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Understanding Intellectual Developmental Disorder

Understanding Intellectual Developmental Disorder

Understanding Intellectual Developmental Disorder

Intellectual Developmental Disorder (also called Intellectual Disability) means a person needs extra help to develop skills like reading, writing, socializing, and taking care of themselves. People with this diagnosis may need more time, patience, and support to reach their full potential.

With the right help, your child with Intellectual Disability will:

  • Learn new skills
  • Build close relationships
  • Live a happy, fulfilling life

How Is This Diagnosed?

A psychologist, who is professionally trained to understand how people think and learn, can diagnose Intellectual Disability. To make the diagnosis, the psychologist will:

  1. Give tests to see how your child is doing in areas like thinking, learning, and schoolwork.
  2. Look at how your child reached certain milestones, like talking or walking, compared to other children their age.

How Can You Help Your Child at Home?

Here are some ways you can help your child learn and grow at home, depending on their age and needs:

  • Reading Together: When you read with your child, point to pictures and name the objects. Ask your child to point to the objects you name.
  • Learning Concepts: Teach words like "big," "small," "soft," and "heavy" while playing.
  • Memory Games: Play simple memory games with cards or objects to help your child practice remembering.
  • Encourage Opinions: Ask your child what they think about things and encourage them to explain their ideas. This helps develop critical thinking.
  • Learn About Time: Talk about days of the week and use words like "yesterday" and "tomorrow" during everyday activities, like bedtime.
  • Rhyming Games: Play games where you say words that rhyme to help your child with language skills.

Will My Child Need Therapy?

Some children with Intellectual Disabilities may need extra help from a therapist. Talk to your child’s doctor or psychologist to figure out what is best for them. Here are some types of therapy that may help:

  • Speech Therapy: Helps your child learn to communicate better.
  • Occupational Therapy: Helps your child learn to take care of themselves (like dressing, bathing, and brushing their teeth).
  • Physical Therapy: Helps your child with balance and motor skills, like running and jumping.
  • Behavior Therapy: Helps your child learn how to manage their emotions and deal with challenges.

What Will My Child Need at School?

If your child is having trouble in school, talk to their teachers and the school psychologist. They can work with you to make a plan to help your child. Some children need a plan called an Individualized Education Program (IEP), which is a written guide for what your child needs to succeed. Some parts of an IEP might include:

  • Specialized Instruction: Extra help with learning, sometimes in a special classroom.
  • Accommodations: Changes that help your child learn, like sitting closer to the teacher or taking breaks during the day.
  • Modifications: Adjusting the work or expectations for your child, such as giving fewer problems to solve.
  • Extended School Year (ESY): Extra learning in the summer to help your child keep up with what they learned during the school year.
  • Related Services: Your child may receive therapies (speech, physical) while at school.
  • Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP): If your child struggles with certain behaviors, this plan will help them learn better ways to act at school.

What Should I Avoid Doing When Raising a Child with an Intellectual Disability?

It’s important not to:

  • Assume your child can’t learn: With the right support, your child can do amazing things.
  • Ignore their opinions: Your child has feelings and ideas, and they deserve to have a voice.
  • Think therapy is needed all the time: Your child should also have time to relax, play, and be with family.
  • Limit experiences: Your child deserves fun activities, new experiences, and the chance to make friends.

Helpful Resources

To begin the journey of supporting your child, reach out to us at PsychCare Psychological Services.

To learn more about supporting your child, here are some websites that might help:

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2024-12-19T17:16:40-05:00December 18th, 2024|Psychological Testing|
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Transitioning to Offer Telehealth Effective 3/25/2020

We know that each day we wake up to news updates and an ever growing list of changes we are making in our lives. It can bring up a lot of fear, anxiety and even grief as plans are cancelled, social distancing happens and daily routines are completely shifted. We truly value our relationship and have developed a plan so we can continue to take care of your mental health during this time. We want to be a place of support through what you are going through.

 

Starting Wednesday 3/25/2020, providers will be able to offer virtual sessions through a secure video platform that can be accessed via a desktop/laptop or smartphone. This is a temporary measure as the CoVid-19 will one day pass.

 

Research shows that virtual sessions is an effective form of psychotherapy. There are a few differences than what you experience in our office. You will need to find a space if at all possible that is quiet and where you feel comfortable to share. If you have a headset that will also help with reducing noise and distraction.

