Klub Psychology: One step ahead, everyday.

http://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=250&pubid=helpguide

2012-02-08T06:21:00.000-08:00

http://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=250&pubid=helpguide

Klubs Weight Management Training

2012-01-16T03:04:00.000-08:00

2011-08-17T01:43:00.000-07:00

kl/ro M Snj ;fOsf]nf]hL (KLUB PSYCHOLOGY)

Snj (Klub) gfdn] nf]slk|o tyf lr/kl/lrt Snj ;fOsf]nf]hL (KLUB PSYCHOLOGY) xfd|f] cfkm\g} ;fd"lxs nIo xf] . xfd|f] p2]Zo æaf}l4stf, w}o{tf, ;dk{0f / zlQmsf] andf, o"jf tyf sd{sf] gf/fåf/f dgf];fdflhs ;]jfdf kl/j{tg ug]{Æ xf] .

lj=;+=@)^$ ;fn k'ifb]lv u[xsfo{ tyf laleGg dgf];fdflhs cg';Gwfgsf sfdx? ub}{ cfh lj=;++=@)^* ;fn ;fpgdf :yflkt o; Snj ;fOsf]nf]hL laleGg la1tf tyf k|fl1stfsf dgf];fdflhs Joj;flosx?sf] ;femf s]Gb| xf] . ;a} vfn] dfgl;s :jf:Yo ;d:ofsf] ;Daf]wg ug]{ p2]Zon] g} o;sf] :yfkgf ePsf] xf] . xfdL rfxG5f}+ Snj x/]s dgf];fdflhs ;d:ofx? lj?4 sfd ug]{ Ps dgf]j}1flgs k|of]uzfnf agf];\ hxfF k|of]u, lzIf0f / k|fljlwsx?sf] pTkfbg ;fy;fy} xf];\ .

p2]Zo M

;a} vfn] dgf];fdflhs ;]jfsf] cAan k|bfos x'g'g} xfd|f] klxnf] nIo xf] . o;sf ;fy;fy} ;fdflhs pQ/bfloTj cGtu{t /fli6«o ?kdf cfO{kg]{ laleGg 36gf tyf b'3{6gfn] Nofpg] dfgl;s ;d:ofx?df :jo+;]jf / eljiodf cfpg] o:tf ;d:ofx?sf] dfgl;s hf]lvd Go"lgs/0f ug{sf nflu cg';Gwfg ug'{ xfd|f] k|fyldstfdf k5{g\ . xfdL cfzf /fV5f}+ / k|0f lnG5f}+ ls xfdL xfd|f] SnjnfO{ dfgl;s :jf:Yo If]qsf] Ps dxTjk"0f{ sf]z]9'Ëf] agfpg] 5f}+ . o; sl7g tyf nfdf] ofqfdf lx8\b} ubf{ tkfO{x?sf] :g]x, k|]/0ff tyf ;'emfjx? kfOg} /xg]5f}+ eGg] xfd|f] ljZjf; 5 .

nIo M

g]kfnh:tf] cNkljslzt tyf ljsfzf]Gd'v b]zdf :jf:Yo If]qdf dfq vr{g'kg]{ cfofltt c/af}+sf] cf}iflw tyf lrlsT;sLo k|ljlw /fli6«o cfly{s 3f6f xf] . xfd|f ;]jf, ;'ljwf tyf sfo{qmdx?sf] p2]Zo g} kmh'ndf vr{ ePsf] of] c/af}+ /sdnfO{ uf;–af;–skf;sf ;fy} lzIff / b]z ljsf;df ?kfGt/0f ug{ dgf];fdflhs k|]/0ff lbg' xf] . uf;, af;, skf; :j:y dg, tg / Pp6f lzlIft / ljslzt ;dfh g} Ps ;fdfGo dflg;sf] ;kgf xf] . xf], dgf];fdflhs ;r]tgfsf sfo{qmdx?åf/f (Medical Counselling) ;dfwfgsf ;fdfGo t/Lsfx? hg–dfg;df k|]l;t u/L dgf];fdflhs k|]/0ff lbg' xfd|f] nIo xf] .

k|ltj4tfx? M

u'0f:tl/o dgf];fdflhs ;]jf g} xfd|f] Go"g tyf klxnf] k|ltj4tf xf] . xfd|f ;]jfx?sf] c;/n] tkfO{df ofjt ;[hglzn kl/jt{gx? x'g]5g\ . zfob ;f/f dgf];fdflhs ;]jfsf] u'0f:t/ g} xfd|f] ;]jfsf] cfwf/df gflkg]5 . 1fgsf] cfbfgk|bfgsf] nflu Ps ;Dk|]if0flzn jftfj/0fsf] ;[hgf ug'{g} Snjn] cfkm\gf] k|fyldstfdf /fv]sf] 5 . xfdLn] xfd|f ;]jfx?nfO{ gfkmfd"ns Joj;flosLs/0f dfq u/]sf 5}gf}+ ls xfd|f ;]jfu|fxLx?nfO{ l;Sg], hfGg] tyf bIftfsf] ljsf; ug]{ / laleGg dgf];fdflhs ;]jfx?df g]t[Tj k|bfg ug{ ;Ifd agfpg rfx]sf 5f}+ .

;]jfx? M

xfdL tkfO{x?nfO{ SofK;'n y]/fkL (Capsule Therapy) gfds Ps dgf]a}1flgs pkrf/ k2tLsf] lj1 ;]jf lbgsf] nflu tof/ 5f}+ . oxfF g[To, ;+uLt, /+u tyf lrqsfl/tf / dgf]a}1flgs k/fdz{sf k2tLx? k|of]u ul/G5 . ;fFRr} JolQmut k/fdz{, ;fd"lxs k/fdz{, lzlylns/0fsf pkfox? xfdL cfkm\g} gfd / k|fof]hgdf k|of]u u5f}+ . cfufdL s]xL dlxgfx?df xfdL dgf]lrlsT;sLo ;]jfx?, of]u, Wofg, k|f0ffofd tyf cfo'j]{b lSnlgsx? cem Jojl:yt?kdf ;+rfngdf Nofpg] 5f}+ .

tkfO{x?;Fu cfj4 x'g, xfdLdf ;xeflutf hgfpg / hfGg a'em\gsf nflu c? w]/} sfo{qmdx? agfpg] ;f]+rdf 5f}+ . xfd|f bIf, lj1x?sf] ;d"xdf dgf]a}1flgs / dgf]lrlsT;s, of]u u'?, lzIffljb\, ;+uLtsf/, snfsf/, ;fdflhs sfo{stf{, Joj:yfks, dgf]a}1flgs k/fdz{bftf, ;'/Iff lgsfosf cg'ejLx? / Ol~hlgo/ cflb, OToflbx? 5g\ . xfd|f lgDg ;]jfx? k|bfg u5f}+ M

Capsule Therapy
Counselling (Group and Individual)
Relationship & Marriage Counselling
Music & Dance Therapy
Art and Color Therapy
Psychiatric Clinic
Mobile Mental Health Camp
Motivational Classes
Yoga & Meditation
Brainstorming Sessions
Education & Training
Sport Counselling (Clinical)
Human Resource Development
Psychology in Film-making

cfzf u5f}+, tkfO{sf] ;xeflutf g} xfd|f] rfxfgf / k|]/0ffsf] >f]t x'g]5 . :j:y ;'emfj / ;[hglzn pTk]|/0ff g} Snj / xfd|f] nflu rflxg] v'/fs xf] / tL ;'emfjx? ;d]6\g xfdL ;b}j cft'/ 5f}+

SofK;'n y]/fkL (Capsule Therapy)

of] Ps lsl;dsf] k'g{l;h{gfTds dgf]a}1flgs pkrf/ k2tLsf] Kofs]h xf] . of] Ps cfjlws (One Session) ;d"xut pkrf/ k2tL xf] hxfF Ps ;d"xsf lj1x?n] krf; jf ;f] eGbf a9L ;]jfu|fxLx?nfO{ pkrf/ k|bfg ug]{5g\ .

of] y]/fkLsf] klxnf] p2]Zo g} tkfO{sf] tgfjsf] cWoog, klxrfg / Joj:yfkg xf] . Hj/f] zfl//Ls ;d:ofx?sf] klxnf] hfgsf/L ePh:t}, tgfj dgf];fdflhs/ dgf]a}1flgs ;d:ofx?sf] klxnf] hfgsf/L xf] . xfdLn] k|of]u u/]sf laleGg t/Lsf / tkfO{n] SofK;'n y]/fkL (Capsule Therapy) df lbPsf ;"rgfsf] cfwf/df tkfO{sf] /f]u kQf nufpg] 5f}+ .

oltdfq xf]Og, SofK;'n y]/fkL (Capsule Therapy) sf] pkrf/ a[Qdf (Therapeutic Arena) tkfO{x?df lglxt JolQmTj, ;[hglzntf, kl/kSjtf / g]t[Tj Ifdtfn] ljslzt x'g] df}sf kfpFb5 .

of] k2tLdf tkfO{ cfkm} lqmoflzn x'g ;Sg'x'G5 lsgls o;sf OsfO{x? tkfO{ cfkm} l;Sg ;Sg'x'G5 . cfufdL lbgdf cfkm\g} tj/n] o;nfO{ k|of]u ug{ ;Sg'x'g]5 . hLjgdf cfOkg]{ PSnf]kgf / clN5kgfaf6 d'Qm x'g ;Sg'x'g]5 . xfd|f] ;+o'Qm k|of;af6 aiff}+b]lvsf] ;d:ofaf6 d'Qm x'g tkfO{nfO{ ;xof]u ldNg]5 . o;n] hfg]sf s'/f Ps–csf{df l;Sg / l;sfpg klg d2t ldNg]5 .

xfdL xfd|f ;]jfu|fxLx?nfO{ SofK;'n y]/fkLdf
(Capsule Therapy) lge{/ ePsf] b]Vg rfxGgf}+ . o;}n] of] pkrf/ k2tLnfO{ Ps cfjlws (One Session) agfPsf 5f}+ . l;Sg] xf], hfGg] xf] / o;nfO{ cfkm\g} t/Lsfn] k|of]u ug]{ xf] / ;lsG5 c?x?nfO{ l;sfpg] xf] . t/ klg sf]xL s]xL lglZrt OsfO{x?/ cfofdx?df (Therapeutic Module) df bIf x'g rfxG5 eg] oL OsfO{x?sf] lj:t[t ?kdf l;sfpg xfdL tof/ 5f}+ . tkfO{ ;do / nufj lnP/ cfpg'xf];\ / oL lj1 ;]jfx? l;Sg'xf];\ .

Pp6f 7"nf] ;d"xnfO{ lnP/ o; pkrf/ k2tLsf] p2]Zo k|fKt ug'{ cfkm}df ;lhnf] 5}g . o; k2tLsf cfkm\g} l;dfgfx? 5g\ t/klg xfdL cfkm\gf] tkm{af6 oyf;So k|of; ug]{5f}+ . t/ o; sfo{df tkfO{sf] ;fem]bf/L, efuLbf/L / lx:;]bf/L cTofjZos 5 .

dflg;x?;Fu ;d:of 5g\ / xfdLnfO{ nfU5 s]xL xb;Dd tL ;d:ofx? ;dfwfg ug]{ u'0f tL dflg;x?df g} lglxt x'G5g\ . of] k|lqmofdf xfdL t s]jn pTk|]/s (Motivator and Starter) dfq xf}+ . ;fFRr} g} SofK;'n y]/fkL / xfdLn] k|bfg ug]{ s'g} klg pkrf/ k2tL ;f/f ;d:ofx?sf] /fdjf0f eg] xf]Ogg\ .

;'wf/ s]Gb|x?df of] k2tL lgs} g} k|efjsf/L b]lvPsf] 5 . lsgsL o;df ;+uLt 5, dgf]/~hg 5 To;}n] of] k'g{l;h{gfTds 5 . ;'wf/u[xdf /xg] dflg;x?sf] -bf}+t/L_ b}lgsLnfO{ lem+emf]/lxt agfpg] k|of;df of] ;kmn /x]sf] b]lvG5 .

o; y]/fkLn] dfgl;s /f]ux? h:t}M Schizophrenia, Histrionic Personality Disorder, Paranoid Ideations, Hypomania, Suicidal Ideations / c? o:t} ;d:ofx?sf] klxrfg, lgodg / pkrf/df /fd|f] k|efj kf/]sf] b]lvG5 . xfd|f] of] pkrf/ k2tLdf sDtLdf klg %$ hgf ;]jfu|fxLx? ;lDdlnt x'g]5g\, h;df p:t} vfn] ;d:ofx?, dgf]a}1flgs k|fyldstfx?, pd]/, /xg;xg, ;fdflhs l:yltx? x'g]5g\ . of] y]/fkL sxfF, s'g ;do / ldltdf x'g] xf] xfdL tkfO{x?nfO{ cjut u/fpg] g} 5f}+ . ;fwf/0ftof ;f9]rf/ b]lv % 306f;Dd x'g] of] pkrf/ k2tLdf ^ j6} OsfO{x? nfu" ug{ ;lsg] 5 . o;sf OsfO{x? lgDg k|sf/sf 5g\ M

!_ Snjsf] ;dfof]lht lgl/If0f k|0ffnL (Klub Integrated Test (KIT) :

tkfO{df /x]sf] tgfj / pTk|]/0ff b'j} gfKg] of] Ps dgf]a}1flgs lgl/If0f k|0ffnL (Psychological Test) xf] . SofK;'n y]/fkLsf] z'? / cGTodf u/L b'O{ efudf ;]jfu|fxLx?nfO{ ug{ lbOg] of] 6]i6 n's]/ /x]sf] dgf];fdflhs ;d:ofx? vf]tNg (Part One) ;xof]uL x'G5 . ;fy;fy} SofK;'n y]/fkL l;l4Pkl5 ;]jfu|fxLdf cfPsf ofjt kl/jt{gx? yfxf kfpg (Part Two) klg ;xof]u ldN5 .

@= ;+uLt OsfO{ (Mus-psyche)

of] OsfO{df tkfO{sf] efjgfnfO{ ;+uLtsf] ;xf/fn] aflx/ Nofpg] k|of; ul/g]5 . ;+uLt pkrf/ k2tLsf] (Music Therapy) of] 5f]6f] / kl/is[t ?k xf] .

#= g[To OsfO{ (Selo-psyche)

tfdfË ;]nf] uLtdf x'g] em\ofp/] gfrdf cfwfl/t /x]sf] of] OsfO{ g[To pkrf/ k2tLsf] 5f]6f] ?k xf] . tkfO{sf efjgfx?dfly / To;sf c:tJo:tfx?nfO{ dfem\g], ltvf{g]{ sfd o; k2tLåf/f ul/G5 . of] g[To pkrf/ k2tL (Dance Therapy) sf] 5f]6f] / kl/is[t ?k xf] .

$= /+u tyf lrqsfl/tf OsfO{ (Craft-psyche)

/+u / lrqx?sf] k|of]u x'g] o; OsfO{ tkfO{nfO{ k|]l/t ug{ pkrf/ a[Qdf (Therapeutic Arena) k|of]u x'G5 . lrqx? / /+u dfkm{t tkfO{ cfkm\gf] lhGbuLsf] syf l;g]dfdf h:t} ptfg{÷sf]g{ ;Sg'x'g]5 / ;fob cfkm\gf ;d:ofx?dfly cfkm} k|:t't x'g ;Sg'x'g]5 . /+u / lrqsf/Ltf pkrf/ k2tL (Color & Art Therapy) sf] of] 5f]6f]] / kl/is[t ?k xf] .

%= k/fdz{ OsfO{ (Lore-psyche)

Craft-psyche df sf]/]sf ;d:ofx?dfly x/]s -@& hf]8L÷%$ ;]jfu|fxL_ hf]8Ldf Psn] csf{nfO{ hfg]a'em]sf] s'/f k/fdz{ lbg] o; OsfO{df ;DefJo pQ/x? vf]hL ul/G5 . o; OsfO{ dfkm{t tkfO{df lglxt Ifdtfx?nfO{ pT;flxt ul/G5 . of] JolQm–JolQmaLr x'g] k/fdz{sf] (Man to Man Counselling) 5f]6f] / kl/is[t ?k xf] .

^= clGtd k|ltj]bg / Joj;flos k/fdz{ (Final reports with Corporate Counselling)

o; pkrf/ k2tL (Capsule Therapy) lng cfpg] x/]s ;]jfu|fxLnfO{ xfdL s'g} /f]uL ;/x gdfgL kl/:ylthGo k|ltlqmof hgfpg] ;fdfGo dfG5] (Reacting Normals) ;/x lnG5f}+ . tkfO{df ;d:ofx? 5g\eg] dflysf % OsfO{ / To;sf dfksx?åf/f kQf nufpg] k|of; ug]{5f}+ / lj1x?sf] pkl:yltdf xfdL tkfO{nfO{ uf]nd]rdf /fv]/ ;'emfj tyf k/fdz{ lbg] k|of; ug]{5f}+ .

of] pkrf/ k2tLdf lzlylns/0fsf pkfox?sf] (Relaxation Technique)] k|of]u tyf w]/} laifodf 5f]6f]ld7f] kl/rofTds (Orientation) hfgsf/L klg k]z ug]{5f}+ .

xfdLnfO{ cfzf 5 dgf]lj1fg vf]tNg] of] ofqfdf tkfO{ xfd|f] ;xofqL / ;Nnfxsf/ b'j} x'g'x'g]5 .

cltl/Qm hfgsf/Lsf] nflu M

KLUB PSYCHOLOGY

;"rgf s]Gb|

;]tf] 3f]8f

;efu[xrf]s- *, kf]v/f .

URL: www.klubpsychology.blogspot.com,

Email: klubpsychology@gmail.com

Snj ;fOsf]nf]hL: Ps sbd cufl8; x/]slbg .

About Klub Psychology

2011-08-15T02:08:00.000-07:00

About Klub Psychology (KP)

Klub Psychology, popularly known as Klub, is our collective dream. Our motto is “With strength, intellect, patience and dedication, Youth and Karma for a change in psychosocial services.”

We laid its foundation stone on Paush 2064 B.S/2008. We launched our purpose through different volunteer work and psychosocial researches. Finally on this date 2011 August/ Shrawan 2068 B.S. we have established it as an organization providing every and A1 psychosocial services comprising of experts and academician of Human Science in order to address all level of mental health. We desire Klub to be a psychosocial lab where there are experiments and education on human psyche & the production of mental health experts. We aspire to make it “A Hammer against all psychosocial problems.” Sure Klub in near future would be an “ultimate junction of clients and professionals for the common purpose of navigating their psyche.”

Mission: The mission of our Klub is to provide and address all level of mental health services. Klub is aligned to create a distinction in the services provided through the production of different experts via the establishment of mental health and allied academic institutions. We hope, we would be able to create a mecca of mental health services. We have embarked on this tough and long journey. We are for sure there will be your encouragement, support and guidance.

Goals: Our goal is to create a milieu for psychosocial services. In a developing country like Nepal, what we believe is a loss of national economy, is millions of fund invested in health sectors and importing medicine and medical facilities. Our programs, approaches integrate and intercept the vary theme that if we are able to save this lost economy, we may be able to utilize it for food, education, building better homes and building a better country; a common man’s dreams. It is through psychological awareness about the nature of problem and probable hints and collective approach towards the solutions, that we can achieve this goal.

Commitments: We are committed towards providing quality psychosocial services which is our motto too. You will feel and observe innovative changes in psychosocial services. You would realize Klub always provides a conducive environment to impart and share knowledge. We don’t only intent to commercialize our psychosocial services and sell tickets for conducting therapeutic sessions. We give an equal opportunity for the learning, exploring, developing expertise and leadership about the range of psychosocial services provided by the Klub so that our clients are able to carry these range of skills further on their own. We hope to create self-sufficient clients.

We offer: At present we render you with Capsule Therapy that incorporates improvised, innovative and shorter forms of Dance Therapy, Music therapy, Colour & Art therapy and Counselling. We also provide Individual Counselling, Group Counselling; Relaxation Techniques with our own designated name and approaches. In days ahead to come we would organize Psychiatric Clinic, Meditation, Yoga and Ayurvedic Clinics; Mobile Mental Health Camp. There are lots of other programs ahead to explore and participate.

