Showing posts with label emotions. Show all posts
Showing posts with label emotions. Show all posts

 


It can be difficult to watch family members struggle with mental illness. Some things that seem helpful at first, can actually be harmful in the end. You need to understand the right way to help and provide meaningful support. You should know how to help family members struggling with mental illness and what your role should be when helping them to heal.


 


Learn About the Illness

You will provide the best support when you know about the mental illness. Take the time to read, talk to doctors, and learn about the illness affecting your family member. This will give you the ability to identify patterns of behavior caused by the illness, and moments when it might be appropriate to talk. You will also be better able to understand what your loved one is going through each day.


 


Ask What You Can Do To Help

Don’t spend time guessing what you can do to help. Just ask your family member during a calm and quiet time. You might be surprised about the answer. Understanding the needs of the person will make your support more effective. It can also give insight into the struggle going on between your family member and the illness. Try to help as asked unless the requests are destructive.


Support Healthy Behaviors


You want to support any healthy behaviors by your loved one. If your loved one does something healthy and positive, then do everything you can to encourage that behavior. This will reinforce the idea that certain behaviors are accepted while others are not. It can help to make things more clear while your family member is interacting with others, or struggling to get through a bad day.


 


Remain Available to Talk

Always remain available to talk about the mental illness. If your family member calls, shows up, or contacts you in some other way, then stop and listen. Your loved one might be prepared to talk about important issues, or to reveal sensitive personal issues. Always being ready to listen is one of the best ways to help and protect family struggling with mental illness. Keep yourself open, and don’t shut them down when they want to express something to you.


Establish Boundaries and Limits


You need to protect yourself in order to keep providing support. Establish clear boundaries and limits about different behaviors. This will depend on the exact situation and illness. You want to have a safe place for yourself and you want to remain emotionally secure. These boundaries can protect your emotionally, financially, and physically in certain cases.


 


Encourage Treatment at a Professional Facility

You can help a family member by encouraging treatment at Focus Treatment Centers. Treatment centers can provide professional attention sometimes in an inpatient setting. Provide information and gentle encouragement without issuing ultimatums. A family member with anorexia or bulimia will often make the decision to visit an eating disorder facility in Memphis or more locally when the time is right.


 


You need to be sensitive when dealing with mental illness. Always remember to never blame anyone for the illness or certain behaviors. Providing support for your family member requires patience, understanding, and knowledge. A treatment center should be the ultimate goal since they can provide the help and supervision your loved one needs.


 

Miscarriages are incredibly painful experiences. Trying to cope with the loss of your unborn child is a difficult time, with emotions ranging from resentment and guilt to shame, anger and sadness. Women often feel responsible and worthless when they miscarry, as well as experiencing the secondary losses of the life you’d planned and the family you’d hoped to build. It can change your ideas on your identity and femininity, and you may feel lonely and isolated. Though it may be offered in abundance, you’ll no doubt feel absent from your partner, feeling as though their grief isn’t the same as your own. Here are some of the best ways to grieve your loss and cope with the reality of your miscarriage.


 


Recognise that you are mourning


The first step to mourning is to realise that that’s exactly what you’re doing. The bereavement process applies here, so you need to give yourself time to process the emotions you’re feeling and accept them. There is no set time period for doing this – it’s whatever feels right for you. People grieve differently and in different time periods. Let your feelings out, and don’t feel ashamed of them – this is a difficult time, and people will appreciate that. You have every right to cry, mourn and feel sadness. Some women find it helpful to keep a souvenir of their baby, in the form of an angelic statue or pendant to remember them by – others plant a tree or special plant in the garden.


