My own habit had always been to write about the things that ticked me off in a given day. If I kept a journal at all, I kept it to vent.

Some caregivers want to reciprocate the care they themselves received as children.

When you study postpartum depression, there is a very clear understanding that in communities where you see more support, there is less depression.

I've been thinking about disowning some of my genes lately. I have a few healthy, happy, long-living optimists in my family tree - most of them fans of Christian Science founder Mary Baker Eddy, a major champion of positive thinking. But I've got plenty of ancestors who played out more tortured hands.

I don't know if my mother was a narcissist - or bi-polar or borderline. Those were words she tossed around over the years.