Our group of expertise providing psychosocial services comprises of psychologist, psychotherapist, medical technician, academician, musicians, artists, social workers, administrators, consultant, lawyer, expert of security agencies, engineer, etc. Our lists of services are:

Capsule Therapy

2. Counselling

3. Relationship & Marriage Counselling

4. Music & Dance Therapy

5. Art and Color Therapy

6. Psychiatric Clinic

7. Mobile Mental Health Camp

8. Motivational Classes

9. Yoga & Meditation

10. Brainstorming Sessions

11. Education & Training

12. Sport Counselling (Clinical)

13. Human Resource Development

14. Psychology in Film-making

Your participation is what we hope.

Healthy suggestions and constructive encouragement is a must Capsule for the Klub and KPians. We still have many rooms left for improvements and to implement your creative critiques and innovative ideas.

About Capsule Therapy (CT)

Capsule Therapy is a recreational psychotherapeutic battery. CT at present is a one session group therapy with a blend of encounter group therapy approaches and is run by a group of experts.

The basic therapeutic goal of the CT is to undertake and manage your stress. Yet what we know is that stress is just first hand information and precipitating factor for underlining psychosocial problems. We, through the methods of content analysis of the information given by you in incorporated therapeutic modules, are able to detect them. But your support is a must.

Apart this therapy, within the therapeutic arena, fosters your creativity, individuality, maturity, leadership and also insight about the psychological restraints, cause and consequences. It is a quality therapeutic process, where for sure, there is a recreational involvement. A sense of relief from the monotony of the problem would be certified to you, you will feel. Our support would always motivate you during the therapy, we hope. We hope sharing the information and learning to tackle them.

CT has been made a one session therapy because we don’t want our clients to be dependent on any sort of therapies we conduct. However, if our clients are recommended or are interested in any of the modules under CT, we would be pleased to showcase our expertise under various therapies that we deliver session wise.

Despite some therapeutic constraints dealing with a huge group, the attainment of the subject, content and the therapeutic value with your cooperation and motivation is more a refreshment and an achievement on research module..

People have problems and they have their own solutions to most problems, we believe. This therapeutic battery acts as a motivator and prelude towards client’s own problem solving approaches. For sure Capsule Therapy is not a capsulated solution to all their problems.

This therapy has been highly effective for the rehab inmates as a recreational therapy against the boredom of the inmate life. As far this therapy has dealt with the clients cohabiting Schizophrenia, Histrionic Personality Disorder, Paranoid Ideations, Hypomania, Suicidal Ideations and many other problems whose origin is the psychosphere that we inhabit.

CT is a group therapy for therapist and a form of encounter groups for clients. There are many elements constituted that makes it a Cognitive Therapy. We commence a therapeutic session for a group of 54 clients of similar psychological priority, age groups and other socio-demographic variables.

CT uses around 4 and half hour to 5 hour of your precious time for you to explore the 6 major therapeutic modules that are included in the psychotherapeutic battery. They are;

1) Klub’s Integrated Tests (KIT): We handle your stress and motivational factors and use it analytically for the content analysis of underlining psychosocial problems. It is a two par psychological test where the 1^st part would decode your stress and the 2^nd part would assess your motivation after the conclusion of the therapy.

2) Mus-psyche: We elicit your emotions through music that helps you to lead you to execute it into actions. It is a shorter but an improvised version of MUSIC THERAPY.

3) Selo-psyche: We let you execute your emotions into action through the dance sequences that you will learn and perform. It is a shorter but an improvised version of DANCE THERAPY.

4) Craft-psyche: We use it more from motivational point of view within the therapeutic arena. We help you to substitute your problems and colour your life. A cinema is created in the canvas about problems and may be probable solutions. It is a shorter but an improvised version of ART and COLOUR THERAPY

5) Lore-psyche: We let you create your own insight about problems depicted in Craft-psyche. We encourage you to use your potentialities in a client to client counselling design to solve that problem of your life. It is a shorter version to counselling methods.

6) Final reports with Corporate Counselling (CC): We treat you as a Reacting Normal. We extract your problems from the 5 modules of CT by the use of content analysis and counsel them with a group of expertise in a round table.

This psychotherapeutic battery also consist a blend of Relaxation Techniques and orientations to various techniques and topics related to the context of the therapeutic arena.

We hope you there with us.

For further enquiry, please contact us at:

Klub Psychology

URL: www.klubpsychology.blogspot.com, klubpsychology@gmail.com

Address: Seto Ghoda, Sabhagriha Chowk-8, Pokhara, Nepal

Klub Psychology is a psychosocial service provider.

Our motto: One step ahead; everyday.

Color Therapy

2011-08-03T02:13:00.000-07:00

What are the healing effects of color?

According to color therapy, colors are capable of influencing many aspects of our lives, including our mood, mental state and energy level. Each color is thought to be associated with one of seven energy centers, or chakras, in ayurveda. If a person's chakra is thought to be out of balance or weak, the color it's associated with is believed to help strengthen it.

· Red
Red is thought to be linked to the base chakra and the spine, hips and legs. It's thought to stimulate and boost physical energy, strengthen willpower, increase circulation, clear congestion and is linked with sexuality. Too much red may overstimulate and possibly promote anger or aggressiveness.

· Orange
Orange is thought to encourage joy, socializing and optimism, which is why it's considered useful for depression or sadness. Orange is associated with the sacral chakra and it's believed to benefit the kidneys, urinary tract and the reproductive organs. Too much orange is thought to lead to tiredness, pessimism and confusion.

· Yellow
Yellow is associated with the solar plexus chakra. An imbalance in the solar plexus chakra is thought to promote fear, apprehension, confusion, lack of determination, introversion or power issues, which this color is believed to balance. Yellow is associated with the intellect and mental processes and is uplifting. The solar plexus chakra is also thought to influence the digestive system. Too much yellow is believed to lead to poor concentration and hyperactivity.

· Green
Green is a color that's thought to encourage emotional stability, purity and calmness. It's related to the heart chakra, so it's believed to help with emotional issues, such as love, forgiveness, trust and compassion. An imbalance in the heart chakra is associated with fear of relationships, mistrust, jealousy, isolation and insecurity.

· Blue
Blue is related to the throat chakra and is said to be connected to the throat and lungs. It's thought to enhance verbal expression and communication, artistic expression and willpower. It's a calming color and is believed to help insomnia, anxiety, throat problems, high blood pressure, migraine and skin irritation.

· Indigo

Indigo is associated with the third eye chakra, located between the eyes, and is related to the eyes and the lower part of the head. It's said to encourage greater intuition and strengthen the lymph system, immune system and help purify and cleanse the body.

· Purple or Violet
Purple, or violet, is associated with the crown chakra, which is at the top of the head. It's thought to encourage spirituality, intuition, wisdom, mastery and mental strength and focus. Too much purple is thought to promote pride and arrogance. Too much of purple, violet or orange also mark a distinctive personality trait to show off belongings or status.

Note: This information should be used for education only and should not be used to diagnose or treat disease. There is no evidence that color therapy can be used to treat, alone or in conjunction with standard therapy, any condition or disease. If you have any symptoms, please see your primary care provider.

By Cathy Wong, About.com Guide

Klub Psychology: One step ahead, everyday.

Good News For Worriers

2011-02-15T02:48:00.001-08:00

How can you not worry?: Good News For Worriers

Are you a worrier? Some of us are naturally prone to worry, due to temperament, past experiences, or both. Being aware of potential problems and circumventing them is a way to proactively manage stress, but chronically dwelling on all the ways a situation could potentially go wrong can bring higher levels of needless stress. If you tend to worry excessively, dwelling on your fears beyond

the point of 'constructive planning,' here's a study that can help you put your fears to rest!

Researcher Melissa Anne Iseri studied a group of people who were prone to worry, and compared them to a group who weren't. She then randomly assigned half the participants of each group to either practice therapeutic journaling for 20 minutes three days in a row, or write neutrally for the same period of time. Those who were writing therapeutically were specifically told to write about their feared outcomes in a positive light, focus on the potential benefits associated with their fears, and devise ways to cope with their fears; the neutral writers were asked to write about things that they didn't fear, like their activities from the day before.

As expected, those who had been excessive worriers found a significant reduction in their worry levels a week after the intervention. (The other three groups didn't show a significant change.)

A few things about this research were interesting:

1. A relatively short intervention--20 minutes of writing--can have not only a short-term impact on stress levels, but a measurable positive change in thinking that could be seen at least a week later.

2. Therapeutic journaling didn't have a significant impact on those who weren't already prone to excessive worry; the real benefits were seen by those who worried too much, and may feel the need for such a journaling intervention.

3. Just the act of journaling in itself didn't have an impact; therapeutic journaling involved writing about fears, finding the "bright side" in their worst-case scenarios, and brainstorming effective coping strategies.

If you think you may be a chronic worrier, you may want to try this yourself. Give yourself a few 20-minute journaling sessions where you look at potential benefits of what you fear, assess the coping strategies you have available, and basically develop optimism. Keep it up for 3 days, or maintain the practice for as long as you feel a benefit. Focusing your mental energy in a more positive direction can bring lasting relief for excessive worry.

The Benefits of Journaling: How to Get Started?

The benefits of journaling have been scientifically proven. Journaling can be an effective tool for stress management and personal growth. Here are a few tips to help you get started.

Difficulty: Easy

Time Required: 10-20 Minutes a Day

Here's How:

1. Buy a Journal This seems like the obvious first step. However, what kind of a journal you purchase is important. You can choose from the most beautiful blank books you can find, to a more functional notebook, to your computer. If you go with the blank book option, you can decide between lined or blank pages, with a variety of pens. Use your book to reflect your creativity, or go with functionality first. It’s all up to you and your tastes.

2. Set Aside Time One of the most difficult aspects of journaling is not the journaling itself, but finding time to write. It’s important to block off about twenty minutes each day to write. Many people prefer to write in the morning as a way to start their day, or before bed, as a way to reflect upon and process the day’s events. However, if your lunch break or some other time is the only window you have, take the time whenever you can get it!

3. Begin Writing Don’t think about what to say; just begin writing and the words should come. If really need some help getting started, here are some topics to begin the process:

· Your dreams

· Your possible purpose in life

· Your childhood memories and surrounding feelings

· Where you’d like to be in two years

· The best and worst days of your life

· If you could have three wishes…

· What was important to you five years ago, and what’s important to you now

· What are you grateful for?

4. Write About Thoughts and Feelings As you write, don’t just vent negative emotions or catalog events; write about your feelings, but also your thoughts surrounding emotional events. (Research shows much greater benefits from journaling when participants write about emotional issues from a mental and emotional framework.) Relive events emotionally, and try to construct solutions and ‘find the lesson’. Using both aspects of yourself helps you process the event and find solutions to problems.

5. Keep Your Journal Private If you’re worried that someone else may read your journal, you’re much more likely to self-censor, and you won’t achieve the same benefits from writing. To prevent the worry and maximize journaling effectiveness, you can either get a book that locks or keep your book in a locked or very hidden place. If using a computer, you can password-protect your journal so you’ll feel safe when you write.

Tips:

1. Try to write each day.

2. Writing for at least 20 minutes is ideal, but if you only have 5 minutes, write for 5.

3. If you skip a day or 3, just keep writing when you can.

4. Don’t worry about neatness or even grammar. Just getting your thoughts and feelings on paper is more important than perfection.

5. Try not to self-censor; let go of ‘shoulds’, and just write what comes.

What You Need:

· A journal and pen or a computer

· A few minutes of quiet privacy each day

· That’s it!

By Elizabeth Scott, M.S., About.com Guide

Our motoo: One step ahead, everyday.

TIPS FOR REGAINING YOUR HAPPINESS AFTER A SETBACK.

2010-09-13T01:14:00.002-07:00

Whether you bounce back from setback quickly -- or take a tumble and are slow to recover -- you can train yourself to spend less time worried and more time happy.

In day-to-day life, we all cope with challenges that can range from relatively minor stresses, like a bounced check, to longer-term challenges, like job loss, a heartbreaking divorce, or bad news from your doctor.

These setbacks don't have to set you back for long. Here are six ways to handle these events better so you can move from harrowed to happy faster.

1. Do rely on a supportive network of family and friends.

Jim Stevens, 59, an artist in Wheat Ridge, Colo., discovered what resilience experts say is a sure-fire way to bounce back from adversity: Reach out to others for support.

While serving in the Vietnam War, Stevens was shot in the head by an enemy fighter. Doctors couldn't remove the entire bullet. For the next 20 years, Stevens had severe, recurring migraines.

In 1994, a particularly painful migraine triggered a stroke and Stevens lost all but 2% of his vision. He was angry. One day, in a fit of rage, he destroyed much of his unfinished art pieces and notes.

In time, he opened up about his feelings to his youngest daughter. "She convinced me I was still needed," Stevens says. "That broke my heart and finally got my attention."

David Myers, PhD, a psychology professor at Hope College and author of The Pursuit of Happiness, tells WebMD, "Self-disclosure can be healing. Talking about our troubles can be open-heart therapy."

2. Don't check out. Do stay committed and engaged.

During their key talk, Stevens' daughter suggested he learn karate as a way to regain self-control. He set a new life mission for himself: to become a martial artist. Its true we need a purpose in life to remain alive otherwise when there are no problems in life we are dead the next day (Klub Psychology).

"I was back on track, looking forward to things again and not behind me," Stevens says.

After four years, he earned a black belt. Today, he is the only legally blind man to win the Martial Arts Tournament of Champions men's fighting competition. He says spectators were unaware of his blindness.

Years ago, when he was deeply frustrated with his situation, Stevens could have quit. Instead, he worked to master his anger and took charge of the situation.

"Control is the opposite of powerlessness," writes Joan Borysenko, PhD, in her book It's Not the End of the World. "It's not about being a control freak or bending people to your will. It means agency-- that I-can-do-it feeling, which leads to effective action."

3. Take Small Steps and Be Persistent.

"Start acting as if you were happier, by doing," Myers says. "Begin with tolerably small steps and do the things that happy people often do: Get out of the house, meet friends, and engage with your faith community."

After two years of studying karate, Jim Stevens' karate instructor suggested he try to work on his art again. He tried and failed twice.

His youngest daughter came to him on one of his bad days and said, "Dad, you promised not to quit." So he tried again. This time, Stevens experimented with different types of visual lenses to help him. He says he slowly started to make quality art again, using the lenses and his sense of touch, and in 2009 was honored by the Kennedy Center for his work.

4. Exercise Regularly.

Don't let a setback bench you. Physical activity may help you handle uncertainty and stress and may help to boost your mood. Exercise has been shown to increase the production of the feel-good chemicals endorphins. Not only exercise, let 2 miles of run a day, make us less fearful and less insecure but makes us able to confront the problems at our own. We can then realize we can overcome our greatest enemy which is fear and not the outside world of enemies and terrorists (Klub Psychology).

If you haven't exercised in a while, check with your doctor before launching a new fitness plan. And don't forget about the other basics of self-care: a healthy diet, getting enough sleep, and tending to any health conditions you have.

5. Don't Take Things Personally.

Try not to blame yourself or others for your problems. Instead, analyze your choices to strive to avoid making the same mistakes twice.

For example, if you've had a nasty breakup, try not to beat yourself up ("I have terrible luck with men/women") or trash your ex ("That liar deserves what s/he gets.") Instead of spending that energy rehashing or ruminating about the things not done in the past, use it to move on.

"Taking things personally leads to guilt and shame, which are disempowering emotions," Borysenko writes in It's Not the End of the World. "Taking responsibility for your actions, on the other hand, can lead to helpful and empowering insights."

6. Be Flexible.

A setback often includes a life-altering change. Experts say many people would do well to be more flexible in handling those changes. When people are not flexible in their ways and ideologies they are not able to enjoy the juice that life offers and the beauty of colorful life they can vie for. Set no right or wrong prior doing any work. Just do it and experiment and experience the truth. This sure would mean a discovery to you. (Klub Psychology)

For example, suppose you lose your job -- but you know the exact job you want next. While on the hunt, you get another job offer -- but it falls short of your dream job, so you don't take it. In being inflexible, you missed a source of income and may have slammed a door that could have led to other opportunities.

"Just knowing you can be more flexible is half the battle," says George Bonanno,PhD,professor and chair of Columbia University's counseling and clinical psychology department and author of The Other Side of Sadness." You can reorient yourself during a crisis and change course as things change. You can say: "OK, I can handle this. What do I need to do now?'"

How to Solve Problems Like the Best

Step back with a cool head and do a little detective work to see if you could handle your setback better.

Charles Figley, PhD, distinguished chair in disaster mental health at Tulane University, suggests asking yourself these questions:

1. What happened?
2. Why did it happen?
3. Why did I act like I did when it happened?
4. Why have I acted the way I have since then?
5. What if something like this happens again?

By answering those questions, "you get the benefit of self-knowledge and self-feedback," Figley says. "But the main thing is to get what is inside out."

By C.M. Gordon
Reviewed by Laura J. Martin, MD and Klub Psychology

Our motto: One step ahead, everyday

Stress Management In Times of Crisis

2010-07-30T20:52:00.000-07:00

When we face everyday stress or even chronic stress, our approach to stress management is different than how we approach crisis stress management. More specifically, everyday stress management is in some ways similar and in other ways different from when we face a major challenge or crisis. We may use similar strategies with everyday stress or crisis-level stress, for example seeking social support or taking a mental break. However, we may be much more intense or focused when facing crisis stress management--rather than talking about our day with a good friend, for example, we may lean on our friends for moral support as well as for practical support with things like cooking meals, help with children, or even sometimes financial assistance. We may seek help from a professional, such as a therapist or coach. We may find a support group. Seeking social support is a strategy for relieving stress that ranges from mild to major, but the level of social support we require can also range from mild to major.

In this way, when we face a crisis, we can use stress management techniques that we already employ in our lives, but in new ways that can help us relieve the greater levels of stress that we may face in a crisis. Here are some suggestions for crisis stress management that include stress management strategies you may already be using, but with a shift.

Social Support

As I mentioned above, when you're having a bad day, you may call a friend for a little venting or support. When you're dealing with the chronic stress of a frustrating job, you may have a group of friends you can talk to about it, or you may seek out support for managing job stress.

When you're facing a bigger crisis, you may take steps for finding greater support and more significant change: friends may bring meals so you don't have to worry about cooking for a while, or they may offer to help in other ways if you just say the word; this is why relationships can be so helpful in times of crisis.

Meditation and Mental Breaks

Eliminating the stress you're experiencing might not always be possible, especially when you're in the throes of a crisis. However, you can give yourself breaks from the stress through meditation and through simply giving yourself mental 'time-out's. Meditation can be helpful not only because it allows you to stop experiencing the thoughts that keep your stress response triggered, but because it allows your body to slow down and relax, and can bring on the relaxation response, which counteracts chronic stress. Long-term meditation can make you less reactive to stress, but in times of crisis, even 5-minute meditations can have a beneficial effect.

Self Care

When experiencing a crisis, stress management can fall by the wayside, and so can self care. However, when we're tired, hungry (or sustained by a poor diet), and sedentary, we can also be more reactive to stress. That's why taking care of our own basic physical needs during a crisis is so important for stress management. In times of everyday stress, it's good to treat your body well; during a crisis, it's essential to focus on healthy eating, getting at least some exercise, and getting quality sleep.

Journaling

Writing about your feelings of stress can be a good way to release them. Writing about things you can do to affect your situation can help you maintain feelings of hope and greater control in a crisis. Writing about three things for which you can feel grateful at the end of each day can help you stay optimistic, maintain gratitude, and relieve stress during a crisis. Crisis stress management can mean utilizing these specific focused techniques while journaling.

Maintain a Positive Attitude

Often what we focus on can make the difference between feeling overwhelmed and successfully managing stress during a crisis. One way to stay positive is through cognitive restructuring--actively cultivating a mindset that focuses on the positive and downplays the negative. During a crisis, finding meaning may be especially valuable, but many types of discipline in thoughts can help.

Prayer and Meditation

Many people find strength in their spirituality, especially during times of crisis. The support of a spiritual community, as well as the strength of spiritual teachings, can be a great source of comfort and stress relief. If you hold spiritual beliefs, don't forget the beneficial effects of prayer as a form of crisis stress management.

