Have you ever met someone who is completely healthy, has a nice home, and maybe even a great family, but they are still unhappy? How you feel in your body and emotions is directly linked to your mind. Therefore, if your mind is continually thinking negative thoughts or bombarded with sadness, your body responds to these thoughts and you begin to act just how your mind is telling you to act, which is where Mind Healing comes in.
The human mind is very powerful. You can affect your very emotions by the thoughts that you think about. Think back when you thought about a very sad event that took place in your life, it may have even brought you to tears because the mind was able to affect your emotions. Perhaps you have seen someone tell a sad story that happened many years ago, but they cry while telling it because the mind is so powerful it can and does have an effect on the emotions. Have you ever heard someone say, “He or she willed themselves to die”? This is an extreme example of just how powerful the mind is, but if a person chooses not to get well, they can die before they should have because their mind played such an active part of their emotions and will.
With the use of Mind Healing, the practitioner can help you to see all those thoughts that are affecting your life and by removing the negative thoughts, you begin to heal your own mind. When it comes to mind work, it takes a great deal of effort on the person wanting to heal their mind of the many negative thoughts, but it can be accomplished. It takes a dedication on your part to take control of your mind and the thoughts you allow into your mind, which is a learned discipline.
You have no doubt heard someone say, “You are what you eat” but when it comes to Mind Healing, you are what you think. It is true that some people are more positive by nature and some are more pessimistic, but even if you continually think on negative thoughts, you can learn to undo this and begin on your pathway of healing.
Furthermore, if your mind is filled with horrific memories from events that you saw, healing of the mind will greatly benefit you because it can help you separate these thoughts with your current reality. After all, if you were a victim or someone you love was in the past, if you relive it repeatedly, it is as if you never left the scene, even if it happened 20 years ago. Finally, Mind Healing is beneficial to anyone, but especially to those that continually live in a negative state, which has ultimately affected their lives.
The elementary and high school experience is rarely without social pressures and academic stress. A number of experts believe that bullying is a major source of school stress among kids of all ages. Bullying was once thought to be an annoying but inevitable rite of passage, but now parents and teachers understand that it can inflict lifelong emotional damage on its victims. Although no child is exempt from being bullied, children who are considered different are at higher risk for being victims. For kids with ADHD, bullying can affect them two ways. Their quirks and learning difficulties increase the possibility of being bullied, but current research shows that children with ADHD have the potential to become bullies themselves.
Who becomes a bully?
The stereotyped image of a bully is an overweight boy who torments younger, skinnier boys. However, bullies come in all shapes, sizes, and genders. While girls aren’t as aggressive and violent as boys, they can use gossip, online bullying, and ostracism to bully other girls. According to the United States National Youth Violence Prevention Resource Center, bullies tend to be:
Confident with high self-esteem
Easily angered, physically aggressive, and displaying impulsive tendencies
Easily frustrated and impatient
Experiencing academic difficulties, disliking school, and getting into more trouble than their peers
Some bullies shy away from others, but many also have friends who also engage in bullying behaviors and violence
ADHD and bullying
A recent study by Swedish researchers discovered a link between ADHD, bullies, and bully victims. The researchers followed 557 fourth-grade children from a municipality outside Stockholm for a year. Through interviews with parents, teachers, and the children themselves, they determined which ones had ADHD symptoms. These children were then taken to a neurologist for diagnosis. According to the findings, kids with ADHD are four times more likely than others to become bullies, and ten times more likely to be bully victims, even before they develop their symptoms. The researchers believe that the bullying might be an expression of ADHD, or the attention problems they experience might be caused by the stress of being bullied.
Before the Swedish study was published, a paper in the Ambulatory Pediatrics journal showed that kids diagnosed with ADHD and autism are more likely to become bullies than their peers.
Preventing bullying
Bullying is still a common problem in many schools, and it seems like children with ADHD face some limitations that make them targets for bullies or bullies themselves. While taking medication does not seem to minimize bullying behaviors, there are some steps parents and teachers can take to prevent bullying.
Bullying usually occurs when there are no adults around. Tell your child to sit near others during lunch or stay in crowded places in the hall. If a bully approaches, leave the scene and go towards a crowd, a teacher, or older kids.
Talk to a teacher who can help your child. The teacher must take the problem seriously, watch out for your child, and remain confidential about the role as protector.
