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Finding a Therapist Who Relates to You

June 10, 2024 in Educate Yourself

The mental health profession, unfortunately, lacks diversity. The American Psychological Association found that 86% of practitioners are white, with other races making up less than 5% each. In a nation that continues to not just get more diverse, but is also becoming more open in talking about mental health, it’s important for people of color to not just find, but have access to therapists who look like them (you can read more about the topic here).

Do you identify as a minority? Do you consider your identity when looking, or when you were looking for a therapist? How do you think having a therapist who relates to your experiences can help you?

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A Video about Empathy and Sympathy

June 7, 2024 in Educate Yourself

Sometimes we share with folks our struggles and pain.  In response, sometimes we get the shoulder we need to cry on, sometimes we get the understanding nod, sometimes we get the dreaded statements that start with “At least…”

Having feelings downplayed or dismissed can be a crushing feeling.  Oftentimes, people don’t even realize that they’re doing it or grasp the impact it can have.

Here is a short and sweet animation about the difference between “sympathy” and “empathy.”  It can serve as a playful yet sincere reminder for those in your social circles on how to interact with others who are sharing tough stuff.

Have you ever opened up to someone only to have them “find the silver lining?”  How did you handle this situation?  Did this video hit home with you?

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Likes, Comments, & Shares – Social Currency

June 6, 2024 in Social Media Guide

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Social media has connected the world unlike anything else ever has.  You can keep in contact with friends and family with ease as while as share individual experiences with the world.  Social media has undeniably changed how we all interact with one another, but can it also lead to negative outcomes?

Social media is often times used as a stage to compare your individual life with others.  Likes, comments, and shares can become an unhealthy form of social currency. Social currency is defined by Wikipedia as “shared information that encourages further social encounters”. Comparing your life to others can lead to feelings of isolation, jealousy, or the dreaded fear of missing out (FOMO).  In some cases, mental health issues can be associated with social comparison.

Looking at social networking sites as a collection of your memories and using it in a nostalgic way is a healthier use of this platform. Instagram has recently offered a way to hide like counts on users’ posts in an effort to transform Instagram into a place where users can focus on the media they share – not the number of likes that their posts get.

Instead of using social media as a place of constant comparison, try viewing it as an online scrapbook to look back and remember all the amazing things you have experienced with those you love and care for.

What are some ways that you use social media as social currency? If you use Instagram, would you consider turning off your likes?

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Mental Health Resources for Black Youth

June 5, 2024 in LINKS

It can be difficult to find resources for mental health resources that feel like they’re targeted to you. This is particularly true for minorities and underprivileged groups. Racial and ethnic minorities have less access to mental health resources and services than white people, and when they do get access, it can be of poorer quality, feeling that the treatment they receive doesn’t fully suit them or that they feel like they’re experiencing discrimination.

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African-American communities are no exception. African-American adolescents require different approaches when developing treatment, because they express their depressive symptoms differently, for a number of reasons.

The options below are just a start to what may be available online for African-Americans and African-American youth. A couple are sites dedicated to one gender, one is an app, and another is a podcast, but all of them have been created and are run by African-Americans, with the hope that seeing something created for you by someone who looks like you can have a more significant impact.

The Safe Place This is an app dedicated just for African-Americans and how they can learn more and think about their mental health. The creator, Jasmine Pierre, is a certified peer support specialist, and has the app offer a forum, statistics specifically about black mental health, and inspirational quotes. There are also self-care tips for things such as coping with police brutality, how to talk to black family members about mental health, and mental health in the black church.

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Fireflies Unite T-Kea – the woman named in the podcast’s full title of Fireflies Unite Podcast with Kea – created episodes regularly from 2018 until March of 2021. While the podcast has ended, T-Kea leaves the episodes live with hopes that it will continue to erase the mental health stigma and provide resources. The mission of the podcast is to bring light into darkness (just like the fireflies) and encourage black people to seek treatment. We want to show that mental illness does not have “a look”; it includes everyday high-functioning people. The podcast is also designed for people to see how everyday decisions impact their mental health and overall wellness such as finances, relationships, and nutrition.