 

Please note that your video session will be conducted at the same time of your weekly session. If you do not have a regular weekly session time, your provider will reach out to you to schedule your upcoming session. Prior to the time of your session your provider will send you an email that will contain a link to our secure video portal.

 

If you have not yet signed a telemedicine video consent form, we would encourage you to do so as soon as possible. The form can be completed online on your computer/laptop or smartphone and can be accessed by clicking here.

 

We recognize this is a crucial time for all of us to maintain some sense of normalcy, to get support when we are isolated and to continue working on our strengths to take care of our mental well being.
2024-02-28T18:29:36-05:00March 20th, 2020|Coronavirus|
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The Perfect Fit: Finding Fulfillment in Your Occupation

If you’re like most of the population, in order to make a living you get up every weekday morning and report to work. In fact, the average person spends 90,000 hours at work over the course of his lifetime. That means that a majority of your waking hours are probably spent at work, and you are working for more time than you are doing anything else! Understandably, one’s job often begins to define who he is to a degree, and his job satisfaction affects his mental health, physical health, quality of life, self-efficacy, and of course, general happiness.

When someone is working the ideal job, he feels good about going to work, respects the people he works with, feels proud to talk about what he does, feels largely energized by his work, and feels like he is making an appreciated and respected contribution to society. A job that is a “good fit” reflects who someone is, gives him purpose, and lends him the opportunity to use his innate strengths.
Even while other aspects of someone’s life may be healthy and fulfilling, if he does not like his job, this job stress can cloud his overall sense of success and well-being. It can erode one’s self-esteem, and it can even interfere with his interpersonal relationships, contribute to an all-encompassing “resigned” feeling in his life, and/or cause him to feel like he’s in “survival mode,” always waiting for the weekend or living for vacation.

Many people fall into the trap of following the path of what “makes sense” for them to do. Perhaps it’s the fastest track to a job, a seemingly financially savvy move, etc., but when making a career choice, it is prudent for one to keep in mind that it’s an investment that will likely affect one’s happiness for the rest of his working life. It really is possible to feel excited and energized every morning, ready to start the day, and find meaning and/or challenge in one’s work.

While one person might find a job to be boring and unfulfilling, that same job may be incredibly meaningful to someone else. There are so many different jobs and fields, as there are many different types of people with different personalities and abilities. Everyone is different in his needs, desires, interests, personalities, capabilities, skills, and values. Everyone can find a career path that can play to all of these aspects, working to his strengths and helping him to find a sense of satisfaction.

In order to do this, one must know himself. Perhaps someone knows what he is good at doing, but does that job play to his values, interests, and personality? It’s very likely that if he chooses a path that does not, he’ll quickly burn out, because his job will not lend him a sense of satisfaction.

Many people make important career decisions when they are the least prepared to do so. They might listen to well-intentioned mentors, friends, parents, and teachers who don’t have enough information to help steer them in the right direction. Perhaps they need to quickly start earning a salary, or they need to pick a college major, but they do not have the time or foresight to choose a field that really works for who they are.

Gaining the level of awareness one needs to select a career in which he will feel satisfied can be daunting. Speaking with a career counselor and completing career assessments is a good place to start. Career assessments are available for free online. However, while these evaluations are great tools to help people discern wise career paths, there are various things to keep in mind. These caveats include, but are not limited to, being cautious about placing more value on the test results than is warranted. It is important to remember that no test will provide the answer of “the perfect career.” The assessment results are also only as accurate as the responses. For example, someone might answer how he wishes to be and not what he actually is. Additionally, it is easy to misinterpret or misuse results. Not all tests are created equal, and various free online tests may not be accurate, and/or someone can misinterpret the results if he is attempting to do so by himself.

By achieving greater insight and self-awareness of one’s needs, desires, interests, personality, capabilities, skills, and values, someone has a better chance at finding a job that plays to his strengths and will lead him down a path of fulfillment and overall happiness.

This post was written by Rivka Rochkind, LCPC

2024-12-19T17:05:34-05:00April 17th, 2018|Uncategorized|
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Four Habits That Will Transform Your Thinking

Often, we blame our unhappiness on circumstances beyond our control. We let our automatic thoughts, the cognitions that occur to us naturally, to take control of our thinking and thus how we feel. You have more control than you think.

Changing your thought processes starts by paying attention to what it is that you are thinking, how you are thinking about something. It is common to fall into the trap of seeing things through a mental filter in which you may make assumptions, see things as only black or white, overgeneralize, unhelpfully label, blow things out of proportion, discount anything positive, etc. Identifying these thinking patterns in your thought processes is the first step in changing them.

