mental health

Perspectives Monthly Journal Exercise – May

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Journaling can be a therapeutic exercise.  In therapy, Johanna may encourage you to journal or keep a diary in a specific way, to raise awareness of specific activities, thoughts, or feelings.  This monthly journal exercise is in no way individually prescribed, but meant to offer food for thought that may be useful for anyone.

May’s monthly journal exercise:

Write a letter to your future self.  What do you hope your future self will be doing?  What strengths do you have right now that will help your future self?  What do you want your future self to keep in mind that you find important right now?  Write down these thoughts.  It does not need to be a polished piece of writing, but rather a brief exercise to get yourself writing and thinking about yourself in a new way.

May’s Mindfulness Exercise

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Mindfulness involves observing and accepting the things around and within us, without judgment.  In therapy, Johanna may involve mindfulness skills to build awareness of various issues and to develop coping strategies.   The exercise below is not individualized to your needs as it may be in therapy, but is rather intended as a general exercise that you may find useful.

May’s mindfulness exercise:

Mindfulness is not always a quiet, passive observation.  Mindfulness can occur in conversation as well.  Today, while in conversation with a friend, family member, or co-worker, try to notice three things: 1. What did you talk about? (What was the content of the conversation?) 2. What did you notice about the other person in the conversation (verbal and non-verbal)?  What emotions did that person display?  3. What did you notice about yourself in the conversation?  How did you feel emotionally?  Write these things down and try to pay attention to these things without judging your observations as good or bad.

NOTE: This is not intended to replace therapy.  Please contact Johanna at (585)406-3012 if you are interested in individual or group therapy.

Reading for Perspective

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Johanna loves to share good books with her clients. Periodically, she will post here about a book that can be helpful as a part of the therapeutic process or just as good food for thought. If you’d like to join in “reading for perspective,” feel free to learn more about Johanna’s new favorite book below!

Viktor Frankl wrote “Man’s Search for Meaning” as a result of his experiences as a survivor of the Nazi concentration camps during World War II.  His experiences caused him to question everything he had ever known about motivation, meaning, and survival. He writes both about his personal experiences as well as his theory of understanding meaning.

Frankl writes about meaning as being central to the way we understand human life and motivation, rather than the drives promoted by other psychologists such as pleasure or power.  Frankl suggests that our life’s meaning can come from different sources, such as our work, love, or family ties.

What is meaningful in your life?  How does your source of meaningfulness provide motivation during tough times in your life?

As you focus your attention on meaning and motivation in your life, it may be interesting to pay attention to how this impacts the way you think and feel.

NOTE: As always, if you find that you could use an outside perspective or are struggling emotionally, please call to set up an appointment at (585)406-3012. This book review is not intended to replace therapy.

New tools for therapy!

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Johanna attended the New York Mental Health Counselors Association conference this past weekend in Albany, and is excited to share new techniques and approaches with you in your counseling sessions! Feel free to ask her about treating issues using aspects of narrative therapy and metaphor, breathing techniques taken from yoga practice, resources for transgender individuals, spirituality and mental health, use of therapeutic letter-writing, and the use of biofeedback tools she will be adding to her practice.

March’s Mindfulness Exercise

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Mindfulness is something that everyone can incorporate into daily life.  Mindfulness involves observing and accepting the things around and within us, without judgment.  In therapy, Johanna may involve mindfulness skills to build awareness of various issues and to develop coping strategies.   The exercise below is not individualized to your needs as it may be in therapy, but is rather intended as a general exercise that you may find useful.

March’s mindfulness exercise:

In Wegmans, every so often you may hear an announcement that “it’s time for a stretch break.”  How often do we give ourselves a stretch break?  This week, set a daily alarm for a time of day that you know you tend to be tense or act on autopilot.  Each day when the alarm goes off, take three deep breaths.  With each breath, stretch as you inhale (your arms, your back, or your legs – you pick) and relax as you exhale.  Pay attention to any thoughts or feelings that may come up within you as you complete this exercise.

NOTE: This is not intended to replace therapy.  Please contact Johanna at (585)406-3012 if you are interested in individual or group therapy.

Sleep Better in 2016

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We’ve entered the new year, made our resolutions, and gotten back into a routine after the holidays.  How are your self-care routines going?  More specifically, how are you sleeping?

Here are a few things to consider that may help to improve your sleep in 2016.

-Are your bed and your bedroom comfortable?  Do you walk in and instantly associate the room with feelings of peacefulness?  If not, consider things like the temperature of the room and blankets, the lighting, the noise level, and what you use the room for.  Try to pick a couple of things to make changes and invest in your sleep space.  If you find that your bedroom is a multipurpose space (such as for watching television, doing work, or eating), consider moving these activities to another room or at least another piece of furniture other than the bed.

-Do you have a hard time turning off your “to do” list or worries at nighttime?  Try taking 5-10 minutes to think through, or even write down, your tasks and worries.  Do this before you even get ready for bed so that you have a buffer between your “worry time” and your sleep time.

-How do you prepare for bed?  I’m not just talking about brushing your teeth.  Think about what you do to wind down from the business of the day.  If you don’t have a pre-bedtime routine, try one out!  Take 20-30 minutes before bed to engage in something that is relaxing but won’t put you to sleep (you want to save that for when you get into bed).  This pre-bedtime routine could include stretching, reading, taking a bath, or another calming activity.

As always, don’t hesitate to call Johanna with questions or to schedule an appointment at (585)406-3012 if you’d like to explore this topic more.

Create and Contemplate Workshop

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Johanna will be running a half-day retreat with Rev. Virginia Tyler Smith at St John’s Episcopal Church in Honeoye Falls this Saturday, 2/6/16.  The retreat involves elements of mindfulness as well as creativity, contemplation, and prayer.  To learn more or if you are interested in registering for the event, please see the pdf below!

Creativity and Contemplation Women’s Retreat

As always, feel free to call Johanna with questions at (585)406-3012.

Inspirational Blogs to Start Your Year

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As you start the new year, do you find yourself looking for motivation online?  New to the “Resources” page, I’ve compiled a list of useful Wellness Blogs for you to check out.  I’ve listed them below as well.  Staples include the NYT Well Blog, Huffington Post’s Healthy Living page, and MindBodyGreen for mental health and physical health inspiration.  Tiny Buddha comes from a Buddhist perspective and provides some great insight on mindful practices, and The Blue Room is written by a Christian pastor who has published on reflective practices like taking time for family and self-care.  Hallowed Be Thy Home is focused on the house as well as living locally and practicing green living, and Daily Cup of Yoga focuses on living well through yoga practice.  Enjoy!

New York Times Well Blog

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/

Huffington Post Healthy Living Blog

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/healthy-living/

MindBodyGreen

http://www.mindbodygreen.com

Tiny Buddha

http://tinybuddha.com/

The Blue Room

https://theblueroomblog.org/

Hallowed Be Thy Home

http://www.hallowedbethyhome.com

Daily Cup of Yoga

http://www.dailycupofyoga.com/

Wishes for 2016

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The New Year is just a couple of days away.  What do I hope for my clients in 2016?  Self-compassion, connection to others, insight, and growth.  Read more in my Huffington Post blog, written as an open letter to my clients and all those who are clients in therapy.

If you find there are areas of your life in which you feel stuck, or if you find that you have a New Year’s resolution that could use an outside perspective, please call to set up an appointment for individual counseling at (585)406-3012.