Category: self improvement

Originally Sourced From https://themindunleashed.com/2019/05/ayahuasca-common-misconceptions.html

With the growing popularity of ayahuasca, misinformation is unfortunately quite prevalent. Here we have listed 9 of the most common misconceptions regarding the ancient visionary plant.

If you would like to know more about ayahuasca or retreats please visit New Life Ayahuasca.

1. Ayahuasca is a drug 

2. It’s all love and light

3. Ayahuasca is addictive

4. It can cure addictions

5. Shaman must be indigenous to the Amazon

6. You always have visions

7. It’s like 10 years of therapy in a single session

8. You always vomit and/or have diarrhea

9. Ayahuasca can be deadly

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Originally Sourced From https://themindunleashed.com/2019/06/choosing-an-ayahuasca-retreat-ultimate-guide.html

You’ve felt the medicine calling and you’ve decided to attend an ayahuasca retreat, but where do you start? With the growing popularity of ayahuasca, there are now hundreds of retreat centers all over the world to choose from so how do you know which one is *right* for you? Trying to navigate the process can feel overwhelming. Don’t worry, you aren’t alone! Many people don’t realize how many different retreat programs are available to them.

To help make the process a little easier, we’ve established some key factors to consider when narrowing down your ayahuasca retreat center options in this 10 part guide:

1- LOCATION – The first thing to do is pick a location for your retreat. There are options all over the world, but the primary concentration of retreats are in ayahuasca’s home – the Amazon Rainforest. This seem to be where the majority of ayahuasca seekers naturally gravitate toward and there are a plethora of reputable centers for those whom the jungle calls.

However, there are many factors involved in traveling to the Amazon that can give a cautious traveler cause for concern:

• general travel logistics (expenses, long flights & boat rides)

• language barriers

• cultural barriers

• foreign disease (yellow fever, malaria, parasites)

• the unknown of the jungle (more boat rides to remote areas) and stories of seedy centers/shaman

• lack of access to medical care

Some of these points are not relevant depending on the retreat you choose. Some centers provide transportation to and from the airport while at others you need to make your own way. Some centers are easily accessible from the airport by car or motor taxi but others require lengthy boat rides into remote and secluded areas followed by long hikes into the jungle to find camp.

Drinking ayahuasca and hearing the jungle sing at night can be the most magical experience of a lifetime, but it’s really not for everyone. If you’re the type of person that would feel more comfortable in a more ‘western friendly’ setting, there are plenty of options for you too!

2 – ACCOMMODATIONS – What type of retreat are you looking for? Basic? Traditional? Eco-retreat? Luxury? How much comfort do you need? Are you looking to go completely off-grid without electricity? Is sustainability more important to you? Do you want to pampered in a 5-star resort? Do you just want to be comfortable and cared for with basic amenities provided? There are options for everyone! Then consider what kind of room you would be most comfortable in.

Most ayahuasca retreats offer a variety of accommodations to choose from with varying price. Some housing types include:

• Camping – bring a tent or rent a tent, outdoor/shared bathrooms

• Communal bunk house (1-15 people) – shared bathroom

• Shared dormitory (1-4 people) – shared bathroom

• Private room – private bathroom

Are you looking for a shared experience with others going through the same process? Do you prefer to have your own personal space? How much of a price difference is there in the retreat based on accommodation type? Is having your own bathroom important to you or are you comfortable sharing with multiple participants or using an outhouse? Each center is different and each person is different. Some travelers may find comfort and support in the proximity of the other participants while others prefer to have privacy to reflect on the experience.

There is no right answer but at NLA we always offer private rooms with attached private bathroom. Ayahuasca is a deeply personal experience and we want our guests to be in control of their process and their personal space. We are not a ‘luxury’ retreat but we provide a comfortable, compassionate and safe place to have an experience with ayahuasca while providing amenities that most westerns are accustomed to.

3 – SHAMAN – The ayahuasquero – shaman – facilitator will be the one that essentially determines the energy and flow of the experience so it is very important that you know who you will be drinking with and what the ceremonies will be like.

Some people feel very strongly that only indigenous peoples can be true shaman and work with ayahuasca. They believe that since ayahuasca originated in the Amazon that only natives from that area can have a true connection to the plants.

On the other hand, many westerns may feel more at ease drinking with a ‘gringo’. It is easier for one westerner to communicate to another westerner the struggles or stresses that affect them on a daily basis from a fast paced and materialistic society without trying to navigate language or cultural barriers.

