Tag Archives | behavior change

Emotive Storytelling: Laundromat People

laundromat_1

When you spend time in a Laundromat, as I have done for the last two years, one thing is immediately obvious: almost everyone there smokes, most are overweight, and many are eating junk food and drinking colas.  The need to use a Laundromat is generally a sign of limited financial resources; the behavioral side suggests limited health literacy.

For home re-location and professional transition reasons, I coincidentally found myself in this environment to observe both. Continue Reading →

The Art and Science of Patient Storytelling: Harnessing Narrative Communication for Behavioral Intervention

Emotive Storytelling: Narrative communication is a powerful strategy for influencing health behavior.

Emotive Storytelling:
Narrative is a powerful strategy for influencing health behavior.

With the increasing interest in the use of narrative communication as a strategy for influencing health behavior, there has been an effort to develop standardized protocols for creating engaging stories and to determine the successful components of an effective story.  Continue Reading →

My name is Fred, I’m a Type I diabetic

The behavior change of a type 1 diabeticMy name is Fred, and I am a Type I diabetic. It’s been about 4 hours since my last shot of insulin. (In a 12-step parody, this is where you’d say, “Welcome, Fred.”)

I’m a grizzled veteran of the diabetes wars, having developed Type I diabetes (formerly called “juvenile diabetes,”) when I was eight. Continue Reading →

Healing Combat Trauma with Humorous Stories and Laughter

Soldiers Peter Nemmers, Morgan Bright and Matthew Hildebrandt from the 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division laugh while preparing to depart from Iraq at Imam Ali Base on December 17.(Mario Tama/Reuters)

Soldiers Peter Nemmers, Morgan Bright and Matthew Hildebrandt from the 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division laugh while preparing to depart from Iraq at Imam Ali Base on December 17. (Mario Tama/Reuters)

The last place you would probably expect to find a standup comedian would be in an Army uniform. But there I was for the better part of a decade, trying to make one of the most dangerous chapters of my life a laughing matter. Not because I didn’t take the Army seriously, much to the contrary. I took it very seriously, which is why when the laughter stopped I was in big trouble. Continue Reading →

Saved By My Own Story

Kela Holmes - U.S. Army Veteran

Kela Holmes – U.S. Army Veteran

It has been a painfully slow climb out of darkness. For a really long time, I allowed past traumas to run my life. Bad stuff happened. Years went by. I couldn’t get beyond it. That’s called stuck.  And being stuck sucks. Continue Reading →