Mental Wellness
Individuals who are mentally well seek to reflect upon their own actions and accept themselves for who they really are. They encourage self exploration and improvement. They have a strong desire to learn and maintain intellectual curiosity. They value shared experiences and are stimulated by new ideas, sharing knowledge, and pursuing learning.
Traits of a Mentally Healthy Individual
-Keeps a generally positive attitude
-Has methods to reduce stress before and after it arises
-Knows their personal limits and acts accordingly by not overextending themselves
-Is aware of common mental health problems, issues, and signs of detection
-Is willing to ask for help in warranting situations
Five Minutes to Intellectual Wellness
Intellectual Wellness may be one of the most overlooked wellness aspects—and one of the easiest to tune into. Every time you learn something new, you’ve supported your Intellectual Wellness. In just five minutes a day, you can:
Read. Read a few pages of a book, magazine, online resource or newspaper. Regular reading helps strengthen your ability to think, teaches you something new, and helps reduce the risk of deterioration of the brain in later life.
Get creative. For five minutes, do something creative. Draw a quick picture with colored pencils just for fun or write a short poem. Even the smallest burst of creativity may inspire you to greater Intellectual Wellness.
Listen to educational programming. You can learn a new word, pick up some grammar tips, or learn a new fact in just five minutes. All across the internet there are podcasts and video casts that give you quick little lessons for Intellectual Wellness.
Great Tips To Help Memory
Whether you call it a “senior moment” or a “mind glitch,” the truth is that as we get older our memory and thought processes are just not what they used to be. A friend of mind claims that for the past ten years she hasn’t remembered the name of any new person she met. Another describes those frequent moments when the word is right on the tip of your tongue but for the life of you it just won’t materialize. Still another says her memory has gotten so rusty lately that her kids take advantage of it, sometimes having her believing that she approved an expenditure, when she can’t even remember them asking about it!
Just as daily weight repetitions in the gym strengthen certain muscle groups, mental exercises strengthen and enhance memory and thought functions over time. The following are some exercises you can use to increase your memory fitness:
• Do crossword puzzles and brainteasers on a regular basis.
• Play games that use memory like chess, bridge, or Trivial Pursuit.
• Memorize your shopping list by visualizing your trip through the supermarket. See yourself stop at each aisle putting what you need in your cart. When you get to the store, use your memory to select the items. Bring a written list along to be sure you haven’t forgotten anything.
• Each time you come to the end of a chapter in a book you are reading, imagine yourself summarizing it as briefly as possible to someone who has not read it. Do the same for the whole book when you finish it.
• Link together items that you need to remember into story form. If you need to do errands that include going to the hardware store, the dry cleaners, and the post office, your story might be: You get grease on your clothes at the hardware store so you must go to the dry cleaners. While at the dry cleaners you find an envelope in your pocket that needs to be mailed.
• When meeting someone for the first time, repeat her name as you are introduced. Ask a question about the spelling (is that Ann with an E at the end?) Find a distinctive feature about the person and picture it with the spelling of the person’s name. Associate the name with a song, a rhyme, or a celebrity (Example: if you meet someone named Marilyn, associate the person with Marilyn Monroe.)
Along with aging, memory loss is often the result of chronic stress. If you are going through a particularly stressful time in your life, you will most likely experience difficulty in remembering things. Try the following to help with the forgetfulness caused by stress:
• Put your keys in the same place in your purse and leave them in the same place when you enter your house.
• Try to park in the same place when using parking lots you frequent regularly.
• Keep a small notepad handy and write down things you know you need to remember.
• Purchase a small digital recorder or use the voice recording feature on your cell phone to record things that occur to you while away from home.
• Use timers to remind you of appointments and when you need to take medication.
• If you take more than one medicine a day, purchase a pill reminder box and use it so that you will not have to guess whether you’ve taken your medication or not.
• Slow down!
Sometimes memory loss is just a symptom of a too busy life but it also can alert us to a problem in the brain. Most of us have at one time or another worried that we had early Alzheimer’s Disease. If you are concerned whether your forgetfulness has an organic cause you may want to read Understanding Memory Loss, an online booklet by the National Institute on Aging that can help you figure out whether you should seek an evaluation.
If you are having difficulty remembering things, it may be due to stress, anxiety, or depression. Life is challenging and when we are challenged we forget things. Besides the exercises above, you may want to visit a qualified mental health professional for help.
When you cannot remember something, it often makes you feel anxious or stressed. Good self care for you may include improving your memory. Using memory exercises, finding stress reducing strategies that work for you, and educating yourself about what is normal and what is abnormal memory loss can help. Of course, you have to remember to do them!
