Thursday, March 21, 2024

Walking for Stress Management

Memories of winter and darkness by 5pm are breaking way now to spring, and as the days get longer, the moods and energy change for most of us.  

That being true, this is a great time of year to consider creating a new walking routine to help cope with stress.  The cool of mornings, as well as the warmer evenings, are perfect for walking and unwinding as the change to spring and summer makes it easier to get out and stretch.

The reason walking is such a good addition to any stress management routine is because it actually does make physical changes in the body that help counter anxiety and stress.  According to the American Psychological Association people experience lower levels of stress hormones, like cortisol and epinephrine, after bouts of physical activity.  They also warn that the more sedentary we get, the less efficient our bodies are at responding to stress.

In addition, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention has stated that walking is a good form of low impact, moderate intensity exercise that has a wide range of health benefits and relatively few risks.  They suggest that we each try to get 10,000 steps each day for optimal health.  So how do we manage to get in all of those steps?  

The Mayo Clinic has a few good suggestions such as taking the stairs, parking farther away from the entrance to places you go, walking the dog, including walks in your work-day breaks, going for a hike, and adding music to your activities to get a pace going.  In addition to these suggestions, finding parks and trails to walk are great ways to get both exercise and the added relaxation of a beautiful environment.  At the same time, if you are a city dweller, sidewalk walking, mall walking, and walking around local attractions like a zoo, botanic garden, or shopping areas also benefit your walking routine.

What do you benefit in the end if you increase your walking?  Increased heart and lung fitness, reduced risk of heart disease and stroke, improved blood pressure and cholesterol, reduced muscular and joint pain, improved balance, and of course... less stress.

The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.      ~Lao Tzu

Thanks to Natasha Chub-Afanasyeva for the great image

Monday, February 26, 2024

Meaning of Life: It's for You to define

Finding meaning in life has a lot of different definitions to many different people, but it would be fair to say that when people do find meaning in their lives, it frequently comes down to what they devote most of their time, energy and attention to, even if that is just to find meaning in life.  So when contemplating about what matters to you the most, it can be helpful to take a good look at what draws your interest at any given time in order to notice what fascinates you, draws or holds your attention, and energizes you into action. 

Meaningfulness is also guided by what we value most, regardless of how we come to have or hold those values.  Some people devote their lives to a faith or religion, but this means different things to different people.  What is held as a belief or focus for devotion can include things like music, study, philosophy, science, curiosity, sport, meditation, or any number of other interests other than just a god/goddess, doctrine, or faith.

In pockets of any society around the world there are individuals devoting their lives to very specific things that are meaningful to them, such as their children, homes, or careers.  Some people will spend an entire life devoted to just one skill, such as martial arts, automotive repair, hair styling, nursing, animal rescue, prayer, and so on.  And what each of us finds meaningful can and will change depending on where we are in life at any given moment.  Where we might have once devoted all of our time and energy to raising children, completing college studies, or even just perfecting a skateboarding move, can all change as life morphs into something else because what we find meaningful changes.

In addition, though it's fine to look around and see what seems to be meaningful to others, it would be wrong to say that someone else should ever clarify for you what you should devote your life to because finding what is meaningful in life is a personal and constantly changing journey.  An incredible amount of human suffering in the form of anxiety and depression is caused by pressuring others to conform to what is only meaningful to others, rather than themselves.  Insisting that others find the same things meaningful that we find meaningful is to stifle the creativity and freedom of choice that each human being should have the right to own for themselves.

So know this, that if anyone ever tells you that the meaning of life is "x", stop and ask yourself if that is your own truth.  When another tells you that we are here for the purpose of "x", stop and ask yourself if that is a belief you have come to on your own.  When another tries to convince you that you will find meaning in life if you just do, believe, or act as they say, then stop and ask yourself how you will ever find your own way under such circumstances.

"The meaning of life is whatever you ascribe it to be"     ~Joseph Campbell

Thanks to Bonnie Moreland for the great photo, https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

Wednesday, January 3, 2024

Reducing Stress: Seeing your New Year Resolutions through to the End

It's a new year and fresh starts are always a clean slate, allowing a way to put some things behind you and begin again. 

