Building mental wellness on a foundation of strength
The Center for Contemplative Mind in Society I first heard of the term contemplative practices when reading the book A Fearless Heart by Thupten Jinpa. This involves approaching an inner problem without avoidance or distraction. By establishing some mental space, you can consider the problem without getting caught up in the thoughts and emotions that… Continue reading Exploring Contemplative Practices
This post is by RDB of An Experiment with Vulnerability. Photo by Karolina Grabowska from Pexels 2021: Challenge Accepted There is so much I could say about 2020, but honestly I don’t know if there’s anything left that hasn’t been said. It was a weird year. In order to survive, and as a collective, humanity had to make… Continue reading Emerging Blogger: RDB (An Experiment with Vulnerability)
This post is by Valerie Rice of The Tiny Couch. Journaling: Good Vs.Evil We have probably all heard about the therapeutic technique of journaling. Some of us might even keep a journal or diary on our nightstands, even if we only use it sporadically. Well, that’s cool, but do you really know why? I truly… Continue reading Emerging Blogger Series: Valerie Rice (Tiny Couch)
Recently I was commenting on a post about self-esteem by Caz of Mental Health 360º and decided it was worth expanding on in a post of my own. I've always has good self-esteem, and this is what I've identified as the basic building blocks that support it. Inherent worth of humanity This is probably more… Continue reading My Self-Esteem Building Blocks
None of us is perfect. That's probably a good thing, because perfect would be boring and quirky can be far more interesting. And maybe sometimes, rather than trying to put our best foot forward, it's worth diving into a quirky soup of messing up... and that metaphor ran out of steam in my head before… Continue reading Embracing Imperfection
The wounded healer interview series features people who've dealt with significant mental health challenges, and who also work in a helping role to support the mental health of others. This interview is with Kacha of Food.for.Thoughts. Image credit: CleanPNG Wounded Healer, Who Is Looking in the Mirror Tell us a bit about you, the helping… Continue reading Wounded Healer Interview: Kacha
AI recently about the worry tree as a tool for managing worry, and my friends at WeDIDIt mentioned that the idea the worry is productive can be a trap that leads to endless worry and rumination. Hence this post – "should" you worry, ruminate, self-criticize, or engage in other repetitive negative thinking patterns in order… Continue reading “Should” You Worry About Things?
52 Small Changes for the Mind by Brett Blumenthal lays out a year-long series of weekly small changes to improve your overall mental wellbeing. It's not specifically geared towards people dealing with mental illness, but there are plenty of common sense, realistic ideas that could be useful for anyone. Each of the book's 52 chapters… Continue reading Book Review: 52 Small Changes for the Mind
The Happiness Diary: Practice Living Joyfully by Barbara A. Kipfer guides you through various self-reflection exercises and prompts to connect with the potential for happiness that already exists in your life. It's designed to be used as a notebook and written in, and each page is beautifully illustrated. I'm always a tad wary of happiness-promoting books/articles,… Continue reading Book Review: The Happiness Diary
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a type of psychotherapy that takes the stance that avoidance and resistance to internal experiences identified as negative is what causes cognitive distress. To resolve distress, ACT suggests that we need to employ strategies like mindfulness, de-fusion from our thoughts, and recognizing the self as the context in which… Continue reading Setting Sail with the ACT Life Compass