Either way, whether indigenous or gringo – experience is key. Just because an individual is from the Amazon does not mean they are qualified to serve ayahuasca. On the other hand just because a Westerner is not from the Amazon does not mean they can’t be qualified to work with ayahausca. Ethnicity and skin color are irrelevant, the training and knowledge are what really matter. Information on the retreat facilitator should be available on the website, but if not feel free to ask questions. How long have they been serving ayahuasca? Where did they train and what traditions do they follow? Do they drink the medicine with the group to guide they experience? (the should!) The ayahuasquero is the person that will be accompanying you and guiding you into the great unknown – so get to know them and see if you are comfortable. From there we will move on to consider the ceremony itself.

4 – CEREMONY – Ayahuasca ceremonies can vary significantly from one retreat to the next. With the rise of ‘new age’ spirituality and the growing interest in ayahuasca, a number of different kinds of ceremonies are now offered. Some retreats go very nontraditional and play recorded music, electronic music or have a live music set up (think burning man/envision festival). Some don’t even offer a ceremony, only serve the brew and ‘sit’! The ceremony will guide your experience so it’s really important to know what kind of environment you will drink in. However, most ceremonies typically adhere primarily to one of the following most common ceremonial traditions:

• Shipibo/Peruvian Traditions – spiritual practice, done at night, one ceremonial facilitator singing Icaros (medicine songs) for a group of participants

• Santo Diame/Brazilian Traditions – religious organization, wears all white, members all participate in song and dance together

Some facilitators require silence for participants for the duration of ceremony, while others encourage you to ‘go where the medicine takes you’ (although in my opinion, this practice can be extremely distracting, especially in large groups).

5 – GROUP SIZE You will also want to know how many other people will be participating in ceremony with you. Some retreats can be as small as 3-5 people with others reaching up to 90 participants! That’s a lot of people to share such an intimate experience with, and also would require a lot of facilitators and assistants to maintain proper care of the space. Keep in mind that you, along with all the other participants, will be processing and releasing energy into the ceremony and those energies affect everyone in the group. Ayahuasca can be a form a release (purge) and sometimes the release is vocal through laughing/crying/moaning/talking so when you get ceremony groups with close to a hundred people there are bound to distractions. Personally, I do not recommend such large group sizes as it feels overwhelming and chaotic. New Life Ayahuasca limits our retreat groups to 10 or less.

6 – AYAHUASCA BREW – The ayahuasca brew is arguably the most important factor of any ayahuasca retreat. Without a quality brew, it doesn’t matter how great the center is or how skilled the shaman is. Of course, those things play a role but at the end of the day it is truly the ayahuasca that determines the value of your experience.

Ayahuasca brew is made by combining the vine ( ‎Banisteriopsis caapi or b. caapi for short) with the leaves of a DMT containing plant such as chaliponga (Diplopterys cabrerana) or chacruna (Psychotria viridis). Some shamans add other plant materials to their brew such as tobacco or flowers to infuse the spirit into the medicine. Generally, this is okay and does not affect the quality or potency of the medicine, however there is one extremely poisonous and powerful hallucinogenic flower called Datura (Toé ) that can have dangerous effects.

With the boom of ayahuasca tourism to poor countries, some natives have seen this as an easy way to make money. Unfortunately, many of these people are unskilled and knowledgeable. Gringos come to their country expecting a magical psychedelic visionary experience (which is not always the case with ayahuasca) and they either don’t have the knowledge to make quality medicine or lack the resources, so they use Datura alone or mixed into weaker ayahuasca to increase the visionary aspect of the experience. Datura can be deadly in high doses and in lower doses can land you in the hospital for psychosis or disassociation.

Do not be afraid to ask about the source of the brew for your retreat. Ask if any additional plants are added. Ask if the shaman/facilitator drinks the same brew with the group.

7 – PRICES – Prices for an ayahuasca retreat can vary significantly based on a number of factors, many of which we have already mentioned (location, accommodation, facilitator etc.) A retreat in the jungle at a bare-bones camp will surely cost less than a retreat at a luxury resort. The cost of living in whichever country you choose will be a factor, as will the duration of the retreat and any extra therapies that are offered (yoga, massage, Kambo, breathwork, bodywork etc.) All factors considered, most ayahuasca retreats will fall somewhere in the $1000 – $3000 range for an average duration of 5-10 days. Be sure to ask if the retreat has any additional charges. Some centers will charge a base price for accommodations and then let the participant add services in an ‘al-a-carte’ fashion to customize their retreat at an additional cost.

We often see comments from people that are angry at retreat centers for charging for something that the earth gives for free. While we understand the sentiment behind these kinds of statements, it is important to remember that outside of the medicine, each retreat has overhead that needs to be considered (rent, utilities, food, staff etc.)

