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Get Outside For Your Brain

Get Outside For Your Brain

by | May 10, 2024 | Anxiety, Coping, General

When I am among the trees,

Especially the willows and the honey locust,

Equally the beech, the oaks and the pines,

They give off such hints of gladness

I would almost say they save me, and daily.

Excerpt, “When I Am Among The Trees” by Mary Oliver

We live in a world that allows us immediate, constant access to Internet spaces. This offers us accessibility, economic opportunity, entertainment, cultural exchange, education, and productivity. However, for as many benefits as there are, we’re also presented with challenges – Cognitive overwhelm, social isolation, distraction. Worldwide, we spend an average of six hours and 40 minutes per day on screens, and we average five or fewer hours in nature per week.

 

Research shares with us a wealth of information about how nature is beneficial for our emotional and cognitive health. When we disconnect and get ourselves into nature, we are happier, perform better on tasks, feel more energized, and experience real-time, literal connection to the world around us. The biophilia hypothesis (“biophilia” literally means love of life or love of living systems) suggests that humans have an innate tendency to seek connection with nature and other forms of life. This hypothesis states that spending time in nature triggers a physiological response that lowers stress levels. We have many studies that show humans perform better on cognitive tasks while listening to nature audio, pausing to view nature scenes, and green spaces adjacent to schools boost cognitive development in children. We know that adults perform better on work-related tasks when they, too, have access to green spaces.

 

Nature helps us feel joy, we become more creative, and moving our bodies further supports the metabolization of emotion. Neuroimaging studies have shown that being in nature activates regions of the brain associated with empathy and emotion regulation.

 

Back to social media for a sec – It’s important to acknowledge that we often see posts in the Internet space about folks who mountain climb, backpack across countries, and live on sailboats. It’s easy to engage in comparison and think of ourselves as not doing enough when we aren’t able to participate in viral-video-worthy feats. But, the nervous system doesn’t discriminate between the leaf on the tree at the top of the mountain and the leaf on the tree outside of your home.

 

Nature is everywhere, and can be free or low-cost to access. Some ideas, just to name a few:

  1. Sitting next to an open window
  2. Reading a book outside
  3. Picnicking with a loved one or friend
  4. Water balloon fight!
  5. Birding
  6. Journaling outside
  7. Hopscotch
  8. Disc golfing
  9. Running and/or walking
  10. Stargazing
  11. Laying in the grass and watching the clouds
  12. Gardening
 
Consider setting a goal of increasing your time spent outside by ten minutes per week, and notice what shifts. Do you have more brain space? More space in your body for your breath? Slow down and see what happens.
Deep Breathing: Why Do It?

Deep Breathing: Why Do It?

by | Jul 27, 2021 |

If you have ever felt frustrated by being told to just "take a deep breath" when you are feeling angry or anxious, you aren't alone. It's difficult to heed this advice when, in the moment, the mind and body are distracted or dysregulated. The adage of "just breathe"...

7 Skills to Try When You Feel “Overwhelmed”

7 Skills to Try When You Feel “Overwhelmed”

by | Oct 29, 2020 | ,

Have you ever felt completely overcome by an intense emotions? Have feelings at times felt challenging to manage and overcome? The experience of being “overwhelmed” is uncomfortable and impactful in your life at work, home, or school.   Defining "Overwhelm" Emotional...

The Power of Community in Trauma Survivorship

The Power of Community in Trauma Survivorship

by | Apr 22, 2024 | PTSD, Trauma, Trauma / PTSD

sistent across human history has been the importance of community. Safety in numbers against a predator, the sharing of resources, or simply holding space for one another are all integral to our survival. Yet, largely, our individualistic culture places emphasis on autonomy and independence. Self-care is a term used often within the context of therapy and trauma healing – and self-care is a necessary step – but often we are encouraged to lean into individual healing practices when what we need is to be reminded that we belong in the world around us.
 
 
Oftentimes we walk away from a traumatic experience with more barriers to accessing ourselves than ever before. We learn to mistrust ourselves and/or those around us; shame and guilt become the forefront of our self-talk; our emotions feel too dangerous to foray into. It is confusing to be told to access self for care when, commonly, self is difficult to find internally. Research tells us that connection to others leads to positive outcomes for trauma survivors (Goodman, Dutton, Vankos, & Weinfurt, 2005), and it tells us that even brief interactions with the world around (waving hello, for example) us are reliable mood-boosters (Santos, 2023).
 
So what does community care look like, and how can we engage in this type of inter-dependence on one another?
 