Five Minutes For Emotional Wellness
Emotional Wellness doesn’t have to involve sitting in a therapist’s chair for an hour a week. There are some simple things you can do to support your Emotional Wellness in just five minutes a day:
Journal. Even if you only have five minutes, you can journal. Simply write some quick notes about how you’re feeling and what is going on in your life. It may not seem like much, but you can use these notes later for insight and greater personal awareness.
Read an article, listen to a podcast, or watch a video. Look for short articles, podcasts or videos on various Emotional Wellness topics such as anger management techniques, anxiety reduction, defeating depression, or overcoming fear. This information will come in handy when you least expect it, and learning more about Emotional Wellness is the first step toward greater emotional health.
Tell a friend. If you’re having a bad day, call a friend and quickly let them know what’s going on. Sometimes simply getting the feelings out in a safe place can alleviate some of the tension. A quick conversation with a friend invariably lifts your spirits and lets you know you’re not alone.
5 Major Causes of Professional and Personal Failure
1. Lack of defined objectives: Success will always lie just out of reach for anyone who does not set goals and create strategies to achieve those goals on a daily basis. It’s a constant job. You need have goals at all times to prevent becoming content or stale in what you are doing.
2. Lack of self-discipline: Self-Discipline is a product of self-control. Anger, frustration, and stress can lead to loss of focus, energy level, determination and can result in a decline in personal productivity if you don’t recognize and react to these situations as they arise. Controlling your emotions will better help you control external situations as well. Perspective can be changed greatly depending on your mood or stress levels.
3. Lack of persistence: For some it is a lot easier to start something than finish it. Motivation and drive may be running high with a new idea, job or project, but after time passes and several challenges have arisen, people can lose that original focus and determination they had before. I’m sure you all have heard the term “burnt out”. If you can stay driven and focused and take satisfaction from the positives in your situation, you’ll find success will come, and make everything a little easier.
4. Over-caution: Pretty simple, fortune favors the bold. Now nobody is saying go out and take huge risks, just be open to positive opportunities as they arise and take advantage when they do. You don’t want to be looking back saying “yeah that was a good idea, but…”. Playing every situation safe will get you by, but that’s not the idea here.
5. Lack of Research & Planning: Any business owner will tell you that if you have a goal you are trying to achieve the first thing you should do is create a defined strategy on how to achieve that goal. Take the time and do the necessary research on all aspects of the task, and gather as much information as you can to help you make the most informed decisions you can. So much time, effort, and money could be save if a simple plan is created prior to beginning any major task.
How To Train Your Emotions to Conquer Your Fear
Reasons for fear
• you dread facing your opponent – a bigger, tougher, stronger. and more accomplished opponent
• you are afraid of getting hurt – a past injury. the pain associated with it, and the difficult recovery period that you had to go through can create the fear that you may get hurt again
• you fear failure – the thought of losing the game can create a fear in you even before you begin the match
Its expression
• Diffidence – no confidence in yourself
• Panic – You lose your sense of calmness
• Frozen thought processes – unable to recall and use your game plan
Impact of fear on you
• Concentration gets affected even in the case of fear
• But there is also another problem when you have fears – The trepidation caused by fear creates a foreboding within you, and your mind begins to focus on the outcome rather than the game itself. Your focus shifts to thoughts of a fresh injury or thoughts of losing. or the shame of putting up an effectual performance against a formidable opponent
• Fear can sap you of energy
• Fear can make your mind go blank
Fear Management Techniques
• Confront the fear – Analyze the fear. What aspects of the game or the opponent have contributed to the fear?
• Demystify the fear – Once you identify the source of fear. you can find ways to dismiss the fear
• If you fear failure, ask yourself: how unpleasant can it be? It’s not a matter of life and death. So what if you lose one match, you can’t win them all. Isn’t it long-term goals that really matter?
• If you fear repeat injury, use therapies like yoga and meditation to confront the fear and move ahead. If you fear injury, try not to think about it. It may not happen to you. Many players go through a long career spell without ever getting a major injury. Decide in your mind that you will face injury if and when it happens, no point worrying about it in advance. Injuries can occur in any game.
• If you fear shame of a poor performance, remind yourself that every game is a stepping stone and a learning experience. Also train harder and more often until you fell confident of your performance. This can take care of the fear.
• If you fear tough opponents, face the fear of a tough opponent by focusing on your opponent’s strategy totally during the game. Fear can work in your favor. Fear need not be the enemy. On the contrary, fear gives you the power of the adrenaline rush. The object of your fear-your opponent-has to be the focus of your undivided attention. Your armor becomes your concentration and effective use of game techniques. Nothing brings on the instinct to defend yourself and vanquish the other more than fear can. Face the fear and avoid going blank by focusing your thoughts on your opponent. and you can successfully tackle the most adverse situations in the ring.