Additionally, when a shaman or ayahuasquero works in a ceremony, there is a vast amount of energy expelled. It is egocentric to expect that kind of work should be given to you for free. Even if you went to the jungle on your own and managed to find an experienced indigenous shaman who was willing to drink with you, they would still expect some kind of compensation for the time and work they put into the ceremony and healing.

8 – LENGTH– Most centers will offer different retreat lengths but how do you determine which duration you should attend or how many ceremonies you want to sit for? Retreats can range for 3 – 30 days but the most common retreats are 5 – 8 days with 2 or 3 ceremonies. This seems to be a very appropriate amount for first-time participants. Drinking ayahuasca can be difficult so unless you have the experience or are extremely committed to the process, any retreat over 10 days with more than 3-4 ceremonies might be too much. At NLA we offer 5 and 7 day retreats and even during the 7 day retreats we usually have a least a few participants that opt out of the 3rd ceremony because the feel they have too much to process from the first 2 experiences. The duration of the retreat really depends on the individual person and how the medicine sits with you.

9 – SAFETY PROTOCOL – Ayahuasca is generally considered to be very safe when used responsibly, but there are some medical conditions and medications that should not be combined with ayahuasca. Some interactions could be life threatening so it is extremely important that the center you choose has some kind of safety protocol in place. Are you asked to provide any medical history or disclose medications you may be taking? How would the center respond to a medical emergency? Does the staff have any experience responding to emergency situations? Have there ever been any incidents at the retreat? How far is the nearest medical facility? At the very least, every center should ask about any medications you may be taking as that is the biggest concern in regards ayahuasca safety.

10 – REPUTATION – Lastly, consider the overall reputation of the center. How long have they been operating? Do that have written or video testimonials? Are there reviews from multiple sources? (Google, Facebook, Retreat.guru, Website etc.) Search the name of the center and its facilitators to see if there have been any negative reports written about the center or staff. Before you book do you actually speak with someone from the center or is everything done online? You can always reach out to different communities to ask specific questions about any center you may be considering. Don’t be afraid to speak up! Ayahuasca has been growing in popularity and it is far more available now that years past but it is still one of the most powerful hallucinogens on earth, so be sure to do your due diligence and be completely confident in the retreat center you choose.

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Originally Sourced From https://www.pickthebrain.com/blog/achieving-career-goals-is-more-art-than-science/

The business world fixates on goal setting. Performance reviews revolve around setting and meeting annual goals. Salespeople and managers continually strive to hit goals and meet margins, and every organization sets goals that it tries to achieve to prove its viability.

As individuals, we similarly set goals for our professional lives. We aspire to climb the ranks within our organizations or industry, and hope to progressively attain loftier titles and larger paychecks. But is the same formulaic, figures-driven strategy of goal setting and attainment used by employers actually working to advance our own careers and what we hope to achieve in life? And how often do we achieve what we set out to accomplish?

According to the Statistic Brain Research Institute, 92 percent of people never reach their goals. Lack of motivation, fear, self-doubt and setting unattainable goals are among the hurdles that keep most of us from realizing our dreams.

But there’s another, more empowering way to go about setting and achieving our goals. For most, we want financial success. Yet achieving financial success, or any other kind of success, should not require stress and struggle. We shouldn’t have to sacrifice job satisfaction, health and happiness in pursuit of our goal. This approach actually blocks success. Struggle can actually stop solutions, opportunities and possibilities from coming our way.

We set goals and develop dreams because we believe that achieving them will bring us some level of fulfillment. But we actually have the order backwards. The cornerstone of achieving our goals and, consequently, a successful life is based on our level of feeling joy in our careers now, not the other way around. Instead, we need to tap into our intuition to discern what is best to pursue in our lives and what existing positive qualities we can enhance to help bring our dreams to fruition.

Use these promising strategies to go after, and actually achieve, your goals:

1. Set goals that you can believe in. Give yourself time for introspection and determining what you really want in your career and life. Yes, it can be grandiose, such as “I want to be a millionaire.” But if you don’t believe that it’s possible, and the thought of pursuing it feels daunting, try stepping up the rungs of the ladder toward achievement slowly with thoughts that feel more comfortable. For example, you can encourage yourself by thinking, “I have the potential to do great work,” or “I know people who were in the same place I am who became millionaires. I’m on the right track and eager to do more.” 

2. Understand the “why” behind your goals. Instead of thinking about how you’re going to achieve your goals, think about and write down why you want to achieve them. This is one of the most important parts that nobody takes time to examine. Keep peeling back the layers and boil your answers all the way down to the feeling place. When you identify the feeling that you’re after, think about how you will feel when the goal is achieved. Imagine and get the feeling as if you’ve already achieved it. Inspirational author Esther Hicks said, “When you talk about what you want and why you want it, there’s usually less resistance within you than when you talk about what you want and how you’re going to get it.” 