According to a new survey from Forbes Health, the top resolutions for 2024 are to improve fitness, finances and mental health.  So it's clear that people really want to do well, take care of themselves, stay out of debt and feel better emotionally and psychologically.  But where do we begin?

Reaching these kinds of goals takes a lot of determination and consistency in behavior and schedule.  So finding ways to approach the problems of inconsistency and broken schedules is a great place to begin.  In other words, how to stay on track with your new goals and themes for the year.

Here is a simple method to consider:  First, limit the plan to as few items as possible.  Second, keep the goal and expectation within reach (even a little low if necessary).  Third, place expectations and consistency at an equal level.  So the summary of the plan is:  A) few items, B) expectations within reach, and C) keeping expectations and consistency equal.

So here is an example:  Let's say you want to lose 10 pounds.  The first step is to keep that simple, not decide it also includes joining a gym, running 5 miles a day to reach it, altering your entire diet, and increasing the number of times you walk the dog a day to increase steps all to reach the goal of losing 10 pounds.  Instead, the simple goal is just one goal, and that is to drop 10 pounds.  

Next, you want to set the expectations for your 10 pound weight loss within reasonable reach.  Calculating a reasonable number of pounds to drop per week, how to do that based on caloric intake and caloric burning, and determine a reasonable amount of activities or diet restrictions that can actually be reached on a daily and weekly basis.  The key wording her is "reasonable expectations" of yourself and the diet, not unreasonable or even impossible.

Finally, you would determine what you can reasonably do on a consistent basis to reach these tasks and goal.  Such as how far you can reasonably run if not 5 miles a day, and how many sit up or miles walked can your reasonably or actually fit in to your busy schedule without overloading yourself and starting to fail at the  task?

Last year I wrote about setting "themes" for your New Year instead of "resolutions" or "goals".  With that in mind, set these new target activities in your life as themes to focus on and not some end-all place to reach.  Especially when it comes to tasks like dieting, where it's the lifestyle that is to change on a regualr basis and not just a number that is to be reached.

If your goal is to spend less money.  Try outlining that goal with this three-part plan.  One, keep it simple.  Don't try to stop your daily latte', plus cut your grocery bill in half, plus cut out your Amazon shopping, and have your cable disconnected all at once.  Start with something small that helps you learn to discontinue one thing consistently.  If that item is within a reasonable level of expectation and you know you can do it, then try the easier task first.  If, say, you just focus on cutting out the daily latte' and have a pretty good idea that that first goal is reachable, and that you can easily reach that expectation of yourself, then let that be enough at first.  Being able to show yourself you can cut that item out over time leads to an overall feeling of success, which sets you up to try a second item on your financial goals list.

Whatever changes you have decided to tackle for the New Year, make sure they are simple, reachable, and you feel confident you can stay steadily after them until you reach success.

"Motivation is what gets your started, habit is what keeps you going."    ~Jillian Michaels

Thanks to Nan Fry for her great image, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/

Monday, December 4, 2023

Holiday Relapse Risks: Making a Plan to Stay on Track

It's that time of year again as we are in the heart of the holiday season, and though it is exciting and joyful for some, it can also be stressful for many.  Be it financial strain, the rush and hurry of shopping, or just the planning and scheduling to meet with family and friends.  All are potential triggers for a long list of mental health and addiction problems.

The time-frame between Thanksgiving and New Years contains some of the highest levels of drinking during the entire year.  It's believed these excesses of drinking nearly double from normal use for many and tend to be highest on Thanksgiving Eve, Christmas Eve and New Years Eve, when people know they have the next day off.

In addition, depression and anxiety worsen during the holidays and are typically triggered, again, by the increased levels of stress.  Holiday parties at work and with friends, as well as gatherings with family who have the potential of pushing one another's buttons during family gatherings, all can trigger even higher levels of stress than normal and lead to increased levels of depression and anxiety.  These events are worsened in the presence of Seasonal Affective Disorder, which is more prominent in the winter months, but they can also worsen already treated mental health conditions which can become destabilized under the stress of the holiday rush.

Relapse prevention plans are the key to getting through the holidays.  That goes for both addictive issues and mental health issues.  Relapse prevention is how "high risk" situations are prevented and how stressful situations that can trigger a return to either abusive levels of addictive behavior, or situations that can trigger depression or anxiety, are prevented.

