Volition Counseling - clinical intern

10/29/2023

Exercise has been shown to be an effective but often underused treatment for mild to moderate depression. Exercises that use both hemispheres of the brain, such as running, swimming, biking, and dancing, have been shown to be the most beneficial types of exercise for mild depression.
Also, when you exercise, your body releases a natural hormone called endorphins which are known to alleviate pain, lower stress, and improve mood.
-Cleveland Clinic

Endorphins are chemicals or hormones that your body releases when it feels pain or stress. Endorphins can be boosted by exercising, eating or having s*x.

10/29/2023

Want to enhance your mood? Try an ice bath.

While not true of every stress, cold exposure causes prolonged dopamine release. Dopamine is a potent molecule capable of elevating mood, enhancing focus, attention, goal-directed behavior, etc. Even short cold exposure can cause a lasting increase in dopamine and sustained mood, energy, and focus elevation.
-Andrew Huberman from Hubermanlabs.com

1. To begin, check in on a scale of 1-5 on how you feel physically and emotionally.
2. Get in an ice bath (38-42 F) for three minutes. If you can access a dry sauna for 20 minutes after your three-minute cold plunge (although not required). Repeat this three times.
3. Check back with yourself and see where you feel physically and emotionally on a scale of 1-5.

10/29/2023

What is the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) Triangle?

The triangle shows the interc***ections when a situation triggers thoughts, impacting our emotions and behaviors.

For example, you are stuck in traffic and late for work.

Thought: "I'm never going to be promoted; I can't even get to work on time."
Emotions: you feel stressed and defeated.
Behaviors: avoid others when you get to work, give excuses, and isolate during the day.

You can reframe your thoughts about being stuck in traffic and late to work using the CBT Triangle. For example:

Thought: "It looks like I need to leave for work starting tomorrow 20 minutes early."
Emotions: Ask yourself when was the last time you were late. Most likely, not often.
Behaviors: Instead of avoidance, tell your co-workers, "Thanks for waiting on me."

10/29/2023

Feeling anxious, how about acupuncture?

A 2021 meta-analysis studied 20 randomized controlled trials utilizing acupuncture for the treatment of generalized anxiety disorder.

The meta-analysis of anxiety symptoms showed that acupuncture was more effective than the control condition and that acupuncture intervention showed good tolerance and safety in the treatment of anxiety disorder.

-Annals of General Psychiatry

https://annals-general-psychiatry.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12991-021-00327-5

10/29/2023

You are not your diagnosis. And words matter.

-You are not depressed. You may be someone who can get depressed.
-You are not a Bi-Polar. You may be someone who struggles with the symptoms of Bi-Polar.
-You are not a PTSD. You are someone who experiences symptoms associated with PTSD.

10/29/2023

What can lead to unethical decisions on the battlefield? It's a lot more complicated than you may think (unless you have been there).
Things like having a team member killed or wounded, watching your enemy abuse civilians, and the toll of daily combat on the central nervous system can lead even the most ethical person into the "grey zone" or even the "red zone" of their personal ethics.

I'm not excusing war crimes; I am only trying to shed light on what it's like to go to war. Next time you see a veteran struggle, realize they may be "stuck" in the guilt of actions they did years ago.

10/29/2023

If I were to give one quote to someone going off to war for the first time:

“Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process, he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche

10/29/2023

What is flow state?

The term “flow state” describes a mental state in which a person focuses entirely on a single task or activity. They are directing all of their attention toward the task, and they do not experience many thoughts about themselves or their performance. -Medical News Today

While in the flow state, you are not worried about the past with thoughts like "I should have done this" or "I could have become that." These past negative thoughts are where depression hangs out.
Flow state also lets you take a break from thinking about the future where anxiety hangs out. Thoughts such as "I need to do this" or "I can't forget that."

How do you find your flow? Think about hobbies or activities that you do or have enjoyed. Examples include playing an instrument, art, surfing, crafting, or working on your car (everyone is different). Next time you do these activities, could you check in with yourself and see where your stress is on a scale of 1-5? After being in flow, check back on a scale of 1-5 to see if things have changed.

Peak performance mind hack explained in 7 minutes.Subscribe to Big Think on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/c/bigthink Up Next ► The Neurochemistry of Flow...

10/29/2023

Reframing your negative thoughts with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) using the word "good." Credit to Jacko Willink

How to deal with failure and bad situations. Excerpt from the Jocko Podcast (iTunes).Video by Echo Charles.Join the Conversation on Instagram / Twitter: ...

10/29/2023

Struggling to get through the day? Make it to your next meal.

10/29/2023

Want to reduce stress with two to three breaths? Try the physiological sign.

Made famous by Andrew Huberman, a Standford Professor and owner of Huberman Lab, the physiological sign rapidly shifts your nervous system from elevated arousal and agitation to feeling calmer.

Here I describe "Physiological Sighs" which is a pattern of breathing of two inhales, followed by an extended exhale. This pattern of breathing occurs sponta...

10/29/2023

Where to start with breathwork? Try one of my favorites, Two Bells Coherent Breathing (link below).
-Check-in with yourself and see where your stress is on a scale of 1-5.
-At the first bell, breathe in, matching the rhythm of the bell.
-At the second bell, breathe out, matching the rhythm of the bell.
-Repeat for two minutes.
-Check back in with yourself and see your stress on a scale of 1-5.

To own your own copy of Coherent Breathing Valsalva Wave Trainer (2 Bells With Sinusoidal Pacing) you can purchase it for $24.95 at the link below. It is shi...

10/29/2023

Feeling stressed or anxious but not sure what to do? How about a three-minute meditation each morning after waking and before coffee.
Motivation: A meta-analysis including nearly 1,300 adults found that meditation may decrease anxiety. Notably, this effect was most substantial in those with the highest levels of anxiety.
-National Library of Medicine

10/29/2023

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world.”

-Marianne Williamson

10/29/2023

We all share 99.6% of the same DNA. If we are so alike, how is there room for hate and racism?

National Insitute of General Medical Sciences.

NIGMS supports basic research to understand biological processes and lay the foundation for advances in disease diagnosis, treatment, and prevention.