Once you have recognized these patterns by paying attention to the way you’re thinking about something, you can then challenge, change, and shut them down. Choose not to assume; notice the gray; stay away from painting scenarios with a broad brush; recognize what actual realistic significance something holds; pay attention to positive as well as negative aspects of a situation. Think through a situation rather than just letting yourself get swept away by instinctive thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

Notice how you can change the voices in your head to be kind to yourself and others. You have control whether you take things personally, criticize or put down yourself or others.

Don Miguel Ruiz, in conjunction with this idea, writes a book titled The Four Agreements. His premise is that from the time we are little we create beliefs, agreements, habits, through which we experience the world. How we perceive things is largely affected by what we believe. He posits that if you choose to take control of your beliefs rather than letting things that happen to you or opinions of others dictate the internal agreements you have, you can find a whole new happiness and freedom.

Ruiz’s agreements are as follows:

1. Be Impeccable with your Word

Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the Word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your Word in the direction of truth and love.

2. Don’t Take Anything Personally

Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won’t be the victim of needless suffering.

3. Don’t Make Assumptions

Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness and drama. With just this one agreement, you can completely transform your life.

4. Always Do Your Best

Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgment, self-abuse, and regret.

All of these are extremely powerful, but here I’d like to zero in on numbers two and three. Taking things personally is automatic, but just as unhelpful. This agreement or belief basically points out that people live within their own world, their own perceptions. The things that somebody does or says comes from his own agreements he has within his own mind. Even if something seems very personal, even if it insults you directly, it has little to do with you. Oftentimes it’s about how something was triggered for someone or a projection of his own feelings and beliefs.

In a similar vein, not making assumptions about why someone is doing, or has done, something can very empowering. We can make ourselves sick with worry, anxiety, jealousy, hatred, sadness, and the like when we assume things. We can fall into the trap of creating a whole new reality when actually something very different is going on. Even when you might not be in a position to ask, you must accept that you really don’t know what is happening and/or why someone is doing something. We, more often times than not, won’t really know why someone acts a certain way.

When we take control of what we believe and what we tell ourselves, our lives will undeniably take a turn for the better

This post was written by Rivka Rochkind, LCPC

2024-02-28T18:29:03-05:00July 30th, 2017|Benefits of Therapy, Human Behavior, Marriage, Mindfullness, Stress|
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Letting Go

What if we create and maintain problems in our life because it provides us with a sense of identity and comfort? For example, the way we hold onto the pain of a break up because that’s the only thing we have left of the relationship, or staying angry at someone for something he did because that’s the only means of having a semblance of control in the situation, or worrying about an unknown in the future as an attempt to have some say over how it plays out. These fixations give us an illusion of power and control and perhaps even contributes to our sense of self. Life is far from simple, and we do a very good job of making it more complicated by creating even more problems for ourselves. If we could learn to simplify our life by simplifying our thinking and thus our behavior, we would be a lot happier in the long run.

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If we work on creating an identity for ourselves that is irrelevant to external factors and issues, we would find ourselves living less in the past or worrying about the future. Focusing on how you can be the best person you can be today, this week, will give you a new and improved sense of empowerment. By letting go of expectations of shoulds, woulds, and coulds, and focusing on the right here and right now, we can live each day more fully and be open to more positive things in the future. This process starts by letting go of the things that no longer serve you.

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The power and sense of identity that we get from holding onto things is born out of perhaps feeling like you’re right and someone or something else is wrong, additionally, maybe playing the victim role feels nice because you get others’ attention, love, and support, and maybe you’re even enjoying the pity party that’s happening inside your own head, and finally, staying in an uncomfortable feeling is uncomfortable, but it’s familiar and safe, allowing you to avoid venturing into unknown territory. While all those are nice temporarily, they hold you back from reaching your ideal goal: a happier, simpler life.

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The process of letting things go starts by getting rid of your frustrations with yourself and your life. Talking and/or crying something out can be very cathartic and healing. Processing why you’re holding onto something and unable to move past it can help you gain the insight you need to then shelve it and not allow it to identify you anymore. Once you’ve figured out why you stayed in an abusive relationship you can begin the healing process and no longer be “the person who was in an abusive relationship.”

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Channeling your irritation and/or pain into a positive productive action is also helpful in getting rid of a frustration. Whether you decide to volunteer and help others, or you just take care of something personal for yourself that you’ve been putting off for awhile, it’s a good way to not let a frustrating situation hold you back, rather allowing it to drive you forward. By doing this you’re focusing your frustration on something that you can control rather than allowing it to control you.

