Some of us use backpacks as an efficient way to carry a number of objects in a manner that distributes weight without unduly stressing your arms and shoulders. Obviously, even a backpack can be uncomfortable if too much weight is packed into it. Unless you are doing rucking as a form of exercise where you…
A person’s comfort zone is a psychological state of mind in which a person is operating in familiar territory and feels in control and relatively free of anxiety and stress. It is a psychological space marked by performing routine behaviors that carry little risk. As the name implies, it is comfortable to be in your…
We all have to deal with some commitments and deadlines and requirements in addition to having things on our schedules that we choose to do. The bottom line is that most of us lead pretty busy lives. There are essentially two ways of dealing with busy schedules: either let the course of events control us…
I don’t usually get overly personal in these blogs, but events of the past few weeks make it a little different this week. Like every couple, especially one who has raised children, we’ve had to deal with our share of stresses over our 52-year marriage. Since we have lived healthy and active lives, however, few…
I’m old enough to remember when meditation wasn’t much of a thing – at least not outside of Asia. I never learned about it during my Bachelors, Masters, or Doctoral programs. When meditation began to gain some prominence in the last third of the 20th century, it was initially kind of a fringe practice before…
A true measure of emotional strength is the ability to stay calm at a time of crisis or chaos or turmoil. The ability to stay calm is such an empowering skill. Staying calm at a time when others seem unable to do so is such a powerful emotional tool. It permits rational decision-making as well…
Whenever I interview a prospective new psychologist or intern for our practice, I always ask some form of the question, “What do you do for self-care?” or “What do you do for fun?” Those who have to struggle to answer the question automatically disqualify themselves from further consideration. The issue of self-care is particularly important…
All of us hear it on a regular basis from others. If we’re honest with ourselves, most of us would have to admit that we do the same thing – using an extreme term to describe an emotion when a less loaded term would actually be more accurate. I often hear people speak of how…
Members and followers of The Mental Health Gym know that we emphasize the importance of growing and changing in three main areas: health and fitness; intellectual functioning; and social functioning. People who are making progress in all three areas essentially are committed to moving forward in a mentally healthy way. Coincidentally, if you pay attention…
After having a perfectly good smart phone and not being able to justify the purchase of a new one for about 4 years, I recently joined technology’s modern world and bought an iPhone 6. Among it’s many features, it came preloaded with an App that counts how many steps you take during the course of…
Thomas Edison said it best: “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” Anybody who has achieved anything has made mistakes along the way. The only way to avoid mistakes is to take the safest course, aim below our potential, and not try anything new. Making a mistake should not be…