With relapse prevention, one of the first things to determine and know about yourself is what your triggers are, and then to have key stress reducing plans and techniques in place for coping with the emotions surrounding these situations before they get a chance to tip the scales and heighten the risk for relapse.

Below you will find some helpful links from Psych Central to help you along your path to creating your own holiday relapse prevention plans for addiction and mental health concerns.  Whatever you do, don't put it off.  It's always worth planning in advance to keep yourself on track and find the success you want:

*Tips for Managing Triggers during Addiction Recovery:  https://psychcentral.com/addictions/5-tips-for-managing-triggers-during-addiction-recovery#identifying-triggers

*Relapse Prevention:  https://psychcentral.com/lib/relapse-prevention#1

*Cognitive Reminders to help you Cope with a Depression Relapse:  https://psychcentral.com/depression/the-fear-of-relapse-cognitive-tools 

"Today I will not wait for others to see and care; I will take responsibility for being aware of my pain and problems, and caring about myself."   ~Meldoy Beattie

Thanks to Tom lpri for the great holiday image, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/

Monday, November 13, 2023

Gratitude: Practicing Thankfulness Year-Round

Thanksgiving is a time for gathering, feasting, and giving thanks, but giving thanks is a helpful exercise to get in the habit of year-round.  Recognizing what we are grateful for can help us move our awareness from the many forms of faulty thinking that tend to lead to depression and anxiety, and shift us toward a more consistent habit of thankfulness for what we have right now. 

In any given situation we have the option to focus on what we already have before us and in our lives.  Because our brains are geared to watch for dangers, we sometimes forget how wonderful and miraculous our lives are, including the things we have in them, and the situations we experience.

Has someone helped you recently?  Did you catch a break on some discount, deadline, or deal?  Are you glad the roof doesn't leak, and the car runs, or that the kids or pets are healthy this month?  Did something finally get solved or resolved?  Maybe some problem, glitch, or issue that was annoying and irritating?  And what about the most mundane things we forget to acknowledge as "good today" or "good this very moment".  

What we don't notice is that our monkey mind tends to wander off to the past and the future, ruminating about how things should have been, should be now, and about how terrible they can end up in the future unless we worry hard enough to prevent bad things from happening (which of course is not possible).  So gratefulness is a great Mindfulness exercise.  We can ask ourselves, "What am I thankful for right at this very moment?"  

The next time you are sitting at a traffic light with nothing much to do but wait for the light to change, ask yourself in that moment, "What are three things I am grateful for right now?"  Maybe you are grateful that the roads are clear and it's a sunny day.  Or maybe you are grateful the traffic is not too bad at the moment.  It can be anything at all.  

You can make a new habit of giving thanks at key times throughout your day.  Maybe think of three things you are grateful for while waking in the morning and preparing for your day.  Or maybe finding thankfulness in the evening before going to bed.  You can build these moments of gratitude into any part of your day and make them habit forming, just like brushing your teeth or taking a shower.  It takes practice at first, but repetition makes the behavior.

Have a happy Thanksgiving, and enjoy all you feel grateful for.  Then spread that Thankfulness throughout the year, making every day a day of thanks.

"Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more.  If you concentrate on what you don't have, you'll never, ever have enough."  ~Oprah Winfrey

Thanks to Faith Goble for the great festive image

Wednesday, October 18, 2023

Exercise for Winter and Health

Fall is a time of creativity, relaxation, and beauty as nature transforms into a colorful landscape of turning leaves and changing weather.  It's also a time when energy levels change, which is not too unlike the bear that prepares to hibernate and preserves its energy for winter.  But we humans still need movement and exercise even though our bodies would prefer to slow down this time of year, and finding the motivation for exercise is not always easy when days are shorter and temperatures begin to drop.  Yet exercise is key in reducing and maintaining levels of anxiety and depression, so nudging yourself to do at least a little bit is worthwhile.

There are some good exercises that are better suited for the cooler months.  Let's take a look at some of them:

During the Fall and before the first snow, bike riding is still a great way to keep the body moving.  It doesn't have to be competitive or even highly strenuous, but even gentle slow riding among the beautiful Fall colors can only help in keeping you active. 