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Express your frustration via whatever creative outlet you have. Whether you journal, paint, write music, video blog, etc., this is a visual manifestation of your feelings, a physical reminder that you’ve officially off-loaded the frustration and it no longer needs to live rent free in your head.

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Letting go of anger with yourself and others is another step in simplifying your life. Feel it fully, taking the time to understand where the anger is coming from. Rant about it in a safe place (to a friend, mentor, therapist, or via journaling or the like). Take responsibility for your part of the situation, being honest about what part your actions played. If possible, have a non confrontational conversation with the offender about your feelings. Remember that you cannot control how the other party reacts, but you do have control over how you express yourself in a mature composed way. Try to understand the other person’s perspective; we all make mistakes and appreciate others’ understanding, compassion, and forgiveness. Recognize that holding onto anger hurts you more than it hurts the person you are upset at. Make a conscious choice to let things go because you are seeking happiness.

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Practice stress management to cope with, reduce, and not allow everyday stress to build up. Use deep breathing techniques to clear your head and elicit a real physiological relaxation response within your body. The endorphins released by physical exercise is another great way to make you feel good and relieve stress. Challenge negative thoughts and replace them with more positive self-talk. Recognize that worrying is an exercise in futility; it doesn’t change the outcome, but it sure takes up a lot of headspace. If you’re having a hard time with this one, speak to someone who can help you figure out how to do this more effectively. Make lists, organize, and prioritize your tasks by breaking them down into smaller manageable pieces. Having an operable plan often makes you feel better.

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Once you are able to let go of anger, anxiety, and stress, you open yourself up to receiving more positive things in the future. You can create and maintain a self identity that emanates from a more positive internal place that is then more impervious to external factors.

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This post was written by Rivka Rochkind, LCPC

2024-02-28T18:29:43-05:00September 26th, 2016|Anger, Human Behavior, Mindfullness, Psychology, Relationships, Self-care, Stress|
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Hardwired For Connection

We live in a culture that is obsessed with love. You need only to turn on the radio, and you will hear love song following love song. Romance movies are likely the highest grossing films, and in almost every novel you pick off the shelf, the protagonist has a love interest. Why is this?

Humans are hardwired for connection. Neuroscience suggests that we are neurologically wired to connect with others; mirror neurons in our brains are stimulated when we’re interacting with other people. Literally, when you are talking to someone, pathways in your brain light up to mirror the emotions and behaviors that this other person is conveying. We are hardwired to interact and connect with others.

Abraham Maslow, an American psychologist who is best known for his “hierarchy of needs” theory, which outlines innate human necessities of psychological health culminating in self-actualization or fulfillment, names love and belonging directly following physiological needs such as oxygen, food, water, sleep, etc, and physical safety needs like shelter, physical health, etc. Love and belonging is a basic necessity that must be met before a person can begin to achieve other higher needs.

Neuroscientist Dr. Matthew Lieberman, director of UCLA’s Social Cognitive Neuroscience lab, has dedicated much of his life to understanding how the human brain relates in social contexts. In his magnum opus Social: Why Our Brains Are Wired to Connect, he argues that people’s need to connect with others is even more basic than food and shelter and is the primary motivation of one’s behavior. Other neurological findings corroborated by social science suggests that connection, a sense of community and mutuality, is the greatest predictor of happiness.

In one study done at UCLA, it was found that disconnection is largely related to physical pain. The part of the brain, the anterior cingulate, that is linked with physical distress also is stimulated in a situation of social rejection and/or loneliness. Dr. Dean Ornish, in his book Love and Survival, suggests that if we could harness the power of healthy love and connection, it would be a potent drug to cure physical pain. Trauma, isolation, and rejection work against both our physical and emotional health.

Dr. Brene Brown is well-known for her research on human connection: our capacity to love, empathize, and belong. She writes and speaks extensively about the courage to be vulnerable, letting go of who you think you’re supposed to be, making the journey to ‘I am enough,’ and leaning into discomfort and rising strong. She talks about how as an infant connection is survival, but as one matures, connection becomes about thriving emotionally, physically, spiritually, and intellectually. She explains empathy as connection; it is feelingwith people, connecting with another via connecting with something in yourself that knows that feeling the other is experiencing. She proposes that rarely can any specific response make a hardship better, but what makes it bearable is connecting with others. The person in distress then knows that someone else can relate, and he is not alone.