Pare Down Your Schedule

When coping with a crisis, it's important to maintain your energy and reserves. That usually means cutting out activities that drain you, aren't enjoyable or are unnecessary. When in crisis mode, we may have to cut deeper into the schedule, with the understanding that we can always add activities back later. Keep only those activities that are absolutely necessary, or that help you to cope. It can be difficult to know what parts of your schedule to sacrifice, but this article on priorities can help.

Professional Help

If you find yourself unable to cope effectively in a crisis, it's important to seek professional help when necessary. If you're not sure, talk to your doctor. Don't forget to take care of yourself by reaching out for resources when necessary.

_Sources: www. _about.com

By: Elizabeth Scott

Our motto: One step ahead, everyday.

Cognitive Distortions and Stress

2010-05-04T20:34:00.000-07:00

When you think about your life, it is quite possible that your mind is playing tricks on you that can distort your view. Cognitive distortions -- where your mind puts a ‘spin’ on the events you see, and attaches a not-so-objective interpretation to what you experience -- happen all the time. They are especially common in people with depression and other mood disorders.

Aaron T. Beck originally came up with the theory of cognitive distortions in the 1960s, and many therapists since then have helped clients live more positive lives by hunting down their cognitive distortions and correcting them. (It’s one of the tenets of a very successful and fast-working mode of therapy called cognitive therapy.)

When you know what to be on the lookout for, it becomes rather easy to spot the cognitive distortions in others. It may be a little more challenging to spot your own, but it is possible. Doing so usually brings lasting positive change in the way you experience stressors in your life.

An interesting thing to note is that several cognitive distortions, can actually work to your advantage. The key is to know when and how to do so. See this article on traits of optimists for the secrets to cognitive distortion success.

Here are the 10 most common (and officially recognized) cognitive distortions, with examples of how they relate to stress. You might find yourself smiling as you recognize one or two as familiar "friends." If, in the coming days, you look for them and gently correct them, you’ll be well on your way to reducing your reactivity to the stress in your life.

1. All-or-Nothing Thinking

This type of distortion is the culprit when people think in extremes, with no gray areas or middle ground. All-or-nothing thinkers often use words like "always" and "never" when describing things. “I always get stuck in traffic!” “My bosses never listen to me!” This type of thinking can magnify the stressors in your life, making them seem like bigger problems than they may, in reality, be. Don’t be extremist at any context is what is suggested.

2. Overgeneralization

Those prone to overgeneralization tend to take isolated events and assume that all future events will be the same. For example, an overgeneralizer who faces a rude sales clerk may start believing that all sales clerks are rude and that shopping will always be a stressful experience. It’s a sort of presumption and rumination.

3. Mental Filter

Those who use mental filtering as their distortion of choice tend to gloss over positive events and hold a magnifying glass to the negative. Ten things can go right, but a person operating under the influence of a mental filter may only notice the one thing that goes wrong. (Add a little overgeneralization and all-or-nothing thinking to the equation, and you have a recipe for stress.) Pondering over negative things as especially seen in maniac and depressed is a prime cognitive distorter.

4. Disqualifying the Positive

Similar to mental filtering, those who disqualify the positive tend to treat positive events like flukes, thereby clinging to a more negative world view and set of low expectations for the future. Have you ever tried to help a friend solve a problem, only to have every solution you pose shot down with a "Yeah but..." response? You’ve witnessed this cognitive distortion firsthand.

5. Jumping to Conclusions

People do this one all the time. Rather than letting the evidence bring them to a logical conclusion, they set their sights on a conclusion (often negative), and then look for evidence to back it up, ignoring evidence to the contrary. The kid who decides that everyone in his new class will hate him, and ‘knows’ that they’re only acting nice to him in order to avoid punishment, is jumping to conclusions. Conclusion-jumpers can often fall prey to mind reading (where they believe that they know the true intentions of others without talking to them- paranoid ideations) and fortune telling (predicting how things will turn out in the future and believing these predictions to be true). Can you think of examples of adults you know who do this? I bet you can.

Negative Thinking Patterns

There are 5 more cognitive distortions to learn about that happen all the time.

Cognitive distortions and negative thinking styles are common, and they keep us stressed-out and stuck. Page 1 of this feature covers 5 common negative thinking patterns and explains how they contribute to stress. Here are the other 5 negative thinking patterns that you need to look out for:

6. Magnifications and Minimization

Similar to mental filtering and disqualifying the positive, this cognitive distortion involves placing a stronger emphasis on negative events and downplaying the positive ones. The customer service representative who only notices the complaints of customers and fails to notice positive interactions is a victim of magnification and minimization. Another form of this distortion is known as catastrophizing, where one imagines and then expects the worst possible scenario. It can lead to a lot of stress.

7. Emotional Reasoning

This one is a close relative of jumping to conclusions in that it involves ignoring certain facts when drawing conclusions. Emotional reasoners will consider their emotions about a situation as evidence rather than objectively looking at the facts. “I’m feeling completely overwhelmed, therefore my problems must be completely beyond my ability to solve them,” or, “I’m angry with you; therefore, you must be in the wrong here,” are both examples of faulty emotional reasoning. Acting on these beliefs as fact can, understandably, contribute to even more problems to solve.

8. Should Statements

Those who rely on ‘should statements’ tend to have rigid rules, set by themselves or others, that always need to be followed -- at least in their minds. They think absolutely but are not able to act absolutely. Rather they should have thought relatively and acted absolutely. They don’t see flexibility in different circumstances, and they put themselves under considerable stress trying to live up to these self-imposed expectations. If your internal dialogue involves a large number of ‘shoulds,’ you may be under the influence of this cognitive distortion. I am right and you are wrong is what they always stresses.

9. Labeling and Mislabeling

Those who label or mislabel will habitually place labels that are often inaccurate or negative on themselves and others. “He’s a whiner/complainer.” “She’s a phony.” “I’m just a useless worrier.” These labels tend to define people and contribute to a one-dimensional view of them, paving the way for overgeneralizations to move in. Labeling cages people into roles that don’t always apply and prevents us from seeing people (ourselves included) as we really are. It’s also a big no-no in relationship conflicts.

10. Personalization

Those who personalize their stressors tend to blame themselves or others for things over which they have no control, creating stress where it need not be. Those prone to personalization tend to blame themselves for the actions of others, or blame others for their own feelings.

If any of these feel a little too familiar, that’s a good thing: recognizing a cognitive distortion is the first step of moving past it. See this article for tips on cognitive restructuring, the process of moving beyond cognitive distortions.

By Elizabeth Scott, M.S., About.com Guide

Reviewed by the Klub Psychology

Our motto: One step ahead, everyday.

A healthy sex life — at any age!

2010-04-25T20:19:00.000-07:00

No men or women over the age of 50 would argue that their sex life is just the same as it was when they were 20. Maybe it’s better. Maybe it’s worse. But either way, it’s bound to be different.

Just as the body changes with age, so does sexuality. This physical transformation usually includes declining hormone levels for both men and women, as well as changes in neurology and circulation. These shifts often lead to a variety of sexual problems such as erectile dysfunction or vaginal dryness. A wide array of medical treatments are now available to address these and other conditions.

Outward appearances also change with age, sometimes bringing a decline in self-confidence in the sexual arena. Nearly everyone experiences some of these changes. But they don’t spell the end of a sex life for most older people.

Both physical and emotional issues can interfere with a good sex life. Sometimes they intertwine, causing breakdowns in communication and inhibitions that cause sexuality to sputter and stall. But these are not problems you must live with. Instead, treatments are available that can improve if not cure most physical problems.

Self-help techniques and counseling can bring relief to relationship problems. By shifting your focus away from your perceived flaws to your attributes, you can boost your self-esteem and establish your own standards for attractiveness.

Think back on what it was that made you attractive in your younger years. Was it your soulful brown eyes, your crooked smile, or maybe your infectious laugh? Chances are, those qualities are still as appealing as ever. Also, try directing your attention to the experience of giving and receiving pleasure during sex. Non cooperation during sex declines the libido in the counterpart.

One should understand that being satisfied from sex is related to the emotional touch given during the physical sex. This can help you find the confidence to give yourself over to the experience. Great sex is often the outgrowth of a deep emotional connection — something that’s not guaranteed by having a perfect body. A negative self-image isn’t always rooted in your appearance.

Career setbacks or other disappointments can lead to feelings of failure and depression, both of which sap desire. For men, episodes of impotence can undercut confidence in their manhood. Research have correlated that anxiety is directly related to the premature ejaculation, which have every tendency to distract people from the sexual activities.

No matter what its cause, a poor self-image can take a toll on your sex life. When performance anxiety develops as a result, it can spark a downward spiral of repeated sexual failure and diminishing self-esteem. Correcting this problem demands serious attention to its origin.

Many of the physical changes that come with age have noticeable effects on the sex organs and the sexual cycle. Thus, the careful lovemaking of a 70-something couple may bear little resemblance to the lusty pairings of 20-year-olds. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Greater experience, fewer inhibitions, and a deeper understanding of your needs and those of your partner can more than compensate for the consequences of aging. The physical changes of aging can provide an impetus for developing a new and satisfying style of lovemaking.

Sexuality in later life
Middle-aged and older adults no longer accept such myths as “Sex is only for young people” and “Sex isn’t important to older adults.” A study conducted by AARP, “Sexuality at Midlife and Beyond,” illustrates this. These are some of the findings:

1) Five out of six of the respondents disagreed with the statement that “Sex is only for younger people.”
2) Six out of 10 people stated that sexual activity was a crucial part of a good relationship.
3) Only 10% of adults reported that they don’t particularly enjoy sex, and just 12% agreed that they would be quite happy never having sex again.

Review by: Klub Psychology

Our motto: One step ahead, everyday.

365 Nights of Sex: Can It Strengthen a Marriage?

2010-03-05T19:52:00.000-08:00

When their marriages fell into the doldrums, two long-married couples decided to find out if having sex every day could boost their relationships.

If you decided to have sex every day, would your relationship benefit?
Two long-married couples decided to find out. When lovemaking fell off their respective "to-do" lists, they ditched the sweats, bought sex toys and books, stepped up exercise, lit candles, and took trips. Then they chronicled their "sexperiment" in two recently released books, Just Do It: How One Couple Turned Off the TV and Turned On Their Sex Lives for 101 Days (No Excuses!) by Doug Brown and 365 Nights: A Memoir of Intimacy by Charla Muller with Betsy Thorpe.

But will daily sex really help a relationship that's hit a rough patch? Some experts say yes; others aren't so sure. As for the two couples who tried it, the Browns and the Mullers, both say the experiment strengthened their marriages in -- and out -- of the bedroom.

Charla Muller had been married for eight years to her husband, Brad, when she embarked on what she calls "the year of the gift" as a way to celebrate her husband's 40th birthday Rather than fixing anything wrong in her marriage, she writes that frequent sex made her happier, less angry, and less stressed.

Doug Brown's wife, Annie Brown, initiated the offer of daily sex after hearing about sexless marriages on Oprah. He had a similar revelation after they started having daily sex. A feature writer for The Denver Post, Brown writes of releasing "an avalanche of flesh pleasures upon our relationship."

"There's a special sense of being desired that only comes from sex," he tells WebMD. "You can be good at your job or at sports, but the daily confirmation you get through sex is a super feeling."

Reversing the Downward Sex Spiral
According to the National Opinion Research Center, the average American couple reports having sex 66 times a year. Newsweek has noted that 15% to 20% of couples have sex less than 10 times a year, which is defined as a "sexless" marriage.

Familiarity, advancing age, work pressures, the challenges of raising a family, and household responsibilities all conspire against regular sex among many otherwise loving couples who feel too harried to get physical.

As according to the researches conducted by Klub Psychology in urban areas like Kathmandu and Pokhara of Nepal, the problem with the urban families, who have migrated from rural background or from other cites to a new city for careers and opportunities, the problem is created due to the two rented room where they live.

They have a family with children who share these two rooms for play, study and living. There are high chances that the couple doesn’t get enough space and time to create a love making affairs. In the long run their marriage and sexual life are both affected. These families don’t have enough economy to lease any hotel or motel room once in a week for their sex (alas the pressurized sex in their room becomes just an ejaculatory mechanism and there is absolute no imtimacy) and also because they have a family with small children to look after and a bigger responsibility to take over. And most couple after few years of marriage are bored with each other because they have nothing to recreate in their sex life.

When Doug Brown and his wife began their experiment in 2006, they were juggling two kids and two jobs. Married for 14 years, they averaged sex three times a month. And he admits he had performance anxiety.

"I felt I had to be a porn star or an Olympic gold medalist. That melted away with [daily] sex. We learned so much about each other. Sex became much more playful and that translated into a more playful union. We regained electricity that wasn't always there before."

They also lost their inhibitions and embarrassment about the subject and gained confidence. "Now we can talk about anything."

The Mullers had a similar experience.
"I didn't realize how much not being [regularly] intimate stressed our relationship," Charla Muller tells WebMD. "I was a bit of a dodger, because I felt pressure to make it fabulous, because who knows when it will come around again? Now I'm not willing to give it up again."
She says an unexpected benefit of daily sex was the kindness it required of the couple.

"I wasn't expecting that. I thought we would only have to be really nice after hours. But we both had to bring our best game to the marriage every day. That was an important part of what went on behind closed doors."

The Science of Frequent Sex
Helen Fisher, PhD, a research professor and member of the Center for Human Evolutionary Studies in the department of anthropology at Rutgers University, says couples trigger sex drive, romance, and attachment -- along with their attendant hormones, testosterone, dopamine, and oxytocin -- with regular sexual activity.

Fisher is an advocate of frequent sex.

She says that in some hunting and gathering societies, such as the Kung bushmen in the southern Kalahari, couples often make love every day for relaxation. Unlike our time-pressed culture, there is more leisure time.

"Sex is designed to make you feel good for a reason," says Fisher. "With someone you love, I recommend it for many reasons: It's good for your health and good for your relationship. It's good for respiration, muscles, and bladder control. It's a fine antidepressant, and it can renew your energy."

Andrea M. Macari, PhD, a clinical psychologist who specializes in sex therapy in Great Neck, N.Y., says the theories presented in the two books reflect sex therapy literature.
"Regular sex actually increases sexual desire in the couple," she tells WebMD. "In other words, the more you 'do it,' the more the individuals will seek it. You develop a desire that wasn't normally there. The act itself is reinforcing."

But she points out that sex doesn't have to be "mind-blowing."

"I encourage couples to have 'good enough' sex. This sets realistic expectations and often lowers anxiety. Sex is like pizza: even when it's bad, it's usually still pretty good. On a scale from one to 10, good-enough sex is between 5 and 7."

Doug Brown admits that he and his wife were tired on many nights. But, he says, "Once we started, we got in the mood. We were never sorry we did it."

Scheduled Sex: Good for Your Relationship?
"The two married couples who document having sex on a daily basis are great role models for other couples who want to take their relationship to a higher level of intimacy," says Ava Cadell, PhD, founder and president of Loveology University and a certified sex counselor.

Cadell's six-week course called "Passion Power" includes a commitment form, a questionnaire, and daily sensual exercises to help couples deepen their bond. "When a couple makes a commitment to explore and expand their sexuality together, they become 100% fluent in the art of love, intimacy, and sexuality. They can stay in lust forever."

But some experts think scheduled sex can backfire.

Pepper Schwartz, PhD, a professor of sociology at the University of Washington in Seattle, says, "Whether or not it works, most couples can't do it. Those who do maintain that kind of schedule have either a sexual appetite of Olympian proportions or have at least one partner who finds that as their most important way of staying connected and the other partner has tremendous grace and goodwill. There are no couples I have ever met that are in that good a mood, or have that kind of energy every day. So this is a model that will appeal to few and be practiced by even fewer."

But, she concedes, staying sexually and emotionally connected on a frequent basis has merit.

"Sexual attraction and sexual arousal bring to bear two very important hormones, dopamine and oxytocin, both of which create bliss and bonding. Even if the lovemaking session started out with only a modest amount of interest, once arousal starts, these hormones create attachment, pleasure, and intimacy. So while everyday sex isn't necessary, frequent sex is a great bonus and even an essential part of most couple's commitment and happiness with one another."

Stress management expert Debbie Mandel, MA, thinks such sex might be a bit "gimmicky" and could lead to dissatisfaction.

"In many cases, abstinence makes the heart grow fonder. You don't have to abstain for a long period of time -- a few days off creates anticipation and eagerness. You might love steak, but having it every night diminishes the gustatory pleasure. Habituate yourself to regular sex, but don't ever let love become a routine, a robotic obligatory habit."

Doug Brown disagrees. He says setting up a period of time -- be it a long weekend, a week, or a month -- is a way to jump-start a sagging sexual relationship. "It should be possible for any couple to do it for a week and for it not to be a chore. It's free and it's fun. Why not plan it and take advantage of it? Anticipation is a big part of sex."

Having sex every day may be unrealistic for most couples, but if you and your partner want to ramp up your sex life, experts offer the following tips for success:

Increase in increments. Muller recommends couples start by doubling their frequency. Then doubling it again in six months.

Re-examine your sex life -- often. Though they now average sex three times a week, Doug Brown says his wife recently told him they need a "tune-up," or a mini-marathon of sex.

Act on your desires. "Whenever you have the urge, says Macari, head straight for the bedroom. The more time [that elapses] between having the idea and following up and you'll lose motivation."
Fake it till you make it. Several experts agree: Even if you aren't in the mood, once you begin, you'll enjoy sex.

By Suzanne WrightWebMD Feature
Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD

Some features from the researches of Klub Psychology.

Our motto: One step ahead, everyday.

7 ways to keep your memory sharp at any age

2010-03-04T04:49:00.000-08:00

As we grow older, we all start to notice some changes in our ability to remember things. Maybe you’ve gone into the kitchen and can’t remember why, or can’t recall a familiar name during a conversation. You may even miss an appointment because it slipped your mind. Memory lapses can occur at any age, but we tend to get more upset by them as we get older because we fear they’re a sign of dementia, or loss of intellectual function. The fact is, significant memory loss in older people isn’t a normal part of aging—but is due to organic disorders, brain injury, or neurological illness, with Alzheimer’s being among the most feared.

Most of the fleeting memory problems that we experience with age reflect normal changes in the structure and function of the brain. These changes can slow certain cognitive processes, making it a bit harder to learn new things quickly or screen out distractions that can interfere with memory and learning. Granted, these changes can be frustrating and may seem far from benign when we need to learn new skills or juggle myriad responsibilities. Thanks to decades of research, there are various strategies we can use to protect and sharpen our minds. Here are seven you might try.

1. Keep learning
A higher level of education is associated with better mental functioning in old age. Experts think that advanced education may help keep memory strong by getting a person into the habit of being mentally active. Challenging your brain with mental exercise is believed to activate processes that help maintain individual brain cells and stimulate communication among them. Many people have jobs that keep them mentally active, but pursuing a hobby or learning a new skill can function the same way. Read; join a book group; play chess or bridge; write your life story; do crossword or jigsaw puzzles; take a class; pursue music or art; design a new garden layout. At work, propose or volunteer for a project that involves a skill you don’t usually use. Building and preserving brain connections is an ongoing process, so make lifelong learning a priority.

2. Use all your senses
The more senses you use in learning something, the more of your brain will be involved in retaining the memory. In one study, adults were shown a series of emotionally neutral images, each presented along with a smell. They were not asked to remember what they saw. Later, they were shown a set of images, this time without odors, and asked to indicate which they’d seen before. They had excellent recall for all odor-paired pictures, and especially for those associated with pleasant smells. Brain imaging indicated that the piriform cortex, the main odor-processing region of the brain, became active when people saw objects originally paired with odors, even though the smells were no longer present and the subjects hadn’t tried to remember them. So challenge all your senses as you venture into the unfamiliar. For example, try to guess the ingredients as you smell and taste a new restaurant dish. Give sculpting or ceramics a try, noticing the feel and smell of the materials you’re using.

3. Believe in yourself
Myths about aging can contribute to a failing memory. Middle-aged and older learners do worse on memory tasks when they’re exposed to negative stereotypes about aging and memory, and better when the messages are positive about memory preservation into old age. People who believe that they are not in control of their memory function are less likely to work at maintaining or improving their memory skills and therefore are more likely to experience cognitive decline. If you believe you can improve and you translate that belief into practice, you have a better chance of keeping your mind sharp.