3. Pursue goals that energize you. Sit with the idea of your goal. Ask yourself, does the goal make you feel expansive in your energy, or do you feel constricted? When you feel expansive, then you’re open to allowing wonderful possibilities and opportunities to come to you. When you desire to be different or better than you are, you create in your mind the ideal of what you’d like to be and then live with the thoughts and feelings as if they’re already your reality. When this becomes your dominant feeling, positive results are inevitable.

4. Imagine the life you want as already a reality. Stating your goals in the “now” will trigger thoughts and feelings in your mind and body that better prepare you for having those actually be your current reality. For example, instead of saying, “I want to quit smoking,” you say, “I’m a nonsmoker.” Explore what that feels like. By getting the exhilarating feeling as if your goal has already been achieved, you change your energy and attract what you want into your life. 

5. Remain flexible in pursuing your goals. Formulate action steps that you can take toward achieving your goals, and plan to take action each day. Still, don’t rigidly stick to how to achieve the goal. Be open to any ideas for positive, forward-moving action that may even lead you toward other, even better, ideas. 

6. Roll with the setbacks. You may have heard stories about how Oprah was told by her earlier employer that she wasn’t fit for TV, or how Steve Jobs was fired from Apple only to later have his company NexT be acquired by Apple and later going on to create the iPod, iPhone and iPad technology. Their setbacks actually made them stronger. All of our challenges, struggles and failures are actually gifts to teach us how to become wiser and better version of ourselves. Learn to trust the big picture of your life and to flow through upsets and challenges with more ease and grace and less stress and struggle. 

Strive to find joy in the pursuit of your goals. Allow experiences to unfold and delight you, and avoid hanging on to a narrow path or point of view. With this approach, your reality may turn out even better than you’ve dreamed.

*     *     *

Janet McKee is a speaker, bestselling author, wellness expert and CEO of SanaView. She is one of only 200 elite Certified High Performance Coaches(TM) in the world and inducted as a member of the National Association of Experts, Writers and Speakers. She is author of the new book, Stressless Success: The Surprising Secrets to a Life of Passion, Purpose and Prosperity (Laurel Mountain Publishing, Feb. 1, 2020). Janet created the acclaimed Accelerated High Performance Program and the emPower3 Leadership + Lifestyle Retreats to empower others to break negative patterns and achieve greater success. Learn more at www.janetmckee.com.

The post Achieving Career Goals Is More Art than Science appeared first on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement.

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Originally Sourced From https://www.pickthebrain.com/blog/meditation-for-productivity/

Loads of research links meditation to positive outcomes—to little things like peace and happiness. But what about that outcome that, for better or worse, many prioritize above all—productivity?  

If it works for them…

Many attribute their productivity to meditation. Yuval Noah Harari, for instance, author of international bestseller Sapiens, attends a silent retreat each year, spending two months simply observing his thoughts. Without the focus this provides, he says, writing his books would not have been possible. For Oprah, meditation encourages a sense of stillness and a space to do her best work and live her best life.

How Meditation Boosts Productivity

That meditation can foster productivity is well supported by science. The possible mediating factors are many—from decreased stress and emotional reactivity, to increased self-control and energy—but let’s focus on three: improved decision making, attentional control, and problem solving.

Improved decision making

Researchers in Pennsylvania investigated whether meditation minimizes the sunk-cost bias—the tendency to continue with something just because money, time, or effort has already been invested. For example, you might eat more than you want as it’s already been prepared, stay in a bad relationship as you’ve been in it for years, or continue with a dead-end project because you’ve already begun. (Any sound familiar?)

The researchers allocated participants to a mindfulness condition or to a mind wandering condition, where they either focused on their breath (mindfulness) or thought about whatever came to mind (mind wandering).

Next, they had to make an important decision. They imagine they’re the CEO of a printing company that has just paid $200,000 for a new printing press. They learn a competitor has gone broke and is selling their printing press for just $10,000. It’s 50% faster and costs half as much to run. Should they buy it?

While 44% in the mind wandering condition said no, most (78%) in the mindfulness condition said yes, refusing to compromise the company’s future just because money had already been “sunk” into its crappy, old press.

Attentional control

Doing our best work requires that we stay focused. One measure of attentional control is the two-back task. For this task, people are presented with letters, one at a time, and are occasionally asked whether the one they’re currently viewing is the same as the one seen “two back”.

To examine whether mindfulness meditation enhances performance on this task, researchers had some individuals focus on their breath (mindfulness condition) and others listen to a Lord of the Rings audiobook (control condition). Not only did those in the mindfulness condition exhibit superior attentional control, but meditation also resulted in less fatigue and anxiety.