There is a popular idiom, “A trouble shared, is a trouble halved.” A study done at University of Southern California Marshall School of Business, in which the researchers measured levels of cortisol, a stress hormone, before and after the participants vented about their anxiety with a fellow student, found that sharing challenges with other people significantly reduces one’s own distress.

We’re wired to connect; we want to love, be loved, belong. Sometimes we lose sight of this and get caught up in the trivialities of a relationship. Connection is extremely powerful, tremendously important to our health and happiness. Do your relationships need strengthening?

Follow these tips to begin creating more meaningful relationships:

  • Maintain a good relationship with yourself. Know your limits, and create healthy boundaries. Practice good self-care. Don’t be afraid to say “no” or to express your own needs.
  • Identify for yourself who is worthwhile to build genuine relationships with. Stay away from negative, needy, and/or controlling people. (If you must interact with such people, identify how they drain you, so you can stay one step ahead. You may need to ‘take a break’ when dealing with them or limit your time together.)
  • Be dependable; mean what you say. Follow up your promises with action. People appreciate follow-through and knowing that they can rely on you.
  • Give unconditionally. Focus on giving rather than receiving. It’s nice if your efforts are reciprocated, but don’t concentrate on the tit for tat.
  • Share your life with others. When you open up to people about what you’re experiencing, they will feel more comfortable letting you in on what’s going on for them.
  • Accept people for who they are. Focus on people’s positive traits, and try to see the good in every individual.
  • “Lean in” during a time of struggle. Confide and seek comfort from others when you’re facing a hardship. Have the courage to be vulnerable and open up.
  • Listen, support, empathize, and encourage. Be there for others without imposing your own perspectives and advice if they are not solicited. When you ask someone a question, listen to their answer.
  • Let petty things go; you don’t always have to be right. Make the relationship what is important.
  • Try to make people feel noticed, important, and appreciated. Give smiles and greetings freely. Compliment sincerely. Check in regularly for no reason.
  • Let go of the past; forgive people and move forward. (If you can’t, you owe it to yourself to explore why you’re holding onto grievances.)
  • Practice patience. Don’t hold everyone to your standards. Remember that every person has a different personality, perspective, and approach to everything.
  • Be honest about your feelings. Don’t hold onto things and let them drive a wedge between you and someone you care about. Address issues candidly and respectfully.
  • Communicate. Communicate. Communicate. Don’t expect people to know what you want or need. This might even mean asking people to wish you happy birthday if you know you’ll be upset if they don’t.
  • Don’t stand on ceremony. Call, ask, invite, initiate.
  • Be aware of how you’re being received. Don’t push your opinion or needs on others. Apologize if something you do ends up hurting someone even if it’s not your fault. Practice saying “I was wrong” and “I’m sorry.”
  • If you need to criticize or correct, do so tactfully, sandwich with compliments, and take others’ feelings into account.

This post was written by Rivka Rochkind, LCPC

2024-02-28T18:32:30-05:00April 14th, 2016|Human Behavior, Relationships|
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The Role of Mindfulness Based Practices in Substance Abuse Treatment

Traditionally several modalities have been used either separately or in conjunction for treating chemical dependency and process addictions. These include 12 Step oriented interventions (which support the utilization of the 12 Step program as used by Alcoholics Anonymous and like fellowships, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and Motivational Enhancement Therapy.

More recently clinicians have been adding mindfulness practices to their repertoire of interventions. Several new mindfulness based interventions have gained popularity with professional clinicians, including Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), and Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT). These approaches borrow from age old Buddhist based practices. While their origins lie in Buddhism, these practices have been deemed effective enough to utilize in clinical practices without there being a need to espouse a religious philosophy  making it all inclusive.

The idea behind mindfulness meditation is to observe the present moment by paying attention to the breath and body, as well as thoughts and emotions. People with challenges related to addiction tend to act out on addictive behaviors to avoid uncomfortable feelings and to bring pleasure. The basic text of Alcoholics Anonymous states, Men and women drink essentially because they like the affect produced by alcohol. The sensation is so elusive that, while they admit it is injurious, they cannot after a time differentiate the true from the false. To them, their alcoholic life seems the only normal one. They are restless, irritable and discontented, unless they can again experience the sense of ease and comfort which comes at once by taking a few drinks-drinks which they see others taking with impunity (Https://silkworth.net/bb/doctorsopinion.html) So they attempt to escape the present moment because they feel restless, irritable, bored and unsatisfied. Mindfulness practices help the client to learn to face the present movement with all of its pleasant and unpleasant sensations, feelings and thoughts. It has been said that when we name the dragon, the dragon loses its power. By facing and observing these experiences in a more objective way. Mindfulness practices actually enhance other therapies like Cognitive Behavioral therapy, because it gives the client a chance to change their perceptions into something more objective and realistic, and improve emotional health as a result.

