We talk alot about physical fitness these days and mental health concerns are becoming discussed more in the mainstream. However I am very passionate about mental fitness and emotional resilience.

So many of my clients come from trauma, emotional and physical neglect. My goal in therapy is to help them re-parent and understand themselves so that they can provide the emotional nutrients they need so that they are living the life they want.

Early in my career I worked in psychiatry (in-patient and out-patient). I worked with young adults with significant illnesses like schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorders. Some were in hospital and then when they were “stabilized” they were usually released to a group home.

Have you ever had the experience of learning something and it changed the way you think? Well this was one of those moments for me. I watched a documentary years ago (I wish I could find it again) and it was about a farm in (I think) Norway on addressing mental illness in young adults. What they were doing was taking young adults off medication with medical supervision and allowing them to live on this farm with all their parts. 

The really awesome part of this program was that these young adults were themselves. It was amazing to me. 

Now I know that some people really do need to be on medication, and I have seen the benefits medication can make. However, I have seen the changes to one’s personality medication can make. The purpose of what they were doing was allowing them to live with all their parts. The crazy and not so crazy. After I saw this I started developing programs called “BE YOU, BE WELL.” 

Therapy is not about changing who you are but allowing you to be ok with who you are, being ok with the discomfort, being aware, and creating practices that will promote healthy well-being that leads to more joy in your life. It can also be about discovering who you are and learning to adapt behaviors and thoughts so that you do feel better, make healthy decisions and set healthy boundaries. 

The goal is about moving you from to a place of poor emotional health to good emotional health.  

Here are a few tips and strategies for starting toward good mental and emotional fitness.

1. Physical Health 

• Exercise and Movement
• Yoga/stretching/Gi Gong, Tia Chi
• Nutrition
• Sleep
• mediation

2. Emotional Health

• Managing Stress
• Finding Joy
• Spirituality
• Meditation
• Optimism and helpful thinking
• Reducing the noise

3. Meaningful Connections

• Gratitude
• Service and giving back
• Choosing Healthy People

4. Organizational and Business

• Effective Communication
• Managing Difficult Conversations
• Healthy Workplace Culture

5. Resilience

• Living with balance and recognizing when you are not in balance
• Living with meaning and purpose
• Continued self-development and learning
• Reflection

6. Self-Management Plan

• Self-assessment/Self-awareness
• Goal-setting S.M.A.R.T 
• Obtaining supports (friends, family, coaching or therapy)
• Self-reliance-taking control of your life
• Self-efficacy- A belief in yourself that you have the capacity to reach your goals
  

I am so lucky to work with clients all over the world. I spoke to a young woman this morning who is living in Brussels and she wanted support on managing her temper as she has a new boyfriend of two months! So awesome that she is ready to do the work so she can be kinder to herself and to others. I just wrote a newsletter on self-regulation so I was fired up and the great thing is, this was her very first therapy session and she loved it! 

As a therapist whether your clients are young or old, you want them inspired and excited to know that they can change. That is what this work is all about. We all have the ability to change and still BE YOU and BE WELL!

We dig deep into these topics in our group programs. Please reach out to me if you are interested in learning more.

Phone: 1.250.878.1634
Email: info@empoweredlives.ca