So if you find yourself prone to distraction, lethargy, or unease, taking a moment to attend to your breath could get you back on track.

Problem solving  

Einstein once said, “We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.” But how do we change our thinking? How do we prime ourselves to see the solutions to our problems?

Researchers in the Netherlands looked at whether creative problem solving could be enhanced by open-monitoring (OM) meditation, wherein the individual attends to any sensations or thoughts that arise. Specifically, the researchers asked if this could promote divergent thinking, defined as the generation of many ideas when more than one solution to a problem exists.

The Alternate Uses Task (AUT) was used to assess divergent thinking. For this task, people come up with as many possible uses for an object as they can. For instance, a brick might be used as a step, a paperweight, or a dumbbell.

After OM meditation, participants performed significantly better on the AUT. As well as coming up with more uses, their thinking was more flexible (the uses were more diverse) and original (the uses were more distinct from those proposed by others).

Where to begin?

If you’re interested in meditation, though lack time, note that many of the above benefits can be achieved with sessions as short as 5 minutes. And if the idea of attending to your breath just seems too boring, rest assured this is not the only way. In his classic book Wherever you go, there you are John Kabat-Zinn outlines a range of practices, from a walking-based meditation to picturing oneself as a mountain, surrounded by forests and meadows.

So, if improved decision making, focus, and problem solving sound good to you, why not give meditation a shot? It just might be the key to unlocking your potential.

Author biography

David Robinson completed BSc, MSc, and PhD degrees in psychology and neuroscience in London, England. He is a co-founder of UKFitness.Pro, the UK’s largest database of personal trainers.

The post Meditation for Productivity appeared first on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement.

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Originally Sourced From http://www.getmotivation.com/motivationblog/2019/08/happiness-is-yours-chris-widener/

Happiness. The pursuit of so many. In fact, we are known in America as those who live for “Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” But so many seem without happiness. Why is this? Is happiness truly elusive or do we simply not know how to take hold of it? It is my contention that happiness is yours for the taking. That is, anyone can be happy if the choose to be… and if they know how to get it.

So what does it take to bring us to a state of happiness? Here are a few thoughts to get you on your way: Do not try to control circumstances. One of the biggest “happiness busters” I see is in the frustration people experience (and wallow in) because circumstances have gone awry.

This is because their mind-set, whether they know it or not, is that they should be somehow able to control circumstances. But let’s get this straight: You can’t! So the first thing you can do to give yourself happiness is to stop trying to control, or taking responsibility for circumstances that are outside of your control!

Understand that you can only control yourself. There is only one thing you can control in this world and that is yourself. You can’t control the weather, other drivers, your kids or spouse, or anything for that matter outside of your own beliefs, thoughts, attitudes and actions.

Focus all of your attention on developing yourself and doing what is right — controlling yourself while letting what will happen, happen — and you will find happiness opening up within you.

Decide what it is that you want out of life and then stick to it relentlessly. This is two parts: First, know what you want. Get real clear with yourself. Take a private retreat to be alone if you have to, but come to grips with what you want your life to look like. Secondly, devote yourself to that passion and do not be sidetracked. It is interesting to me how many options we have – good options – that if we pursue them they will actually crush our happiness because they will take us away from what will really make us happy.

Live for a legacy. We cannot be self-absorbed and live only for ourselves. Yes, we only control ourselves, but we can live for the betterment of others. Live your life in such a way that others are touched and you will find yourself feeling happiness in ways that you could never imagine. For example, I get some of the most touching emails from people I have never met (and probably never will) who tell me how I have helped them. There is little else that brings me such happiness!

Settle your finances. Whatever your financial goals are, get them! Having poor finances is one of the major causes of unhappiness. Now, some people are completely content on $30,000 a year. Others need $200,000 a year. That is okay. We all have different desires, needs, and goals. But the key is to know what you want your financial life to look like and then do what it takes to get there. Among the major things to do is to eliminate as much debt as possible, if not all!

Surround yourself with good friends. Good friend are such a blessing! I have some of the most intelligent, capable, successful, and caring friends a person could have. I have three or four people in my life that I completely trust and admire. When friendships are clicking, there is almost nothing that provides more happiness. Take time to develop your friendships. Spend time with them, do fun things with them etc. Even as life gets more and more busy, make time with your friends a priority.

Develop your primary love relationship. I spoke at a groom’s dinner recently and one of the points I made was that marriage will show you both heaven and hell! Marriage, when it is going well will send you out the door each morning on cloud nine. When it isn’t going well, it affects every area of your life negatively. Do whatever you can – work hard – at developing your primary love relationship. The rewards of happiness you reap will be tremendous!