• Visualize a real-life threat and talk yourself into action: Alertness is probably one of the few things that you still retain when you have fear. Action becomes difficult because of the blank frozen state that you can go into sometimes. But you will be alert and wary, much like when you are being attacked by a wild animal. You are wide awake to what is happening, but too frozen to do the right thing. The adrenaline caused by fear has to be converted into action to transform you from your frozen state into a state of aggression, just like you would behave in a dangerous situation in a jungle. Say to yourself: “If I don’t move now. I’m going to get hurt,” or “Move. If I wait any longer, he will get the upper hand.”
• Dealing with the adrenaline rush through simulation: A lot of grapplers and combat athletes swear by a technique called “adrenaline training.” It is a simulation exercise in which you recreate a fight scene where your practice partner shouts and behaves in an aggressive manner, much like the real opponent that you fear might do. This stimulus can get your adrenaline pumping. It is a method used to stimulate a response when you have the fear of losing to your opponent or when you freeze and go blank. If you can train your mental processes to defend yourself more effectively under fear or if the adrenaline can turn on your offense to tackle your opponent head on, then fear can actually work in your favor.
• Feng Shui, the ancient Chinese system of arranging the living environment in a harmonious way, has some tips for dealing with challenges. Placing certain symbols or pictures in your home, such as a huge picture of a mountain range, a Chinese dragon, or subliminal way to create a feeling of strength and build courage to face challenges. The dragon is considered one of the most powerful and revered symbols dragon symbol (usually a small brass. bronze. or wooden model) is supposed to have the power to create positive energy and can inspire you to face challenges.
Emotional Intelligence
These days, more and more people are trying to figure out how to improve emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence refers to the ability of a person to understand and control their emotions. It may not seem like such an important aspect of our life, but it actually plays a very large part in our decision making habits and thinking skills.
People with high emotional intelligence have a much better chance of becoming successful in life, regardless of their IQ. This article will teach you how to improve emotional intelligence. Once you’re through reading, you’ll have a better grasp of your emotions.
1) R-E-S-P-E-C-T
Respect is not just a seven-letter word in your dictionary. It’s a principle you live by. In order to learn how to improve emotional intelligence, you first have to exercise respect for other people’s emotions.
When one of your co-workers gets emotional about a personal or professional problem, don’t just disregard that person’s emotions. Don’t start playing loud music just to distract yourself or don’t be insensitive to what is going on around you. Instead, give that person your respect through a moment of silence or a look of empathy.
2) Denial is not just a river.
Don’t be one of those people who refuse to admit that they are in denial. That will just sink you into an even deeper hole than normal.
When you feel sad, angry, dissatisfied, don’t tuck those feelings away and try to convince yourself that you’re happy. Learn to acknowledge your emotions – even the negative ones. As unpleasant as they may be, they will help you mature and will teach you how to improve emotional intelligence.
3) Ear of your heart
When someone tells you to listen with the ear of your heart, it means to show compassion and respect to what other people are telling you. Don’t talk too much or interrupt someone who’s sharing something about themselves.
By actively listening to what the speaker is saying, you’re able to learn twice as much and understand what is really going on.
It’s easy enough to learn how to improve emotional intelligence. Knowing the steps is just the beginning. The rest is up to how you apply these tips in your life.
HOW TO KNOW IF YOU ARE EMOTIONALLY WELL ?
Being emotionally well is more than just handling stress. It also involves being attentive to your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, whether positive or negative.
Emotional Wellness implies the ability to:
Be aware of and accept our feelings, rather than deny them
Have an optimistic approach to live
Express feelings freely and manage feelings effectively
Express emotions appropriately
Adjust to change
Cope with stress in a healthy way
Enjoy life despite its occasional disappointments and frustrations
If you are a person engaged in the process of emotional wellness, you are willing and able to:
Arrive at personal choices and decisions based upon the synthesis of feelings, thoughts, philosophies, and behavior.
Live and work independently while realizing the importance of seeking and appreciating the support and assistance of others.
Form interdependent relationships with others based upon a foundation of mutual commitment, trust and respect.
Take on challenges, take risks, and recognize conflict as being potentially healthy.
Manage your life in personally rewarding ways, and taking responsibility for your actions.
The Path to Emotional Wellness
The path to emotional wellness may involve:
-Awareness of thoughts and feelings
-Using a positive attitude
-Seeking support and expressing emotions in a suitable manner
-Learning time management skills
-Setting priorities
-Accepting mistakes and learning from them
-Maintaining life balance
The path may also involve seeking out support from a mental health professional when needed and gathering information in order to make informed value decisions.
Are you engaged in the process of emotional wellness?
Evaluate your own emotional wellness with this brief quiz.
1.Am I able to maintain a balance of work, family, friends, and other obligations?
2.Do I have ways to reduce stress in my life?
3.Am I able to make decisions with a minimum of stress and worry?
4.Am I able to set priorities?
If you answered “No” to any of the questions, it may indicate an area where you need to improve the state of your emotional wellness.
