PsychNotes October 2013
by Monica A. Frank, Ph.D.
Clinical and Sport Psychologist

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October 27, 2013 The above audio is part of a series of short mindfulness practice exercises to help train your brain to be more mindful or present focus. These audios are not imaginal experiences. It is necessary to actually engage in the behavior described. This exercise is simply paying attention to feeling the cold of the day or holding an ice cube. Your experience of this exercise will vary depending upon the cold source and intensity.

October 26, 2013 Question: My mother criticizes my 10-year-old son about his hair, clothes, the activities he likes, you name it. He's a good kid, does well in school, and I think that he should be able to make his own choices about these things. I can see that my son is hurt by this criticism. When I try to tell my mother to stop, she and my sister say, "He's a boy and he needs to toughen up. He needs to be able to handle teasing. You're just over-protecting him." Is she right? How do I get her to stop?

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October 23, 2013 People may think about the long-term effects of overeating such as weight gain or health consequences, but this awareness often has little impact because it is too far into the future. This audio is about helping to create awareness of more immediate consequences when you are making decisions about what to eat. The more you practice this exercise to imprint the memory of the consequences in your brain, the more it helps to make better choices.

October 17, 2013 The above audio is part of a series of short mindfulness practice exercises to help train your brain to be more mindful or present focus. They are meant to be used frequently throughout the day. This exercise is to focus fully on the experience of feeling heat and noticing the sensations. Although mindfulness can be relaxing, it is really about being present with your immediate experience even if it is not entirely pleasant.

October 12, 2013 The above audio is part of a series of short mindfulness practice exercises to help train your brain to be more mindful or present focus. They are meant to be used frequently throughout the day. This exercise is to focus fully on the experience of listening and noticing all the different sounds around you. Although mindfulness can be relaxing, it is really about being present with your immediate experience even if it is not entirely pleasant. This is a good exercise to learn to tolerate all experience since not all sounds are pleasant.

October 11, 2013 The above audio is part of a series of short mindfulness practice exercises to help train your brain to be more mindful or present focus. They are meant to be used frequently throughout the day. Mindfulness can be done throughout the day in the many different activities of the day. This exercise is to focus fully on the experience of closing your eyes and noticing all the different aspects of the experience.

October 8, 2013

EXCEL AT LIFE ON THE WEB

Stacy Juba, a novelist focused on characters at a crossroads, released a blog describing her experience with Excel At Life's relaxation and meditation audios.

She writes "Until recently, I thought that fitting meditation into my busy schedule would be a chore. However, now I find it fun to scroll through my growing collection of downloads to decide which one I’m in the mood for that day. Do I want to escape to a mountain cabin? Laze on the beach? Access my inner child with the Magic Bubbles audio? Could I use a little ride aboard the Self Esteem Train?" (www.excelatlife.com/downloads.htm)

Thank you, Stacy!

Read More: Start Meditating Now With Excel At Life’s Free #Meditation and #Relaxation Audios

October 7, 2013

Making qigong a lifestyle activity can decrease clinical depression. Qigong is a Chinese system of physical movements combined with breathing. Initial results by researcher Albert Yeung and colleagues (2013) indicates that the majority of depressed individuals who took a minimum of 15 classes showed significant decrease in depressive symptoms.

Although qigong can be effective in reducing symptoms of depression, individuals with severe depression can have difficulty initiating any kind of activity. The idea of engaging in routine exercises can be overwhelming for many with depression. Therefore, it may be necessary to focus on taking simple steps towards change. Qigong can provide such a structure as it involves basic movements that can be done by almost anyone. Excel At Life provides some qigong videos.