Category: Online Counseling

When the news about the statewide quarantine reached me, I had two choices. I could either fly to my parents’ farm in Minnesota or stay here in New York. I ended up choosing the latter because the internet was essential for my work, and there was hardly any signal at the farm.

Despite making that choice by myself, I could not help but feel stressed about quarantining alone. I was not allowed to order food often; the laundry shop was also closed. Still, I had to tap my face several times and remind myself that stress would not do me good, especially now. So, I did the following instead:

Start An Aquaponics Herb Garden

The most stress-relieving activity in my book is tending to a garden. I used to do that in my parents’ backyard and plant vegetables there. However, since I live in a small apartment in the city, the best thing I can do is start an aquaponics herb garden.

This project is genuinely easy; all you need are a few mason jars, water, and seedlings. It is especially useful these days, given that you are not supposed to go out only to buy basil or thyme. With an herb garden of your own, you will be able to get by without buying herbs even after the lockdown.

Subscribe To A Video-Streaming Platform

Being an old-school individual, the first week of my quarantine passed with me playing … Read the rest...

I learned so much from the 2017 Stress Management Seminar and the notes that I got from it, which I keep close to my heart. So many people disregard this mental health issue like how they have disregarded Covid-19. And now, see the reality – Covid-19 has been declared a pandemic because of how fast it grew and how it has affected people globally in such a short time.… Read the rest...

As part of the  2017 Michigan Stress Relief Week, they gave free massages and desserts to all students to help them relieve their stress, relax, and refresh. This event is an excellent initiative since massage therapy is known to help those who suffer from stress find a way to unwind and prioritize their health and wellness. Moreover, students experience much stress due to their deadlines, research, and exams. But how does massage therapy help people reduce their stress?

Nowadays, massage therapy is offered almost everywhere. Gone are the times when massages are only available through luxury spas and health clubs. Whether you are in airports, clinics, hospitals, or malls, people who seek massages can get soothing treatment quickly. A session of massage therapy usually goes on for about 50 minutes. It uses low and subtle lighting in the room to help create a comforting and relaxing environment. It also utilizes the power of music to support the soothing atmosphere. 

Massage strokes and manipulates your skin, muscles, tendons, and ligaments to release tension and pain. A massage therapist can use a variety of techniques for a session, and it may range from light stroking to deep pressure. There are more than 80 types of massage therapies in the world. You can discuss your preferred treatment with your therapist.

Benefits of Massage Therapy

Massage therapy has a couple of benefits, including the following:

• Allows people to respond better to medical procedures

Most of us face more than what we can chew every day – challenges, untoward incidents at home or work, daily obligations – and all these can take a toll on our lives and cause unnecessary stress. When these pressures continue and extend up to a month, it is called acute stress disorder.… Read the rest...

Stress can take over a person’s life and control it. This fact has been overlooked by many, treating this simple stress as something that’s going away eventually. A stressed mind, however, significantly produces negative effects on the mentality and physical being of a person regardless of age and gender.… Read the rest...

But can you really go back to your high school days for a moment? Back then, as a student wasn’t there anything that caused you worry? I am sure there was. High school students do face stress and sometimes they are major ones which affect their physical and mental health.

From pubertal changes to peer pressure, from emotional sparks to ongoing pressure of board exams– high school days are really tough as perceived by most teenagers. Many adolescents become over stressed and feel they just can’t take the pressure anymore.

According to Rachel Fintzy Woods, M.A., LMFT, “Since we differ in what we consider stressful., it’s important to determine your personal threshold for stress.”

The Common High School Stressors

The factors causing stress in high schoolers can be categorized into four broad types:

1. Academic Stressors – Including home works, tougher academic responsibilities, grades, assignments, too much syllabus, too less time, examinations, and so on. These things really do impact a high schooler’s mind. As such, it is important to take a break every now and then. “People need time off from work (school) to recover from stress and prevent burnout,” said David W. Ballard, PsyD, MBA.
2. Family Stressors – It is the “have to do” stress that many families put on their kids. Like the pressure of doing better than siblings or cousins and living up to parents’ expectations. Parenting styles, broken homes and parental divorce

People are currently living in an extremely demanding world. In the United States alone, about 86 million people were employed full-time by private companies in 2014, and these people mostly take part in keeping the country afloat.