Teach your child confident body language. Research shows that children are less likely to be bullied if they appear confident and assertive. Standing tall, developing a poker face, and responding to bullies using a strong firm voice may reduce the instances of bullying
Obsessive compulsive disorder treatment options are many and varied. If you or someone you know suffers from this condition, you will be happy to know that many of these options have been found to bring about both positive and permanent results, regardless of how severe or mild the individual’s symptoms may be. Some of the options available include medication, psychotherapy and self help programs.
Medication
Many persons tend to use medication as a means of an obsessive compulsive disorder treatment, under the supervision and guidance of a medical practitioner. In most cases, persons are normally prescribed with Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRI’s) like Luvox and Prozac. This is because individuals with this condition tend to have low levels of serotonin in their brain, which is thought to be one of the contributing factors to their illness. As a result, these medications work to reduce the individual’s anxiety and improve their mood by increasing the brain’s serotonin level. This method however, does have side effects, and will not completely remove your symptoms; instead, it will only result in approximately 30 – 50% reduction of your symptoms. It is therefore normally recommended that therapy also be taking along with these medications.
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is a very effective means of obsessive compulsive disorder treatment. The process is normally carried out in a one on one session with a specialist trained in the particular area, but can also be done in a group setting. The most effective type of psychotherapy is cognitive behavioral therapy; this method aims at changing the way the individual thinks by modifying their behavior. In this method, the patient is exposed gradually to that which causes their obsession or fear, but is however forbidden from engaging in the habitual behavior. As the patient is continually exposed and sees that nothing bad results, they become less and less anxious. This method has a 50-80% success rate.
Self help programs
Self help programs are another option for obsessive compulsive disorder treatment which has proven to be very effective. The best thing about these programs, and probably the main reason for their success is that most of them were developed by persons who themselves have overcome the condition and so have the experience and knowledge to help someone else. These programs are designed to teach persons with the condition to change the way they think, and deal with their symptoms in a very direct but safe way. There have also been sanctioned by experts in the field as being very reliable and effective programs.
People with this depressive condition often suffer from reactive hypoglycemia (this generally occurs about three hours after a meal, and it is a drop in ones blood sugar). Symptoms can range from depression, fatigue, and irritability, going right up to panic attacks or even the odd outburst of rage.
A good trick to improve these symptoms is to learn how to eat properly, by eating the correct foods you can stabilize the balance of insulin and blood sugar in your system. Not only will your moods improve but you will see a steady drop in your weight.
Sadly enough the people with this disorder are prone to diabetes, heart diseases and stroke. This leads to a early demise (bipolar people are twice as likely to pass on from these diseases than people without this disorder), so it would be a good idea if you suffer from bipolar to take your health into your own hands and change not only your eating habits but your lifestyle as well.
A good tip is to always be aware of the fact that there is a connection between what you eat or drink and manic depression. So one would have to minimize what they drink and start thinking about a healthier diet, one aimed at the control of mood swings, depression and weight loss – some medication for this condition can cause a fair amount of weight gain. (I am pretty sure if you surf the web you will find a menu that will suit your needs.)
Here’s an idea, why not learn to master the simple guidelines of the basic weight loss diet and incorporate the foods you need for bipolar control into the diet. You will need to control the food portions, learn the healthy food combination and find a cheap, quick and easy way to ensure that there are plenty of omega 3 fatty acids and folic acid nutrients within the diet. (to name but a few as there are plenty out there that assist in controlling this disorder, all it would take is a little more investigating on your part for you to find them) By doing this you will be able to avoid buying all those expensive supplements and cut down on the amount of prescription pills you need.
Another good tip for the bipolar sufferer – as your energy is going to be through the roof (you are going to find that once you are well entrenched into your new way of eating and your change of lifestyle that this will happen) – use it don’t lose it, go running or swimming, go to the gym, do anything physical as not only will this improve your mood and help with your self esteem, it will also tighten those muscles and help with the weight loss.
While I don’t claim to understand this disorder, I have watched a very good friend go through these mood swings and the highs and lows that come with depression. After a bit of research I found that there are ways of controlling this problem and wanted to share a few with you.
TMS Therapy
A new medical treatment that sends magnetic pulses to the brain has been found effective for some people battling major depression. Studies show the treatment might also be effective in reducing migraine headaches and with helping stroke victims regain mobility and use of motor skills.
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) treatment uses magnetic pulses to stimulate nerve cells in the brain. It is a non-invasive outpatient treatment, meaning that it doesn’t require anesthesia, surgery or recovery time in a hospital. Previous studies have shown as much as a 50 percent reduction in depression symptoms by patients using TMS therapy.