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Therapy for Black Men The main focus of this website (run by mental health professional Vladimire Calixte) is to provide a directory for African-American men to access therapists who they can trust with offering services that will be beneficial to them. The search gives you the option to get more advanced beyond searching just by location, including therapists’ specialties, treatment options, and if they provide therapy remotely. The site also has a coach directory and a blog.

Therapy for Black Girls Dr. Joy Harden Bradford is a licensed psychologist who created this site specifically for African-American women and girls to have a resource to learn more about well-being and mental health. Like Therapy for Black Men, there’s a directory listing therapists nationwide who provide “high quality, culturally competent services” for African-American women and girls, letting you search by location and by insurance. The website also has its own weekly podcast hosted by Dr. Joy, where she talks and educates listeners about an array of mental health topics.

Do you have any recommendations? If you’re a part of a minoritized group, do you find that resources that are more specifically tailored for you to be more helpful?

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Being Only Human

June 4, 2024 in Be Positive

Almost anything can affect us negatively. Pretty much anything can affect us to an extreme degree, even if we don’t expect it to. It can be the major, like aspects of a relationship (friend, family, romantic, or others) that hurt you, to what feels like the minor, like unpredictable changes in routine. 

Over the years, you may have been able to pinpoint exactly what it is that triggers or upsets you, have likely developed some sort of skill to help you manage the negative emotions tied to that instance. If your sibling makes fun of you, you may have learned to laugh it off and play along instead of letting it get to you. If you take unexpected changes in your routine really poorly, you may have come up with ways to adjust and become more flexible. 

However, sometimes you may find yourself reacting the way you used to before developing these coping mechanisms, and that can lead to a whole other level of bad feelings.

Let’s take a bad grade, for example. Say you didn’t do well on a paper, and you find yourself experiencing depressive symptoms, and overall just feeling really bad about yourself. You find yourself blaming yourself for not starting earlier, or not doing one more read-through before submitting, or get upset at yourself for messing up in a class that otherwise has gone well for you.

And when these self-blaming thoughts begin to happen, you then find yourself getting angry at yourself too. This isn’t the first bad grade that you’ve gotten, so why are you taking it so hard now? You’ve taken other bad grades really well before, and know that you’ll survive this one too, so why are you experiencing these feelings that you know are tied to your depression or anxiety? It’s easy to slip into these thoughts that you’re no longer good at your coping mechanisms or all the growth that you’ve made to combat these negative things in your life is all of a sudden going away.

In these instances, it’s important to remember that bad feelings and getting upset about things that you thought you’ve grown past are just natural feelings that occur. Growth is not a linear line, and there’s never truly an end goal where you’re cured and never going to feel those bad emotions again. Life – and the progress that you make in it – is more like a scribble than a line. Even if you feel like you’ve built a tough exterior and don’t let the negatives phase you doesn’t mean you’re completely immune to them, because ultimately, you’re a human who feels human emotions. 

What was something that bothered you a lot when you were younger that doesn’t anymore? Was there an instance where it occurred again and you ended up getting upset about it like you did when you were younger? How did you react to that?

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The Benefit of Naps

June 3, 2024 in Educate Yourself

You may have heard about the danger of depression naps before. However, this isn’t to imply that all naps are bad for you – in fact, they’re incredibly beneficial!

At first, naps can seem like a waste of time if you’re incredibly busy and are seen as a sign of laziness. They may also seem like the only thing your body and mind can do if you’re experiencing a depressive episode and don’t have the strength or motivation to do anything else. Naps are usually seen in a negative light for these reasons if you aren’t a child, despite the fact that they can help you become more alert, improves memory and creative thinking, and can improve your mood. 

This is partly because we’re told that we need to take advantage of as many things in 24 hours (clubs, homework, classes, socializing) as possible and that any “wasted time” like sleeping takes away from work. It also doesn’t help that adolescents are more vulnerable to sleep disruption (one reason being from the anxiety that comes with the many things they’re expected to accomplish) and shouldn’t be going to school as early as they do (experts have been pushing high schools to delay start times, for example). 

Overall, adolescents are not getting the amount of sleep that they should, and not giving yourself the time for that break and mental rest can ultimately lead to burnout, which can then lead to more depressive symptoms, like those dangerous and long depression naps.

