The PERMA Model: A Scientific Approach to Well-Being

Being well is not merely living in the absence of misery. Understand the five core elements of psychological well-being known by the acronym PERMA, Positive emotions, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, and Accomplishment. Understanding these elements in your life offers perspective to move towards a life of greater fulfillment, happiness, and purposeful living.

30 Best Journaling Prompts for Improving Mental Health

In our vast arsenal of therapeutic strategies, using journal prompts for self-reflection can be a powerful practice that bridges the therapeutic space and the client’s daily life. The journaling process involves the structured or free-form expression of thoughts, feelings, and experiences through written words. Research suggests that using journal prompts enhances self-reflection and cognitive restructuring, …

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How to Use Mindfulness Therapy for Anxiety: 15 Exercises

Anxiety can leave a person feeling totally alone. Countless people worldwide understand what it’s like and share the same fears, struggles, and behavioral tendencies (Forsyth & Eifert, 2016). While anxiety may feel unavoidable, mindfulness practices can significantly benefit psychological, cognitive, and physical health and manage experiences of anxiety (Shapiro, 2020). Mindfulness helps clients cope with …

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How to Plan a Mindfulness Workshop: Best Ideas for Success

Since Jon Kabat-Zinn (1990) first published his seminal study of mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR), Full Catastrophe Living, training in mindfulness skills has become a popular intervention in a range of health and wellbeing contexts. So much so that the third wave of behavioral therapies (Hayes & Hofmann, 2017) evolved from a hybrid of mindfulness skills, …

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Neurofeedback: A Promising Approach for Trauma Healing

There is increasing recognition that unresolved trauma underpins many mental health problems. A range of treatments have flourished to promote healing from trauma, with talk therapy and medication being well known. However, there is another type of therapy that requires no pharmacological drugs and no need to revisit painful memories. In this article, we will …

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8 Attachment Style Questionnaires & Tests to Assess Clients

Attachment styles describe how clients relate to those closest to them. They form in childhood but influence lifelong behavior in several ways, including coping with stress, psychological wellbeing, and health (Gunnar et al., 1996; Maunder et al., 2006; Ravitz et al., 2010). But how do we know what type of attachment style a client has? …

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Polyvagal Theory Explained (& 18 Exercises & Resources)

Ongoing research suggests that a better understanding of the vagus nerve could revolutionize how we treat various physical and mental health conditions, including epilepsy, obesity, inflammatory disorders, depression, and anxiety (Wade, 2023; Neuhuber & Berthoud, 2022). Not only that, but according to the polyvagal theory, lowering “autonomic states that support threat reactions” and boosting ones …

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Understanding Mental Health Stigma: 17 Ways to Reduce It

Have you ever been scarred by a damaging label? If so, you know the discomfort, shame, and dehumanization that occurs. Labeling others separates people based on actual or perceived differences. The stigma associated with being labeled aims at one’s identity and divides us and them. The label linked to certain assumptions lingers, impacting impressions of …

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