Staying well

Symbolic tokens to assist the mind

replies: 5

I love words. One word I’ve always warmed to is Mnemonics. Mnemonics (pronounced without the M) means “to assist the memory”. So at school we had an early Menonic in algebra. A word made up was BODMAS and as you can see 45 years on I still recall tha... View more

I love words. One word I’ve always warmed to is Mnemonics. Mnemonics (pronounced without the M) means “to assist the memory”. So at school we had an early Menonic in algebra. A word made up was BODMAS and as you can see 45 years on I still recall that word. One had to remember what order to carry out mathematical equations. Brackets, division, minus, addition and subtraction (BODMAS) I personally extended this Mnemonic method to all forms of my life where I needed to remember processes. In the RAAF for example or the prisons I’d apply it to safety proceedures, in Fire stations I’d apply it to the danger level of chemicals in storage warehouses. It has served me well rather than remembering 1-20 chemicals I’d make up a word. And as time has gone on I’ve modified this so it slots in with my method of thinking. Australian cricket is a fine example. Every 4 years we play against England for the “ashes”. The “ashes”…a tiny urn the size little bigger than a golf ball, said to contain the ashes of wickets burned in Sunbury many decades ago. Both countries fight for the honour of that urn! a symbolic token albeit historic Apply that symbolism to the mind is no different. Remember the saying “it’s the thought that counts”? Give a lady a rose you picked from your garden on Valentines day should be admired probably more than flower sent by courier? (and cheaper). What about a tiny daisy held in your hand as you return indoors to apologise for something? Symbolic tokens that can change the course of your life, it can be that powerful. A post here by you the member can change anothers life. The humility of that is that you would not likely ever know. Humility, one of lifes most fabulous gifts. Hundreds could read it…they might not reply but they have absorbed your words. Symbolism can be effectively used as a positive thinking aid. It took me a long time to get my head around this. How can you turn things from negative to positive. It's got to the stage now that I pity those that cannot as it is truly life changing. As an example. Upset one day I sat on my garden seat tears falling. I picked a flower. PROBLEM FLOWER Of all my problems I pick a daisy flower I take a petal for each of my woes and count them by the hour And when finished this flower destroyed my problems as big as a city tower I thought I had lots of issues but not as many as that flower... Using a destroyed flower as a symbolic token. Tony WK

Mobile Phone Apps

replies: 4

Hi, Has anyone found any free (preferably) mobile phone apps that help with mental health issues? Cheers and take care

Cultivating Self-Love

replies: 4

Hello friends! Please enjoy a ~3 minute read of my musings on cultivating the essence of self-love, and finding ways to care for yourself, your community and our planet. I've included a bunch of references throughout, featuring tips, tricks and links... View more

Hello friends! Please enjoy a ~3 minute read of my musings on cultivating the essence of self-love, and finding ways to care for yourself, your community and our planet. I've included a bunch of references throughout, featuring tips, tricks and links to some amazing humans and businesses. As our ability to form in-person connections is restricted, self-love feels particularly relevant and I hope you take something away from this. --- Cultivating Self-Love - Techniques to care for yourself, your community and our planet To me, self-love is self-care. Fill your mind with inspiration, your body with nutrition, your life with meaning. Have compassion for others, support your community, be kind to the planet. Self-love is finding stillness of the mind, body and soul. Meditating, breathing deeply, slowing down, practicing gratitude, detaching from outcomes, emptying the mind. Self-love is self-worth. You are loved and you are enough as you are. Your imperfections are your personal perfections. Self-love is setting healthy boundaries. Being in alignment with yourself and others. Knowing when to say yes and when to say no. Self-love is accepting it’s okay to not be okay when you feel demotivated, unfulfilled or purposeless. You are allowed to feel this way and you are not alone. Self-love is being in flow, however that looks for you. Reading, writing and drawing, gardening, cooking and eating, listening to and playing music, movement, sport and exercise, spending time in nature. Self-love is co-creating community, building connection with others and finding something greater than yourself. Self-love is having sacred practices, like a regular morning routine. Self-love is having carefree practices and keeping things fun, simple and playful. Self-love is allowing others to love you through heartfelt sincerity, openness, expression, transparency and vulnerability. Self-love is exploration. Take risks, test boundaries, get comfortable with the uncomfortable, go to the edges of your comfort zone. Self-love is going a bit easier on yourself. We all make mistakes and we are all wrong, all of the time. It’s okay. Self-love is a boomerang. If you don’t serve yourself, you can’t sustainably support others. As you serve others, your cup will fill up. Self-love is a mirror. Hold it up and see yourself for all that you are. Embrace your uniqueness. Self-love is a friend. Love all that you are being and becoming. Nico

Capacities and expectations

replies: 1

So much changes when you get an official diagnosis of a mental illness. Prior to that moment, you are in the fast lane at a speed set by society and your engine has a faulty cylinder- you cannot keep up but in your effort to, the spiral worsens- you ... View more