This time of year might be a good time to start incorporating naps. The sun is starting to set earlier and may make you tired when it gets dark, but taking a quick nap can refresh you so that you can stick to your regular sleep schedule. For those who are dealing with the burden and accompanying anxiety that may come with exams and finals, taking a break by taking a nap can have you shut off your brain for a while to give it a quick recharge. 

Of course, it can be really easy and tempting to keep your eyes closed for “five more minutes.” There are a few guides and tips online to help make sure you stick to your schedule, but consider the following:

Time and schedule naps:

Just like any other habit, napping should have some consistency. Everyone’s daily routine changes and no one’s is the same, but if you can find a period of time that you feel would be good for your child to squeeze a few minutes in, their body will start to associate it as a “recharge” time. They shouldn’t be too late in the day or too long either – most places suggest somewhere between 10-30 minutes.

Do NOT sleep in your bed

Even though this is a place where you’re meant to sleep, your body associates it with long periods of rest. If you nap here, you’ll likely find yourself sleeping for hours instead of a few minutes.

Plan the space accordingly

While you want to be comfortable, you don’t want the space to be cozy to the point that you never want to get out – you’re only there for a brief period of time after all. Make sure the space is dark, but cool, and use a lighter blanket as opposed to an entire comforter. 

Keep your phone away

It can take a bit before you eventually fall asleep for your nap, and can therefore be tempting to go on your phone. Also, once your alarm goes off, having your phone next to you makes hitting the snooze button that much easier. Keeping your phone away (and on “do not disturb” to avoid notifications!) will force you to get up to turn off the alarm. If you have a smartwatch, try putting your alarm on there instead.

Ultimately, naps are a good thing, but it also (ironically) includes some hard work to make sure you’re taking them in a healthy way. You know your own mind and body the best, and it’s up to you to determine if they’re helpful to you, how much you need them, and when to tell that they’re becoming an issue and a sign of burnout and depression. That being said, getting that extra (or even missing) rest can be a pleasant and mood-boosting habit you can incorporate in your routine!

Do you take naps? What do you think of them? How would you differentiate depression naps and regular naps?

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Improving Sleep

May 31, 2024 in LINKS

While it’s incredibly important to get a good night’s sleep, sleeping patterns and the amount of sleep adolescents get can get jumbled because of mental illness (for example, we’ve talked about “depression naps” and the effects that they can have). Overall, it’s difficult for adolescents to get the recommended amount of sleep they should be getting, and with higher rates of mental illness within this age group today, it can be even more difficult because of the ways that it can affect your sleep, such as depression napping and insomnia.

There are tons of resources available online and through app stores that offer ways to contribute to measuring and stabilizing your sleeping patterns, but we’ve pulled a few that you can check out below!

Flux You can install Flux on your computer so that your screen automatically adjusts with the sun. Screens emit brighter, blue lighting that can hurt the eyes, especially at night. Flux dims your computer to a softer, orange color at sunset, and you can adjust how strong the color and softness are.

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Sleep with Me This podcast is dedicated to help you fall asleep by telling bedtime stories. The host, Drew Ackerman, takes a comedic approach in his story choice and storytelling, but still does so in a way that helps the listener not feel like they have to pay attention and eventually drifting off to sleep. There are over 700 episodes too, so you don’t have to worry about running out of content.

There are also other podcasts available meant to help the listener sleep. You can check out other lists for more info and ideas.

Pzizz Science-based and supported, Pzizz uses soft music, voices, and sound effects to help you fall and stay asleep. It’s not just limited for sleeping at night, and includes options if you want to take a nap and to help you stay focused.

Do you use anything on your phone or computer to help you fall and stay asleep at appropriate times? If you nap (whether voluntarily or involuntarily), what have you tried to make sure yo

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Some Facts About Memorial Day

May 27, 2024 in Be Positive

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Decorating soldiers’ graves is a very ancient tradition, and the practice of doing it on a specific day has had all kinds of names in different communities. One of the most common was “Decoration Day.”

The name “Memorial Day” is pretty recent! In 1968, Congress passed a law that named the day “Memorial Day” and made it on the last Monday of May, so workers could have a three day weekend. (The act also includes Veterans’ Day, Labor Day, and a couple of other holidays.)