 


Realise that your thoughts and emotions are normal


There are several emotions which are often attributed to this mourning period, which include denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. Miscarriage can often leave people feeling cheated and angry, as something that they’d hoped for and felt strong emotions for was taken away from them without warning. With denial, you quite simply don’t want to accept the reality of the situation. This stage is usually accompanied by strong emotions – this is a devastating time, especially if you’ve been trying for a long time to get pregnant. Anger is another common emotion, spurred on by the fact that you’re angry at so many aspects of the situation – yourself, the reality, doctors and your partner. If you’re a religious person, you may find yourself bargaining with fate or God – what this stage means is that you want what happened to your and your partner to be a mistake or a dream. You may offer god your prayers, charity or a more devoted faith in return for the situation to be a mistake. Depression, understandably, is a difficult stage but one which is experienced by many people. This can be easy to get stuck in for a long time, particularly if you’ve struggled to have a baby for a long time. However, it is a good sign that you’re moving through the stages of grief as you should. Finally, acceptance allows you to move past the pain and accept the reality. This is a place of peace where you can begin to resume normality in your life. It doesn’t remove the sadness or loss, but does mean that you’ve accepted you can’t change what has happened to you.


 


Avoid belittling your loss


Miscarriages aren’t commonly recognised in society, so there is no set way of dealing with this form of loss. People may not know how to react to the news, or how to speak to you, because of this. However, you should realise that you did suffer a loss, regardless of what people say. Though the loss is large and devastating, you shouldn’t blame anyone or yourself for the situation. This will only cause harm to you and others around you.

Today, fewer schools have a dedicated sex education programme to help teenagers understand the changes that their bodies are going through. In fact, those that do don’t always cover other aspects to this phase such as body development and sexuality. A lot of girls use the internet now to get information about periods and changing bodies, but this is such an impersonal way to learn about something so important and could be providing wrong information in the case of some sites. However, there is some fantastic information out there that can help to boost the confidence and self esteem of young girls who may be having a hard time navigating hormones and puberty. But for young girls who are blooming earlier than their peers, this can be an especially difficult time. They may feel extremely self conscious and fearful of bullying about their new body, and this is a vital time when they’ll need all the information they can get in terms of understanding that these changes are perfectly normal. Everyone goes through the scary puberty stage, but we all get through it and come out unscathed on the other side – it’s simply part of growing up, no matter when it begins for your child.


In today’s hyper-sexualised culture, ‘blooming’ seems like the last thing that’s happening. It seems like all girls are being sexualised far too early and being forced to change what’s natural to them in order to fit the media’s idea of ‘normal’. It no doubt feels as though your child is coming into this phase too early, particularly if they are now going through puberty too, but it’s perfectly natural to feel anxiety during this stage. Both mums and daughters will be worried about the changes coming into play. Earlier and earlier puberty in teens these days means this issue is in the press a lot – we always seem to be hearing about the fact that kids are growing up too fast, both emotionally and physically. In the United States, for example, the average age for a girl to get her period is now around 12.5 years old. The processes that occur in the body are also happening earlier, such as the breast bud development, with many girls developing breasts as early as elementary school. The culture of periods being bad and shameful makes many girls anxious, but this is something to reassure early bloomers about so that they feel able to tackle the changes about to take place.


 


No matter when you or your daughter would like it to happen though, your child’s body will develop when it is ready. Nurturing encouragement is vital at this stage, as is providing as much information as your daughter needs. As with anyone going through puberty, whatever age it happens, a nutritious diet, plenty of sleep and exercise are all necessary for a healthy body. But it’s not all about the physical side – you need to ensure that they are emotionally healthy too, and this means making sure they have an open communication with you and people they trust. Many teens, and especially children developing early, feel isolated and self conscious, but this is a prime time for parents to step in and ensure that they nurture their children. It may be a frightening time for both mother and daughter, but it’s nothing out of the ordinary, and nothing that can’t be tackled with an open relationship between you both.

Today, fewer schools have a dedicated sex education programme to help teenagers understand the changes that their bodies are going through. In fact, those that do don’t always cover other aspects to this phase such as body development and sexuality. A lot of girls use the internet now to get information about periods and changing bodies, but this is such an impersonal way to learn about something so important and could be providing wrong information in the case of some sites. However, there is some fantastic information out there that can help to boost the confidence and self esteem of young girls who may be having a hard time navigating hormones and puberty. But for young girls who are blooming earlier than their peers, this can be an especially difficult time. They may feel extremely self conscious and fearful of bullying about their new body, and this is a vital time when they’ll need all the information they can get in terms of understanding that these changes are perfectly normal. Everyone goes through the scary puberty stage, but we all get through it and come out unscathed on the other side – it’s simply part of growing up, no matter when it begins for your child.


