therapy

July’s Mindfulness Exercise

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Mindfulness involves observing and accepting the things around and within us in the present moment, 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.

July’s mindfulness exercise:

Mindfulness is the nonjudgmental awareness of the present moment. Today we will focus on metaphors.  Every day, we use metaphors to expand our understanding of the world, describe our experience, and connect with others.  Today, pay attention to how you use metaphors.  Write one or two down throughout the day, and pay attention to the thoughts and feelings you have about this metaphor.  If you’d like, write down what this metaphor means in your life.  It could be a journey, or something as simple as “the elephant in the room.”  Try to observe your thoughts and feelings without judging them 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.

June’s Mindfulness Exercise

~ JB ~ Leave a comment

Mindfulness involves observing and accepting the things around and within us in the present moment, 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.

June’s mindfulness exercise:

As last month’s exercise showed us, mindfulness is not always a quiet, passive observation.  Mindfulness can occur in conversation, and it can also occur in movement.  Today, turn on some music (the radio, a CD, Pandora, or however you get your tunes) and allow yourself to move to the music.  You may start by keeping the beat with your foot, and then if you like, allow the rest of your body to join in the dancing. (If anything causes pain, return to just tapping the beat). Notice what you’re doing physically, what thoughts you have, and how you feel emotionally. Try to observe without judging as good or bad. Try to dance for at least one song!

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

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.

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.

November’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.  Johanna also runs a six-week mindfulness group.  If you are interested in the next group cycle for mindfulness, please call the office.  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.

 

November’s mindfulness exercise:

At your next meal, start by taking one mindful bite.  Pick up the bite of food and first observe it visually.  What does the texture look like?  What colors do you see?  What is the overall shape?  Notice how it looks.  Next, smell the bite of food.  What flavors do you notice when you inhale?  As you bring it close to your nose, notice if it seems hot, cold or neutral.  Next, consider how this food came to be on your plate.  Did it start off as a plant or an animal?  Who cooked it?  What went into the preparation?  Finally, place the bite of food in your mouth.  Notice the temperature and the flavors.  Pause a moment to notice this before you chew.  Notice the texture as well, and how chewy it is.  Finally, after you finish eating this bite of food, take a moment to notice the residual taste of the bite and consider this bite of food traveling to your stomach.

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

September’s Mindfulness Exercise

~ JB ~ Leave a comment

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.  Johanna is also running a six-week mindfulness group.  If you are interested in the next group cycle for mindfulness, please call the office.  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.

September’s Mindfulness Exercise:

Today, when you are going through your daily routine (either at the start or end of your day, or while engaging in a mundane chore such as washing dishes) I want you to bring your full attention to the task at hand.  Oftentimes we act on “autopilot” and wander away in our minds from the activities we are doing.  Today while doing a chore, try to notice every aspect of the chore.  What are you doing, how are you doing it, how do you feel physically and emotionally, what thoughts are going through your mind, and what is happening around you?  You may be surprised how many things you can notice while brushing your teeth.  Try to notice without judging 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.

Perspectives Monthly Journal Exercise – July

~ JB ~ Leave a comment

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.

July’s journal exercise:

For five minutes, try to write without stopping.  Only stop if your hand hurts, or if you find yourself becoming emotionally overwhelmed.  Write about where you draw your energy from in day to day life and where you draw your energy from when facing stress and adversity.  This is not meant to be a polished piece of writing but rather a stream of consciousness from continuous writing.

July’s Mindfulness Exercise

~ JB ~ Leave a comment

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.  In August, she will be starting up a 6-week Mindfulness Group.  This exercise 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.

July’s Mindfulness Exercise:

We will start with an easy one.  Put one hand on your chest and one hand on your belly.  Take a deep breath in and out, and notice which hand goes up and down.  Try breathing more into your upper chest, and then try taking a breath into your belly.  Notice how you feel with each breath.

 

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

Perspectives Monthly Journal Exercise

~ JB ~ Leave a comment

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.

June’s monthly journal exercise:

For a week, write down one thing every day for which you are grateful.  Pick a time of day – maybe even set an alarm to remind yourself – and jot down either a sentence or just a word to describe your gratitude.  This can be something big (ie. my family) or something very small (ie. the smell of a new flower in bloom).  Try to get in the habit of doing this every day for a week, and take a moment at the end of the week to notice how you feel when you do this exercise.

Welcome to Perspectives Mental Health Counseling!

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I invite you to bring your old strengths into a new perspective, and to share in a conversation that is both challenging and supportive.  At Perspectives, you really are welcome.  You may come to gain a viewpoint outside of your current network of friends, family, co-workers, teammates, and to take a look at your own perspective as well. 

By gaining new insight, you will find ways to make positive change in your life and cope with whatever it is you carry with you through the door.  Together we can, through talk therapy, work towards discovering and helping you to become the healthiest you.

Look around the website and please feel free to contact me with further questions.

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