Psychology

Psychology: Personal and Career Development

by Psychology

Though many people believe that self-focus could be harmful psychology research has evidence to suggest that it can be a key element for positive life changes. There are a lot of theories on self-regulation that support the concept that positive change, given the positive quality of self-focus of an individual, is dependent on two factors that are a goal to be set, and an awareness of where you are at to achieve the desired goal. In everyday life, we have many goals. But, not all these goals are fulfilled due to an inability to recognize themselves.

Psychological research has shown that negative emotions generated by awareness of the chasm between the end goal and the current situation can be a powerful motivator for self-improvement. There are plenty of lessons to be learned from those who frequently reflect on themselves. No matter if they’re an individual Buddhist who meditates, or an entire bunch of English philosophers who are studying the writings that were written by Immanuel Kant, becoming aware of yourself is an essential aspect of self-improvement. It is also comforting to observe a range of religious traditions that exert an influence on the issues mentioned in the psychology literature as essential to self-improvement for the individual.

Reflective Journal

A journal of reflection can be of great help for personal growth as well as professional. Keep a record of your thoughts and reflections and also the new information gained. A reflective journal is useful during study or in a career since it contains what you did, what you learned, and general thoughts about how a week or month has gone through.

11 January 2016: Reading on Health, Well-being, and Ageing

I’ve never really given much thought to the benefits and obstacles to health and well-being at different stages of life. If someone has health problems, it’s not on the list of priorities. But, I’ve intrigued by the idea that certain people may be in the beginning with issues with their mental health and others develop them in the process. For instance, there’s no evidence to show that the standard of the child’s nutrition or care has a profound impact on our lives. For instance, there’s numerous evidence to suggest that the quality of the child’s care and care affects mental development.

The main factors that affect the health of infants which can help prevent problems with mental health later on include good health of the parents as well as adequate nutrition for the child and highly skilled caregivers who should there be any issues provide quality care and support ( A Whole-of-Lifespan Approach to Mental Health and Mental Illness, n.d., page. 774). Therefore, genetic mental illnesses are not preventable, but caring for the child may help in easing some of the difficulties that may arise with the development of their psychological abilities shortly.

PsychologyDecember 12, 2016 Reading of ‘Development’ Teens’

Life could be boring for someone who did not grow emotionally. As we age and children, we gain knowledge from new experiences, as well as lifestyle alterations. It’s no secret that we continue to grow physically. Because fewer physical changes occur in adulthood less attention is paid to these. But there is a distinction in the mental health of adults and teenagers during their growth. Teenagers want to grow older and be independent and mature as adults fear getting older. However physical changes can affect the psychological condition of an individual at any age. For instance, the first aging lines, the weight gain that occurs during puberty, and the first signs of aging can lead to depressive symptoms ( Developing Adolescents: an Information Source for Professionals 2002, 8). 8.).

13 January 2016 Reading about the Family system and the development

Yesterday, I discussed the fact that experiences from a young age can impact subsequent development. But the most significant element of development is the connection between the child and an authoritative person, be it an adult, a grandparent, or a caretaker. This can serve as an avenue for the child’s connection to the individual in later years. In the words of Fraigberg (1996) declared, “Our identity – the very center of our humanness – is achieved through the early bonds of child and parent” (p. 294). A common definition of attachment is the bond that exists between a person and their caregiver, a deeply emotional bond.

Different types of attachments may influence different stages of development. For instance, children who are not secure with their mothers are more likely to use physical aggression and disobedience towards their mothers (Malekpour 2007 page. 85).

15. January 2016. Reading about life span development and psychology

I was reading an article that was published in 1987. It’s quite old, but I’ve learned a lot in this piece. As per Baltes (1987) 1987, developmental psychology of life span is a field of psychology studies that focuses on studying the consistency and changes in human behavior and the length of their lives (p. 611).

A career in Developmental and Personality Psychology

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Stress Management: Learn With Ayurveda

by with 2 Comments Ayurveda Psychology

What is stress?

Stress can be identified as a situation that causes changes and tends to create a physical, emotional, social, or psychological strain, or all of them at a time. Simply it can be a state of body or mind which needs attention or any responsive action.