In today’s hyper-sexualised culture, ‘blooming’ seems like the last thing that’s happening. It seems like all girls are being sexualised far too early and being forced to change what’s natural to them in order to fit the media’s idea of ‘normal’. It no doubt feels as though your child is coming into this phase too early, particularly if they are now going through puberty too, but it’s perfectly natural to feel anxiety during this stage. Both mums and daughters will be worried about the changes coming into play. Earlier and earlier puberty in teens these days means this issue is in the press a lot – we always seem to be hearing about the fact that kids are growing up too fast, both emotionally and physically. In the United States, for example, the average age for a girl to get her period is now around 12.5 years old. The processes that occur in the body are also happening earlier, such as the breast bud development, with many girls developing breasts as early as elementary school. The culture of periods being bad and shameful makes many girls anxious, but this is something to reassure early bloomers about so that they feel able to tackle the changes about to take place.


 


No matter when you or your daughter would like it to happen though, your child’s body will develop when it is ready. Nurturing encouragement is vital at this stage, as is providing as much information as your daughter needs. As with anyone going through puberty, whatever age it happens, a nutritious diet, plenty of sleep and exercise are all necessary for a healthy body. But it’s not all about the physical side – you need to ensure that they are emotionally healthy too, and this means making sure they have an open communication with you and people they trust. Many teens, and especially children developing early, feel isolated and self conscious, but this is a prime time for parents to step in and ensure that they nurture their children. It may be a frightening time for both mother and daughter, but it’s nothing out of the ordinary, and nothing that can’t be tackled with an open relationship between you both.

A car accident involves more than just the physical destruction of your car and the onset of a legal or financial dilemma. It can also be an emotional event that compels you to experience a range of feelings that vary from fear to anger. It may be difficult for you to process all of these emotions properly and for you to know how to keep your emotions under control. In the immediate aftermath of an accident, you can take these steps to keep your emotions in check and make sure that you move forward in a positive and productive manner.


 


1. Be Grateful


When you are inclined to give into your emotions, you can keep them in check by remembering that you came out of this event alive and capable of talking, walking, and thinking objectively. Countless people every year lose their lives in car accidents. Even if you have suffered injuries and lost your car and property in the accident, you should still take a moment to be grateful for your life and for the opportunity you have to seek compensation and closure from this accident.


 


2. Keep Busy


It can be easy for you to give into your emotions if you have too much free time to think about the fear, anger, and confusion you feel about the accident. Spending time being idle can let your mind run wild with all of the pent up emotions that you are probably harboring in the days after the car wreck. With your mind working overtime, you may also be prone to making rash decisions or acting impetuously without thinking about your actions’ consequences.


 


 


You can keep your emotions in check by staying busy. Even if it is filling out paperwork related to your injuries or spending time watching TV with friends and family members, you should try to stay busy as you await the outcome of your accident investigation.


 


3. Hire a Lawyer


After the accident, you will face unparalleled stresses that must be addressed immediately. Your insurance provider may demand that you take your car in for an inspection. The other driver’s insurance company may be demanding the accident report and any medical records you have the detail your injuries related to the wreck. Your employer might be asking when you will be returning to work.


 


 


Even more, you may be consumed with worries about how you will pay for your accident-related bills and recover your lost income from the time you had to take off work.


 


 


Rather than give into these many stresses, you can hire a lawyer to help you. An accident lawyer can take over all of these matters, as well as many others that will result from your car wreck. Retaining a legal representative can get you the financial compensation you need to pay your bills, as well as act as a liaison between you, your employer, or the insurance companies involved with the situation. They can also help you acquire compensation for lost wages and possibly pain and suffering.


 


 


An accident can be an emotionally wrenching event. You can keep your emotions in check and stay in charge of your fear, anger, stress, and other feelings when you keep these tips in mind. Keeping yourself in check and remembering what is most important, like your life, and with the help of an attorney to help alleviate any possible debt from the accident, are important factors to getting your life back under control and back on track.