4. Economize your brain use
If you don’t need to use mental energy remembering where you laid your keys or the time of your granddaughter’s birthday party, you’ll be better able to concentrate on learning and remembering new and important things. Take advantage of calendars and planners, maps, shopping lists, file folders, and address books to keep routine information accessible. Designate a place at home for your glasses, purse, keys, and other items you use often. Remove clutter from your office or home to minimize distractions, so you can focus on new information that you want to remember.

5. Repeat what you want to know
When you want to remember something you’ve just heard, read, or thought about, repeat it out loud or write it down. That way, you reinforce the memory or connection. For example, if you’ve just been told someone’s name, use it when you speak with him or her: “So, John, where did you meet Camille?” If you place one of your belongings somewhere other than its usual spot, tell yourself out loud what you’ve done. And don’t hesitate to ask for information to be repeated.

6. Space it out
Repetition is most potent as a learning tool when it’s properly timed. It’s best not to repeat something many times in a short period, as if you were cramming for an exam. Instead, re-study the essentials after increasingly longer periods of time — once an hour, then every few hours, then every day. Spacing out periods of study is particularly valuable when you are trying to master complicated information, such as the details of a new work assignment. Research shows that spaced rehearsal improves recall not only in healthy people but also in those with certain physically based cognitive problems, such as those associated with multiple sclerosis.

7. Make a mnemonic

This is a creative way to remember lists. Mnemonic devices can take the form of acronyms (such as RICE to remember first-aid advice for injured limbs: Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation) or sentences (such as the classic “Every good boy does fine” to remember the musical notes E, G, B, D, and F on the lines of the treble clef).

Sources: Harvard Medical School

Our motto: One step ahead, everyday.

Healthcare-associated infections

2010-02-01T23:19:00.000-08:00

When someone develops an infection at a hospital or other patient care facility that they did not have prior to treatment, this is referred to as a healthcare-associated (sometimes hospital-acquired) infection (HAI).

Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) are a global crisis affecting both patients and health careworkers.According to the World Health Organization (WHO), at any point in time, 1.4 million people worldwide suffer from infections acquired in hospitals. A Centers for Disease Control (CDC) report published in March-April 2007 estimated the number of U.S. deaths from healthcare associated infections in 2002 at 98,987.

The risk of acquiring healthcare-associated infections in developing countries is 2-20 times higher than in developed countries.Afflicting thousands of patients every year, HAI often leads to lengthening hospitalization, increasing the likelihood of readmission, and adding sizably to the cost of care per patient.Financially, HAIs represent an estimated annual impact of $6.7 billion to healthcare facilities, but the human cost is even higher.

Until recently, a lack of HAI reporting requirements for healthcare facilities has contributed to less-than-optimal emphasis being placed on eliminating the sources of healthcare associated infections. However, growing public anxiety regarding the issue and resulting legislation on state and local levels demanding accountability is serving to accelerate initiatives to combat HAIs.

Types of Healthcare-Associated Infections

Ventilator - Associated Pneumonia (VAP)

Surgical Site Infections (SSIs)

Cross Contamination (Contact Transfer)

Sources: http://www.haiwatch.com/.

Our motto: One step ahead, everyday.

Anger: Heart Disease

2010-01-08T23:30:00.000-08:00

How Anger Hurts Your Heart?

Yellers, ragers, and door slammers beware -- frequent high levels of anger have now been linked to heart disease.

If you knew that frequent anger might raise your risk of heart disease significantly, would you continue to blow off steam by yelling and smashing things during an argument or getting furious if the office email crashes during a rushed, stressful day?

It's time for hot heads to take heed: Increasingly, the negative, irritable, raging, and intimidating personality type worries heart researchers and doctors alike. "You're talking about people who seem to experience high levels of anger very frequently," says Laura Kubzansky, PhD, MPH, an associate professor at the Harvard School of Public Health in Cambridge, Mass., who has studied the role of stress and emotions on cardiovascular disease.

The key here is "high" levels. Moderate anger may not be the problem, according to Kubzansky. In fact, expressing anger in reasonable ways can be healthy. "Being able to tell people that you're angry can be extremely functional," she says. But explosive people who hurl objects or scream at others may be at greater risk for heart disease, as well as those who harbor suppressed rage, she says. "Either end of the continuum is problematic."

Anger's Physiological Effects on the Heart
So how exactly does anger contribute to heart disease? Scientists don't know for sure, but anger might produce direct physiological effects on the heart and arteries. Emotions such as anger and hostility quickly activate the "fight or flight response," in which stress hormones, including adrenaline and cortisol, speed up your heart rate and breathing and give you a burst of energy. Blood pressure also rises as your blood vessels constrict.

While this stress response mobilizes you for emergencies, it might cause harm if activated repeatedly. "You get high cortisol and high adrenaline levels and that is the cardiotoxic effect of anger expression," says Jerry Kiffer, MA, a heart-brain researcher at the Cleveland Clinic's Psychological Testing Center. "It causes wear and tear on the heart and cardiovascular system." Frequent anger may speed up the process of atherosclerosis, in which fatty plaques build up in arteries, Kiffer says. The heart pumps harder, blood vessels constrict, blood pressure surges, and there are higher levels of glucose in the blood and more fat globules in the blood vessels. All this, scientists believe, can cause damage to artery walls.

And anger might not be the only culprit. In Kubzansky's own research, she found that high levels of anxiety and depression may contribute to heart disease risk, too. "They tend to co-occur," she says. "People who are angry a lot tend to have other chronic negative emotions as well."

Emotions and the Heart
According to an analysis of findings from 44 studies published last year in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, evidence supports the link between emotions and heart disease. To be specific, anger and hostility are significantly associated with more heart problems in initially healthy people, as well as a worse outcome for patients already diagnosed with heart disease.

The same study also showed that chronically angry or hostile adults with no history of heart trouble might be 19% more likely than their more placid peers to develop heart disease. The researchers found that anger and hostility seemed to do more harm to men's hearts than women's. Among patients already diagnosed with heart disease, those with angry or hostile temperaments were 24% more likely than other heart patients to have a poor prognosis.

In light of such findings, some doctors now consider anger a heart disease risk factor that can be modified, just as people can lower their cholesterol or blood pressure. "We're really good at treating heart attacks, but we're not that good at preventing them," says Holly S. Andersen, MD, cardiologist and director of education and outreach at the Ronald O. Perelman Heart Institute at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center. "Stress is not as easy to measure as your cholesterol level or your blood pressure, which are clearly objective. But it's really important that physicians start taking care of the whole person -- including their moods and their lives -- because it matters." The bottom line: "A change of mind can lead to a change of heart," Kiffer says.

Coping With Anger
Got a hair-trigger temper? Counseling and anger management might help in the long term, but what can you do for a quick fix?

Recognizing signs that you're getting angry and shifting your frame of mind will help, says Wayne Sotile, PhD, author of Thriving With Heart Disease. The next time you feel your anger -- and heart rate -- rising, try these coping statements to get a grip fast:

"I can't accomplish anything by blaming other people, even if they are responsible for the problem. I'll try another angle"

"Will this matter five years from now? (Five hours? Five minutes?)"

"If I'm still angry about this tomorrow, I'll deal with it then. But for now, I'm just going to cool off."

"Acting angry is not the same as showing that I care."

By Katherine KamWebMD the Magazine - Feature
Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD

Our motto: One step ahead, everyday.

Hangover

2010-01-04T23:18:00.000-08:00

The alarm goes off, and it feels as if someone is hitting you with a hammer. It is the next morning after a night of drinking, and your head is pounding and your body is aching. Your mouth is dry, and you are thirsty. You try to move to a more comfortable position, and it only hurts more. To make matters worse, when you move, you discover that you are dizzy and nauseated. The room seems as if it is spinning. You put one foot on the floor to make it stop. It doesn't work. You have a hangover.

What Is a Hangover?
The term hangover refers to a constellation of unpleasant and painful symptoms that can develop after drinking too much alcohol. Those symptoms can range from mild discomfort to the more severe symptoms described above.

There is no set amount of alcohol that will cause a hangover, since each individual reacts to alcohol differently, but generally, the more you had to drink, the more severe the hangover symptoms.

The Symptoms of a Hangover
Most of the unpleasant symptoms experienced during a hangover are caused by two factors: the diuretic alcohol effect that causes the drinker to become dehydrated, and the toxic effects of alcohol poisoning of many systems of the body.

Excessive amounts of alcohol can affect the liver, the brain, the gastrointestinal system, the central nervous system and sensory perception. It can disrupt your sleep and other body rhythms, affect your mood and affect your attention and concentration.

The Causes of a Hangover
Most of the symptoms experienced during a hangover are caused by the direct effect of alcohol on the body's systems, as mentioned above, but there are many other factors that can add to the unpleasantness of a hangover that are not direct effects of the alcohol consumed.

Hangover symptoms can also be caused by the withdrawal of alcohol from the body, the effects of metabolites produced when alcohol is consumed, other chemicals found in alcoholic beverages, behaviors associated with drinking and personal characteristics of the drinker.

The Cure for Hangovers
There are many traditional practices that are thought to alleviate hangover symptoms, but some of them are unfounded myths that really don't help much at all. There are some practices that can actually make matters worse.

Left alone, hangover symptoms will go away on their own within eight to 24 hours, but when your head is pounding and the room is spinning, any treatment that can bring relief can sound like a good idea.

Preventing a Hangover
The best cure for a hangover is to never get one in the first place. People who drink nonalcoholic beverages do not get hangovers, and generally speaking, those who drink moderate amounts -- one drink a day for women and no more than two a day for men -- do not experience hangover symptoms.

If you drink any alcohol at all, though, you can experience negative consequences the next morning. Although there is no sure way to eliminate all of the unpleasantness of a hangover, there are steps that you can take to reduce the severity of the symptoms.

The Hangover as a Deterrent
For many people who experience a particularly severe hangover, it can be the motivation to never drink excessively again. It happens every day: someone has a very bad experience after drinking too much and they simply make a decision to quit drinking and they never drink again.

But it is not the case for all the people and that they don't easily decide to quit the drinking habit. For some people (usually psychologically dependents on alcohol), who are motivated to drink a particular day, may experience a prior psychological intoxication. This psychological intoxication may be more intense than the physiological intoxication and there are chances that it could be enough euphoric. It is this more intense psychological intoxication, that they never want to quit the drinking habit. This is because, as once a psychological need is gratified, people have a strong desire for the same need again. (As from the researches of Klub Psychology)

Others, though, continue to drink despite repeated bouts with severe hangover symptoms. Continuing to drink despite negative consequences can be sign of alcoholism or alcohol dependence or, at the very least, alcohol abuse. Heavy drinkers who have sworn to themselves "never again" during a hangover, but return to drinking a short time later, have, by definition, a drinking problem.

People who do not drink alcohol do not get hangovers. People who drink small amounts of alcohol rarely get hangovers. People who drink nonalcoholic beverages or those will very small amounts of alcohol within them rarely get hangovers.

However, people who drink to the point of intoxication usually experience some hangover symptoms. Among those who drink until they are intoxicated, those who drink large amounts of alcohol generally have more hangover symptoms compared with those who drink less.

Therefore, the best cure for a hangover is to prevent it from happening in the first place by not drinking alcohol at all, or by drinking very modest amounts. There are other steps that can help in hangover prevention, but once the symptoms of a hangover begin, there are few options that actually bring relief.

Some of the widely used, traditional hangover "cures" really do little to relieve symptoms and some of them can actually make the situation worse.

What Does Not Work?
There are several myths and urban legends surrounding curing a hangover that have been around for years. Most of them have no scientific basis:

· The Hair of the Dog That Bit You - The practice of having a drink the next morning to ward off the effects of a hangover doesn't really work in the long run, contrary to popular belief. Since the worse hangover symptoms occur when the drinker's blood alcohol content returns to zero, taking a drink the next morning only delays the inevitable. It may lessen the symptoms in the short term, but giving the liver more alcohol to metabolize will only increase the discomfort later. Additionally, a morning-after drink can lead to more drinking and can contribute to eventual alcohol dependence.

· Black Coffee - Coffee may relieve the feeling of fatigue associated with hangover and help alleviate the headache symptoms by restricting blood vessels, but that relief is only temporary and the symptoms will return. More importantly, coffee acts as a diuretic further dehydrating the body and increasing the hangover symptoms. Again, coffee may lessen some symptoms initially, but in the long run may cause more problems.

· Taking Tylenol Before Going to Bed - This treatment seems to make sense, but it fails on two levels. First, the effects of acetaminophen (Tylenol) will usually wear off before the onset of hangover symptoms. It would be better to take it after the symptoms begin. Additionally, when the liver is processing alcohol it cannot process acetaminophen as it usually does, which can cause liver inflammation and possible permanent liver damage.

· Eating Fried or Greasy Foods - If you eat foods with a lot of fat before drinking, the oils can coat your stomach lining and slow down the absorption of alcohol. This can help prevent the severity of a hangover. However, eating greasy food the morning after a drinking bout will probably only add to the gastrointestinal malaise by irritating the stomach and intestines.

· Eating Burnt Toast - Carbon can act like a filter in the body and activated charcoal is used to treat some types of poisonings, but the carbon found on burnt toast is not activated charcoal and it does not work the same in the body. Over-the-counter products sold as hangover cures that contain carbon are intended to be taking before drinking, not after the hangover begins.

What Does Work to Relieve Hangovers?
The only real cure for a hangover is time. If no more alcohol is consumed, hangover symptoms should subside between eight and 24 hours. There are some things that can be done to relieve some of the most severe symptoms.

· Water or Sports Drinks - The dehydration effects of alcohol causes some of the most discomfort associated with hangovers -- headache, dizziness, and lightheadedness. The quickest way to relieve those symptoms is to drink lots of water. Sports drinks, such as Gatorade, will not only relieve dehydration, but also replace needed electrolytes.

· Painkillers - Aspirin and ibuprofen (Advil or Motrin) may reduce hangover headache and muscle pain, but should not be used if you are experiencing abdominal pain or nausea. The medications themselves are gastric irritants and can compound gastrointestinal hangover symptoms. Acetaminophen (Tylenol) should not be taken during a hangover because alcohol metabolism enhances acetaminophen's toxicity. Also, ibuprofen taken when dehydrated can sometimes cause kidney dysfunction especially in persons with poor kidney function.

· Eggs - Because eggs contain cysteine, which breaks down acetaldehyde in the body, eating eggs the morning after a drinking binge could help remove the hangover-causing alcohol metobolite toxin from the body.

· Bananas - Alcohol, like any diuretic, depletes the body of potassium. Eating bananas, or other fruit high in potassium, while having hangover symptoms can replenish the potassium and lost electrolytes. Sports drinks typically are good sources of potassium.

· Bouillon Soup - If you can't handle the idea of eating anything solid while experiencing severe hangover symptoms, try some bouillon soup. It also can help replace salt and potassium lost during a drinking binge.

· Fruit or Fruit Juice - Consuming fruit or fruit juice while hungover can increase energy, replaces vitamins and nutrients and has been shown to speed up the body's process of getting rid of toxins. Fruits and fruit juices therefore can help decrease the intensity of hangover symptoms.

The Bottom Line
Drinking as much water as possible over the course of the evening and before you go to bed will relieve a great deal of the hangover symptoms caused by dehydration. But only time will cure the hangover symptoms caused by the alcohol poisoning effects of excessive drinking.

Sources: http://www.about.com/

Our motto: One step ahead, everyday.

Healthy coping during holiday stress

2009-12-30T00:53:00.000-08:00

The holiday season can be a stressful time. With the combined stressors of holiday shopping, financial strain, difficult relatives, travel stress and a busy schedule of demands, many people find themselves more stressed than usual. Women, who often shoulder the bulk of the added holiday burden as far as baking, shopping, coordinating, party-throwing and planning are concerned, are often particularly stressed during this time.

This added stress can come out in many different ways. Some people respond to stress emotionally, either feeling anxiety, depression or anger and frustration. Others respond with a weakened immune system, getting sick more frequently (which is more of a danger during this season anyway, as people crowd indoors and swap germs in airports and malls). Others just power through and find themselves battling burnout by the end of the year.

As people try to cope with all these stressors, relatively few people take the time to learn new stress management practices; most just use their regular coping tactics, but to a greater degree. This is fine for people who normally cope with stress in a healthy way. For many people--people who do use some healthy coping techniques--also cope with stress in unhealthy ways, either with 'comfort food', a glass of wine, a shopping trip or something similar. These behaviors aren't the healthiest coping techniques to begin with, but they aren't generally as harmful as when they're taken to an extreme. Under increased pressure, mildly unhealthy coping becomes emotional overeating, excessive drinking, chain smoking, compulsive buying, and the like. And these responses to stress generally add more stress.

How does one deal?

By replacing unhealthy coping with healthy stress management techniques.

First, finding some healthier ways to reduce stress can make quite a difference here because, when there is less stress to react to, unhealthy responses can diminish. Also, when healthy coping skills are substituted for unhealthy ones, it's easier to let go of unhealthy habits. Finally, after working harder at healthy stress management (which can include ideas mentioned in the resources below), if you still find yourself feeling overwhelmed with stress or coping in a way that causes problems in other areas of your life, it might be a good idea to talk to someone and find resources to help.

Holiday stress can be a bit daunting, but it can also be just the thing you need to cause you to reexamine your lifestyle and your reactions to stress, and create healthier habits for the coming year, and for your future. Here are some resources to help.

Handling Family Conflict

Going to see your family (or your partner's) can be wonderful and stressful, all at once! While it might be really special and fun seeing everyone (or not--some of you know what I mean!), it can also be stressful for a number of reasons. There might be a relative that you love, but can only take in small doses. You may find yourself or your partner acting differently around your families of origin, and not know how to adjust. You may stress about gifts, alliances, roles, events or any number of things. Or you may get homesick because things are just so darn fun when you see your family! Whatever the stress you may face, I think I have a resource or two here that can help you diffuse stress from the situation. Check out the articles below.

Research shows that supportive relationships are good for our mental and physical health. However, dealing with difficult people and maintaining ongoing negative relationships is actually detrimental to our health. It’s a good idea to diminish or eliminate relationships that are filled with conflict. But what do you do if the person in question is a family member, co-worker, or someone you otherwise can’t easily eliminate from your life?

The following are tips for dealing with difficult people who are in your life, for better or for worse:
Difficulty: Average
Time Required: Ongoing

Here's How:
Avoid discussing divisive and personal issues, like religion and politics, or other issues that tend to cause conflict. If the other person tries to engage you in a discussion that will probably become an argument, change the subject or leave the room.

In dealing with difficult people, don’t try to change the other person; you will only get into a power struggle, cause defensiveness, invite criticism, or otherwise make things worse. It also makes you a more difficult person to deal with.

Change your response to the other person; this is all you have the power to change. For example, don’t feel you need to accept abusive behavior. You can use assertive communication to draw boundaries when the other person chooses to treat you in an unacceptable way.

Remember that most relationship difficulties are due to a dynamic between two people rather than one person being unilaterally "bad." Here’s a list of things to avoid in dealing with conflict.

Do you do any of them?
Try to look for the positive aspects of others, especially when dealing with family, and focus on them. The other person will feel more appreciated, and you will likely enjoy your time together more.

However, don’t pretend the other person’s negative traits don’t exist. Don’t tell your secrets to a gossip, rely on a flake, or look for affection from someone who isn’t able to give it. This is part of accepting them for who they are.

Get your needs met from others who are able to meet your needs. Tell your secrets to a trustworthy friend who's a good listener, or process your feelings through journaling, for example. Rely on people who have proven themselves to be trustworthy and supportive. This will help you and the other person by taking pressure off the relationship and removing a source of conflict.

Know when it’s time to distance yourself, and do so. If the other person can’t be around you without antagonizing you, minimizing contact may be key. If they’re continually abusive, it's best to cut ties and let them know why. Explain what needs to happen if there ever is to be a relationship, and let it go. (If the offending party is a boss or co-worker, you may consider switching jobs.)

Tips:
Try not to place blame on yourself or the other person for the negative interactions. It may just be a case of your two personalities fitting poorly.