Happiness is yours for the taking – and hope you will take the time to develop your life in such a way as to be able to experience all of the happiness you can handle!

_________
Chris Widener is a popular speaker and writer as well as the President of Made for Success, a company helping individuals and organizations turn their potential into performance, and succeed in every area of their lives and achieve their dreams. Learn more about the Ultimate Success Series By Chris Widener

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Originally Sourced From https://www.pickthebrain.com/blog/5-things-to-be-proud-of-when-fighting-depression/

I have heard depression described as an angry black shadow that follows you wherever you go — and this is a description I agree with wholeheartedly.

I mean, if you take a second to think about it, it just makes sense.

You are forever in its presence, constantly aware of it, but not often within its dark embrace. You feel it creeping away at the edge of your consciousness, but everytime you turn to look at it, it disappears into nothingness.

Then it suddenly engulfs you at the slightest provocation, and you are rendered completely and utterly incapitated. 

During these times it feels as if the world is ending. It feels as if no matter what you do in your lifetime, it will amount to nothing. That you are worthless, that you are alone, and that you will never escape.

But often this isn’t the case at all.

In fact, I would argue that you are capable of so much more than you think — all you have to do is take notice of what you are actually achieving every single day. There are a myriad of things you should be proud of when fighting off depression.

All you have to do is stand up and take notice.

1.   Getting up and facing the day

When the black shadow strikes, even the smallest task can feel like a giant challenge — and to be honest, it is.

But even still, you get up out of bed and face the day.

You slowly creep out of the covers, despite every fibre of your being telling you not to. Putting one foot in front of the other, you drag yourself into the kitchen, take a mug out of the cupboard, and make yourself a coffee.

Some days you will leave the house, and others you will not — it doesn’t matter.

Simply getting out of bed to face the day shows a level of strength and resilience that most people will never understand. You are literally standing up and laughing in the face of your demons.

This is tough to do, and you should be proud of every single time you do it.

2.   Seeking help

Over the last few years we have seen the stigma surrounding depression change for the better. It is no longer swept under the rug and ignored, but spoken about openly, and acknowledged as the serious condition it is.

However, for whatever reason, those of us suffering from depression tend to have a hard time seeking help. We seem to think that it is a sign of weakness. Or that by speaking out, we will be perceived as attention seeking — or even worse, a burden.

But in my experience, this is never the case at all. Which is why challenging your fears (even unfounded as they are) and seeking help is something that you should do. And more importantly, it is something that you should be proud of doing.

3.   Moving your body

Did you know that there is a direct link between your physical health and your mental health? Well there is. More importantly, there is also a heap of evidence to suggest that if you exercise and move your body, it can actually help treat your depression.

Crazy, right?

But, there is a caveat here — it is a whole lot easier said than done.

You already know just how incredibly hard it can be to get out of bed and face the day. And to actually get outside and exercise?

Well, there are times when it can literally seem impossible.

Which is why you should applaud yourself for getting out and moving your body at every opportunity. Even stepping outside and going for a brisk walk can make a world of difference — so make sure you pat yourself on the back when you do.

4.   Fuelling your body (with the right foods)

When you are in the depths of a depressive bout, comfort foods tend to take priority. Simple snack foods that are easy to consume, taste sweet, and require zero effort to prepare.

However, did you know that these foods can actually make your mental health worse?

I know, it is scary — but that doesn’t make it any less true.

Which is why when you take the time to prepare yourself some decent food (you know, that includes something that grows in the ground), you should be very happy with your effort. Not only is it hard, but it is good for you.

So make sure you act like it.

5.   Accomplishing a task

Our lives are filled with small tasks that need to be completed on a daily basis. Things like washing the dishes, doing your bed, hanging out the laundry, or feeding the dog. Little tasks that seem menial at first glance, but are actually integral to our survival, and often the survival of others.

During the bad times, these tasks can seem like a monsterous challenge. And as a result, they should be treated like one.

Every time you achieve a task (no matter how small it may first appear), be proud of the fact that you are taking a positive step towards better health. That you are staring a monster right in the face, and then choosing to slay it.

How to Best Handle Your Depression?

During these bouts of darkness, it can feel like there is no escape. But it is always important to remember that there is!

While being proud of your daily accomplishments is certainly a step in the right direction, it is just that: a single step. With this in mind, it is important that you build on this first step and continue to handle your depression to the best of your ability.

And fortunately, there are a number of things that can help.

Talk Therapy

Talk therapy (also known as psychotherapy, or cognitive behavioral therapy) is a tool that you can use to educate yourself about depression. In doing so, it helps you find ways to manage your individual symptoms.