 


Author Bio:


Lisa Coleman shares some important tips for a person to consider to help them get their emotions focused after an car accident. She recently read online at http://www.injurylawyers.com/orlando-car-accident-lawyer/ how an Orlando attorney can help obtain compensation for a client recently involved in a wreck.


 


Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sidkid/455451157/

Junk food might be the tastier option, but it does very little for our health, both mental and physical. Eating too many saturated and trans fats can lead to a high cholesterol, increased risk of coronary heart disease and other health problems. But what many people aren’t aware of is that a poor diet that’s high in these fats can also lead to depression. This is because trans fats cause inflammation in the heart and brain, which can lead to us feeling sad and withdrawn. Though researchers are unsure why these aspects of food lead to depression, there is a definite link to what we eat and how we feel. However, it’s not as easy as blaming it all on the crisps and biscuits. Nutritional deficiencies could also be connected to symptoms of depression.


 


It seems that the more processed foods we eat, the more depressed we’re likely to become. Researchers believe that people who prefer to chow down on sweets over fruit and vegetables could be skipping vital antioxidants, which help to protect against depression. They will also be skimping on folate which protects the neurotransmitters in the brain. Studies claim that patients with depression have around 25 percent lower folate levels compared to healthy people. While scientists can’t say for sure that eating junk food for dinner is a direct link to mental health problems, there is evidence mounting that it doesn’t aid your emotional stability either. But knowing what to eat for a healthy mind is the difficult part – which nutrients offer the most effective results?


 


It’s difficult to know for sure which comes first, poor nutrition or depression, as the two are closely linked. It’s no surprise that depression leads to us making poorer diet choices though, so it stands to reason that improving your diet will help you make clearer choices when it comes to meal times. If you’re depressed, then you need to up your intake of vitamins and minerals which can fix the damage caused internally. B vitamins can start this process off, as they are essential for healthy and happy bodies. B12 can help to balance the chemicals in the brain to keep us calm and collected. These are found in fortified cereals and organ meats, such as turkey giblets and beef liver. Folate, which is another B vitamin, can be sourced from dark green leafy vegetables and citrus juices. Omega-3 fatty acids can help to lower the risk of depression and anxiety so make sure you add some fish into your diet, with salmon and mackerel being the best choices. Don’t eat fish? Walnuts, soybeans and flax seeds are great substitutes. Carbohydrates are also important, as these trigger the production of serotonin, which is a neurotransmitter and regulates your mood. You want to add complex carbs, rather than sweets, to have a lasting effect on the chemistry in the brain.


 


People who eat more processed foods are far more likely to develop depression than those who opt for wholesome organic foods. A balanced diet can do wonders for your overall health and well-being, not least improving your mental health and fending off the blues. You should aim to for plenty of nutrients across the board, paying close attention to omega-3s, folates, B vitamins and complex carbs to make sure that the brain is releasing the hormones and chemicals it needs to stay happy. However, if you’re seriously depressed and your diet isn’t making a difference to your mood, you should speak to your GP who can devise a personalised plan for your treatment.

Emotional abuse is easily described as any behaviour which intentionally hurts the feelings of another person. We’ve all had heated arguments with loved ones which have resulted in the harsh exchanging of words, but when this becomes a regular stream of verbal attacks, it starts to take on a new label of emotionally abusive behaviour. In other words, when the person begins to regularly undermine their partner’s confidence, worth or trust, or when they make the other person feel unstable or crazy. Often, emotional abusers manipulate their partner with fear or shame, making them feel self-conscious and ashamed of their actions. For example, they may say things like “You shouldn’t spend so much on clothes, you don’t look good anyway”, “I have to drink to be able to put up with you”, or “Don’t complain about how bad your situation is, no-one else would love you”. These comments can be degrading and hurtful, and over time they can build to become a regular occurrence in a relationship which becomes toxic in itself. Of course, these comments are very direct examples – emotional abuse is generally far more subtle and invasive than this. For example, it may be implied with sarcasm or irony, or be combined with body language, such as disgusted looks, giving the cold shoulder or rolling of eyes.