Mindfulness practices also aid 12 Step practices, which include taking inventory of one’s thoughts and actions, and spiritual practices such as meditation. We are then in much less danger of excitement, fear, anger, worry, self-pity, or foolish decisions. We become much more efficient. We do not tire so easily, for we are not burning up energy foolishly as we did when we were trying to arrange life to suit ourselves.  (Https://silkworth.net/bb/intoaction.html)

A lot of research has been done on the effectiveness of using these techniques in clinical settings. For more information on this subject, please refer to the bibliography listed below:

Alterman, A. I., Koppenhaver, J. M., Mulholland, E., Ladden, L. J., & Baime, M. J. (2004). Pilot trial of effectiveness of mindfulness meditation for substance abuse patients. Journal of Substance Use, 9(6), 259-268.

 

Amaro, H., Magno-Gatmaytan, C., Meléndez, M., Cortés, D. E., Arevalo, S., & Margolin, A. (2010). Addiction treatment intervention: An uncontrolled prospective pilot study of spiritual self-schema therapy with Latina women. Substance Abuse, 31(2), 117-125.

Brewer, J. A., Bowen, S., Smith, J. T., Marlatt, G. A., & Potenza, M. N. (2010). Mindfulness-Based treatments for co-occurring depression and substance use disorders: What can we learn from the brain? Addiction.

 

Brewer, J. A., Elwafi, H. M., & Davis, J. H. (2012). Craving to quit: Psychological models and neurobiological mechanisms of mindfulness training as treatment for addictions. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors.

 

Britton, W. B., Bootzin, R. R., Cousins, J. C., Hasler, B. P., Peck, T., & Shapiro, S. L. (2010). The contribution of mindfulness practice to a multicomponent behavioral sleep intervention following substance abuse treatment in adolescents: A treatment-development study. Substance Abuse, 31(2), 86-97.

 

Eisenlohr-Moul, T. A., Walsh, E. C., Charnigo, R. J., Lynam, D. R., & Baer, R. A. (2012). The what and the how of dispositional mindfulness: Using interactions among subscales of the fiveNfacet mindfulness questionnaire to understand its relation to substance use. Assessment. Https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22589412

 

Garland, E. L., Gaylord, S. A., Boettiger, C. A., & Howard, M. O. (2010). Mindfulness training modifies cognitive, affective, and physiological mechanisms implicated in alcohol dependence: Results of a randomized controlled pilot trial. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 42(2).

 

Liehr, P., Marcus, M. T., Carroll, D., Granmayeh, L. K., Cron, S. G., & Pennebaker, J. W. (2010). Linguistic analysis to assess the effect of a mindfulness intervention on self-change for adults in substance use recovery. Substance Abuse, 31(2), 79-85. Marcus, M. T., Fine, M., Kouzekanani, K., Mindfulness-Based Meditation in a Therapeutic Community, Journal of Substance Use , 5, 305-311, 2001.

Marcus, M.T., Fine, M., Moeller, F. G., Khan, M.M., Pitt, K., Liehr, P., Changes in stress levels following mindfulness-based stress reduction in a therapeutic community, Addictive Disorders and Their Treatment, 2: 63-68. 2003.

 

Marlatt, G. A., Witkiewitz, K., Dillworth, T. M., Bowen, S. W., Parks, G. A., Macpherson, L. M., et al. (2004). Vipassana meditation as a treatment for alcohol and drug use disorders.

 

Smout, M. F., Longo, M., Harrison, S., Minniti, R., Wickes, W., & White, J. M. (2010). Psychosocial treatment for methamphetamine use disorders: A preliminary randomized controlled trial of cognitive behavior therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy. Substance Abuse, 31(2), 98-107.

Treloar, C., Laybutt, B., & Carruthers, S. (2010). Using mindfulness to develop health education strategies for blood borne virus prevention in injecting drug use. Drugs: Education, Prevention, and Policy, 11-18.