Yoga is a gentle exercise that can be done with a group or class, or alone at home with the aid of a guided video instruction.  It's, most often done indoors during the cooler months, it is sure to keep the muscles warm and loose to prevent injury and keep you limber year-round.

Walking is always a good exercise in the cooler months because it not only keeps the body warmer, but can be done on indoor tracks or out in the elements no matter what the weather.  Be sure to not over or under dress as too much sweating can lead to getting cold at some point, and not being warm enough can lead to discomfort and the early abandonment of a good workout.  Once it's too cold to be out in the elements, walking can be done indoors on a treadmill.

Outdoor winter sports are a great way to get outside in the colder months and to also get some sunlight which helps with vitamin D and depression.  Snowboarding, skiing, sledding, ice skating, and snow shoeing are all great ways to get the body moving and keep the muscles functioning well when the body would prefer to curl up on the sofa and do nothing.

Winter hiking is a "thing", but you need to be prepared for slippery surfaces and plan for traction with every step.  Use a good winter hiking boot and be sure to carry a set of "crampon" ice cleats, and a set of hiking poles to help you maintain your balance while in rough terrain.

The main thing is to keep moving even when the weather seems to want to drive you indoors and out of the natural elements during the changing seasons, and especially in the colder winter months.

"In the depth of winter, I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer"  ~Albert Camus

Thanks to  Charles Knowles for the great seasonal photo, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

Wednesday, September 27, 2023

Seasonal Affective Disorder: Preparing for Autumn Mood Changes

Autumn is a favored time of year for many.  It's a time of beautiful changing colors as the season transitions from warm to cool, and a time for other kinds of transitions as well, such as what we crave to eat and drink, how our energy manifests, and of course what our mood may be.  As the days shorten and melatonin levels change in our bodies, this time of year can be a little more melancholy for some than for others.  Psychologically, it's the time of year for Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).  A time when some people are prone to depression and need a good plan in place to ride out the season with the best coping skills they can find.

SAD is believed to be a mood change caused by melatonin levels changing in the body due to the way the light changes this time of year.  As the days shorten (meaning shorter durations of light) our bodies change as well.  Higher melatonin levels tend to help our bodies prepare for sleep, making us tired and ready to slow down, and it increases (or builds up) in the body when there is less light.  Melatonin levels decrease when there is more light which tends to suppress the production of melatonin as light enters the eyes.  Therefore the higher levels of melatonin in the body during the Fall and Winter months tends to affect some people more severely than others, leading to symptoms of depression.  This can include feelings of hopelessness, worthlessness, sluggishness, fatigue, decreased interest in activities, sleep disturbances, poor concentration and depressed feelings for most of each day.  It's believed that lower serotonin level as well as lower vitamin D levels also play a role in SAD but the research is still out.

The best plan for SAD is to try preparing from many angles for the time of year you know you will be affected by the seasonal change the most.  Taking extra vitamin D, consulting with your doctor about getting on antidepressant medications, setting up regular psychotherapy sessions this time of year with your counselor, and most of all looking into ways to get some "light therapy" which can help suppress the production of too much melatonin.

Both vitamin D and light therapy can be obtained by making sure you don't hunker down inside too much.  Getting outside to absorb as much sunlight as you can is important, but it's a little harder since the cold temperatures tend to make us all want to stay indoors as the seasons change.  Consider some outdoor activates that might be popular in cooler weather such as skiing, snow shoeing, sledding, and even Fall and Winter hiking.  Even just getting out for walks in the daylight, regardless of the temperature, is a good idea.  The exercise involved in many of these activities can also help boost your serotonin levels, so it's all-around good therapy.

You can also try many of the various forms of light therapy devices designed to provide your body with light exposure.  These "light boxes" are much brighter than regular indoor lights and you can sit in front of them for 30 min to an hour each morning during these darker times of the year.  Make sure you get appropriate lights that filter out damaging UV light and are marked as safe for your body and eyes.

You don't have to fall passive to Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).  Be proactive and do all you can now to prepare for the changing season and changing moods.

"It always takes me by surprise how dark it gets this time of year",  ~To a Poet, First Aid Kit

Thanks to Bonnie Moreland for the great photo, https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/