Boost Your Mental Health with These 4 Workouts
Ever feel like your emotions are running the show? Get control over your life and regulate your mood by adding regular exercise to your routine. When you partake in physical activity you’ll experience benefits for your mind and body. Here are our top four recommended exercises to help you regulate emotions, feel better in your body and have fun in the process. 1. Weight training Weight training is any exercise that involves repetitive movements using some form of resistance. These workouts build and tone muscles, and with strength training, it’s easy to target a certain area of the body. According [...]
The Parent’s Guide to Teenage Anxiety
Teenagers experience major changes throughout adolescence. From applying to college to forming and losing relationships to hormonal and physical changes, it’s no surprise that some teenagers feel anxiety during this period of their lives. If you think your teenager is struggling with anxiety, read on to recognize the symptoms and identify options for treatment. Recognize anxiety symptoms in teens Anxiety comes in many shapes and sizes, which can make it harder to recognize when combined with the normal daily challenges of being a teenager. Symptoms of a generalized anxiety disorder include: Excessive worry, in a manner disproportionate to the event [...]
Everything You Need to Know About Diagnosing and Treating Panic Disorder
Do you ever feel like you’re living in fear…of fear? If you’re looking for an overview of panic attacks and the best panic disorder treatment, you’ve come to the right place. Learn more about diagnosing the panic disorder, its most common symptoms and your therapy and medication options below. What is panic disorder? The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder (fifth edition), or DSM V, is the tool compiled by the American Psychiatric Association and used by medical and mental health professionals to recognize and treat conditions like panic disorder. The manual lists the following criteria to identify a [...]
Preparing for Mental Health Teletherapy
Finding mental health teletherapy Teletherapy has been an accepted treatment modality for the last several years, but it has gained popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mental health counseling via teletherapy is particularly valuable because it provides access to treatment and convenience factors that are not available with traditional in-person therapy. In addition to online mental health counseling, several other types of therapy can be made available on a telehealth platform: Addiction counseling: Online addiction counseling is a great medium for those in recovery who are still looking for outpatient support. A teletherapist specializing in online addiction counseling can provide treatment [...]
Common Causes of Disordered Eating
Disordered eating refers to any type of unhealthy eating behavior that could be physically or psychologically harmful. Not to be confused with eating disorders, disordered eating is simply a warning signal that something is wrong in your relationship with food. What Is Considered Disordered Eating? These unhealthy behaviors are more common than you might think. In fact, most adults in America have at one point practiced disordered eating. Here are some common unhealthy food habits: Extreme fad diets Yo-yo dieting and weight fluctuations Skipping meals to compensate for overindulging Overeating to cope with difficult emotions Labeling foods as “good” or [...]
What Types of Therapy Are Helpful For Depression?
Depression is a potentially debilitating mental health disorder. It’s also one of the most common. The CDC states almost 5% of adults report suffering from depression each year. However, cases may be underreported. Other sources place the actual number of individuals living with the disorder much higher. There is good news: depression is highly treatable. Each year we continue to learn more about mental health disorders and effective methods for treating them. Therapy is one such depression treatment. Therapists use a range of therapeutic techniques to help their patients overcome depression. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) Cognitive behavioral therapy, or CBT, [...]
Using Radical Acceptance to Cope with Difficult Times
As many people have come to experience since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, it can be hard to cope during difficult times. As we face challenges, whether it’s a pandemic, a struggling relationship, or other personal hardships, it’s important for our mental health and physical wellbeing that we find healthy ways to cope with our emotions. Radical acceptance is a distress tolerance skill that can be used during challenging times to better cope with and process our emotions. What Is Radical Acceptance Therapy? Radical acceptance is a distress tolerance skill that helps individuals facing difficult experiences and painful emotions [...]
Common Mental Health Issues Affecting LGBTQ Individuals
Reviewed by Dara Gasior, PsyD Director of Assessment and Training for High Focus Centers Research indicates that individuals who identify as LGBTQ have a greater risk for mental health struggles. This is likely due to a variety of factors, such as discrimination, rejection, and the stress of the coming out process. It’s important to be aware of common mental health issues that LGBTQ people may experience so you can identify any struggles in yourself or a loved one. Trauma Disorders Members of the LGBTQ community are more likely to live through traumatic events like bullying, discrimination, harrassment, and even hate [...]
How to Teach Your Kids Healthy Coping Skills
Childhood is thought of as a carefree time, but kids have just as many challenges as adults. They may even become overwhelmed by their emotions at times. As a parent, you can teach your child how to handle these situations by using healthy coping skills. What Are Coping Skills? Coping skills are strategies we use to manage difficult emotions. Your child probably already uses certain coping skills; they just might not be aware of it. Work with your son or daughter to identify the strategies they use right now and whether or not these strategies are healthy. Healthy vs. Unhealthy [...]
Counseling During COVID: Tips for School Counselors
COVID-19 has brought challenges for many industries, and counseling is no exception. Teletherapy sessions are different from in-person sessions. School counselors may be struggling to build rapport and keep clients engaged. Here are some effective strategies to use when counseling students virtually during COVID. Meet Students Where They Are At Start by recognizing that your students are facing new challenges during the pandemic. They are probably feeling less focused at home, so you may not be able to stay as focused in counseling sessions. Accept that and don’t try to push to get too much done. Instead, keep sessions light [...]
Common Mental Health Disorders that Co-Occur with Eating Disorders
Some people experience the symptoms of an eating disorder and other mental health disorders at the same time. For example, you might have the lack of energy and sadness common with depression while also severely restricting your food intake. So which mental health disorder should you be diagnosed with - depression or an eating disorder? In many cases, you’ll actually be diagnosed with both. These two conditions are called co-occurring disorders since they happen at the same time. How Common Are Co-Occurring Disorders? Co-occurring mental health and eating disorders are more common than you might think. According to a 2015 [...]
The Effects of Online Learning on a Teen’s Mental Health
COVID-19 has rapidly and dramatically altered our lives. Unfortunately, teenagers and young adults are among those who may be most impacted as a result of the virus. In the spring and summer months of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic drove many schools to cancel in-person classes and graduation ceremonies. Now, as we enter fall, many schools and colleges continue to rely on virtual learning to keep students and teachers safe. While the safety of students and teachers is of the utmost importance, online learning can have an impact on the mental health of teens. We explain how online learning impacts teen [...]