TMS therapy is approved by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) for use on adult patients who have tried antidepressant medication but failed to see any results. TMS treatment is currently offered by a few select providers throughout the country and is not yet routinely covered by health insurance plans.
How TMS therapy works
TMS therapy is administered by placing a treatment coil lightly against the scalp of a patient while they sit in a reclining chair. The coil then emits magnetic fields directly to the portion of the brain involved with mood regulation. Small electrical currents are produced by the magnetic fields. The currents proceed to alter cell activity in the brain, which is thought to be effective in reducing depression symptoms.
Treatment lasts about 40 minutes a session, with patients fully awake during the process. Patients typically have five weekly treatments over a six week period. The most common side effect associated with treatment during clinical trials was scalp pain or discomfort – generally mild to moderate.
Studies have found most patients respond best to treatments of 40 consecutive magnetic pulses to the brain over a four second period twice a minute. However, duration, frequency and the number of pulses received per session depend upon the doctor’s assessment of how the patient responds to the treatment.
Lower depression relapse rates
Two recently-released studies suggest patients with major depression were less likely to relapse following TMS treatment compared to medication or electroconvulsive therapy (ECT).
The studies found only 10 to 12 percent of patients whose depression initially went into remission following TMS treatment experienced relapse. The TMS results sharply contrast to the 40 percent relapse rate experienced by patients achieving remission in a study on anti-depression medication, a statistic similar to relapse rates experienced by ECT patients.
The two independently conducted TMS studies were presented this spring during the American Psychiatric Association meeting. Both studies were open to patients who failed previous antidepressant therapies.
One of the studies allowed patients who had noticeably experienced changes in their depression symptoms for two straight weeks to receive booster treatments. Nearly 85 percent of patients receiving booster treatments experienced some degree of reduction in their depression.
A third study presented at the meeting found over half of its participants saw at least a 50 percent improvement in their depression following TMS treatment after failing to see significant progress from at least two previous antidepressant therapies. Depression remission was experienced by 24 percent of the patients. Booster treatments were used to some degree in the study as well.
Beat Depression Without A Therapist
A therapist is not always needed to beat depression. The key to your recovery is to start new and fresh by learning to embrace positive energy and work towards the ultimate goal of knowing how to feel better about yourself and how to have a better outlook on life ahead.
The tips listed below should be able to show you how to beat out depression on your own without a therapist.
The first step to dealing with depression is to first acknowledge its existence. It’s not good to be in denial about what you are going through. Talk about it. Join a support group. Being with others who are dealing with depression can go a long way in reducing your sense of isolation and pain. In a support group you can also encourage each other, give and receive advice on how to cope, and share your experiences.
You can make a list describing all of the things that you like about yourself. It doesn’t matter how long or short this list is – just know that all that you write down is what matters. This is another coping tool that can help you to acknowledge the wonderful things that you do have going for yourself. You can also use this list as inspiration for maintaining the good that you do have going on for yourself.
Your daily habits play a significant part in how your moods are affected. I strongly encourage you to change something routine about yourself. It could be the way you dress, your hairstyle or get a dog. Changing your routine can be very stimulating while also helping to keep you motivated and focused.
There’s nothing better than having a good support system around to keep positive energy flowing. How close are you to your friends? Do you share in a connection with them where you feel you can talk to them about anything without feeling judged? When was the last time you spoke with a friend? If it’s been a while then you may want to consider calling one up. It’s always good to reconnect with the people in your life that love and care about you. Just knowing that you have a great support circle of people around you will beat a therapist who knows nothing about you at all anyday.
These are just a few tips to help you start tackle your depresson while remaining therapist free.
ADD and Risks
If you have ADD, you might be saying, “Of course I know how to take risk! Impulsive is my middle name!” Ba-da-bum! Taking calculated risks and being impulsive are animals of a different stripe, however.
According to Merriam-Webster, a calculated risk is: “planned or contrived to accomplish a purpose.” Hmm… planning. Not a very thrilling prospect, I know.
Being somewhat prone to impulsiveness, I know that it can sometimes work to my advantage. I also have enough experiences, and the scars to prove it, to know that being impulsive can often hinder me in being true to my values and accomplishing what is important to me. Being impulsive is easy. Taking calculated risk is daunting. There is time to consider all of the potential pitfalls. There is time to feel the fear. There is time to reconsider. Being impulsive is easy. Taking calculated risks is better.