Remember that you don't have to be close with everyone; just being polite goes a long way toward getting along and appropriately dealing with difficult people.

Work to maintain a sense of humor -- difficulties will roll off your back much more easily. Shows like "The Office" and books like David Sedaris' Naked can help you see the humor in dealing with difficult people.

Be sure to cultivate other more positive relationships in your life to offset the negativity of dealing with difficult people.

Combating holiday overeating

The holiday season is a notoriously bad time for the waistline. In fact, just thinking about December makes some people swear they've put on a pound or two! While this tends to be a time of year that people want to look their best--most people see family and friends galore at holiday parties and gatherings and want to look nice dressed up, or be remembered as looking their best--it's also a time when staying svelte is most difficult. Think about it; in addition to the regular causes of stress-related weight gain, we have these other factors to contend with:
More food. Better Food.Yes, with all the holiday parties and nice dinners with family, people are often presented with more opportunities to gorge themselves with really delicious (and often more fattening) food. More food is served socially this time of year, and there are also generally more sweets being passed around. This makes for more times when we have to 'be good', and we're bound to slip up a little extra.

More Emotional Stress.

The holidays can bring social and emotional stress as we face family gatherings where there might be some unresolved conflict, or attend office functions with people we might not choose to hang out with socially. There's also the stress of buying gifts (often on a tight budget), fitting in all the activities of the season, and other stressors that occur during the holiday season. (Read more about those stressors in this article on holiday stress.) Because stressed people tend to eat more, and gain more weight, this can take a toll.

More Excuses

People who are celebrating often indulge more than they would in their regular lives. When celebrating the holidays, there are several occasions where people might relax their dietary standards a little, in the name of celebration. These celebrations, however, can be rather plentiful during the holiday season, and the indulgences ("Oh, look--the neighbors made us fudge!" "Hey, it's a party! Why not have another piece of pie?" etc.) can add up.

So what's a body-conscious person to do? Obviously, you can't cancel the holidays!

The first step is to be aware of these triggers, and notice them before they catch you off guard again this month. Have a plan for parties (you can eat a little--not a lot--and try to throw in some extra exercise, for example), and watch your holiday stress levels. And follow regular guidelines for combatting emotional eating, of course.

Tools and Guidelines for Combatting Emotional Eating:

Take The Stress and Weight Gain TestStress can contribute to weight gain in several ways. If you're having trouble with your weight and wonder what role stress may be playing, or if you just want information and resources for healthy change, this is the quiz for you! The following 10 questions are each designed to help you assess a different aspect of your lifestyle to determine if you may benefit from some simple changes that can help you keep your weight under control when you're stressed. At the end of the quiz, you'll find resources that pertain to your specific situation.

What Causes Emotional Eating?Even if we know what we're supposed to be eating, there are additional factors that influence how much and what type of food we consume. One of these factors is stress, which is linked to increased emotional eating. Emotional eating has many causes. Learn about the main reasons--besides hunger--that stressed people eat, and find resources to stop emotional eating.

How To Stop Emotional EatingAs anyone who's watching their weight will tell you, hunger is just one of many reasons that people eat. If you're an emotional eater, you may find yourself eating to deal with uncomfortable emotions, using food as a reward when you're happy, and craving sweets or unhealthy snacks when stressed. This article can help you to cut down emotional eating and develop healthier eating habits--even when stressed!

By Elizabeth Scott, M.S., About.com Guide to Stress Management

Our motto: One step ahead, everyday.

Safeguarding your sight:5 common eye myths dispelled

2009-12-18T20:25:00.000-08:00

Although aging puts people at greater risk for serious eye disease and other eye problems, loss of sight need not go hand in hand with growing older. Practical, preventive measures can help protect against devastating impairment. An estimated 40% to 50% of all blindness can be avoided or treated, mainly through regular visits to a vision specialist.

Regular eye exams are the cornerstone of visual health as people age. Individuals who have a family history of eye disease or other risk factors should have more frequent exams. Don’t wait until your vision deteriorates to have an eye exam. One eye can often compensate for the other while an eye condition progresses. Frequently, only an exam can detect eye disease in its earliest stages.

What steps can you take?
You can take other steps on your own. First, if you smoke, stop. Smoking increases the risk of several eye disorders, including age-related macular degeneration. Next, take a look at your diet. Maintaining a nutritious diet, with lots of fruits and vegetables and minimal saturated fats and hydrogenated oils, promotes sound health and may boost your resistance to eye disease. Wearing sunglasses and hats is important for people of any age. Taking the time to learn about the aging eye and recognizing risks and symptoms can alert you to the warning signs of vision problems.

Although eyestrain, spending many hours in front of a television or computer screen, or working in poor light do not cause harmful medical conditions, they can tire the eyes and, ultimately, their owner (see below). The eyes are priceless and deserve to be treated with care and respect — and that is as true for the adult of 80 as it is for the teenager of 18.

5 common eye myths dispelled

Myth 1 : Doing eye exercises will delay the need for glasses.Fact: Eye exercises will not improve or preserve vision or reduce the need for glasses. Your vision depends on many factors, including the shape of your eye and the health of the eye tissues, none of which can be significantly altered with eye exercises.

Myth 2: Reading in dim light will worsen your vision.Fact: Although dim lighting will not adversely affect your eyesight, it will tire your eyes out more quickly. The best way to position a reading light is to have it shine directly onto the page, not over your shoulder. A desk lamp with an opaque shade pointing directly at the reading material is the best possible arrangement. A light that shines over your shoulder will cause a glare, making it more difficult to see the reading material.

Myth 3: Eating carrots is good for the eyes.Fact: There is some truth in this one. Carrots, which contain vitamin A, are one of several vegetables that are good for the eyes. But fresh fruits and dark green leafy vegetables, which contain more antioxidant vitamins such as C and E, are even better. Antioxidant vitamins may help protect the eyes against cataract and age-related macular degeneration. But eating any vegetables or supplements containing these vitamins or substances will not prevent or correct basic vision problems such as nearsightedness or farsightedness.

Myth 4: It’s best not to wear glasses all the time. Taking a break from glasses or contact lenses allows your eyes to rest.Fact: If you need glasses for distance or reading, use them. Attempting to read without reading glasses will simply strain your eyes and tire them out. Using your glasses won’t worsen your vision or lead to any eye disease.

Myth 5: Staring at a computer screen all day is bad for the eyes.Fact: Although using a computer will not harm your eyes, staring at a computer screen all day will contribute to eyestrain or tired eyes. Adjust lighting so that it does not create a glare or harsh reflection on the screen. Also, when you’re working on a computer or doing other close work such as reading or needlepoint, it’s a good idea to rest your eyes briefly every hour or so to lessen eye fatigue. Finally, people who stare at a computer screen for long periods tend not to blink as often as usual, which can cause the eyes to feel dry and uncomfortable. Make a conscious effort to blink regularly so that the eyes stay well lubricated and do not dry out.

Source: http://www.health.harvard.edu/

Our motto: One step ahead, everyday.

Positive Psychology

2009-12-12T20:02:00.000-08:00

Tough economic times are the perfect setting to begin using positive psychology to your advantage, says a new report from Harvard Medical School. Positive Psychology: Harnessing the power of happiness, personal strength, and mindfulness is a guide to the concepts that have made "Positive Psychology" the most popular course at Harvard University, and teaches how to put positive emotion to work in your life.

Positive emotions have been linked with better health, longer life, and greater well being in numerous scientific studies. On the other hand, chronic anger, worry, and hostility increase the risk of developing heart disease, as people react to these feelings with raised blood pressure and stiffening blood vessels. A Harvard School of Public Health study found that people who are generally hopeful were less likely to develop hypertension, diabetes, or respiratory tract infection than those who were less hopeful.

Using positive psychology can help you in the following aspects:

Using the positivity in your life as a moral strength
Finding and using your inner character strengths
Achieving the “flow” experience
Putting mindfulness to use toward well being
Developing gratitude
Savoring pleasure
Finding the meaningful live

Positive emotions and the brain

Is there a biological dimension to happiness? Why does your heart seem to “jump for joy” or your eyes “light up” when you feel happy? Researchers now agree that there is a biomolecular aspect to happiness and that the brain is command central for the chemical and physiological changes that occur in the body with positive emotions. While many researchers have studied positive emotions by observing human and animal behavior, others are trying to discover what is happening inside the brain at the structural and molecular levels.

Since the middle of the 20th century, neuroscientists have investigated the mechanisms of positive emotion in the brain and body. Before that time, positive emotions were regarded as too subjective for rigorous scientific study. But a better understanding of the brain chemicals known as neurotransmitters and increased ability to use technology to create images of the living brain opened new opportunities for study.

In the 1950s, psychologists identified a “pleasure center or reward area” in an area of the brain known as the nucleus accumbens. They found that laboratory animals would press a lever to deliver an electrical stimulus to their own brain’s “pleasure center” repeatedly until they were exhausted—undeterred by hunger, thirst, or pain. When researchers stimulate the nucleus accumbens of people, they smile, laugh, and report feeling pleasure, happiness, or euphoria. Later, by mapping connected areas, the researchers identified a reward circuit in the brain that involves the prefrontal cortex (the thinking part of the brain) and several underlying areas, including the nucleus accumbens and the amygdala ( the center for emotion, so said).

The chemical basis of these pleasurable sensations also came under investigation. While the interactions are extremely complex and variable, some patterns have been described. Researchers found that the neurotransmitter dopamine activates the reward system and is associated with positive emotions, exuberance, and desire. On the downside, the dopamine reward system may also be associated with addictions, in which people develop uncontrollable urges to repeatedly engage in pleasurable but harmful behaviors, ranging from taking drugs to gambling excessively. Children and adult with more reward neurotransmitter, as endorphin, don't involve in social interactions and to a layman this condition is called Autism.

Another group of chemicals, the internally produced opiate-like chemicals called endorphins, are also associated with pleasurable feelings, such as those created by eating chocolate or a runner’s high. Endorphins released in the brain also increase the release of dopamine.

When people feel happy, they often feel physical sensations—a rush of passion, a flutter of joy—that correspond to brain signals to nerves of the heart, circulatory system, skin, and muscles. These physical sensations are accompanied by chemical changes in the brain and are interpreted as pleasurable.

Scientists have used modern brain imaging methods to help determine exactly which areas of the brain correspond to sensations of pleasure. This approach has revealed distinct patterns in both the cortex and underlying structures when people feel negative and positive emotions. In the 1990s, researchers used positron emission tomography (PET) scans to produce three-dimensional images of people’s working brains. They observed that positive and negative emotions activated different parts of the brain, and that areas activated by happiness were deactivated by sadness and vice versa.

Another technique, electroencephalography, revealed striking, emotionally-based asymmetries in the activity of the prefrontal cortex. In these studies, the brains of generally happy people showed greater activity in the left prefrontal cortex, and this area became more active when people were exposed to amusing video clips. The right side, on the other hand, became more active when people experienced negative emotions.

The development of a new brain imaging technology, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), spurred a large increase in the number of brain studies, contributing to some confusion about which areas of the brain were associated with happiness and sadness. Results of these many studies suggest that the brain may be even more complex than once imagined by earlier researchers. Nonetheless, many studies support the notion that the left side of the brain is generally associated with positive emotions and the right side with negative emotions. They have also identified the anterior cingulate cortex as active in emotional regulation, and that part of the brain is often called the “affective division” of the cingulate cortex.

Why do humans have these pleasure centers in the brain? Experts theorize that because human survival depends on achieving basic goals such as finding food and procreating, a rush of pleasurable sensations associated with eating or having sex would positively reinforce these behaviors, leading us to repeat them and hence increase the chances that we will survive and reproduce.

Source: Harvard Medical School

http://www.hms.harvard.edu/

Our motto: One step ahead, everyday.

Cognitive Therapy for Depression

2009-12-09T19:55:00.000-08:00

Are your thoughts dragging you down?

Almost everyone has dark thoughts when his or her mood is bad. With depression, though, the thoughts can be extremely negative. They can also take over and distort your view of reality.
Cognitive therapy can be an effective way to defuse those thoughts. When used for depression, cognitive therapy provides a mental tool kit that can be used to challenge negative thoughts. Over the long term, cognitive therapy for depression can change the way a depressed person sees the world.

Studies have shown that cognitive therapy works at least as well as antidepressants in helping people with mild to moderate depression. Treatment with medication and/or psychotherapy can shorten depression's course and can help reduce symptoms such as fatigue and poor self-esteem that accompany depression. Read on to see how cognitive therapy or talk therapy might help you start thinking and feeling better if you are depressed.

Cognitive Therapy for Depression: A Thinking Problem

Cognitive therapy was developed in the 1960s as an alternative way to treat depression, says Judith S. Beck, PhD. Beck is director of the Beck Institute for Cognitive Therapy and Research located just outside Philadelphia. She tells WebMD that the principle underlying cognitive therapy is "thoughts influence moods."

According to cognitive therapists, depression is maintained by constant negative thoughts. These thoughts are known as automatic thoughts. That means they occur without a conscious effort. For example, a depressed person might have automatic thoughts like these:

· "I always fail at everything."
· "I'm the world's worst mother."
· "I am doomed to be unhappy."

Beck says automatic thoughts "may have a grain of truth. But," she adds, "the depressed person distorts or exaggerates the reality of the situation." This negative distortion helps fuel the depression.

With cognitive therapy, a person learns to recognize and correct negative automatic thoughts. Over time, the depressed person will be able to discover and correct deeply held but false beliefs that contribute to the depression.

"It's not the power of positive thinking," Beck says. "It's the power of realistic thinking. People find that when they think more realistically, they usually feel better."

Cognitive Therapy for Depression: How It Works

Cognitive therapy posits that most problems have several parts. Those parts include:

· the problem as the person sees it
· the person's thoughts about the problem
· the person's emotions surrounding the problem
· the person's physical feelings at the time
· the person's actions before, during, and after the problem occurs

The way cognitive therapy works is a patient learns to "disassemble" problems into these various parts. Once a person does that, problems that seemed overwhelming become manageable.

During regular cognitive therapy sessions, a trained therapist teaches the tools of cognitive therapy. Then between sessions, the patient often does homework. That homework helps the person learn how to apply the tools to solve specific life problems.

"They make small changes in their thinking and behavior every day," Beck says. "Then over time, these small changes lead to lasting improvement in mood and outlook."

Cognitive Therapy for Depression: Evidence It's Effective

How well does cognitive therapy for depression work? And how well does it stack up when compared to other treatments for depression?

Robert DeRubeis, PhD, is professor of psychology and associate dean for the social sciences at the University of Pennsylvania. He tells WebMD, "The evidence is consistent and convincing that cognitive therapy is an effective treatment for depression. And," he adds, "[that means] not just the milder forms of depression."

Large, well-designed studies that include hundreds of subjects have shown the following:

1. Cognitive therapy works as well as antidepressant medicines alone to improve mild to moderate depression.

"When conducted well, cognitive therapy works as quickly and as thoroughly as antidepressant medications," says DeRubeis, who has led several large studies of cognitive therapy for depression. "Used consistently, cognitive therapy may work better than antidepressants in the long run," he adds.

2. Cognitive therapy works as well as antidepressant medicines at preventing depression relapses.

DeRubeis tells WebMD that when a person continues using the skills he learned with cognitive therapy, those skills help prevent relapses, a common problem with depression. "Cognitive therapy appears to prevent the return of symptoms as well as taking medication," he says. "And it does it without medication."

3. Cognitive therapy reduces residual symptoms of depression.

After a "successful" treatment for depression, many people continue to have mild depressive symptoms. Adding cognitive therapy to the treatment plan helps reduce these residual symptoms.

Cognitive Therapy for Depression: With or Without Antidepressants?

Cognitive therapy has become the standard "talk therapy" used to treat depression. In addition to its high rate of success, it is also cost-effective. The benefits from cognitive therapy often come in weeks rather than months or years, as may be the case with other treatments.
But can cognitive therapy replace antidepressant medications? For some people, says DeRubeis, the answer is yes.

"The data show that, when conducted well, cognitive therapy is a reasonable alternative to medications even for more severe forms of depression," DeRubeis says. This assumes a patient is able to participate in a cognitive therapy program.

But it doesn't have to be an "either-or" decision. In some studies, cognitive therapy for depression worked even better when combined with antidepressants.

Because everyone's situation is unique, the decision about how to use cognitive therapy should always be made by the patient and the mental health provider together.

Cognitive Therapy for Depression: Think Well, Feel Better

Depression demonstrates how closely linked the mind and body are. People who are depressed, frequently feel bad physically, not just sad or "down." Besides helping to improve a person's mood, cognitive therapy can also improve the physical symptoms of depression. It does this by:

· improving a person's overall energy level
· increasing the quality and duration of sleep
· improving appetite and restoring the pleasure of eating
· heightening a person's sex drive

Cognitive therapy can also relieve chronic pain. Many people with chronic pain also have depression. According to Beverly E. Thorn, PhD, cognitive therapy treats both at once." Thorn is professor of psychology at the University of Alabama and author of Cognitive Therapy for Chronic Pain. She says that after a course of cognitive therapy for chronic pain, "patients' symptoms related to depression are reduced as well."

The effects of cognitive therapy are often longer lasting than pain medicines. "Pain medications have all kinds of side effects and can actually add to depression," Thorn says. With cognitive therapy, patients learn coping skills and how to apply them. When they do, there is less need for pain medications.

Cognitive Therapy for Depression: How to Start

If you feel you might be depressed, the first thing to do is call your primary care physician (or email at klubpsychology@gmail.com). He or she can probably refer you to a professional therapist or psychiatrist who is knowledgeable about cognitive therapy.

If not, you can find a cognitive therapist in your area by contacting one of the following professional organizations:

Academy of Cognitive Therapy
http://www.academyofct.org

Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies
http://www.abct.org/

The Beck Institute for Cognitive Therapy and Research
http://www.beckinstitute.org/

Klub Psychology: For Psychosocial Services
www.klubpsychology.blogspot.com

Cognitive Therapy for Depression: 5 Questions to Ask Your Provider

Here are questions to ask your provider if you are considering cognitive therapy for depression:

1. Should I take antidepressants if I'm trying cognitive therapy?
2. How do I find a therapist who practices cognitive therapy?
3. Will my health insurance cover cognitive therapy?
4. When can I expect to start feeling better?
5. How will I know cognitive therapy is working for me?

By Matthew Hoffman, MD
Reviewed By Brunilda Nazario, MD

Our motto: One step ahead, everyday.

Dealing with difficult people

2009-11-26T19:13:00.000-08:00

Use the following strategies to end the emotional tug-of-war, once and for all.I like to imagine that I’m a kind, patient person. That I embody calm when confronted with prickly personalities. That their aggravations roll off me like water off a duck’s back. But this delusion is quickly dispelled every time I have a run-in with a difficult person.

Take last week: My friend (let’s call her Liz) and I decided to meet at noon for lunch. She’s often late, so I took my time walking over to the café. But mid-stroll, I became paranoid that Liz would be punctual for once, so I rushed to be there on the dot. She was nowhere to be seen. I breathed deeply, rationalizing that now I had some coveted alone time. That lasted all of four minutes. At 12:08, I called Liz on her cell, convinced I’d given her the wrong address. She never picked up. Ten minutes later, she showed up with a big smile and zero apology.

“Oh, don’t be mad at me. You know I’m always late,” she said. “It’s just part of my personality. Besides, haven’t you enjoyed all the great people watching?" My reaction was less like a duck, more like a rabid dog. The worst part was that my emotional equilibrium had been knocked off-kilter. It took me a good 15 minutes to calm down enough to actually enjoy spending time with my friend.

Trying personalities like Liz’s are everywhere — in your home (possibly sharing your bed), at the office, in your book club. They may even be complete strangers. What makes them difficult may be an undisputed character flaw — they’re sycophantic or self-centered or perpetually gloomy — or simply a quirk that rubs you the wrong way. But inevitably, a brush with them leaves you fuming or at least out of sorts.

Instead of devising elaborate avoidance schemes or barbed comebacks, you can change your dynamic with these sanity stealers. Use the following strategies to end the emotional tug-of-war, once and for all.

