Polio Place

A service of Post-Polio Health International

psychological health

Lonely, but Dating?

Post-Polio Health, Volume 28, Number 3, Summer 2012.

Dr. Rhoda Olkin is a Distinguished Professor of Clinical Psychology at the California School of Professional Psychology in San Francisco, as well as Executive Director of the Institute on Disability and Health Psychology. She is a polio survivor and single mother of two grown children.

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Loves Me - Hates PPS

Post-Polio Health, Volume 27, Number 4, Fall 2011.

Dr. Stephanie T. Machell is a psychologist in independent practice in the Greater Boston area and consultant to the International Rehabilitation Center for Polio, Spaulding-Framingham Outpatient Center, Framingham, Massachusetts. Her father is a polio survivor.

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Taken for Granted

Post-Polio Health, Volume 27, Number 3, Fall 2011.

Dr. Stephanie T. Machell is a psychologist in independent practice in the Greater Boston area and consultant to the International Rehabilitation Center for Polio, Spaulding-Framingham Outpatient Center, Framingham, Massachusetts. Her father is a polio survivor.

QUESTION: I am a caregiver of a polio survivor. At times I feel taken for granted. How can I handle this situation without hurting my partner?

Response from Stephanie T. Machell, PsyD:

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"Do I have to talk about the past?"

Post-Polio Health, Volume 27, Number 2, Spring 2011.

Dr. Rhoda Olkin is a Distinguished Professor of Clinical Psychology at the California School of Professional Psychology in San Francisco, as well as Executive Director of the Institute on Disability and Health Psychology. She is a polio survivor and single mother of two grown children.

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Lonely and I Eat

Post-Polio Health, Volume 26, Number 4, Fall 2010.

Dr. Stephanie T. Machell is a psychologist in independent practice in the Greater Boston area and consultant to the International Rehabilitation Center for Polio, Spaulding-Framingham Outpatient Center, Framingham, Massachusetts. Her father is a polio survivor.

Question: My husband died a year ago and I am lonely. When I am lonely, I eat too much. Do you have any suggestions for me?

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Rebuff My Attempt to Help

Post-Polio Health, Volume 26, Number 1, Winter 2010.

Dr. Rhoda Olkin is a Distinguished Professor of Clinical Psychology at the California School of Professional Psychology in San Francisco, as well as Executive Director of the Institute on Disability and Health Psychology. She is a polio survivor and single mother of two grown children.

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Tired Husband: Guilt and Talking about It

Post-Polio Health, Volume 25, Number 4, Fall 2009.

Dr. Rhoda Olkin is a Distinguished Professor of Clinical Psychology at the California School of Professional Psychology in San Francisco, as well as Executive Director of the Institute on Disability and Health Psychology. She is a polio survivor and single mother of two grown children.

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"They just want me to be like I was."

Post-Polio Health, Volume 25, Number 4, Fall 2009.

Dr. Stephanie T. Machell is a psychologist in independent practice in the Greater Boston area and consultant to the International Rehabilitation Center for Polio, Spaulding-Framingham Outpatient Center, Framingham, Massachusetts. Her father is a polio survivor.

Question: I am getting weaker and my friends and family encourage me the find "the answer" and get irritated with me when I say there isn't one answer. I think they just want me to be like I was.

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Don't Tell Anyone About Your Polio

"Promoting Positive Solutions," Post-Polio Health, Volume 28, Number 3, Dr. Stephanie T. Machell

Question: I found out I had polio when I was 55 years old. My mother’s explanation was that “the doctor told me not to tell anyone.” Can you help me understand why this was told to parents?

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Partner Abuse, Part 2

"Promoting Positive Solutions," From Post-Polio Health (Volume 30, Number 4, pages 8, 9, 10). Part 2.

Dr. Machell addresses female to male and same sex partner abuse: Intimate partner violence (IPV) isn’t just about male perpetrators and female victims. Men can be abused by a female partner. And in same-sex relationships men are abused by men and women are abused by women.

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