About 8 years ago, faced with the prospect of being a single mom, I decided that I wanted to be closer to my sister. Without any jobs prospects, I sold my house, resigned from my tenured teaching position and moved half way across the country with a three year old in tow. It may sound crazy. It certainly sounded crazy to a lot of people in my life. Some even thought that it was impulsive. It wasn’t.
Here was my equation at the time.
Then with a fearful glance backward and a great many tears, I jumped. And landed quite nicely. I’ll save the details of my excellent adventures since arriving for another post. When you are ready to jump, stop! Being impulsive does not always work. Take into consideration and plan for how you would deal with as many of the foreseeable contingencies as possible. Create a realistic plan of how to deal with each perceived challenge. Then leap! Don’t let fear hold you back.
It’s not because things are difficult that we dare not venture. It’s because we dare not venture that they are difficult. – Seneca
Are there any adventures calling your name?
What’s the Diagnosis?
The other day I met a new patient who described a long history of anxiety and depression that recently became severe. She had been to two other psychiatrists in the past year, and was seeing me because she was not getting any better; in fact if anything she was getting worse. She described symptoms that changed from anxiety and mild depression to severe panic attacks and social withdrawal; symptoms that were almost certainly the consequence of her being prescribed large doses of alprazolam (Xanax). She described a pattern that I have seen very often; a person has relatively mild, manageable anxiety, and is prescribed a benzodiazepine. After a few weeks the ‘benzo’ is no longer effective because of a process called ‘tolerance,’ and worse, if the person misses a dose, the discontinuation symptoms FEEL like severe anxiety and panic– leading the person to take more of the benzo. The dose must be increased to get a response, and then the discontinuation symptoms become even greater… leading to a spiral of increasing anxiety and medication use. This is a difficult pattern to break, because the patient must reduce and taper off the medication that once was providing relief– all the while tolerating a certain amount of anxiety and insomnia.
I feel bad for patients in this situation, because they would be better off had they never gone to a doctor for their anxiety in the first place. But the situation in my new patient was even worse– and what had happened to her was not uncommon. As her ‘anxiety’ worsened, the psychiatrist treating her piled on more and more medications. She was prescribed Depakote without relief. Then whe was prescribed risperidone. Then lamotrigine. These medications are all somewhat sedating, and when she complained of being too drowsy she was prescribed the stimulant Adderall, and then modafanil. The stimulants made her shaky, and so the original benzo was increased.
Medications like Depakote generic price, lamotrigine, and risperidone have a place in psychiatry; all three are mood stabilizers, and are used to treat bipolar disorder among a few other conditions. In order to qualify for a diagnosis of bipolar I (the more serious form of bipolar disorder) a person must have a history of ‘mania’– a period of 7 days (shorter if the person is hospitalized) when the person is ‘revved up,’ with less need for sleep, increased risk-taking, racing thoughts, and other specific criteria. There is some credible evidence that the diagnosis of bipolar has been overdone in recent years, particularly in children. Over-diagnosis of depression would not be a horrible thing, given that the medications primarily used to treat depression, a class of medication called ‘SSRIs’, are relatively benign. But the same cannot be said of over-diagnosis of bipolar disorder; medications used to treat bipolar have a number of significant side effects ranging from sedation and tremor to weight gain and diabetes!
When I asked the patient about her diagnosis, she was confused. She was not told that she had bipolar disorder, and so she was not certain why she was taking so many medications. She had no idea that some of the medications were prescribed only to treat side effects from other medications. And she had no idea that the medications had the potential to cause a wide range of systemic illnesses and conditions.
I don’t know what to make of THAT kind of psychiatry. I talk often on my radio show about the need for patients and psychiatrists to spend TIME with each other; time to get the diagnosis right, or in this case to at least come to SOME diagnosis! Too often, medications seem to be prescribed out of desperation; an overly-busy, short-on-time prescriber adding medication not according to a sound treatment plan for a careful diagnosis, but rather using medications to blunt symptoms like firefighters in a helicopter dropping water on a fire.
Not all psychiatric conditions require medications, but sometimes, medications are useful and even necessary. When medications ARE used, I encourage all patients to demand to know the diagnosis that is being treated, the options in medication and non-medication treatments, and the effects and side effects of anything that is prescribed. That understanding will probably take some time– but that time should be a basic part of every psychiatric relationship.
Personality Changes
Pragmatic communication impairment causes problems in relationship as well as in work environments. Because of this, if severe, it will determine their success in employment situations and possibly within their social networks. With lack of communication skills often these social networks will gradually fade into the background.
