be focused and productive. Far from a fluff piece (ha), studies like this one are on the cutting edge of research into how positive emotions can help you thrive.

Saying goodbye to people you like is an inevitable part of life. Your job when you do it is to meet that physical ending with acceptance, and bring awareness to the legacy of the other that endures within you. And then to keep your heart open and soft.

When the innate human drive for connection is filtered through social media, some interesting results emerge. Some research reinforces what we know about our social needs, and some may change the way you use social media.

Ever experienced an emotional boost when you encountered a friend with a big smile on her face? If so, it isn’t your imagination; humans are hardwired for attunement with one another. Here's the science of it.

Have you ever completely abandoned your goal after one slip-up? You might throw in the towel because you're applying the wrong goal-setting strategy.