Possible causes of stress:

There are uncountable reasons for stress, which mostly depend on the individual. However, most significant possible cause is failure to tackle any situation and unable to get out of that state.  It is generally attained from the workplace, day-to-day inconveniences, financial problems, relationships, or habits.

Identification

It is not easy to understand the situation of self. Being in that condition for a long time can harm the health status of the body. A Small failure can create trouble or an anxiety-like situation for short time On keen observation, one can find a few things listed below

Symptoms

  • Emotional signs such as short-tempered, irritating mood, frustration, and early anger mood swings.
  • Physical signs include raised blood pressure, interference with weight, frequent cold or allergy or infection, loss of libido, etc
  • Social signs include not enjoying anything, shifting to addiction like drugs or alcohol, tending to spend time solitarily
  • Psychological signs include loss of stability and concentration, unreasonable worrying, and negative predictability of every task

Types

Types mostly depend on what basis they are judged on. All stress is not harmful or doesn’t matter in any aspect.

Acute or short-time stress

It can be positive or more disturbing like just before the result of the exam. Hyperexcitement also causes the same disturbance.

Chronic or longer-duration stress

It is a more troubling and never-ending type like that of unemployment, wrong occupation selection, childhood fear or trauma, lonely life, unresolved financial burden, or exam.

Occasional stress

It is a type of stress which is acute but oscillates in life whenever there is a presence of a stem of that event or object.

Eustress is a type of positive stress generally experienced on thrills like in adventure sports, just before finishing a task, or excited to be declared as a winner or anything which causes a surge of adrenaline.

Impact of stress

Stress disturbs individuals in every aspect like at the workplace, while conversations with others lack performance. Prolonged can cause lifestyle disorders like change in nature forever, hypertension, insomnia, anxiety, phobia, peptic ulcers, etc.

Management of stress

Stress is not a fixed medical entity or doesn’t possess any specific treatment.

  • Initial and the most important method to manage it is to rule out the exact cause. And to maintain self-stability in any situation.
  • Practicing Yoga forms like Pranayama, Trataka, and another yogic exercise can heal up the individual’s internal power and increase the tolerance threshold.
  • Use of Medhya or Rasayana Drugs like Brahmi, Ashwagandha, Amalaki, Chyavanaprash, Maharishi Amrit Kalash.
Stress management

(Maharishi Amrit Kalash is full of herbal contents which increase longevity, intelligence, and memory power. It also enhances overall well-being and contains antioxidants, Vitamin C and E

  •  Ayurveda procedures like Shirodhara and Nasya have also proven to be very effective
  • Use of soothing music as therapy
  • Sharing the problem with peer group
  • If needed consult a clinicians
Bipolar Disorder

Best Way To Manage Bipolar Disorder Through Ayurveda?

by with One Comment Ayurveda Psychology

Bipolar Disorder

What is bipolar disorder? Bipolar disorder is a mental situation. An individual experiences mood swings like being highly energetic at a t and intense depression. Bipolar disorder, which used to be called manic depression, is a serious mental illness. It causes a person to have dramatic shifts in emotions, mood, and energy levels: moving from extreme lows to extreme highs. But these shifts don’t happen moment to moment, they usually happen over several days or weeks.

Causes

  • Mostly idiopathic.
  • There is no single “bipolar gene” identified, but genetic and environmental factors play a part.
  • For example, one interesting clue is that people with family members who have bipolar disorder are 10 times more likely to have it themselves.
  • Another clue is that some drugs and medications can trigger manic episodes, like selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). It’s also worth mentioning that people with bipolar disorder often have other disorders like anxiety disorders, substance use disorders, and ADHD. And personality disorders as well, making diagnosis and treatment a real challenge.

Symptoms

There are a few different types, but there are some common symptoms of bipolar disorder shows.

