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.
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, …
30 Best Journaling Prompts for Improving Mental Health Read More »
“If it feels good, do it, you only live once”. Hedonists are always up for a good time and believe the pursuit of pleasure and the avoidance of pain is the highest good. However, it’s obvious that this simple definition of hedonism has a cost. Putting personal pleasure first over your responsibilities to others is …
The True Meaning of Hedonism: A Philosophical Perspective Read More »
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 …
How to Use Mindfulness Therapy for Anxiety: 15 Exercises Read More »
Let me guess – you love mindfulness, you have experienced many of its benefits, and now you want to teach others. Mindfulness is a skill that can benefit anyone, but who are you hoping to teach? Mindfulness can be taught to clients, as a practitioner, or to students, as a teacher. Your motivation for teaching …
How to Teach Mindfulness: Your Ultimate Course and Guide Read More »
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, …
How to Plan a Mindfulness Workshop: Best Ideas for Success Read More »
Each of us has been in a situation where we notice cognitive change in ourselves or someone we know. A parent who has difficulty using their smartphone, a friend who frequently asks “Did I tell you this already?”, or a spouse who takes longer than usual to read their GPS on a road trip. These …
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 …
Neurofeedback: A Promising Approach for Trauma Healing Read More »
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? …
8 Attachment Style Questionnaires & Tests to Assess Clients Read More »
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 …
Polyvagal Theory Explained (& 18 Exercises & Resources) Read More »
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 …
Understanding Mental Health Stigma: 17 Ways to Reduce It Read More »