Community care at the micro level:

 

  1. Saying hello to a neighbor
  2. Meal prepping/cooking with a loved one
  3. Texting a friend
  4. Carpooling with a friend or colleague
  5. Checking in with your loved ones

 

Community care at the macro level:

 

  1. Participating in a community garden
  2. Community clothing swaps
  3. Group therapy spaces for processing and healing
  4. Volunteering for a cause you care about
  5. Community book clubs
  6. Participating in social activism

  

A reminder, too, that community care works when you receive care alongside providing it. Trauma recovery makes it difficult to remember that you, as much as your neighbor, are part of this community. Not every type of community care will be a fit for you, and that’s okay. Wherever you land, you are not alone. Healing takes place in the company of those who see and are seen by you.
How To Stop Beating Yourself Up

How To Stop Beating Yourself Up

by | Jul 22, 2019 | , ,

When was the last time you heard from your inner critic? You know, that voice in your head that constantly judges you, puts you down and compares you to others. The one that tells you you’re not good enough or smart enough and says things you would never dream of...

Afraid of Failure? Here’s Advice on Coping with Failure

Afraid of Failure? Here’s Advice on Coping with Failure

by | May 20, 2019 |

Fear of failure causes us to put the brakes on our life. When we’re so afraid of failing at something, we either don’t try at all, or we subconsciously undermine our own efforts to avoid an even bigger failure. Without question, fear of failure is immobilizing and,...

Grief is Not Pathology

Grief is Not Pathology

by | Feb 29, 2024 | Grief

Grief and loss, whether person or place or part of self, are inevitable. Every one of us will lose someone or something, and every one of us will need to be cared for through it; yet, our culture has no shared language for loss. Grief is a collective experience that feels isolating and lonely.

 

In her book It’s OK That You’re Not OK, therapist and widow Megan Devine speaks to the complexities of grief from both her professional and personal experiences.

 

The narrative about grief in our culture is one of stages. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, a Swiss-American psychiatrist, devoted her career to studying death and loss. She pioneered the theory we have of the five stages of grief; Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, and Acceptance. Kubler-Ross later discussed that these stages were never meant to be understood as linear; however, the culture we exist in has a present-day expectation of a speedy recovery after loss.

 

Let’s pause and take a look at grief. Devine writes, “Recovery inside grief is entirely about finding those ways to stay true to yourself, to honor who you are, and what has come before, while living the days and years that remain.”

 

Grief is not pathology and it is not something to “Get Better Soon!” from. However you feel your grief is the correct way because it is a normal and healthy reaction to a permanent change that you did not ask for. What this means is we are tasked with rebuilding around loss, not “getting over.”

 

Let’s change the expectation of recovery. If you are grieving, approach yourself with compassion. Our natural inclination is to avoid and distract (brilliant, by the way, for those moments it hits you in line at the DMV and it isn’t a good time). In environments and with company you feel safe with, though, let it be messy and nonlinear. Loss itself is messy and nonlinear.

 

More words on grief –

Journaling and Mental Health

Journaling and Mental Health

by | Sep 18, 2023 | Coping, Counseling, General, Mental Health

If you have ever had a conversation with your therapist about coping skill development, you have probably received a recommendation to begin a journaling practice. Understandably, sometimes journaling is met with skepticism – What does writing about my emotions solve, and why is writing so widely recommended?

 

Processing Emotions

  • Putting emotion on paper engages the prefrontal cortex – the part of the brain which puts language to emotion, grounds us in the present moment, and assists in regulating emotion.

 

Memory Consolidation

  • Put simply, memory consolidation is a process by which information in short-term memory is transferred to long-term memory. Writing about your experiences – positive or negative – strengthens the parts of the brain associated with this consolidation. What this means is that, over time, we become better at accessing various parts of a memory (sound, taste, touch, smell, thought, etc.) and this allows us to better make sense of memories that may be difficult or traumatic in nature.

 

Stress Reduction

  • Journaling has been found to activate the parasympathetic nervous system (the “rest and digest” response/the antithesis of fight/flight/freeze). Cortisol levels drop, breath deepens, heart rate begins to slow. Suddenly, the writer is able to be more present with themselves as they process.

 

More than what researchers have shared with us about how journaling impacts the brain (as noted above), put simply – writing with and for ourselves fosters an internal relationship. We are in relation with ourselves more often than we are anyone else, yet rarely are we taught what it means to interact with self or how to do so in a compassionate way.

 

If you are interested in exploring journaling but are unsure where to start, here are some prompts to explore:

  1. I feel __________ about journaling because…

  2. My relationship with myself could be described as…

  3. I want my relationship with myself to be more…

 

Remember, journaling is as individual as you are. Let there be spelling mistakes, run-on sentences, scribbles, and even drawings. Humans are gritty and messy; let the way you cope be gritty and messy, too.

7 Skills to Try When You Feel “Overwhelmed”

7 Skills to Try When You Feel “Overwhelmed”

by | Oct 29, 2020 | ,

Have you ever felt completely overcome by an intense emotions? Have feelings at times felt challenging to manage and overcome? The experience of being “overwhelmed” is uncomfortable and impactful in your life at work, home, or school.   Defining "Overwhelm" Emotional...