Turn the Spotlight on You
“You must change how you react to people before you can change how you interact with them,” says Rick Kirschner, N.D., coauthor of Dealing with People You Can’t Stand. That requires some self-examination.

People who irritate us usually have something to show us about ourselves. “Ask yourself: How is this person holding up the mirror to me?” suggests Sandra Crowe, author of Since Strangling Isn’t an Option. For example, being around my chronically late friend reminds me how quick-tempered and impatient I can be — not my favorite traits. Reminding myself of this may keep me from bouncing off the walls when I find myself waiting for her yet again.

If it’s a good friend or intimate, think, too, about your own behavior in the relationship. Have you contributed to the strain by saying yes instead of no too many times? Did you neglect to signal early on that something was bothering you? “If you don’t look at your own actions, you end up making the other person 100 percent of the problem,” explains Susan Fee, author of Dealing with Difficult People: 83 Ways to Stay Calm, Composed, and in Control. That also puts the solution squarely in her hands — and out of yours.

Delving into the root cause of your frustration can turn up problem-solving insights. Fee provides an example from her own life: “When I first got married, my mother-in-law drove me crazy. She was always hovering and intrusive. But after asking myself again and again why she bothered me so much, I realized what was going on: Her behavior was foreign to me because I never knew what it was like to be mothered — when I was 12, my mom had a debilitating stroke. It became clear that this was just my mother-in-law’s way of showing her love for me. Once I understood that, our relationship improved.”

Switch Perspectives
“Most of the time, difficult people just want something different than we do,” says Ronna Lichtenberg, author of Work Would Be Great If It Weren’t for the People. “Or they handle things differently.”

It’s no surprise, then, that you may be your difficult person’s difficult person. It could be a matter of opposite outlooks: Super-friendly people, for instance, may be at odds with all-business-all-the-time types — and vice versa. The same goes for laid-back folks and workaholics. Understanding those basic differences gives you a glimpse of someone else’s viewpoint, which may help temper your irritation.

If you’re having trouble feeling empathetic toward someone you care about, try analyzing her behavior. This strategy worked for Alicyn Mindel, a mom of two from Providence who struggled for years with her friend “Dina,” who was a terrible listener. “Whenever I started talking about my personal problems, she would turn the conversation around to herself. Then, one day, a different pal was talking about attention-starved people, and I realized Dina fit the description perfectly. From that moment on, every time Dina and I got together, I gave her a big, long hug. The transformation was amazing: She became warmer, more open, and over time, she started asking me about my life — without segueing into her own issues.”

Choose Your Approach
Armed with your insights, you now need to decide whether to confront the perpetrator. As a general rule, you should talk things over only with someone you’re close to, whether that’s your husband or a longtime colleague. It’s probably not worth stirring the pot if you only see him once a month, like an in-law or acquaintance on the PTA board. (For people you don’t know at all — say, the salesclerk who’s more interested in her cell phone chat than in helping you — you’ll need a different strategy.)

You can also skip the conversation if you know it will fall on deaf ears, or if you suspect it will be taken the wrong way. That was the case with Mindel: “I never addressed the issue with Dina because she tends to be defensive. I knew I’d have a better chance of fixing our friendship by changing my actions.” A good litmus test for determining whether or not to start a conversation is first to imagine the worst-case scenario. Then ask yourself, Will our relationship survive? If you’re confident it will, set up a time to talk. If it won’t, try a tactic that’s less confrontational.

Start a Dialogue
Before you say anything, you have to do a little homework. How exactly do you want the behavior to change? In the long term, what are you expecting from this relationship? Until you can answer those questions, you’re not ready to talk to anyone.

If you fear a bad reaction, plan ahead: “Figure out in advance how you’re going to respond,” advises Fee. “Will you walk away? Breathe deeply until he calms down?” This exercise can also help you focus on what might trigger a heated response.

Make sure no one will interrupt the conversation and pick a time when you’re not hungry or tired, so you can give it your full attention.

And Follow These Talking Tips

· Start the conversation with sincere flattery — it’s especially effective if you’re afraid you’re going to hurt someone’s feelings. With loved ones, “explain that the reason you’re having this talk is that you care so much and want to improve the relationship,” suggests Fee.

· Call out the behavior, not the person. “You need to learn how to separate the individual from the act,” Lichtenberg explains. “Confronting someone is not so different from disciplining a kid. You don’t say to your child, ‘You’re bad!’ You say, ‘It’s bad that you drew on the wall"

· Cite specific examples of what’s bothering you. Avoid vague comments like, “You’re such a snob.” Instead say, “Last week, you made three disparaging comments about the clothes I was wearing.”

· Spell out what you want to change. The next time your Freud-wannabe friend tries to be your personal shrink, you can say, “I appreciate your advice, and I know you want to be helpful. But most of the time, I really just want an ear. I’m telling you this because I want to be able to share things with you.”

· Request feedback as soon as possible. If you don’t, it can turn into a lecture. Right away ask, “What do you think about what I’ve said?” Or, “Have you been feeling the same way?”

· Pay attention to more than your words. “Only 7 percent of communication is what you’re actually saying — the rest is your tone of voice, expression, and body language,” says Kimberly Alyn, author of How to Deal with Annoying People.

Take a Less Direct Approach
Sitting down for a heart-to-heart won’t work with everyone. At times it’s better to resolve an issue in a more roundabout way, even with loved ones. For example, humor can be especially effective. If your sister has a habit of psychoanalyzing you every time you chat, Alyn suggests saying, “Wow, I feel like I should be lying on a couch for this. How much do I owe you?” Here, more ways to fix those frustrating interactions:

· Put the difficult person to good use. When Bette Walter, an entrepreneur in Blue Bell, PA, is considering a new business move, she turns to a friend who always shoots down her plans: “I ask her what she thinks before she can tell me what a dumb idea it is. She’s very logical, so it’s helpful.” For know-it-alls, steer the conversation toward a topic you’re interested in, so you can at least learn something until you can make your getaway.

· Remember this rule: If you can predict it, you can plan for it. “If you see an incessantly forlorn coworker walking your way, get up and leave your desk,” says Kirschner. “Or pick up the phone and pretend you’re speaking to someone. If you stop listening to her, she’ll eventually stop coming over.”

· Get the last word. If someone is giving you unsolicited advice, saying “Thanks” will usually put an end to her rant. When you’re around a braggart, just smile, advises Crowe. Then reply, “Wow, that’s really great. I’m so happy for you.”

Plan an exit strategy. When you can’t get a chatty person off the phone, pretend.
My ultimate strategy is to remind myself that every strength is a weakness and every weakness, a strength. Yes, my friend Liz is always late, but her time-isn’t-an-issue attitude also makes her relaxed and carefree — and that’s what I love about her. The next time we meet, I plan to bring a good book. Or maybe I’ll just tell her to meet at 11:40 instead of noon, so that we both show up right on time.

By: Sarah Felix

about.com

Our motto: One step ahead, everyday.

Childhood adversity may affect processing in the brain’s reward pathways

2009-10-24T04:14:00.000-07:00

New research shows that childhood adversity is associated with diminished neural activity in certain regions of the brain.

Harvard researchers used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to monitor brain activity as participants played a game involving cues that predicted monetary re-wards and penalties.

“We found that, in comparison to community controls, young adults who had experienced childhood adversity showed weaker responses to reward-predicting cues in left hemisphere regions of the basal ganglia, a part of the brain that is important for orchestrating goal-directed actions,” says Diego Pizzagalli, the John and Ruth Hazel Associate Professor of the Social Sciences in the Department of Psychology.

The research is published in the current issue of the journal Biological Psychiatry, and was conducted by Pizzagalli and Karlen Lyons-Ruth, associate professor of psychology at Harvard Medical School. The lead author is Daniel Dillon, a postdoctoral researcher working with Pizzagalli, and co-authors were Avram Holmes and Nancy Brooks of the Department of Psychology in Harvard’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences, and Jeffrey Birk, a graduate student at Tufts University.

“In the group that had childhood adversity, two structures in the left basal ganglia were not responsive to reward cues, which differed from what we saw in the control group,” says Dillon. “There weren’t any differences between the controls and maltreated participants in response to cues that predicted either penalties or no incentive outcomes. In other words, the group that had experienced childhood adversity only showed a weaker response to the reward cues.”

Participants also rated their experiences of positive and negative arousal in response to the cues while in the MRI scanner. Relative to controls, the participants who had experienced child-hood adversity rated the reward cues as less positive, consistent with the weaker brain response to these cues.

Most of the study participants did not currently meet criteria for any psychological disorder, but childhood adversity, such as emotional, physical, or sexual maltreatment, is known to increase the risk for psychopathology, particularly depression. Many previous studies have suggested that the link between childhood adversity and depression might be related to dysfunction in brain regions that are involved in regulating stress, which would contribute to the excessive sadness and negativity that characterize depression.
By contrast, according to the researchers, this study highlights another potential link: by weakening the brain’s response to rewards, childhood adversity may contribute to other important symptoms of depression, such as apathy, low motivation, and a reduced ability to experience pleasure.

By identifying specific regions of the brain impacted in certain types of psychological disorders, the researchers hope to contribute to the development of more effective treatments for these disorders.

“Eventually, we hope that this type of research will help fine-tune these interventions in much more personalized and hopefully effective ways,” says Pizzagalli.

The 13 maltreated individuals who participated in the study were young adults who had been followed since childhood as part of a study from the Cambridge Health Alliance, led by Lyons-Ruth. The participants had experienced childhood abuse that met state guidelines for maltreatment, but most were not currently experiencing any symptoms of depression, post-traumatic stress, or other disorders.

Pizzagalli underlined the fact that while childhood adversity increases the risk for depression, it is not a one-to-one relationship: Other mitigating factors, such as genetics and social support, can counteract the risk.

“This is a serious problem, and we are just starting to grasp what the potential neurobiological consequences will be,” says Pizzagalli. “It’s not a direct pathway: Somebody who was exposed to early adversity will not necessarily develop depression. But an important first step to improving treatment is to try to understand what the changes in the brain might be, so that we can know how and when to intervene.”

The research was funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Society Scholars program, and the Talley Fund.

By: Amy Lavoie
Faculty of Arts and Sciences

Sources: www.havard.edu

Research: Lose the weight to save your brain.

2009-09-01T22:48:00.000-07:00

There is somewhat shocking report on obesity: Researchers have found that people who are overweight and obese are actually losing brain tissue and have brains that are aged prematurely!

"The brains of obese people looked 16 years older than their healthy counterparts while [those of] overweight people looked 8 years older," says UCLA neuroscientist Paul Thompson, senior author of a study published online in Human Brain Mapping. The study also found that clinically obese people had 8% less brain tissue than those considered to be in the 'normal' weight range, and overweight people had 4% less brain tissue than those who were not overweight. Because roughly two-thirds of Americans are overweight or obese (36% and 30% respectively), this may be a widespread problem.

Consuming a healthy diet is generally agreed to be the most important factor in maintaining a healthy weight, with exercise also playing an important role. Eating a healthy balance of fresh fruits and vegetables, with lean meats and whole grains, all in moderate portions, is key. Most of us know this. However, many of us lose sight of this when stressed and busy. Why is that?

Perhaps it's because stress can make us crave sweets and less-healthy fare. And People consumes more chocolate/ sweets in a stressful day!Or perhaps it's because, when we get too stressed and busy, we may settle for convenience food rather than cooking healthier meals. Or perhaps it's because we eat to feel better, or to fill a void we feel inside. If any of these are sounding familiar to you, you're not alone; stress can affect weight in several ways.

So it is recommended to eat healthier when stressed, and stay fit in other ways as well. It is improtant to know that exercise is a great stress reliever.

Resource: about.com

Our motto: One step ahead, everyday.

Make a Midlife Crisis Work for You

2009-08-21T05:00:00.000-07:00

Rather than letting fear and anxiety restrict your life choices and leave you in a rut, experts say you can look at a midlife crisis as an opportunity for personal growth.
Linda Sapadin, author of Master Your Fears: How to Triumph over Your Worries and Get on with Your Life, recommends these steps for using a midlife crisis to your advantage:

1) Do one gutsy thing. Do something despite feeling uncomfortable or fearful about it. "That's one way to move outside of your comfort zone, rather than be depressed, anxious, or dissatisfied, which is the essence of a midlife crisis," says Sapadin.

2) Use children as role models. Most people are ashamed to admit they're jealous of their kids. But you could look to them as role models during this time. If they're not afraid to take a risk or do something, you may be able to learn from them and become more socially and physically active.

3) Delight in difficulty. Reframe how you think about difficulty. Rather than thinking of something difficult as exhausting or that you can't do it, think of it as an opportunity to pick up skills you never thought you'd have, such as taking up a new sport or hobby. You can do it as an individual, couple, or as a family.

"When people at midlife stop worrying so much about pleasing others and measuring themselves by other peoples' standards, then they begin to think more about what they want, and that is a positive aspect of a midlife crisis," says Sapadin.

By Jennifer Warner

Our motto: One step ahead, everyday.

Removal of stain

2009-08-12T02:25:00.000-07:00

10 Rules for Stain Removal

Stain removal is one of the most crucial parts of handling your family's laundry. These 10 rules are basic for any type of stain removal.

Timing
Take care of stains as soon as possible. Fresh stains are much easier to remove than those over 24 hours old.

First things first
Blot up any excess stain liquid with a clean white cloth or paper towel. Avoid rubbing the stained area with a linty terry towel or a dark-colored cloth. You may make matters worse. Remove excess solids by gently scraping with a dull knife or metal spatula. With some solids, such as mud, removal may be easier after the stain has dried. Brush off the excess before the garment is submerged for washing.

Check before washing
If you do the laundry for the whole family, they may not have told you about a stain. Teach your family to tell you about stains or mark them with a clothespin. Always check before washing, many stains need pretreatment.

No soap
Never rub a fresh stain with bar soap which sets many stains.
Check before washing
If you do the laundry for the whole family, they may not have told you about a stain. Teach your family to tell you about stains or mark them with a clothespin. Always check before washing, many stains need pretreatment.

Check again
Stains slip by us all. But it helps to inspect wet laundry before drying. If a stain is still evident, do not dryer dry. The heat of the dryer makes the stain more permanent. Same principle applies to ironing - no heat should be added to stained areas.

This is only a test
Before starting on the stain, test the stain removal agents on a seam or hidden area of the garment to be sure they do not affect the color or finish of the fabric.

A gentle touch
Avoid excessive rubbing unless the fabric is tough and durable. Rubbing can spread the stain and damage the fabric. However, gentle to vigorous rubbing under running water helps remove dried food, blood or oil stains from shirts or jean-weight fabrics made of cotton or cotton blends.

Separate and conquer
Wash heavily stained items separately. Soil and stains can be redeposited on cleaner clothing during laundering if too little detergent is used, water temperature is too low, washing time is too long or the wash is overloaded. Never wash family clothes with pesticide-soiled clothes.

Go for the cold
Avoid using hot water on stains of unknown origin. Hot water can set protein stains like milk, egg or blood.

Except sometimes
Use the water temperature recommended on stain removal products and detergents. Hot water should be between 120 and 140 degrees F, warm water between 85 and 105 degrees F and cold water between 65 and 75 degrees F. Water below 60 degrees is too cold for detergents to be helpful.

By Mary Marlowe Leverette, About.com

Remember a stain on you cloth or character leaks your self esteem.

Best & Worst Foods for Your Sex Drive

2009-07-22T05:05:00.000-07:00

Simple changes in your diet will go a long way.

It's no secret that the unhealthy American diet is contributing to an epidemic of obesity. But there's another hidden epidemic that our fatty diets are at the root of: a national sex crisis.

In 1996, the average American had sex 138 times a year. Compare that to 2007, when people reported having sex just 85 times a year. That's a staggering 38 percent decrease in a little more than a decade. Furthermore, psychologists estimate that as many as 1 in 5 couples are in a sexless marriage, which means sex less than 10 times a year. In other words, our sex drive is in a deep dive.

One of the big culprits, for both men and women, is obesity. As a person's weight soars, their libido plummets due to biochemical changes that result in diminished blood flow—there's simply no sex without strong blood flow. And even when Americans do manage to have sex, the extra weight they're bringing to the bedroom also hinders their ability to have children—with men, it's damaged sperm; with women, it's ovulation problems.

The good news: With some simple changes to your diet, courtesy of Eat This, Not That!, you can revitalize your sex life and reinvigorate your relationship. How? First, as you consume filling foods with fewer calories, you'll begin to shed the weight that's dragging down your desire. Then, because these foods also contain ingredients and nutrients that strategically boost sexual attraction and performance, you'll squeeze even more satisfaction out of each and every sexual encounter.

* Reinvigorate: Impart vigour, strength, or vitality to.

For the hormone rush

Eat This: Dark chocolate

Per 1 oz: A unit of weight equal to one sixteenth of a pound or 16 drams or 28.349 grams

1 pound= 453.584 gram

162 calories
11 g fat (6 g saturated)
10 g sugars

Chocolate is full of anandamide and phenylethylamine, two compounds that cause the body to release the same feel-good endorphins triggered by sex and physical exertion. Cocoa also contains methylxanthines, which make skin sensitive to every erotic touch. A team of U.S. and Canadian researchers found that chocolate stimulates the same brain centers that respond to cocaine, but that eating too much can eliminate the effect. Aim for dark chocolate, which packs more cocoa than lighter milk chocolates, and keep portions small.

Not That: White Chocolate

White chocolate isn’t technically chocolate, since it doesn’t contain any actual cocoa—which means no heightened skin sensitivity, or rush of feel-good hormone serotonin.

For energy

Eat This: 6-oz. sirloin steak

414 calories
24 g fat (10 g saturated)
46 g protein

Protein has been shown to naturally boost levels of dopamine and norepinephrine, two chemicals in the brain that heighten sensitivity during sex. Your steak is also packed with zinc—a mineral that boosts libido by reducing production of a hormone called prolactin, which may interfere with arousal.

Not That: An energy drink

While the caffeine and sky-high sugar content will initially leave you bursting with energy, you’re setting yourself up for a major crash not far down the line. Additionally, Canadian scientists found that maintaining a diet high in sugar can temporarily lower your testosterone levels, which in turn can sap your sex drive—whether you’re a man or a woman. See, the more testosterone you have, the higher your arousal levels. That means greater lubrication for women, stronger erections for men. Too much sugar sends your T/ testosterone into hibernation—and your libido will go with it.

For excitement

Eat This: Chilies

Per 1 pepper

18 calories
0 g fat
1 g fiber

Pop a caliente chili pepper in your mouth to keep things hot: They contain capsaicin, a chemical compound that causes your heart to race and your skin to flush—a sure sign that blood flow is on the fast track. They dilate blood vessels and help all of that blood get where it's needed.

Not That: Non-fat popcorn

The carbohydrates in popcorn will release serotonin, which, while it makes you feel good, also makes you feel sleepy. You want to experience a rush of endorphins, not drowsiness.

For power

Eat This: Vanilla ice cream

Per half cup:

137 calories
7 g fat (4 g saturated)
14 g sugars
2 g protein

Ice cream has high levels of calcium and phosphorus, two minerals that build your muscles’ energy reserves and may help boost your libido. All that calcium—200 milligrams in the typical bowl—can also make you more sexually charged, since the muscles that control sexual response need calcium in order to contract properly.

Not That: Tomatoes

They’re great for you in other ways, but tomatoes’ lycopene and phytofluene can decrease testosterone levels. The effect isn’t dramatic, but you may be better off skipping the marinara sauce if you want to get saucy.

For performance

Eat This: Blueberries

Per 1/2 cup of berries:

40 calories
10 g carbohydrates
7 g sugars

Forget Viagra. Mother Nature's original blue potency capsules may do even more for you. Blueberries are high in soluble fiber, which helps remove excess cholesterol from the blood before it gets absorbed and deposited on artery walls. Blueberries also relax blood vessels and improve blood flow. What that means, of course, is that more blood enters the penis to produce stronger erections. For maximum potency and performance, eat a serving of blueberries at least three or four times a week.

Not That: Soda

Soda pop will weaken your sex drive. Too much sugar will lead to spikes and crashes in your blood glucose, ultimately weakening your testosterone levels (and your sex drive).

