by Marina Edelman, LMFT | Dec 10, 2018 | Blog
Holiday season is one of the busiest times to travel. Whether you are visiting family or going on vacation pre-trip anxiety can affect event the healthiest of us.
Common Reasons:
- Taking time off work
- Boarding Pets
- Scheduling transportation and accommodations
- Fear of getting sick
- Spending time with family in a confined space
- Going over budget
- Reservations being canceled
- Adverse weather conditions
- Forgetting to pack something important
Steps to take:
- Remind yourself of why you are traveling
- Visualize arriving at the destination
- Create lists – packing, spending, activities, gifts
- Bounce ideas of someone else
- Set a budget with a 10% buffer
- Remember anything you forget can be purchased at your destination or you can temporarily live without out (medicine is probably an exception)
- Check in with ourself if anxiety is what you are feeling. Excitement is sometimes confused with anxiety.
- Analyze each scary thought you have and figure out how you would handle it. For example what would you do if you missed your plane.
- Eat super foods leading up to your travels
- Plan for ways to entertain yourself in a confined space, such as plane, by downloading podcast or book etc.
#anxiety #travelanxiety #therapy #therapist #westlake #cbt
by Marina Edelman, LMFT | Dec 6, 2018 | Blog
Every semester I have a student who emails me with a request to interview me about what it’s like to have a private practice. I thought I would publish my answers in hopes to help others who are considering interview this field.
1. How many hours per week are you expected to work in this field?
There is no expectation in private practice but on average therapists work 20 hours. Since I am balancing being a supervisor and seeing my own clients, I average 40 hours a week.
2. Can you describe your experience balancing life and work?
One of the benefits of being self employed is the ability set my own hours. Which makes balancing life and work easier. The hard part is to not be a ‘Therapist’ all the time. To address that issue I try to avoid discussing what I do while socializing.
3. What qualities do you need to have to be successful in this field?
Besides being passionate about psychology one needs to love marketing and networking.
4. What do you find to be the most rewarding aspects of this field?
When clients have aha moments.
5. A lot of people think that the field of psychology is an “easy” major or that you cannot find a job with a degree in psychology. What would you say to debunk this misconception and encourage a student to purse a degree in psychology?
I think the degree can be converted to a lot of other positions that require understanding of human nature. Sales, HR, and child oriented positions come to mind.
6. What advice would you give to a student who is considering studying psychology?
To drill down on what their intent in studying it is. Is it for the love of learning or to actually be employed in the field. If employment is the goal then figure out what part of psychology is of interest, it is a very broad field.
by Marina Edelman, LMFT | Dec 3, 2018 | Blog
On January 30, 2017, the journal BMC Medicine published Felice Jacka PhD’s new randomized controlled study called The SMILES Trial. This groundbreaking research for the the first time demonstrates that people with moderate to severe depression can improve their mood by altering what they eat.
Here are the details of the diet that was used to reduce participants depression, for more details visit https://www.myvmc.com/news/diet-plan-depression/
12 key food groups (recommended servings in brackets): whole grains (5–8 servings per day); vegetables (6 per day); fruit (3 per day), legumes (3–4 per week); low-fat and unsweetened dairy foods (2–3 per day); raw and unsalted nuts (1 per day); fish (at least 2 per week); lean red meats (3–4 per week), chicken (2–3 per week); eggs (up to 6 per week); and olive oil (3 tablespoons per day), whilst reducing intake of ‘extras’ foods, such as sweets, refined cereals, fried food, fast-food, processed meats and sugary drinks (no more than 3 per week).
Red or white wine consumption beyond 2 standard drinks per day and all other alcohol (e.g. spirits, beer) were included within the ‘extras’ food group. Individuals were advised to select red wine preferably and only drink with meals. The dietary composition of the ModiMedDiet was as follows: protein 18% of total energy (E); fat 40% of E; carbohydrates 37% of E; alcohol 2% of E; fibre/other 3% of E.
by Marina Edelman, LMFT | Nov 29, 2018 | Blog
What we do during time of distress helps us become stronger during adversity.
Three common approaches and examples compliments of trauma-recovery.ca
Fight
- Crying
- Hands in fists, desire to punch, rip
- Flexed/tight jaw, grinding teeth, snarl
- Fight in eyes, glaring, fight in voice
- Desire to stomp, kick, smash with legs, feet
- Feelings of anger/rage
- Knotted stomach/nausea, burning stomach
- Metaphors like bombs, volcanoes erupting
Flight
- Restless legs, feet /numbness in legs
- Anxiety/shallow breathing
- Big/darting eyes
- Leg/foot movement
- Reported or observed fidgety-ness, restlessness, feeling trapped, tense
- Sense of running in life- one activity-next
- Excessive exercise
Freeze
- Feeling stuck in some part of body
- Feeling cold/frozen, numb, pale skin
- Sense of stiffness, heaviness
- Holding breath/restricted breathing
- Sense of dread, heart pounding
- Decreased heart rate (can sometimes increase)
Recognizes which one you are and comfort yourself by acknowledging feelings and rationally look at the situation you find yourself in and then proceed with brain storming solutions.
by Marina Edelman, LMFT | Nov 1, 2018 | Blog
- Create self awareness – aren’t you curious about how people perceive you
- No Judgment – feel free to express yourself without censorship and discover hidden issues
- Unbiased advice
- Learn self regulation and new ways of thinking
- Yoga for your mind
by Marina Edelman, LMFT | Oct 31, 2018 | Blog
For people who suffer from phobias, Halloween can be an extremely anxiety producing day.
List of common phobias:
Acrophobia – Fear of Heights
Arachnophobia – Fear of Spiders
Ophidiophobia – Fear of Snakes
Agoraphobia – Fear of being in a public situation from which it is difficult to escape
Mysophobia – Fear of Germs
Thankfully treatment for phobias exist. You don’t have to continue to suffer – contact a #therapist today!
by Marina Edelman, LMFT | Oct 24, 2018 | Blog
Definition: when one person seizes or takes over a conversation that belongs to someone else. Are you one?! Once you spot it you can navigate around it. Identify if you would like to give the floor to the other person because they have a greater need than you. If not, then segue back by resuming what you were saying as if the interruption never happened. Another option is to validate what the person just said and bridge it back to your point. Understand that passion is driving this behavior, by empathizing with your conversation companion you will not develop negative feelings and still enjoy the conversation.
#conversation #therapy #therapist