 

Zgierska, A. & Marcus, M. T. (2010). Mindfulness-Based therapies for substance use disorders: Part 2. Substance Abuse, 31(2), 77-78.

 

Zgierska, A., Rabago, D., Zuelsdroff, M., et al. (2008). Mindfulness meditation for alcohol relapse prevention: A feasibility pilot study. Journal of Addiction Medicine, 2(3), 165- 173.

This post was written by Eric Millman, LCPC

2024-02-28T18:29:48-05:00April 8th, 2016|Mindfullness, Substance Abuse|
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You Control How You Feel

It seems automatic, something happens and we feel a specific way as a result. Someone says or does something, things don’t turn out how we would like, and we get angry, feel sad, disgusted, etc. We often think, “She made me mad,” or “He really upset me.” In actuality, there is no switch that someone can trip to activate an emotion.

When a scenario occurs, it can trigger an automatic thought, but that’s a thought, not an emotion! The two often get mixed up, because the thought quickly leads to an emotion. Emotions then lead to other thoughts and even behaviors.

To exercise better control of your emotions, it helps to slow down this process. Recognize the thought for what it is, and take responsibility for it. What happened may influence what you believe, but it does not control how you feel. What is the thought that is effecting how you’re feeling? Is the thought accurate? Can it be challenged or changed?

Contemporary psychology theories talk a lot about controlling how you feel by recognizing the cyclical influence your thoughts have on your emotions and behaviors and vice versa. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy (REBT) discuss identifying, challenging, and changing thoughts.

When we challenge our thoughts, this helps us to not be victimized by our own thinking. REBT recognizes that there are no absolutes. Just because something happened, this does not mean that you will automatically feel a certain way. The ABCs of REBT are as follows. An (A) activating event will trigger a (B) belief. The (C) consequences of this belief is what makes you feel whatever emotion it is that is making you uncomfortable. When you (D) dispute this belief, you arrive at (E) effective new thinking that helps you to avoid this automatic cycle of emotion.

Developing healthy alternative responses to events will help you stay away from negative and unhelpful emotions. For example, when you respond to something with rage, what do you need to do to dispute the irrational belief to cool you down to annoyance or irritation? Can guilt be turned to regret? Depression to disappointment?

Make sure your beliefs are anchored in reality. Ask yourself questions like, “Am I jumping to conclusions?” “Is there proof this is true?” Think about alternative ways to consider the situation. “If I were to be more positive about it, what might I say?” “Is there an alternative explanation?” “What might a good friend of mine say about this?” Put things into perspective. “Will I remember this next week? In a year? Five years?” “How much is this really worth it?” Use goal-directed thinking. “What is my goal? Will this way of thinking help me achieve my goal?” “Is there something I can learn from this situation to apply next time?”

If you stop and think about what you’re saying to yourself, take responsibility for your responses, before they mushroom into unwanted feelings or behaviors, you will have much more control over your moods and actions. It takes only a moment to slow down your thinking, but it can save you from hours of negative rumination.

This post was written by Rivka Rochkind, LCPC

2024-02-28T18:29:54-05:00March 24th, 2016|Anger, Benefits of Therapy, Human Behavior, Psychology, Psychotherapy, Relationships, Self-care, Stress|
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What Do Your Feelings Tell You?

We seek happiness, often numbing or ignoring painful feelings. We power through distress, thinking that if we ignore it, it will go away. Sometimes the pain does disappear if we tune it out, but more often than not, it seeps into other parts of our lives and makes us miserable. So many of us run from emotions, not understanding what they mean, thinking we would have it easier if we could avoid them.

In truth, emotions are messages, a source of inner guidance. All feelings exists for a reason; they are always informational. If your hand gets too close to an open flame, you’ll feel a burning sensation, which alerts you to the fact that you’re in danger, and take your hand away from the fire! The messages that your emotions send you are not unlike those that your physical sensations provide.

The first step to figuring out what your feelings are telling you is to decipher precisely what emotion you are feeling. Pay attention to your thoughts and bodily sensations. What are you thinking? Oftentimes, thoughts run through people’s minds so fast, that unless we stop and try to listen to ourselves, it’s hard to pinpoint exactly what’s going on. It can be helpful to jot down some thoughts for yourself. Notice, too, what’s happening in your body. Are your muscles tensing up? Is your skin getting hot? Do you have butterflies in your stomach?