  • First, the low moods are identical to those in a related disorder – major depressive disorder, also known as unipolar depression.
  • Individuals with this can feel hopeless and discouraged and lack energy and mental focus. They may have physical symptoms like eating and sleeping too much or too little.
  • Individuals can have periods of high moods, manic episodes, or hypomanic episodes, depending on their level of severity. In a manic state, people can feel energetic, overly happy or optimistic, or even euphoric with really high self-esteem.
  • When an individual is in a full manic episode, these symptoms can reach a dangerous extreme. A person experiencing mania might invest all of their money in a risky business venture or behave recklessly. Individuals might talk pressured speeches, where they talk constantly at a rapid-fire pace. They might have racing thoughts and might feel ‘wired,’ as if they don’t need sleep.
  • Manic episodes can also include delusions of grandeur. For example, they might believe that they are on a personal mission from God, or that they have supernatural power. And they might make poor decisions without any regard for later consequences.
  • One way to understand these swings is by charting them on a graph. So let’s say the y-axis is mood, with mania and depression being on the far ends of the axis, and the x-axis is time.

The average healthy individual might have normal ups and downs throughout their life, and they might even have some pretty serious lows once-in-awhile, maybe after losing a job or moving to a new place and feeling lonely. An individual with unipolar depression though might have normal highs, but they might have some crushing lows that last for a long period and may not have an obvious trigger.

Types

  1. Bipolar 1 -These are people that have some major lows that last at least 2 weeks, and some major highs that last at least a week or require hospitalization. That said, untreated manic episodes can last as long as 3-6 months. Depression is seen in most cases but doesn’t require a diagnosis.
  2. Bipolar-2– when a person experiences similar lows and has additional highs called “hypomania”, which are less severe manic episodes than we see in Bipolar 1. To qualify for a diagnosis, these hypomanic states need to last at least four days. Once again though, these symptoms generally last a few weeks to a few months.
  3. Cyclothymia/Cyclothymic disorder- Individuals have milder lows as well as milder highs or “hypomania” like you see in Bipolar-2, and they cycle back and forth between these two over a period lasting at least 2 years. Sometimes, people with bipolar disorder can show other, less common symptoms as well. For example, having what is referred to as mixed episodes—experiencing symptoms of both depression and mania at the same time.

Treatment

Even though there’s no cure for bipolar disorder, identifying and treating individuals important since there’s a real danger that the person could harm themselves or commit suicide. One of the oldest treatments is also one of the most effective treatments, and that’s lithium salts. Lithium acts as a mood stabilizer—smoothing out the highs and lows they experience. That said, it is much better at treating manic rather than depressive episodes, and so individuals who take it often have to take other medications as well, which can be problematic since some antidepressants (like the SSRIs) can trigger manic episodes in individuals who are predisposed to them.

Other treatment options include antipsychotics, anticonvulsants, and benzodiazepines, but many of these—including lithium—have side effects that can be severe and lead to non-adherence which can be dangerous for an individual. Now, unlike certain disorders like unipolar depression, psychological interventions, like talk therapy, or cognitive-behavioral therapy are not particularly effective in treating the manic episodes of bipolar disorder. Having said that, they can still be very helpful tools to help individuals with bipolar disorder in general—especially after a manic episode has ended. They can also help an individual handle stressful situations that might otherwise lead to a manic episode, thereby helping to prevent a potential manic episode in the first place.

Ayurveda Treatment

In the management of bipolar disorders, Ayurveda aims to increase our Ojas and reduce our stressors. To deal with bipolar disorder is to identify and minimize stressors that trigger changes in the mood states

The main tools used to manage the mind are diet and herbs. On a physical level, prana and the senses work at a more subtle level. And mantra and meditation work more at the level of the mind itself.

  • Food includes whole grains, cooked vegetables, mung beans, meats, fresh dairy, nuts, and oils. These help build up Oja’s. Avoid Canned, frozen, old, processed, microwaved, and rancid foods.
  • Use of herbal medicines like ashwagandha, Brahmi, Shatavari, Ginseng, Shanka Pushpi, Nutmeg, Kappikacchu, Haritaki And Bhirigaraj, Jyotishmati, Ginkgo, Jatamamsi,
  • Panchakarma therapy includes, Snehan, Sweden, Vamana, Shiro Dhara (flowing oil on the forehead) and Shiro Basti (oil in a crown on the head) play a role in their direct action on the brain, mind, and subtle energy fields.
  • Yogic exercises like Meditation, pranayama, and Trataka, are also of great importance in managing bipolar disorder.
  • Combined with meditation and other yogic practices
  • Ayurveda works on the subtle aspects of the mind to heal consciousness and release individuals from disease.