Author Archives: Deborah Rasso

Getting your mental health back in shape!

Getting Your Mental Health Back In Shape

from the American Counseling Association

Today, most of us are more aware of our physical health than ever before. We exercise more, pay attention to our diets and get needed health checks in order to catch problems early. But, most of us don’t think about our mental health very much unless we happen to be facing a serious problem. In truth, however, just as it’s possible to improve our physical health, there are also ways to get our feelings and attitudes into better shape. And in today’s complicated and often stressful world, that’s a very good thing. So, where to begin? How about your daily schedule? Most of us tend to fill our days with work, family and social obligations, leaving little or no time for ourselves. A fix for that is to include “you” in your daily calendar. Create a real schedule that includes time each day for at least one thing you find relaxing or enjoyable. Maybe it’s reading a book, working at a hobby, or just taking a quiet walk. Whatever it is, just plan it and make sure it happens. Another way to reduce stress and feel better about yourself is to get involved with others. Wherever you live, you’ll find community, civic and religious organizations searching for volunteers to help carry out their work. Giving something back to the community offers a sense of fulfillment and self-worth essential for good mental health. It can also offer a meaningful escape from your own problems and may help put such problems in a better perspective. And yes, exercise and staying physically fit is another means to improving mental health. Studies find regular exercise is a great way to fight depression, for example. Plus, as we get ourselves into better shape, we usually start to feel more confident about ourselves – everything from how we look to what we can do. And that’s good mental health. No, you can’t make stress and problems just disappear, but building a little relaxation into your life, helping those in need and staying physically active can all improve mental health and make it easier to cope with any problems that arise. Don’t accept that you have to feel unhappy or depressed. If your own actions don’t have you feeling better, check out the help that a professional counselor can offer. However you go about it, good mental health is a goal worth achieving.

Counseling Corner” is provided by the American Counseling Association. Comments and questions to ACAcorner@counseling.org or visit the ACA website at www.counseling.org

Practice Mindfulness for a few minutes today…

How a Donut changed my day…

I ate a donut for breakfast today…probably 500 calories, maybe more. So after I ate the donut, I decided I needed to take a walk and work off some of the calories. As I was walking, I started to notice what was around me. I decided to make the walk a “mindfulness walk”. Why not practice what I preach, right?  Here are some of the things I noticed:

I heard the owl hooting in the trees. Every year at this time a certain type of owl, not sure which one (I made a mental note to research that) is very vocal and hoots in the morning. I know this because 29 years ago when I was 9 months pregnant with my first born, I would walk in the morning, hoping to bring on labor, and this owl would serenade me. So today, mindfully walking, I was taken back in time to those very special mornings when I was awaiting my first baby with excitement and trepidation. This was a good memory, obviously not in the present (mindful) so I brought myself back.

I heard a toddler screaming “no” and then crying…. This made me thankful that the above memory was long past and I no longer needed to tend to crying toddlers!

I noticed that my flip flops were making a slapping sound on my feet and for a moment I wished that I had put on my sneakers so that I wouldn’t disturb the sounds of nature with my flipping and flopping. But then, I got into the steady rhythm of my feet and forgave myself for this choice.

I noticed a person in the distance hammering on metal and listened to the clang, clang, clang thinking how it is part of the symphony in the neighborhood.

I noticed that some birds actually do sound like they are going “tweet, tweet”. Which must be the reason we call them “tweets”… I then remembered I haven’t tweeted lately and should do that soon! Back to the present please.

I was noticing the sounds of all the birds when suddenly I was interrupted by the clunking of wood and hooves. I looked up to see a horse and rider practicing their skills as I looked up in surprise at the clunking of the hoves on the boards (I guess he wasn’t supposed to?) the rider laughed with joy and it made me smile. I also remembered the last time I rode a horse and for a moment wished I was on that beautiful creature.

Walking along, I came to the truck picking up the refuse and debris for recycling. I realized how very load that truck is and I wondered why I never noticed it before since he comes along every week. I noticed all the pieces of bush strewn on the road that had fallen from the claw as it dumped them in the truck.

As I walked past the pond, I noticed that all the ducks were gone. Most likely eaten by the neighborhood coyotes. All that was left were the two decoy geese that obviously didn’t scare away anything. I though briefly about the circle of life (and the Lion King song played in my head). Back to the present…

I noticed how quiet the neighborhood is in the early morning. Everyone is off to work or still inside sleeping peacefully. I thought about how often we go through our day and don’t notice the beauty that surrounds us. I made a pledge to myself to try to take notice.

Then I thanked myself for eating that donut. Because if I hadn’t had the donut, I wouldn’t have taken the walk and I, too, would have gone through the day without awareness of all the wonderful things in the world and all those great memories triggered by sights and sounds.

Take a mindful walk… you won’t be sorry (oh and eat a donut too!)

Peace out!

Deborah Rasso, LMHC

Two Great Singers, A Great Song and a Great Cause

Don’t Let Anger Issues Control You

For most of us, our daily lives include a lot of stress and tension. There’s that morning traffic jam, the supervisor who never appreciates us, the kids’ latest problems, the news reports of terrorism reports, bad economic news and local crimes. Unfortunately, for many people, daily stress and tension can build to the point that it only takes one small incident for them to explode, letting their anger get out of control. Experts say anger is the most poorly-managed emotion in our society, with as many as one in five Americans having an anger control problem. Not being able to manage one’s anger is a major cause of conflicts in both professional and personal relationships. Is anger a problem for you? One way to judge how well you control your anger is to consider whether you’ve ever, during an argument, raised your voice, broken something, pushed, slapped or physically hurt someone, embarrassed yourself, or felt out of control. If any of those apply, consider these actions to help you better manage your anger. A starting point is accepting responsibility for your anger. Anger may be triggered by someone else, but it’s you who lets it happen and grow out of control. It’s also important to recognize the beginning signs of anger. Anger is easier to control when emotions are still at a low level. Try to identify the cause of your anger. It isn’t someone else, but rather something within you, emotional or psychological from your past, that’s usually the real source of your anger. And when anger does occur, learn to focus on the situation or behavior making you angry, rather than the other person. Criticizing or name-calling doesn’t resolve a problem but merely escalates it. Rather than putting the other person on the defensive and raising the conflict level, use “I” statements to talk about what you’re feeling and experiencing. Learning to listen and communicate more effectively can also help control anger. Too often situations leading to an angry outburst are simply the result of not understanding what was said, or not expressing yourself clearly and calmly. When anger controls you it can make your life miserable, lead to very real problems and even affect your health. If your anger is sometimes out of control, consider an Anger Management course (see your local hospital or mental health center), or consulting a professional counselor offering Anger Management help.

Counseling Corner” is provided by the American Counseling Association. Comments and questions to ACAcorner@counseling.org or visit the ACA website at www.counseling.org

Your Brain – Understanding why mindfulness works

Mindfulness for children

A good explanation of EMDR

Article about Marijuana Anonymous

http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/30683620