The living cost is continually on the rise, and the needs only seem to increase. It’s not hard to see why people obsess over their careers, but it’s important to talk about why people need to take a step back.

It’s Widely Accepted

It’s only quite recently that mental health and positive working environments became a priority for private companies. For a significant population, gone are the days where strict hours need to be completed or terrorizing employees to deliver results. It’s been proven that a good work environment is also a great business decision, and many employers acknowledge that.

There is less reason to hesitate about requesting for a vacation. It won’t be considered as a risk of an adverse career move or seen as a negative light by other people. Granted, it’s harder for traditional companies, but it’s definitely worth it.

Stress Relief

It’s pretty self-explanatory, but a vacation is one of the best ways to relieve stress and anxiety, precisely for reasons like it lifts a person’s mood when they have something to look forward to. It’s something that breaks routine, and it’s naturally exciting to deviate from a pattern. On vacation itself, worries and the weight of … Read the rest...

As opposed to what most people think, blogs are not only for commercial purposes. Other than being a platform for building your business brand or as a way of making money from promoting, reviewing, and advertising different products, blogging can also be a form of treatment or therapy for troubled and stressed minds.

Whether it is an exhausted mind from the things you deem you cannot control or even an unusual blue feeling from lots of pending work, blogging can be therapeutic in a lot of ways. No, it is not maintenance-heavy. It can provide you with the following:

1. You Make Your Own Rules

Remember that in your blog, there are no boundaries and no limitations. You can write whatever you feel, whatever you want to say, whatever you wish to think without anyone restricting you to do so.

As your own boss to your own space, having the freedom to write anything is relaxing and stress-relieving. Blogging acts like someone you can share the burden with. You can flow all your problems from your body and mind to your blog without any consequences. Furthermore, writing your problems and issues can make you focus and think of the possible solutions in an organized manner.

2. It Can Lead To Personality Development

Blogging is your own stage and a platform to express yourself. Most of the time, you will feel the need to elaborate things that you specifically write if it’s an … Read the rest...

Ending your relationship with your spouse of many years can only be different, but a therapist once told me that sometimes it’s necessary. After all, not every woman in the real world lives like the ones in fairy tales, who get pampered, loved, and honored by their husbands. At the same time, not all men are seen as Prince Charming-material by their wives because they either cheat on them or harbor too many vices. When there are no longer petty quarrels but full-on yelling match in the house for months on end, it is often better to accept that separation is key to a peaceful life.… Read the rest...

Based on what counselors often say, being away from home evokes a sense of freedom to most people. “People need time off from work to recover from stress and prevent burnout,” based on the statement of  David W. Ballard, PsyD, MBA It’s as if you can eat or do anything that comes to mind without much care in the world. Many also forget their diet and exercise routines, thinking they can accomplish both once they’re back. Richard Shuster, PsyD “Staring at the ocean actually changes our brain waves’ frequency and puts us into a mild meditative state.”

As tempting as that may sound, we should try not to get lured by such distractions. You may be in a different place, but the risks to your well-being still exist. That thought may even amplify them, to be honest.

Before hopping on to the vehicle that’ll take you to your holiday destination, therefore, read these seven ways to stay healthy while traveling.

1. Start With Stretches

Perform warm-up exercises before beginning your day so that the blood can freely move in your veins. A routine that covers your head, shoulders, arms, legs, and feet can keep your muscles from tiring out quickly.

2. Go For Healthy Food Options

Every time you’re not busy touring the place, make sure to cook your food. Although all you may want to do is relax and sample the specialty of the restaurants there, you need to … Read the rest...