Memorial Day is about remembering and honoring soldiers who died in wars. Almost every family has at least one member who fought in some kind of conflict. Involvement in war raises risk of depression and anxiety both for the person who participates and for others in the family, especially children.

Even if you don’t have a family member who lost their life in a war, Memorial Day reminds us to be grateful that there were so many people who were willing to fight to preserve the good in society. Which means it’s a reason to express gratitude. And the discipline of expressing gratitude is a super healing discipline.

Have a relaxing and peaceful holiday.

Has your family lost members to wars? What are you grateful for this Memorial Day? Tell us in the comments.

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Getting Things Done

May 24, 2024 in Educate Yourself

Each day brings something different . For those in school, finals and big assignments may be coming up soon, and it can be daunting to figure out how to get everything done, especially with the anxiety you may be feeling with these tasks on top of the anxiety with everything else going on. Ironically, if you feel anxiety when it comes to getting tasks completed, those symptoms of anxiety may actually delay you from starting them, making it take even longer to get everything done. Distractions around you like your phone, bed, and other tabs don’t help either.

Overall, it’s overwhelming and messy.

So, if you have big things that you need to get done coming up – or even if you want to make sure you can stay on task when everything feels distracting – there are ways to focus on them without these daunting anxious feelings.

One way to do this is by dividing your work into intervals. This is known as the Pomodoro Technique, where you spend a set amount of time focusing on whatever you need to focus on, take a small break, and then repeat. The amount of time you choose to do your work can vary depending on how long you realistically think you can focus. Some may be able to do a half-hour of their work, take a three minute break, and repeat until they’re done, while others may think that spending ten minutes working is the most realistic with five minute breaks. Everyone works differently.

There are a ton of apps that you can use that lets you set how long you want these intervals and breaks to be. Some include Be Focused, the Tomato Timer, and Engross. You can check them out and choose what’s best for you depending on what device you want to have the timer on, how they look, and how effective they are.

How are you dividing your time at home? Do you have any apps that you use for productivity? How do they affect your stress and anxiety

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Keeping Your Emotions in Check

May 21, 2024 in Social Media Guide

The Internet is both a blessing and a curse. It gives us access to any information from any part of the world, allows us to talk and develop relationships with people we may have otherwise never encountered offline, and is always, always available.

This constant access and ability to talk to anyone has its perks, but it also has the very high chances of us encountering people and information that will affect us negatively. Being able to go online whenever we want also means that we may encounter this when our emotions are already high, we’re already feeling vulnerable, or are experiencing the intense negative effects of mental illness, so when we run into people and things that we don’t like, our chances of acting out and engaging in negative interactions can increase. Most of our interactions on social media are text-based, so we don’t realize just how much our words can affect others when we lash out at them, because texting and typing is so much more difficult to interpret than face-to-face interaction. It can feel harsher, colder, and so much more meaner than we already feel, and we can’t delete or take back the things we send once they’re online. 

As we all know now, it’s impossible to avoid going online, especially this year. While difficult, it was still easier to go off the grid and take breaks before classes and work were all online. It was easier to put our phones on “do not disturb” when we just didn’t have the energy to talk to anyone, but this year, our only way of talking to people is over the phone and online. And in a year of bad and stressful news that constantly has us doomscrolling and refreshing, our likelihood of snapping is even higher.

So how do we avoid leaving a nasty comment on someone’s post, DM’ing someone to criticize them, or saying something that could be hurtful in the middle of an online class or meeting? There are many ways to take a step back and collect ourselves; closing your eyes, taking a couple of deep breaths, even turning off your video and muting yourself for a few seconds can give the opportunity to briefly calm down. If you’re already in a negative state and want to go on social media, ask yourself what you want to do online and what sites will help you best avoid content that you don’t want to see. These are just a couple of examples, but it’s important to keep in mind that when we’re already on edge, one single thing or comment can have us acting in a way that we might immediately regret.

Have you ever lashed out online? Have you ever been tempted to? What advice do you have for keeping your emotions in check when you encounter things you don’t like on social media?

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