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In preparation for the release of Avengers: Doomsday this December, I've been doing my homework. Or, more accurately, I've given myself an excellent excuse to rewatch key movies and television shows from the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

This past July, while watching Spider-Man: Brand New Day, I found myself thinking about something other than Doctor Doom. I started thinking about how much easier it must be to fight a supervillain. Not easy, physically, but psychologically there is something appealing about having an enemy you can see.

Peter Parker can fight villains, but what does he do with the loneliness of living in a world where the people he loves no longer remember him? Wanda Maximoff can move objects with her mind, alter reality, and nearly defeat Thanos single-handedly, but none of those powers allow her to undo the losses of her parents, her brother, or her partner, Vision. There is no Infinity Stone for grief.

Perhaps that is one reason these stories resonate so deeply: Eventually, nearly all of us encounter something we desperately want to fight but cannot defeat in the conventional sense.

When There Is Nothing to Punch

Psychologists distinguish between different forms of coping. Problem-focused coping involves trying to change the thing causing our distress. If I'm overwhelmed because I have too much work, I can reorganize my schedule, delegate something, or finish the task. There is a problem, and I can take........

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