In this manner, talk therapy is a powerful mental health strategy that teaches you how to change your thoughts and behaviours.

See, depression often develops through an uncontrollable change in mindset. This mindset forces you into a negative feedback loop, where you begin to develop an extremely negative outlook on normal everyday situations.

But talk therapy teaches you how to replace these with a positive mindset, positive behaviours, and effective coping strategies. By doing so, it can cause some improvements in your mental health.

 Light Therapy

Did you know that there is actually a scientific basis as to why people tend to get down in the winter?

See, light from the sun stimulates your body, causing a number ‘feel-good’ hormones to be produced and secreted. As I am sure you could have guessed, these hormones improve your mood and increase your sense of wellbeing.

However, often getting enough sunlight is much easier said than done — which is exactly why I like using light therapy.

This unique mode of treatment gets you standing near a little machine known as a ‘light therapy box’ for 30-60 minutes per day. In short, this box emits a light that is exactly the same wavelength as sunlight, in which it causes an increase in the secretion of these same happy hormones.

As a result, light therapy has been shown to act as a powerful depression treatment.

Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT)

ECT is a powerful treatment that is often used to help cases of depression where other treatment methods have failed.

Now, before I dive into the nitty gritty details, it is important to note that ECT is typically performed in an operating theatre. The reason for this is actually quite clear — see, ECT it is performed under general anaesthesia, which means you are knocked out cold before treatment starts.

Then, once you are fully asleep and in a state of complete relaxation, a doctor will give an electrical stimulus to your brain (lasting around five seconds). This shock will induce a small seizure, which lasts about a minute.

As terrifying as this may sound, this seizure is important, as it acts to reset your brain. Through this process, ECT has been used to successfully help people with treatment resistant depression, whom haven’t responded to traditional medications.

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)

Keeping with the ‘brain shocks’ theme, we will move onto ‘transcranial magnetic stimulation’ (or TMS for short). TMS is a relatively new mental health treatment that uses magnetic fields to treat depression. It may sound similar to ECT, but there are quite a few major differences when we compare TMS to ECT.

In short, during a TMS session, an electromagnetic pad is placed on your forehead. It is then turned on, in which it starts to send small magnetic pulses directly into your skull. These pulses stimulate the nerve cells in your brain that control your mood and emotions.

This not only leads to lasting improvements in mood, but has also been shown to help treat some more serious cases of depression.

Improve your diet

It should come as no surprise that every single thing you choose to put into your body impacts its your health and function. To put it simply, if you choose to eat a high-quality diet full of nutrient rich foods, then it will function effectively.

Conversely, if you eat nothing but junk, then it will function like junk.

See, there is a very obvious reason as to why a diet rich in junk food has all been linked to an increased risk of depression. Because they literally fill your body with inflammatory compounds that interact with your brain in a negative manner.

So make sure to steer clear of them when possible.

More importantly, you should also make a conscious effort to eat a diet full of whole grains, beans, eggs, cheese, yoghurt, green leafy vegetables, fish, poultry, and red meat. In doing so you will actually put your body in the perfect place to start fighting depression.

I guess there is some truth to the saying ‘you are what you eat’.

Take Home Point

Escaping the black shadow of depression is no easy feat, but using the above strategies, it is very possible. More importantly, by making sure that you acknowledge your daily achievements, battling your inner demons will become easier by the day.

So be proud of your efforts, no matter how small they may first seem — because they are the first step to unlocking your mental health for good.

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Dr. Lindsay Israel is a board-certified psychiatrist. Her goal is to help patients feel empowered because their symptoms can leave them feeling powerless. She specializes in Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) therapy for the treatment of various psychiatric disorders. TMS is FDA-approved for depression and is a non-invasive, non-medication alternative to traditional treatments. Dr. Israel’s depression treatment center, Success TMS, focuses on this advanced therapy which allows patients to achieve remission from depression and return back to their best lives.”

The post 5 Things To Be Proud Of When Fighting Depression (And How To Get Better) appeared first on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement.

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Originally Sourced From https://www.pickthebrain.com/blog/10-ways-to-develop-resilience-in-sobriety/

Sobriety is a concept that is sometimes misunderstood, and once misunderstood, the approach towards sobriety can be wrongly applied. For some recovering addicts, sobriety translates to a phase of misery, rather than as a time to improve oneself physically and mentally. Despite having been to rehab, such persons might still find themselves withdrawing from their emotions. They become ‘resilient’ and barely receptive to people and things around them.

They would engage in social interactions, but their outward appearance is mostly a façade, within, their feelings are mostly bottled up. While such behaviors could be interpreted as a coping mechanism during sobriety, it doesn’t make up for the resilience needed to stay sober in the long run.