A high percentage of those with brain injuries have communication difficulties. They very often have problems initiating conversation or in continuing with one. They will disassociate and be unable to interact with others either verbally or non-verbally, even if they know the people well. These difficulties seem to be enhanced when in large groups.
Over time their communication skills can either increase or decrease depending on the positive or negative results they get from their efforts.
Mexican online pharmacy – cheap generic medications online.
When in conversation with others, it is common that they will rarely ask questions. The reason for this may be that in many cases, those who have suffered from a brain injury will sometimes be self-centered and as a result may have little interest in what someone else is saying. Another reason is they often have memory problems so may hesitate to ask because they don’t remember if they’ve already been told before.
Some of the reasons for communication difficulties are:
- too much background noise can be confusing;
- it can be difficult to concentrate if the person is tired or anxious;
- they may have difficulty explaining their thoughts;
- pain can make communication more difficult because it may limit concentration;
- moods and fatigue can affect communication;
- long sentences can sound confusing as can complex conversations;
- alcohol can increase communication problems;
- over-stimulation;
- large groups;
- inability to take cues from others when in conversations;
- inattentiveness to conversation and/or lack of interest.
Ways to help someone who is having difficulty with communication:
- keep sentences short;
- do not interrupt;
- be positive;
- have person avoid, when possible, large groups;
- when in groups encourage topics that the brain injured person may feel comfortable
discussing;
- discourage, if possible, the use of alcohol;
- give emotional support.
Because of communication difficulties, especially in groups, many of those who have suffered from a brain injury tend to feel lonely. Over time it may be one of the most difficult deficits they will have to deal with.
Sylvia Behnish has recently published her first non-fiction book entitled ‘Rollercoaster Ride With Brain Injury (For Loved Ones)’ and her first fiction novel entitled ‘His Sins’, a three generation family saga. She has also had numerous articles published in newspapers and magazines in both Canada and the United States on subjects relating to brain injuries, family issues, motivational topics and travel.
Many years ago, when I was actively looking for a meditation other than TM, I had formulated in my mind that I needed a method that was more ‘dynamic’
I can assure you that if you are looking for a stress management activity the Dynamic Meditation is fantastic as a great cleanser to start with and once you have done it several times, you can then appreciate the ‘meditation’ aspect of this method.
So, going back to my meeting with the Dynamic Meditation…
After having made it clear in my mind that I needed an active method, just a few weeks later in Arundel, South of England, I met someone who handed me a small leaflet regarding a centre in London where Dynamic Meditation was happening.
The most astonishing thing was that I had not even mentioned this to him!
Anyhow, a few weeks later, I turned up at the centre at the earliest of times in the morning when it was scheduled. There was a roomful of people – well, how shall I say, letting go of their frustrations and emotions, expressing these in body movements and sounds (thankfully, not towards each other!). The intensity was quite amazing and the first time, amazed and impressed by what was going on around me, I just took it all in, not being able to follow the instructions.
In fact, one was advised to wear an eye mask in order to stay in touch with oneself and not be too surprised or influenced by the behaviour of other people.
But of course I did come back several times after that.
First, I learned to breathe just through the nose, expelling the air vigorously and letting the inhaling happen by itself, all done with no particular rhythm, but as ‘chaotically’ as possible! This lasted 10 minutes and the point was to reach part of our breathing mechanism that our day-to-day living does not allow us to reach, which stimulates our repressed emotions to come to the surface, to become conscious.
The second phase, also lasting 10 minutes, was about expressing those emotions, those repressions, to free us, the body and the psyche, from our conditioned behaviour, from fear, anger etc., which, hidden inside, can easily unconsciously control us from within.
Great stress management is this dynamic meditation! To be able to express whatever one has bottled up!
The third 10 minutes stage was to have our arms raised above our heads while jumping up and down, shouting the sound ‘hoo’, falling back on the soles of our feet, to help us reach the most profound centre of our energy, the sexual centre. The idea being to tap into that energy reservoir and enable it to rise and spread all over the body, creating a sense of enhanced vitality and well-being, even ‘bliss’ (especially in the next, ‘silent’ stage).
The fourth part was just standing still for 15 minutes in the position that the stopping of the music found us in.
This is the ‘watching’ part of this method, the most ‘meditative’ as we would call it, although in time one is advised to develop the ‘watcher’ in the previous phases as well.
A great stress management activity, I can assure you, this dynamic meditation! Not only to be able to express whatever one has bottled up, BUT also recycling it afterwards into finer energy!