For a sexy mindset

Eat This: Oysters

Per 6 medium oysters:

50 calories
1 g fat (0 g saturated)
150 mg sodium
4 g protein

These slippery shellfish have been shucked in the name of love for centuries, but it wasn’t until 2005 that a team of researchers identified two amino acids in shellfish that had been linked in another study to increased sexual hormone release in rats. If that’s not a tenuous enough link to love, consider that oysters are also high in zinc, which regulates some sexual hormones and boost semen production. Critics question just how potent the shellfish really are, but the history of shellfish as a heralded aphrodisiac could contribute to a small psychosomatic boost.

* Shuck: Remove from the shell; withdrew.

Not That:

Phallic foods

Suggestive staples—bananas, avocados, strawberries—can prompt provocative thoughts, but so far no scientific research has shown them to offer any physical benefits.

For relaxation

Drink This: A glass of wine

Per 5 fl. ounces:

125 calories
0 g fat
1 g sugar

It’s true: A glass of wine really does take the edge off. University of Toronto researchers discovered that one alcoholic drink caused people’s blood vessels to relax. Booze acts as a depressant in the brain’s cerebral cortex, lowering inhibitions that could otherwise restrain arousal. Cerebral cortex main function is to inhibit the emotional functions. So when the function of the cerebral cortex is inhibited there is much more emotional release or sexual arousal.

Not That: A bottle of wine

The University of Toronto researchers who found out about wine’s relaxation effects also found that drinking two glasses of alcohol began to reverse the effects. And research from the University of Washington found that intoxicated men with blood alcohol levels of 0.08 to 0.1 percent (about two or three drinks) had lower “peak erection levels.”

By : Dave Zinczenko and Matt Goulding, Men's Health

Our motto: One step ahead, everyday.

Theories and Effects of Aging

2009-07-12T04:27:00.000-07:00

Overview

The study of aging - gerontology - is a relatively new science that has made incredible progress over the last 30 years. In the past, scientists looked for a single theory that explained aging. There are two main groups of aging theories. The first group states that aging is natural and programmed into the body, while the second group of aging theories say that aging is a result of damage which is accumulated over time. In the end, aging is a complex interaction of genetics, chemistry, physiology and behavior i.e. behaviour disposed programming of neural and genetics circuit.

By understanding and describing how we age, researchers have developed several different theories of aging. The two categories are: programmed theories and error theories.

Programmed Theories assert that the human body is designed to age and there is a certain biological timeline that our bodies follow ( and after it there is gradual depletion of body mechanism).

• Programmed Longevity: Aging is caused by certain genes switching on and off over time.

• Endocrine Theory: Changes in hormones control aging.

• Immunological Theory: The immune system is programmed to decline over time, leaving people more susceptible to diseases.

Error Theories assert that aging is caused by environmental damage to our body's systems, which accumulates over time.

• Wear and Tear: Cells and tissues simply wear out.

• Rates of Living: The faster an organism uses oxygen, the shorter it lives. Our respiration rate is about 12-15 times per minute and that of organism as turtles have about 4/ minutes. Certainly turtles live longer than human.

• Cross-Linking: Cross-linked proteins accumulate and slow down body processes.

• Free Radicals: Free radicals cause damage to cells that eventually impairs function.

• Somatic DNA Damage: Genetic mutations cause cells to malfunction.

Genetics and Aging

Studies have demonstrated that genetics can play a major role in aging. When researchers adjust the genes in certain mice, yeast cells and other organisms, they can almost double the lifespan of these creatures. The meaning of these experiments for people is not known, but researchers think that genetics account for up to 35 percent of the variation in aging among people. Some key concepts in genetics and aging include:

• Longevity Genes: There are specific genes which help a person live longer.

• Cell Senescence (ageing): The process by which cells deteriorate over time.

• Telomeres: Structures on the end of DNA that eventually are depleted, resulting in cells ceasing to replicate.

• Stem Cells: These cells can become any type of cell in the body and hold promise to repair damage caused by aging. In recent researches, placental contents have been found high quality stem cells.

Biochemistry

No matter what genes you have inherited, your body is continually undergoing complex biochemical reactions. Some of these reactions cause damage and, ultimately, aging in the body. Studying these complex reactions is helping researchers understand how the body changes as it ages. Important concepts in the biochemistry of aging include:

• Free Radicals: Unstable oxygen molecules which can damage cells.

• Protein Cross-Linking: Excess sugars in the blood stream can cause protein molecules to literally stick together. Alcoholic product release OH- radicals which decreases the viability of the blood.

• DNA Repair: For unknown reasons, the systems in the body to repair DNA seem to become less effective in older people.

• Heat Shock Proteins: These proteins help cells survive stress and are present in fewer numbers in older people.

• Hormones: The body's hormones change as we age, causing many shifts in organ systems and other functions.

Body Systems

As we age, our body's organs and other systems make changes. These changes alter our susceptibility to various diseases and infections. Researchers are just beginning to understand the processes that cause changes over time in our body systems. Understanding these processes is important because many of the effects of aging are first noticed in our body systems. Here is a brief overview of how some body systems age:

• Heart Aging: The heart muscle thickens with age as a response to the thickening of the arteries. This thicker heart has a lower maximum pumping rate.

• Immune System Aging: T cells take longer to refill in older people and their ability to function declines.

• Arteries and Aging: Arteries usually to stiffen with age, making it more difficult for the heart to pump blood through them.

• Lung Aging: The maximum capacity of the lungs may decrease as much as 40 percent between ages 20 and 70.

• Brain Aging: As the brain ages, some of the connections between neurons seem to be reduced or less efficient. This is not yet well understood. Actually conditioning of some behaviour as a result of learning and rehearsing increases the chances of the axon and dendrite connections. This eventually increase the efficiency of brain.

• Kidney Aging: The kidneys become less efficient at cleaning waste from the body.

• Bladder Aging: The total capacity of the bladder declines and tissues may atrophy, causing incontinence (Involuntary urination or defecation).

• Body Fat and Aging: Body fat increases until middle age and then weight typically begins to decrease. The body fat also moves deeper in the body as we age.

• Muscle Aging: Muscle tone declines about 22 percent by age 70, though exercise can slow this decline.

• Bone Aging: Starting at age 35, our bones begin to lose density. Walking, running and resistance training can slow this process.

• Sight and Aging: Starting in the 40s, difficulty seeing close detail may begin.

• Hearing and Aging: As people age, the ability to hear high frequencies declines.

Behavioral Factors

The good news is that many of these causes of aging can be modified through your behaviors:

• By eating foods loaded with antioxidants, you can minimize damage caused by free radicals.

• By exercising, you can limit bone and muscle loss.

• By keeping your cholesterol low, you can slow the hardening of your arteries and protect your heart.

• By practicing mental fitness, you can keep your brain sharp.

Lifestyle factors have also been shown to extend life. Rats and mice on a calorie restricted diet (30 percent fewer daily calories) live up to 40 percent longer. Positive thinking has also been shown to extend life in people by up to 7.5 years.

By Mark Stibich, Ph.D., About.com

Our motto: One step ahead, everyday.

2009-07-11T03:18:00.000-07:00

About Klub Psychology (KP)

2009-06-02T00:50:00.000-07:00

Klub Psychology, popularly known as Klub, is our collective dream. Our motto is “With strength, intellect, patience and dedication, Youth and Karma for a change in psychosocial services.”

We laid its foundation stone on 28th Paush 2064 B.S./ January 2008 with expertise from different faculties of Human Science in order to address all level of mental health. At present, Klub is a self sustained social organization. We aspire to make it “A Hammer against all psychosocial problems.” Sure Klub in near future would be an “ultimate junction of clients and professionals for the common purpose of navigating their psyche.”

Mission: The mission of our Klub is to provide and address all level of mental health services. Klub is aligned to create a distinction in the services provided through the production of different experts via the establishment of mental health and allied academic institutions. We hope, we would be able to create a mecca of mental health services. We have embarked on this tough and long journey. We are for sure there will be your encouragement, support and guidance.

Goals: Our goal is to create a milieu for psychosocial services. In a developing country like Nepal, what we believe is a loss of national economy, is millions of fund invested in health sectors and importing medicine and medical facilities. Our programs, approaches integrate and intercept the vary theme that if we are able to save this lost economy, we may be able to utilize it for food, education, building better homes and building a better country- a common man’s dreams. It is through psychological awareness about the nature of problem and probable solutions that we can achieve this goal.

Commitments: We are committed towards providing quality psychosocial services which is our motto too. You will feel and observe innovative changes in psychosocial services. Klub always provides a conducive environment and impart knowledge, you would realize. We don’t only intent to commercialize our psychosocial services and sell tickets. We give an equal opportunity for the learning, exploring, developing expertise and leadership about the range of psychosocial services provided by the Klub so that our clients are able to carry these range of skills further on their own. We hope to create self-sufficient clients.

We offer: At present we render you with Capsule Therapy that incorporates innovated forms of Dance Therapy, Music therapy, Colour & Art therapy and Counselling. We also provide Individual Counselling, Group Counselling; Relaxation Techniques with our own designated name and approaches. In few months time we would organize Psychiatric Clinic, Meditation, Yoga and Ayurvedic Clinics; Mobile Mental Health Camp. There are lots of other programs ahead for you to explore and participate. Our group of expertise and dedicated members of the Klub has an inclusion of psychologist, psychotherapist, medical technician, academician, musicians, artists, social workers, administrators, consultant, lawyer, expert of security agencies, engineer, etc.

Your participation is what we hope.

Healthy suggestions and constructive encouragement is a must Capsule for the Klub and KPians. We still have many rooms left for improvements and to implement your creative critiques and innovative ideas.

We hope you there with us.

For further enquiry, please contact us at:
Klub Psychology
Kathmandu, Nepal
klubpsychology@gmail.com; klubpsychology.blogspot.com

Alzheimers Disease

2009-05-26T04:30:00.000-07:00

Known by many as "the long goodbye," Alzheimer's disease is increasing at an alarming rate in the United States. An estimated 5 million people in the United States are now living with Alzheimer's, and someone is diagnosed with the disease every 72 seconds.

Most people with Alzheimer's are age 65 or older, but at least 200,000 people under the age of 65 are also living with an early-onset form of the disease. By the year 2030, the number of individuals with Alzheimer's could approach 8 million; if scientists can't find a way to cure or prevent Alzheimer's, this number could range between 11 million and 16 million by the year 2050.

Alzheimer's versus Dementia

Alzheimer's disease is a progressive, degenerative disease of the brain that results in dementia. The terms Alzheimer's and dementia are often used interchangeably, but there's a distinct difference between them.

Dementia is a broader term than Alzheimer's and refers to any brain syndrome resulting in problems with memory, orientation, judgment, executive functioning, and communication. The consequences of Alzheimer's is dementia.

Causes of Dementia
Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia -- according to the Alzheimer's Association, 60% to 70% of dementia cases are due to Alzheimer's. However, many other diseases can cause dementia, such as stroke, Parkinson's disease, and Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome. Some infectious diseases can also result in dementia, such as HIV or the extremely rare Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.When individuals are diagnosed with mixed dementia, more than one disease process is causing the dementia. For example, a person might have dementia due to both Alzheimer's and a stroke.

Causes
There are at least 10 Conditions That Can Cause Dementia to be considered.

Reversible Conditions that Resemble Alzheimer's
Sometimes symptoms that look like Alzheimer's are actually due to a reversible medical condition, such as depression or delirium. These conditions aren't types of dementia -- they're reversible problems that mimic Alzheimer's disease and other dementias.

Alzheimer's disease is a progressive neurological disorder that leads to personality changes, memory loss, intellectual slowing, and other Alzheimer's symptoms. Although each person with Alzheimer's is different, most progress through a series of stages, each of which is characterized by more serious Alzheimer's symptoms.

The following seven stages were developed by researchers and physicians to describe how you or your loved one will change over time. Your doctor might collapse the seven stages into early/middle/late or mild/moderate/severe, so these classifications are provided as well.

Stage 1 (Absence of Impairment)
There are no problems with memory, orientation, judgment, communication, or daily activities. You or your loved one is a normally functioning adult.

Stage 2 (Minimal Impairment)
You or your loved one might be experiencing some lapses in memory or other cognitive problems, but neither family nor friends are able to detect any changes. A medical exam would not reveal any problems either.

Stage 3 (Noticeable Cognitive Decline)
Family members and friends recognize mild changes in memory, communication patterns, or behavior. A visit to the doctor might result in a diagnosis of early-stage or mild Alzheimer's disease, but not always. Common symptoms in this stage include:

1)Problems producing people's names or the right words for objects
2)Noticeable difficulty functioning in employment or social settings
3)Forgetting material that has just been read
4)Misplacing important objects with increasing frequency
5)Decrease in planning or organizational skills

Stage 4 (Early-Stage/Mild Alzheimer's)
Cognitive decline is more evident. You or your loved one may become more forgetful of recent events or personal details. Other problems include impaired mathematical ability (for instance, difficulty counting backwards from 100 by 9s), a diminished ability to carry out complex tasks like throwing a party or managing finances, moodiness, and social withdrawal.

Stage 5 (Middle-Stage/Moderate Alzheimer's)
Some assistance with daily tasks is required. Problems with memory and thinking are quite noticeable, including symptoms such as:

1)An inability to recall one's own contact information or key details about one's history .
2)Disorientation to time and/or place
3)Decreased judgment and skills in regard to personal care

Even though symptoms are worsening, people in this stage usually still know their own name and the names of key family members and can eat and use the bathroom without assistance.

Stage 6 (Middle-Stage/Moderate to Late-Stage/Severe Alzheimer's)
This is often the most difficult stage for caregivers because it's characterized by personality and behavior changes. In addition, memory continues to decline, and assistance is required for most daily activities. The most common symptoms associated with this stage include:

1)Reduced awareness of one's surroundings and of recent events
2)Problems recognizing one's spouse and other close family members, although faces are still distinguished between familiar and unfamiliar.
3)Sundowning, which is increased restlessness and agitation in the late afternoon and evening
4)Difficulty using the bathroom independently
5)Bowel and bladder incontinence
6)Suspicion
7)Repetitive behavior (verbal and/or nonverbal)
8)Wandering

Stage 7 (Late-Stage/Severe Alzheimer's)
In the final stage, it is usually no longer possible to respond to the surrounding environment. You or your loved one may be able to speak words or short phrases, but communication is extremely limited. Basic functions begin to shut down, such as motor coordination and the ability to swallow. Total care is required around the clock.

Although the stages provide a blueprint for the progression of Alzheimer's symptoms, not everyone advances through the stages similarly. Caregivers report that their loved ones sometimes seem to be in two or more stages at once, and the rate at which people advance through the stages is highly individual. Still, the stages help us understand Alzheimer's symptoms and prepare for their accompanying challenges.

Diagnosis

There is no singular test that can definitively diagnose Alzheimer's disease, although imaging technology designed to detect Alzheimer's plaques and tangles is rapidly becoming more powerful and precise. Still, a comprehensive, competent diagnostic workup by a skilled physician can pinpoint the cause of Alzheimer's-like symptoms with over 90% accuracy. Diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease should include the following:

Medical history -- This should include questions about past illnesses, prior injuries and surgeries, and current chronic conditions in order to identify other possible causes for Alzheimer's-like symptoms. For instance, if you suffered a serious head injury any time in your past, it could account for the problems with memory or concentration that you're currently experiencing. If your loved one has heart disease, that could be reducing blood flow to the brain and causing forgetfulness.

Medication history -- This should include allergies, experienced side effects from past medications, and a list of current medications and dosages. Not only will this inform any future prescription decisions; it also might reveal a medication interaction or overdosage that accounts for your or your loved one's confusion and other symptoms.

Mood evaluation -- The evaluation should include an assessment for anxiety or depression, which can create Alzheimer's-like symptoms in older people as well as occur concurrently with Alzheimer's or another dementia. Depression, in particular, can result in a set of symptoms collectively known as pseudodementia. If a mood disorder is detected, it can be treated alongside other disorders, such as Alzheimer's.

Mental status exam -- To assess memory, concentration, and other cognitive skills. The mental status exam is a research-based set of questions that results in a score that indicates a general level of impairment. If you or your loved one scores high on a mental status exam, there is less of a chance that Alzheimer's is the culprit; another (possibly treatable) condition may be responsible for the symptoms. However, highly educated individuals have scored high on mental status exams even though they do have Alzheimer's disease.

Complete physical exam -- To assess hearing, vision, blood pressure, pulse, and other basic indicators of health and disease. A current physical exam can detect acute medical conditions such as an infection that might be causing Alzheimer's-like symptoms.

Appropriate laboratory tests -- These will vary according to your or your loved one's medical history and current symptoms. Blood tests are the most common laboratory tests ordered. For example, if you are exhibiting pre-diabetic symptoms, a blood glucose test would be ordered. Aside from blood tests, if your loved one's symptoms came on suddenly and include severe confusion, a urinalysis would probably be conducted to rule out a urinary tract infection.

Neurological exam -- This should include an examination of the motor system (movement), reflexes, gait (walking), sensory functioning, and coordination in order to detect problems with the nervous system that may be causing problems with thinking and behavior.

Imaging procedures -- Detailed pictures of the brain, such as a CT scan (computed tomography), an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging), or a PET scan (positron emission tomography) to identify changes in brain structure or size indicative of Alzheimer's, or to look for brain tumors, blood clots, strokes, normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH), or other abnormalities that might account for Alzheimer's-like symptoms.

There is no particular kind of physician that specializes in Alzheimer’s disease. Many people first seek help from their primary care physician, who may oversee the total diagnostic process or refer the individual to any of the following specialists:

Neurologist -- Specializes in diseases of the nervous system, including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, epilepsy, and stroke.
Psychiatrist -- Specializes in mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders.
Neuropsychologist -- Specializes in the brain-behavior relationship and can conduct neuropsychological testing to determine the type and level of impairment due to Alzheimer's, head injury, stroke, or other conditions.
The goal of a diagnostic workup is to explore every possible cause for the person's symptoms and to address any reversible condition or treatable problem. If a cause is not reversible or treatable, then the goal is to help the individual manage the symptoms through medical treatments or behavior management.

Treatment procedures in next blog.

Log Book to monitor and reduce the smoking habit

2009-05-18T00:10:00.000-07:00

April one of our surfer have reveled ...
I have been battling to give up the cigarettes for a long time now and recently looked at a less conventional method online at Hypnotic tracks. I am still smoking but I do seem to have cut down, I just need to build up that will power to finally give up smoking once and for all.

DEAR APRIL,
AS WE HAVE DEALT WITH MANY CASES OF CHIAN SMOKING, KLUB PSYCHOLOGY WOULD SAY, " DONT SAY I WOULD QUIT SMOKING, SAY TO YOURSELF- I WOULD REDUCE MY SMOKING HABIT. DON'T REALLY LINGER YOUR SMOKING HABITS TO THE TWO EXTREMES i.e. I WILL QUIT SMOKING OR I WONT. THEY REALLY DONT GIVE YOU PERMANENT SOLUTION."

LET US GIVE YOU FEW STEPS TO MONITOR AND REDUCE YOUR MARGIN

1)MAKE A LOG BOOK OF ABOUT 1 MONTHS. START FROM TODAY. MAKE COLUMNS FOR YOUR PROBLEMS, TIME OF SMOKING, NO OF CIGARETTE PER DAY, REASON IF YOU KNOW BEHIND THE CARVINGS, AND PROBABALE SOLUTIONS.

2)WIRTE DOWN THOSE SITUATIONS WHERE YOU HAD EXTREME CARVINGS FOR SMOKING. MAINTAIN IT EVERY DAY.

3) WHAT COULD BE THE STRESSOR OR CAUSE BEHIND YOU WANTING TO SMOKE? - WIRITE IT DOWN A COLUMN.

4)IN THE NEXT COLUMN- WIRTE DOWN PROBABLE SOLUTIONS YOU HAVE GOT TO BATTLE YOUR SMOKING HABIT. ITS YOUR OWN APPRAOCHES, MIND IT. THESE APPRAOCHES MAY LEAD YOU TO THE INSIGHT ABOUT THE PROBLEMS AND PROBABLE SOLUTIONS.