Adopting such a problematic approach in your journey to recovery won’t help your cause. Instead, it is more likely to expose you to adversities and stressors that could tear down the fort you have built against addiction.

Sobriety is a time to reconcile with life and the positivity therein. It is a time to truly embrace your affections and make yourself emotionally available, hence, boosting your progress during recovery. More so, it is an opportunity to develop a strong will to achieve your goals.

How does resilience relate to sobriety?

Addiction is a strong disease, and fighting it off requires a lot of will and determination – it requires resilience. In reference to addiction recovery, resilience is an individual’s ability to adapt a healthy lifestyle and stay true to their recovery against all the odds. It is part of the emotional wellness strategies which a recovering addict can learn during Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) in all-encompassing drug rehab.

How can I develop resilience in sobriety?

According to psychological studies, there are three applicable characteristics a sober person should possess if they want to be resilient in their recovery.¹ To help you in your journey to recovery, we discussed those characteristics (as the first three) alongside others below.

1.     Accept reality

Acceptance is the first step to being resilient. You have to understand and accept that change is constant and get accustomed to the current reality. Now, your truth is to break free from addiction and be sober. To achieve this, you have to make sacrifices and drop some old habits as you embrace and practice the terms of a healthy lifestyle. By accepting the reality, you would consciously and subconsciously put in your energy to adapt to every bit of it, thus developing resilience in the process.

2.     Believe in the cause

You can’t fight for what you don’t believe in. If you think of sobriety as an insignificant means to healthy living, then it would be hard for you to live by its values. By believing in and upholding the values of sobriety and healthy living, you will be able to make conscious efforts to be true to the cause at all times. Through your belief, you can face whatever stressors and triggers that may come your way squarely.

3.     Be able and willing to improvise

One of the quickest ways people fall back into addiction is by letting themselves get stunned by the challenges they come across. If you truly accept the realities of being sober, you should also recognize the uncertainties you might face along the way.

Make a mental note not to let yourself be overwhelmed or give in to emotions or triggers that can push you to indulge. However, you should prepare yourself to maneuver such instances by any means possible, without incurring any detriments on yourself or others.

4.     Do not be afraid to take actions

Even while you might have improvised a means to tackle a stressor that poses a threat to your sobriety, there are chances that you won’t implement it. Some triggers will come in scenarios that would make you second-guess your approach to sobriety. For instance, when the friends you usually go binge-drinking with keep calling you to join them for some drinks.

You shouldn’t be afraid to say no to such offers, especially if it puts you at risk of a relapse.

5.     Become more tolerant

You have to become more tolerant of pains or discomfort that might come your way if it inches you closer to recovery. These pains and distresses could be in the form of withdrawal symptoms, but yielding to them because they are unbearable can ruin all the efforts you have made to stay sober.

6.     Create sobriety milestones

This is one approach that has consistently helped recovering addicts to stay sober. Having a goal in sight will boost your resilience in sobriety, and help you stick to achieving your goals. For every stressor you encounter, you think of the goal ahead and ward it off.

7.     Appreciate your progress

As humans, we all tend to protect or fight for what we appreciate. You should learn to recognize and celebrate every progress you make in sobriety, even the minutest ones. By doing so, you create a formidable fort that keeps you from backtracking.

Celebrating your progress at every point will serve as a future reminder not to ruin your efforts to be sober. Consequently, it helps prop your resilience in sobriety.

8.     Do not dwell in the past

Regret is not one of the ingredients of resilience. Fixating on your past mistakes will cause a lag on the progress you are trying to make. Such unnecessary fixations are likely to make you feel horrible, thus reducing your belief in yourself and what you are doing presently. Once the confidence and trust are gone, the resilience in sobriety can be likened to the waning light of a candle, a little breeze, and it would go off.

9.     Get family and friends involved

Sobriety is not a journey for you alone; the people around you also have a role to play. Despite the likelihood of wanting to handle things by yourself, you should also accept support from people you love. It would accord you a sense of belonging, and the will to not give up on sobriety.

10.  Sign up for a sober living program

For the things you can’t learn by yourself, you can opt to learn from specialists. By choosing a sober living program or virtual counseling (considering the pandemic), you will get to learn, understand, and value the tenets of sobriety. Moreover, you can choose from a variety of therapy and counseling options, which are designed to help recovering addicts develop unwavering resilience while sober.

References:

1. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/ending-addiction-good/201501/recovery-and-resilience-connection

Emily is a health and wellness writer who enjoys the simple things in life. She has written articles for sites like Briarwood Detox and continues to spread education and awareness with her work.  

The post 10 Ways to Develop Resilience In Sobriety appeared first on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement.

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