There is a consistent gender distinction in the kinds of abuse perpetrated – an emotionally abusive man will control his partner with a fear of harm, isolation or deprivation. He will often imply he will hurt her physically or leave her, or even keep her apart from things she loves, such as her children. However, a woman will control her partner with his dread of failure over being a provider for his family, or as being a good lover or parent. For example, with comments such as “I could have married a man who made more money”, “I had more orgasms with my last boyfriend”, or “You aren’t a real man, you don’t know the first thing about being a father”. The differences in vulnerability are key to deciphering the gender roles in emotional abuse. Though we never forget humiliation, many people turn to ignoring the facts as a way of tuning out of the situation. The root of shame is to cover or hide, which is why it is so easy to ignore things which cause us shame. However, you can’t ignore the signs if they are present in your relationship – this will only lead to them getting worse, and destroying both your relationship and your self-confidence.


The effects of emotional abuse are often more severe than physical abuse, as they can destroy your confidence and trust for many years. If you want to rebuild your relationship with your partner, it’s important to build the level of compassion and care you once had for one another. Think about what you’re saying and your actions – how would they feel if you were on the receiving end of them? How do you think your partner is feeling when you say them? And what do you think is causing your need to say them in the first place? Developing self compassion can also help, which is your ability to recognise when you are hurt, with the motivation to improve. Therapy can also help you air your problems with someone outside of the relationship, which can help you get to the root of your issues, both as an individual and as a couple. This is particularly key if there are children involved, as both of you need to create a strong family unit for your children.

Drinking has become such a regular part of a modern lifestyle that we don’t think to question exactly how much we really drink each week. Many people drink regularly, albeit not necessarily a lot, and have done since they were legally allowed to do so – but how does this affect your body? If you’ve gone years without really ever stopping drinking, chances are you’ll find it more difficult than you think. If you’ve been feeling under the weather for a while, or can’t seem to feel like yourself no matter how many diets or health kicks you go on, it could be that the alcohol is to blame.


Those evening glasses of wine or a beer to end the working week each Friday night soon add up, and if you were to stop yourself from having them you would almost certainly notice the difference. Alcohol not only affects your mental ability, but it can also lead to sleep deprivation and weight gain. Beer, mixers and cocktails are all loaded with sugar and calories, so your waistline will thank you for cutting back, as will your liver. Alcohol is also a stimulant, which is why you’ll find your sleep is more disrupted when you’ve been drinking more. Sleep is important for a healthy lifestyle and for your body to function efficiently, so cutting back on the alcohol can make you feel more energised and improve your wellbeing.


The social element of drinking is part of the reason why a lot of people drink more than they possibly would normally – when you quit, even for a short time, people notice and question why you’re not joining in. This peer pressure element of the drinking culture is partly to blame for many people’s drinking habits, but don’t feel pressured into drinking just because it’s questioned when you don’t. Giving your body chance to repair and recuperate for a while is not a bad thing, even if it’s just for a week.

When 27-year-old Emma Bradley, from Gloucester, tried Botox for the first time a few years ago, she didn’t realise what an impact the anti-ageing treatment would have on her emotional wellness. ‘I first became interested in Botox because I wanted to get rid of the fine lines around my eyes and forehead,’ she said. ‘I was modelling at the time and felt I needed to look my best.’ However, the Botox made Emma respond differently to the demands of her busy job. She noted, ‘I’m far less emotional than I used to be, and because nothing else in my life has changed, I can only think that it’s down to the Botox.’


At a conference earlier this month, psychologist Dr Michael Lewis of Cardiff University presented research that showed many women who have Botox don’t only get rid of their laughter lines, but also the laughter itself. Dr Lewis found that many women’s emotional wellbeing is affected by depression, because the Botox prevents them from smiling properly, or, like Emma, feeling as they used to in certain situations.


Dr Lewis argues that the crux of the problem is that many women blithely choose to have these injections without knowing that it could be having an impact on their feelings. He, and many wellness experts, believes that more research needs to be done in this area, and that we need to understand the important role that wrinkle-creating facial expressions play in our lives. Is changing your personality a price worth paying for the sake of smoothing out a few wrinkles?