5)TRY TO DEALY YOUR TIME TO LIT UP THE CIGARETTE. BUILD UP CERTAIN WILL POWER TO STOP IT FOR FEW MINUTES, THEN FEW HOURS AND THEN FEW DAYS. YOU HAVE TO PRACTICE IT. YOU NEED TO DEVOTE A LOT OF TIME AND EFFORT IN THIS TASK. DELAYING THE TIME TO LIT UP MAY DECREASE THE NUMBER OF CIGARETTES EVERY DAY.

6)TYR TO LIMIT YOUR SMOKING HABIT BY SETTING PARTICULAR TIME AND PLACE. IT MAY HELP YOU TO CONTROL YOUR HABIT A LOT. THIS METHOD IS VERY APPLICABLE TO MONITOR AND REDUCE THE SMOKING OF MARIJUANA AND OTHER NARCOTICS AND NON NARCOTICS INHALED IN THE FORM OF SMOKE.

6)USE THAT DEALYED TIME FOR CREATIVE ACTIVITIES THAT YOU ARE MOST FOND OF.

by: klub psychology, klubpsychology@gmail.com; Kathmandu, Nepal

25 ways to be happy: Use of Biofeedback

2009-05-11T04:04:00.000-07:00

This is a technique where people are taught to consciously trigger the relaxation response and control involuntary stress responses from their autonomic nervous system. Through the use of electronic feedback (as Tread Mill attached with Biofeedback gadgets) measuring hand temperature and muscle tension; heartbeats and pulse rate et al. patients learn to monitor their physiological arousal levels and physically relax their bodies, actually changing their heart rate, brain waves, muscle contractions and more. Feedback is presented through beeps, graphs or a computer screen that can be seen and heart by the participant.

Though this is a very reliable method, it is very expensive, as we need to install these sophisticated gadgets at our home there is need of huge sum of money an time an effort on the part of the practitioner.

Progressive muscular relaxation

2009-05-11T04:03:00.001-07:00

Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR) is a great technique for reducing overall body tension. As you practice tensing and relaxing all the muscle groups in your body, you can move to a shortened procedure, Deep Muscle Relaxation where you rapidly relax your whole body. As you reduce the tension you carry in your body, your whole being will feel less stress and you will enjoy increased physical and emotional health. Here’s how to get started:

Difficulty: Easy
Time Required: 5 Minutes

Here's How:
After finding a quiet place and several free minutes to practice progressive muscle relaxation, sit or lie down and make yourself comfortable.

Begin by tensing all the muscles in your face. Make a tight grimace, close your eyes as tightly as possible, clench your teeth, even move your ears up if you can. Hold this for the count of eight as you inhale.

Now exhale and relax completely. Let your face go completely relaxedl, as though you were sleeping. Feel the tension leak from your facial muscles, and enjoy the feeling.
Next, completely tense your neck and shoulders, again inhaling and counting to eight. Then exhale and relax.

Continue down your body, repeating the procedure with the following muscle groups:

chest
abdomen
entire right arm
right forearm and hand (making a fist)
right hand
entire left arm
left forearm and hand (again, making a fist)
left hand
buttocks
entire right leg
lower right leg and foot
right foot
entire left leg
lower left leg and foot
left foot
for the shortened version, which includes just four main muscle groups:
face
neck, shoulders and arms
abdomen and chest
buttocks, legs and feet

Quickly focusing on each group one after the other, with practice you can relax your body like ‘liquid relaxation’ poured on your head and it flowed down and completely covered you. You can use progressive muscle relaxation to quickly de-stress any time.

What You Need:
A comfortable place.
Some privacy.
A few minutes.

25 ways to be happy: Self hypnosis for stress management

2009-05-11T04:00:00.000-07:00

Overview Of Hypnosis:

Hypnosis is perhaps one of the least understood therapeutic tools in use. While most people think of hypnosis as a way to get somebody to bark like a dog at the snap of your fingers or take off their clothes when you say the work ‘stupendous’, hypnosis can be a valuable tool in helping people overcome fears, withstand pain, or, yes, even reduce stress in their lives.Contrary to popular belief, you cannot be hypnotized without your consent or awareness. You can, however, be hypnotized by a trained professional whom you trust, to more easily achieve goals you set for yourself. Even better, you can save time and money and learn to hypnotize yourself using your own voice or even just your thoughts, a practice known as ‘self-hypnosis’.

How Does Hypnosis Work?: Hypnosis can be used for stress management in two ways:

First, you can use hypnosis to get into a deeply relaxed state, fighting tension and triggering your relaxation response. This will help to prevent health problems due to chronic stress.Second, hypnosis can also help you achieve various healthy lifestyle changes that can reduce the amount of stress you encounter in your life. For example, you can hypnotize yourself to stick to an exercise program, keep your home less cluttered, feel more confident setting boundaries with others, etc.In this same vein, you can also effectively use hypnosis to help overcome any negative habits you’ve been using to cope with stress, like smoking or compulsive eating.

What's Involved With Hypnosis?:

The process of hypnosis involves entering a trance, or a deeply relaxed, but focused state (like that of daydreaming or meditation), and making suggestions for your subconscious mind to accept. You can go to a trained professional for hypnotherapy, and they will talk you through it. Or, you can employ the use of books, videos, or even short articles to learn what’s involved, and achieve effective results at home.

What Are The Benefits Of Hypnosis?:

Hypnosis is an extremely versatile tool that can be used for everything from simple relaxation to pain management in childbirth. (I can personally attest to this!) It’s easy to do, can be quite inexpensive, and the results are lasting. There are no potential negative side effects, and it can give multiple benefits at the same time.

What Are the Drawbacks of Hypnosis?:

Hypnosis isn’t for everyone. Some people have trouble getting past their initial prejudices about the practice in general, and some have a more difficult time getting into the trancelike state required for hypnotic suggestions to become deeply embedded. Others find that they simply can’t find the time or the focus, and have an easier time with other stress-management techniques.

How Do Hypnosis and Self-Hypnosis Compare To Other Stress Reduction Methods?:

Like meditation, hypnosis does require more focus and practice than techniques like simple exercise or the use of medications and herbal treatments, and hypnosis also requires some training, or the help of a trained professional. However, hypnosis may be a preferable option for those with physical limitations that make exercise like yoga more difficult. There are no potential negative side effects, like with some medications or herbal remedies. Also, few other techniques can offer such a wide variety of benefits.

With training and practice, virtually anyone can use hypnosis.

Guided Imagery for Stress Management

2009-05-11T03:59:00.001-07:00

Guided imagery has been found to provide significant stress reduction benefits, including physically relaxing the body quickly and efficiently and even helping participants get in touch with deeper levels of wisdom (held on a subconscious level) that would help them better manage their lives in ways that would reduce stress. The studies demonstrating the health benefits of imagery are so numerous that many hospitals are incorporating imagery as an option to help with treatment.

What’s Involved?:
This is a simple technique which uses techniques as instructions from a therapist
or a professional helper. The client builds his imagination based on instruction, and try to be guided into a deeply relaxed state and envision. The instructions includes details relating to all of the senses, a relaxing scene. They may also imagine a wise ‘imagery guide’ with them or even a tape recorder instructing them. While they ponder into deep sense about their body parts they can ask questions to their instructor or even the self and could get a rationalised answer.Like in hypnosis this guide may help them to uncover their subconscious mind that they aren’t generally able to access.

What Are the Pros?:

Imagery can provide relaxation, insight and wisdom. It is a free stress relieving therapy and, with practice, can be done just about anywhere.

What Are the Cons?:

Like self-hypnosis, it can take some practice to master autonomous guided imagery. Working with a professional therapist or even tapes to get to that point can be somewhat slow in outcome and if therapist used may be costly.

How Does It Compare To Other Stress Reduction Methods?:

For the benefits it provides, it’s an excellent stress management option. It can be easier than exercise or even yoga for those with physical limitations. It has no risk of side effects like some medical and herbal therapies. Using it for simple relaxation is easy and can be done by just about anyone, but accessing an internal ‘guide’ takes more practice than other methods like progressive muscle relaxation or breathing exercises. It can be used along with Self Guided Internal Journey

25 ways to be happy

2009-05-11T03:58:00.000-07:00
We all experience stress from time to time. When stress gets to be too much, it can take a toll on our health and wellbeing. That's why effective stress relievers are essential in restoring inner peace and physical health. Here is a growing list of stress relievers that can help you feel less affected by stress in your life.

1)Guided Imagery
2)Self-Hypnosis
3)Autogenics
4)Journaling
5)Meditation
6)PMR (Progressive Muscular Relaxation)
7)Yoga
8)Breathing techniques (Pranayam)
9)Playing Games
10)Sex
11)Laughter
12)Biofeedback
13)Music Therapy
14)Take a Walk
15)Plant a Garden
16)Time Management
17)Listen To Music
18)Eat a Balanced Diet
19)Learn Assertive Communication Skills
20)Enjoy Aromatherapy
21)Reduce Caffeine Intake
22)Drink in Moderation
23)Don’t Procrastinate
24)Drink Green Tea
25)Dont exclude perceptual stimuli from your cognition

Description about some of these techniques would be presented on upcoming posts.

Nepali folk dances

2009-05-02T23:10:00.001-07:00
The folk dances of Nepal are the visible rhythmic expressions of joys and beliefs of Nepalese rural folks. For these simple people, living mostly in scattered villages, life continues to be something of a ritual, and dance is an integral part of it. Religious rituals influence and enrich folk songs and dances, and the Nepalese village folks sing and dance to please their deities.

Because of widely differing topographic and cultural influences, the folk dances of Nepal are both rich and varied and reflect the day to day activities of the rural inhabitants. Simplicity and spontaneity are the chief qualities -of Nepalese folk dances, steps which have sprung from the lives and activities of the rural folks, like sowing and harvesting. Peasants and frolicking shepherds enjoy dancing and singing mellifluous songs while working in the corn fields or herding the sheep and goats in the hills. Nature unobstrusively mould’s these dances: as the dancers from the mountains sway and bend they suggest the vast undulating ranges of the mighty Himalaya.

Each region of Nepal has its own typical ethnic dances. The regional coloring in dress and ornaments, in song and instruments make them rich and varied. Rural melas or fairs are the proper venues to witness the deep-rooted folk songs and dances of Nepal. But conveniently for the city visitors, some Nepalese folk songs and dances have now emerged on the modem stage in hotels and performance halls of Kathmandu and Pokhara.

Dance Movement Therapy

2009-04-18T00:05:00.000-07:00
Dance Movement Therapy is the psychotherapeutic use of movement and dance through which a person can engage creatively in a process to further their emotional, cognitive, physical and social integration. It is founded on the principle that movement reflects an individual’s patterns of thinking and feeling. Through acknowledging and supporting clients’ movements the therapist encourages development and integration of new adaptive movement patterns together with the emotional experiences that accompany such changes. Dance Movement Therapy is practised as both individual and group therapy in health, education and social service settings and in private practice.

Dance Movement Therapists work with a wide variety of clients including people who are emotionally distressed, people with learning difficulties, those with physical or mental illness and people who want to use the medium for personal growth.

While the origins of dance as a healing art lie in ancient history, the contemporary profession incorporates dance, movement & psychological theories and therapeutic practices developed primarily in Europe and the U.S.A. In eastern societies, as like in Indian Subcontinent, dance has always been practiced as a medium to unleash the emotions and execute the emotiojns for the therapeutic build up. Lord Shiva is reffered as Natyaswor ( the god of dancing).The profession is also informed by continuing international research.

Who is DMT for?
1) for anyone experiencing difficulties or concerns with emotional problems, conflict or distress.
2) for people who want to enhance personal communication skills, self-exploration or self-understanding.
3) for people who may find some feelings or experiences too overwhelming or difficult to communicate by words alone, or for those who may avoid feelings or confuse issues in their use of words.
4) for people whose problems are bound up in bodily form; in distortions or concern about body image, in actual movement difficulties such as tension or blocked areas of the body, impaired movements or in anxieties about proximity, physical contact or trust.
5) for people where impairment or trauma may hinder the capacity for them or others to acknowledge and understand personal areas of strength and weakness.
6) for people during particular periods of distress such as those associated with loss, transition or change.
7) for people concerned that problems they feel have gone on for too long, or who have a general sense that "things are not right" for them, their relationships or their family.
8) for those for whom verbal communication is less available

Benefits of DMT

1)increasing self-awareness, self-esteem and personal autonomy.
2)experiencing links between thought, feelings and actions.
3)increasing and rehearsing adaptive coping behaviours.
4)expressing and managing overwhelming feelings or thoughts.
5)maximising resources of communication.
6)contacting inner resources through contained creative movement play.
7)testing the impact of self on others.
8)testing inner with outer reality.
9)initiating physical, emotional and/or cognitive shifts.
10)developing a trusting relationship.
11)manage feelings that interrupt learning.
12)enhancing social interaction skills.

Referrals

Dance Movement Therapy may be recommended as a primary service or as a complement to other forms of on-going treatment, rehabilitation or education. The therapy can be short or long term and is available for adults and children.

Sources: American Dance Movement Therapy Association

Reverse Brainstorming

2009-04-17T23:29:00.000-07:00
A different approach to brainstorming
Related variant: "Negative Brainstorming"

Reverse brainstorming helps you solve problems by combining brainstorming and reversal techniques. By combining these, you can extend your use of brainstorming to draw out even more creative ideas. Brainstorming is a solution oriented approach but in reverse brainstorming we first collect information about problem, how it is caused or how can we create it and then only we go to solution.

To use this technique, you start with one of two "reverse" questions:

Instead of asking, "How do I solve or prevent this problem?" ask, "How could I possibly cause the problem?"

Instead of asking "how do I achieve these results?" ask,
"how could I possibly achieve the opposite effect?"

How To Use The Tool?

1. Clearly identify the problem or challenge, and write it down.

2. Reverse the problem or challenge by asking:
"How could I possibly cause the problem?", or
"How could I possibly achieve the opposite effect?"

3. Brainstorm to reverse the problem so as to generate reverse solution ideas. Allow the brainstorm ideas to flow freely. Do not reject anything at this stage.

4. Once you have brainstormed all the ideas about the problem, now reverse these into solution ideas for the original problem or challenge.

5. Evaluate these solution ideas. Can you see a potential solution? Can you see attributes of a potential solution?

Tip:
Reverse brain-storming is a good technique to try when it is difficult to identify solutions to the problem directly.

Example:

Luciana is the manager of a health clinic and she has the task of improving patient satisfaction.

There have been various improvement initiatives in the past and the team members have become rather skeptical about another meeting on the subject. The team is overworked, team members are "trying their best" and there is no appetite to "waste" time talking about this.

So she decides to use some creative problem solving techniques she has learned. This, she hopes, will make the team meeting more interesting and engage people in a new way.

Perhaps it will reveal something more than the usual "good ideas" that no one has time to act on.

To prepare for the team meeting, Luciana thinks carefully about the problem and writes down the problem statement:

• "How do we improve patient satisfaction?"
Then she reverses problem statement:
• "How do we create make more patients dissatisfied?"
Already she starts to see how the new angle could reveal some surprising results.

At the team meeting, everyone gets involved in an enjoyable and productive reverse brainstorming session. They draw on both their work experience with patients and also their personal experience of being patients and customers of other organizations. Luciana helps ideas flow freely, ensuring people to not pass judgment on even the most unlikely suggestions.

Here are just a few of the "reverse" ideas:
• Double book appointments
• Remove the chairs from the waiting room
• Put patients who phone on hold (and forget about them)
• Have patients wait outside in the car park
• Discuss patient's problems in public
• . and so on
When the brainstorming session runs dry, the team has a long list of the "reverse" solutions. Now it's time to look at each one in reverse into a potential solution. Well resulting discussions are quite revealing. For example:
"Well of course we don't leave patients outside in the car park - we already don't do that."
"But what about in the morning, there are often patients waiting outside until opening time?"
"Mmm, true. Pretty annoying for people on first appointments."
"So why don't we open the waiting room 10 minutes earlier so it doesn't happen?"
"Right, we'll do that from tomorrow. There are 2 or 3 staff working already, so it's no problem".
And so it went on. The reverse brainstorming session revealed tens of improvement ideas that the team could implement swiftly and easily.

Luciana concluded: "It was enlightening and fun to looking at the problem in reverse. The amazing thing is, it's helped us become more patient-friendly by stopping doing things rather than creating more work".

Key points:
Reverse brain-storming is a good technique for creative problem solving, and can lead to robust solutions. Be sure to follow the basic rules of brainstorming to explore possible solutions to the full.

Vairous sources

Brainstorming

2009-04-15T22:01:00.001-07:00
Generating many radical and useful ideas

Brainstorming is a useful and popular tool that you can use to develop highly creative solutions to a problem.

It is particularly helpful when you need to break out of stale, established patterns of thinking, so that you can develop new ways of looking at things. This can be when you need to develop new opportunities, where you want to improve the service that you offer, or when existing approaches just aren't giving you the results you want.
Used with your team, it helps you bring the experience of all team members into play during problem solving.

This increases the richness of solutions explored (meaning that you can find better solutions to the problems you face, and make better decisions.) It can also help you get buy in from team members for the solution chosen - after all, they have helped create that solution.

Brainstorming and Lateral Thinking

Brainstorming is a lateral thinking process, in a sense that it helps you to use and exchange the resources existing in both side of the brain. It asks that people come up with ideas and thoughts that seem at first to be a bit shocking or crazy. You can then change and improve them into ideas that are useful, and often stunningly original.

During brainstorming sessions there should therefore be no criticism of ideas: You are trying to open up possibilities and break down wrong assumptions about the limits of the problem. Judgments and analysis at this stage will stunt idea generation.

Ideas should only be evaluated at the end of the brainstorming session - you can then explore solutions further using conventional approaches.
If your ideas begin to dry up, you can 'seed' the session with, for example, a random words and cues as words defining- a situation at the moment, context and purpose of the work being done.

Individual Brainstorming

When you brainstorm on your own you will tend to produce a wider range of ideas than with group brainstorming - you do not have to worry about other people's egos or opinions, and can therefore be more freely creative. You may not, however, develop ideas as effectively as you do not have the experience of a group to help you.
When Brainstorming on your own, it can be helpful to use Mind Maps to arrange and develop ideas.

Group Brainstorming

Group brainstorming can be very effective as it uses the experience and creativity of all members of the group. When individual members reach their limit on an idea, another member's creativity and experience can take the idea to the next stage. Therefore, group brainstorming tends to develop ideas in more depth than individual brainstorming.

Brainstorming in a group can be risky for individuals. Valuable but strange suggestions may appear stupid at first sight. Because of this, you need to chair sessions tightly so that uncreative people do not crush these ideas and leave group members feeling humiliated.

How to Use the Tool:

To run a group brainstorming session effectively, do the following:
• Define the problem you want solved clearly, and lay out any criteria to be met.
• Keep the session focused on the problem.
• Ensure that no one criticizes or evaluates ideas during the session. Criticism introduces an element of risk for group members when putting forward an idea. This stifles creativity and cripples the free running nature of a good brainstorming session.
• Encourage an enthusiastic, uncritical attitude among members of the group. Try to get everyone to contribute and develop ideas, including the quietest members of the group.
• Let people have fun brainstorming. Encourage them to come up with as many ideas as possible, from solidly practical ones to wildly impractical ones. Welcome creativity.
• Ensure that no train of thought is followed for too long.
• Encourage people to develop other people's ideas, or to use other ideas to create new ones.
• Appoint one person to note down ideas that come out of the session. A good way of doing this is to use a flip chart. This should be studied and evaluated after the session.

Where possible, participants in the brainstorming process should come from as wide a range of disciplines as possible. This brings a broad range of experience to the session and helps to make it more creative.
And again, it's worth exploring the use of computer-based tools for group brainstorming. As long as you're reasonably quick with keyboard and mouse, these significantly improve the quality and effectiveness of a brainstorming session.

Key Points:

Brainstorming is a great way of generating radical ideas. During the brainstorming process there is no criticism of ideas, as free rein is given to people's creativity (criticism and judgment cramp creativity.)

This often makes group brainstorming sessions enjoyable experiences, which are great for bringing team members together.

Individual brainstorming is best for generating many ideas, but tends to be less effective at developing them. Group brainstorming tends to develop fewer ideas, but takes each idea further. Group brainstorming needs formal rules for it to work smoothly.

Vaiours resources