5 Ways to Cope with Anxiety as a Parent

5 Ways to Cope with Anxiety as a Parent

by | Jun 2, 2019 | ,

The hard work and unpredictability that makes parenting so rewarding can also cause a great deal of anxiety. Here are some simple ways to bring yourself to a place of calm.   Make a To-Do List Ruminating on worries can cause lots of stress. Clear your mind by...

10 Awesome Mental Health Apps

10 Awesome Mental Health Apps

by | Mar 11, 2019 | , , , ,

According to statistics from the National Alliance on Mental Illness, each year about 1 out of every 5 Americans adults suffer from one form of mental illness or the other. Mathematically, that works out to 48.3 million of the total American adult population, and with...

7 Top Mental Health Podcasts

7 Top Mental Health Podcasts

by | Oct 30, 2018 | , , ,

Are you looking for a podcast to help you take better care of yourself and your mental health? I love the convenience of a podcast--- It's self-care you can access in your car, while you wash the dishes, or take the dog for a walk. Self-care is critically important to...

Deep Breathing: Why Do It?

Deep Breathing: Why Do It?

by | Jul 27, 2021 | Anxiety

If you have ever felt frustrated by being told to just “take a deep breath” when you are feeling angry or anxious, you aren’t alone. It’s difficult to heed this advice when, in the moment, the mind and body are distracted or dysregulated. The adage of “just breathe” has been around for a very long time, though it seems the science of how deep breathing works is not information that many of us are aware of.
 

Let’s try it out:

  

Find a comfortable seat in an environment where you feel safe. When you feel ready, begin to relax the muscles in and around your forehead, jaw, and shoulders. Take a deep breath in through your nose for a count of three – two – one. Pause at the top, and then when you’re ready, exhale through your mouth for a count of three – two – one. Pause at the bottom, and then repeat this pattern for as many times as you’d like. If the mind wanders, as it will, just notice and then gently invite it back to the breath. As you practice, feel free to lengthen or shorten the number of seconds you inhale, exhale, or pause the breath. Notice if you feel anything changing in the mind or body.

 
At first, it may not feel like a lot is happening, but there are subtle shifts taking place in the central nervous system when we breathe. Let’s use anxiety as an example. Can you recall a time where you felt anxious, and the changes that happened, either in your heart rate, breath, or perspiration? Often, when anxious or agitated, the heart speeds up, breath becomes shallow, and we start to sweat. This is the sympathetic nervous system turning on the ‘fight-or-flight” response. The breath speeds up, for example, because the body is preparing itself to either escape from or ward off danger. An increase in oxygen means an increase in blood to the muscles (to literally fight with or use to escape from something).
 
 
So, then, slowing the breath creates an opposite effect. When we purposefully take long, deep breaths, even if we are still feeling anxious, the deepening of the breath acts as a messenger to the parasympathetic nervous system – the ‘rest-and-digest’ response. The brain pays attention to the breath, and as it slows, the brain then sends signals to the heart to slow down, too. We literally hit the brake pads of the ‘fight-or-flight’ mechanism, which assists the nervous system in slowing down and returning to baseline. This creates opportunities for us to notice how we are feeling and care for ourselves in the moment. As we breathe, the body exits survival mode and can resume caring for itself as it’s designed to do.
 
 
Deep breathing may be simple, but this doesn’t mean it’s easy. Like anything, engaging the breath takes practice. Every time you take a deep breath, you are doing a bicep curl for the brain – and strengthening your ability to cope and self-regulate when emotions are high. Sometimes these emotions remain intense even during an attempt to take a deep breath, and so it’s important to remember that even if the emotion persists, by breathing, you’ve practiced taking care of yourself and reminding your nervous system that it – and you – are safe.

About the Author

Kayla Johnson is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) that loves to help clients that experience anxiety and panic. In addition to her work as a therapist, Kayla also teaches yoga! Here’s a link to her bio where you can learn more about Kayla and her work: https://starmeadowhudson.com/counselors/kayla-johnson/

 

 

Deep Breathing: Why Do It?

Deep Breathing: Why Do It?

by | Jul 27, 2021 |

If you have ever felt frustrated by being told to just "take a deep breath" when you are feeling angry or anxious, you aren't alone. It's difficult to heed this advice when, in the moment, the mind and body are distracted or dysregulated. The adage of "just breathe"...

7 Skills to Try When You Feel “Overwhelmed”

7 Skills to Try When You Feel “Overwhelmed”

by | Oct 29, 2020 | ,

Have you ever felt completely overcome by an intense emotions? Have feelings at times felt challenging to manage and overcome? The experience of being “overwhelmed” is uncomfortable and impactful in your life at work, home, or school.   Defining "Overwhelm" Emotional...