Once you name the emotion, make sure that it really fits with your situation. For example, you may think you’re angry, but perhaps anger is masking another deeper feeling. Often, as author Liza Palmer said, “Anger is Sad’s bodyguard.” Anger generally means that I or my values have been attacked. Sadness means something was lost. Anxiety, there is something I am afraid of. Happiness means I gained something. Multiple emotions can surface at once, and it’s helpful to realize that you can be feeling two, even dichotomous, feelings at one time.

We all have an emotion that is our “go-to,” a feeling that we experience most often, a filter perhaps for other emotions we experience. For many people it is anger, because anger is relatively safe. It’s external; it allows us to blame others for how we feel. For others it is anxiety, an unease or apprehension about everything. When you learn to listen for your messages, your emotional range will expand.

There are emotions that we feel as a result of things that happen to us, like trauma, loss, injustice, etc., and there are those that we create by how we judge and and treat ourselves. Thus, it is helpful to ask yourself the following: are you ignoring your needs? Is someone being unloving to you? Is something dangerous or wrong? Do you need to make major changes in your life? You may not always know the answers to these questions, but in your journey of discovery you will find contentment. When you address the emotion and thereby comprehend the meaning behind your emotional discomfort, the feeling resolves.

This post was written by Rivka Rochkind, LCPC

2024-02-28T18:32:19-05:00March 10th, 2016|Anger, Psychology, Stress|
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Tis The Season to Be….Unhappy?

It’s the most wonderful time of the year….but is it? Although holidays are a time of joy, cheer and laughter for some, for others, the opposite holds true. Research indicates that 1 in 10 Americans will experience depression at one point in their life, and this number increases during the holiday season, which starts at Thanksgiving and goes through the New Year (Https://www.healthline.com/health/depression/statistics-infographic)

Research suggests that there are numerous causes that contribute to holiday blues. Below is a list of some of these causes: (Https://www.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu/welcome/features/20081217_holiday_blues/index.html)

Time Change: When we set our clocks back in the fall, we lose daylight, so it becomes darker outside for a longer period of time. As a result, individuals report decreased energy, increased sadness, decrease in motivation to engage in interesting or pleasurable activities and changes in sleep patterns.

Increased Alcohol Use and Overeating: The holidays lend itself to a time of celebration, and often times that means an increase in alcohol consumption and overeating. Individuals who drink too much around the holidays may experience symptoms of depression due to alcohol’s depressant nature. Additionally, with all the celebrations, increased food consumption can lead to poor self-body image and self-esteem.

Decreased Sleep: With all the celebrations around the holidays, it is not uncommon for people to sleep less. Decreased sleep contributes to an individual feeling tired and lacking energy, which may lead to an increase in experiencing depressive symptoms.

Packed Scheduling/Lack of Planning: The holidays are a time for getting together and catching up with family and friends. Often times, this can create a packed schedule, and a feeling like there are not enough hours in the day. Additionally, lack of scheduling and planning can lead to last minute errands. Trying to get things done at the last moment can lead to increased stress and contribute to the holiday blues.

Lack of Exercise: With the change in weather (cold, dark, rainy) and the increased plans around the holidays, people tend to exercise less during the holidays. Exercise is beneficial in reducing and preventing the symptoms of depression. Thus, decreased exercise can worsen symptoms of depression.

Time of Reflection: The holidays are a time to reflect on successes, accomplishments and relationships with family and friends. Unfortunately, this may also mean that people reflect on what they feel they have not accomplished, failures and strained relationships or loss of a loved one. For those that feel a lack of connectedness with others, this can create a feeling of social isolation. Such feelings can increase feelings of sadness as well as decrease self-esteem.

So, how can we help rid ourselves of the holiday blues?

Practice self-care: In the midst of the holiday chaos, remember to pay attention to your own needs and self-care. Listen to your body when it is talking to you!

Spend time in the sunlight (this may mean you have to get up a bit earlier)

Limit your alcohol consumption

Develop healthy sleeping patterns

Plan Ahead. Schedule out who you want to see and when so that you are organized in your plans and not feeling too packed. Remember, you don’t have to see everyone-think about who is important to you and prioritize those people first. Additionally, planning ahead will allow for you to get holiday shopping done in a timely fashion so you are not feeling rushed right before the holiday festivities.

Focus on what you have and what is going right in your life, as opposed to what you don’t have or what you don’t think is going right in your life.

2024-02-28T18:30:03-05:00December 1st, 2015|Benefits of Therapy, Exercise, Human Behavior, Psychology, Relationships, Self-care, Sleep, Stress|
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