‘The expressions we make on our face affect the emotions we feel. We smile because we’re happy, but the act of smiling itself also makes us happy,’ Dr Lewis explains. ‘Lines are formed by emotions and emotions are important because they guide us. In some cases, preventing an excess of sadness could be a good thing, but anyone who is having Botox needs to be aware of the potential psychological effect.’


Professor Nichola Rumsey, co-director of the Centre For Appearance Research at the University of the West of England, adds ‘There is anecdotal evidence to suggest that if the face is less mobile, whether from Botox or facial palsy, people can’t use non-verbal communication – the most powerful kind of  communication – appropriately. This is likely to negatively affect their interactions with others and the quality of communication for both parties.’



Expert Warns Botox Stops Laughter as Well as Laughter Lines

Whether you’ve experienced divorce yourself or have watched a loved one deal with it, you’ll know that divorce is an emotional time which can be difficult to cope with. More often than not, it hits children the hardest, as they’re watching the two people they love the most become angry and upset. Emotions run high during this time, with grief, sadness and the upheaval of your family life, so it can be difficult to know where to begin when it comes to making it easier on the younger members of the family. Here are some ways in which you can help to reduce the stress and help them, and yourself, through the emotional rollercoaster.


Firstly, it’s important not to play the blame game - no one person is to blame more than the other. If you’re going through a divorce, the blame is irrelevant, so placing it on one person will simply add to the anger and stress. It’s easy to lose perspective during this time, as your emotions are heightened and you’re trying to navigate this new stage of your life – but bear in mind that your children are also struggling with this.


When it comes to the custody battle, your children’s welfare is paramount – so, when you’re trying to work around schedules, remember that this comes first. Ask yourself whether or not you’re getting angry at your ex over the situation itself, or are you angry that the arrangement isn’t best for your child? The latter should always be your first port of call. As before, try not to put your ex down in front of your children, as this only adds to their discomfort and leads to them feeling unable to discuss their emotions in front of either parent.


It may sound obvious, but co-parenting is very different when you both live in different households. Suddenly, you’re battling with your ex over what your child is eating or watching when they’re in their care. Unless it puts them in danger, you need to accept that you can’t control how they decide to raise them when they have care of them. Lastly, remember to keep an open mind when it comes to new relationships. Most divorced parents will embark on a new relationship at some point, which can be difficult for children to deal with. Be respectful to your ex by letting them know if you’re re-entering the dating game, as chances are they will want to meet this new person in their child’s life, and vice versa.



How to Help Your Children Cope With Divorce

Do Emotions Keep You From Reaching Your Weight Loss GoalsAuthor, founder of life-choice psychology and life coach, Ken Lindner, once famously said, ‘Successful individuals control their emotions; they don’t let their emotions control and sabotage them’.


The problem is, whilst this is a very easy thing to say, it is far from an easy thing to do. It is not impossible, however, and many argue that in order to look after your own wellbeing as well as to keep your corporate wellness in good shape, you must learn this skill.


Ken’s career as a life coach has enhanced the lives of everyone that he has worked with, including high profile clients Matt Lauer and Mario Lopez, and he is also author of a new book called Your Killer Emotions which details why letting your emotions run away with you is such a bad thing for your wellness, and how you can keep it together.


Ken recommends being strategic, especially in your corporate life, and keeping a clear and organised vision for your career path. If you are clear about what you believe, where you are going and what you would like to achieve, it makes it harder to make poor decisions along the way, when your emotions try to take over.


Harmful emotions in a corporate situation can include jealousy, resentment and anger, and these can lead to you making damaging life choices, because you are acting on your emotions, not on your knowledge.


Animosity can also be a huge deciding factor in your workplace emotions, as many people find it hard to get on with their boss or with difficult coworkers. This can lead them, for example, to leave a job that is actually good for their career, because it is the easier option, but this can close many doors.


It’s always best to avoid the ‘quick fix’ of reacting to a situation, but instead try to distance yourself from the problem and instead of thinking about how it makes you feel, think about where you would like to be and how your current situation can help you achieve that, and it will make difficult emotions more bearable.



Keep Your Emotions in Check if You Want to be a Professional