So much changes when you get an official diagnosis of a mental illness. Prior to that moment, you are in the fast lane at a speed set by society and your engine has a faulty cylinder- you cannot keep up but in your effort to, the spiral worsens- you fall into the mattress of medical help. Expectations is a cruel thing. When younger it is ok for others to have such expectations so we grow within boundaries set, so we end up decent people. When we can no longer function fully as adults, we fall behind those minimal requirements- we strike trouble. We can lose our job, suffer marriage loss, full time parental loss, lose our self esteem and other consequences. One process I found to get a grip on all this is acceptance. Acceptance is a huge word and that goal begins with finding your capacity of ability based on your current situation. It is counter productive to base it pre mental illness as it is to base it in others expectations- your capacities is to cap your limits just below the (new)- overflow line. Lets take a young adult that has dropped out of higher education. For years expectations were to complete uni/tafe, slot into a high paying job and fulfill dreams of travel and success. Realisation of a mental illness can thwart all of that so a process of reset has to take place. But the world still spins, bills need to be paid and inevitably getting a job that feels far below your capability is disappointing. Thoughts of what could have been can haunt you adding to your turmoil. It is essential, for the process of nurturing your mental health, to determine your capacities. If you are no longer capable of a task it might not be that way forever. If your expectations remain as they were prior to a meltdown then you can be your own worse enemy. Take a breath, re-assess, set new limits, discard expectations and seek back to basics existence until you are ready for new challenges. Now you’re nurturing your mind - no different than the process of caring for a broken limb that might not even function how it once did. TonyWK

Yoga Poses

replies: 3

Hey everyone! I have been practicing yoga for just over a year now and I find it is a great way to meditate without realising that I'm even doing it because I'm focusing on my breath work and moving my body in a way that feels good for me. So I just ... View more

Hey everyone! I have been practicing yoga for just over a year now and I find it is a great way to meditate without realising that I'm even doing it because I'm focusing on my breath work and moving my body in a way that feels good for me. So I just wanted to hop on and ask everyone if they have a favourite yoga pose? My favourite is a traditional one but a goodie, downward facing dog! I love it because it helps me feel relaxed from my finger tips right down to my toes!

Lost

replies: 3

I'm 21 and am feeling that my life isn't going to achieve much which i'm struggling to come to terms with. I'm currently back at University but for whatever reason I do not feel motivated at all to study with my major exams coming up. Before I change... View more

I'm 21 and am feeling that my life isn't going to achieve much which i'm struggling to come to terms with. I'm currently back at University but for whatever reason I do not feel motivated at all to study with my major exams coming up. Before I changed degrees and went back to university I was working in retail for the past two years. I didn't mind my job but did not feel fulfilled in stacking shelves and serving customers for the rest of my life. I don't want to get to my 30s and realised i've wasted my 20s doing things that I regret but I have no idea what I want to do in life. Does anyone have any similar life experience on this that may be able to help me with how they got through this and say how they are feeling now?

Coping During an Economic Downturn/Recession

replies: 1

As the corona virus is dispersing, leaving an economic downturn in its wake. I thought it would be good for people to share any struggles and or successes, since Australia hasn't been in a recession since 1991.

Tips for getting up in the morning + combatting seasonal affective disorder?

replies: 4

Hello! Asking for some advice on two topics (that are closely related)- recently I've been struggling to wake up in the morning. I often find myself snoozing my alarm and hiding under my covers, even if I've gotten 8 hours of sleep! I feel like no ma... View more

Hello! Asking for some advice on two topics (that are closely related)- recently I've been struggling to wake up in the morning. I often find myself snoozing my alarm and hiding under my covers, even if I've gotten 8 hours of sleep! I feel like no matter how much sleep I get , I always feel super tired when I wake up and struggle to get out of bed. Once I do eventually get out of bed and have breakfast, brush my teeth, etc, the tiredness slowly goes away... but I spend a good hour (sometimes more) everyday trying to get out of bed. I find that it usually affects my mood for the rest of the day, which brings me to my next issue... Seasonal affective disorder. I've struggled with it every winter for the past couple years and I've never really figured out how to deal with it. The only piece of advice I've been given is to get a light therapy lamp but I'm quite reluctant to spend money on something I'm not convinced will make much of a difference. I feel so unmotivated and sluggish most days and generally unhappy. It makes sense that I struggle waking up in these colder times. But I hate that I feel this way! I would appreciate some tips on how to wake up in the mornings, and how to ease seasonal depression. I'm sick of feeling miserable this time of year, I wish I could have more fun and make good memories in these winter months like I do in summer.

Alcohol

replies: 5

With everything going on in the world and home life I've started drinking a lot. Yesterday was a big wake up call where I drank to a point I couldn't remember anything this morning except that I injured myself physically. I know I need to quit but st... View more

With everything going on in the world and home life I've started drinking a lot. Yesterday was a big wake up call where I drank to a point I couldn't remember anything this morning except that I injured myself physically. I know I need to quit but struggling with emotions and anxiety, which the drinking helps lessen. I need help/tips on other ways to manage my emotions and give up alcohol. Thanks in advance

Overweight? or over worried?

replies: 22

Anyone that has tried more than 15-20 diets and failed to meet their goal is full of despair and sadness. What has changed a lot in the last 15 years or so is our knowledge of genetics. DNA and the complexities are slowly being unravelled to expose t... View more

Anyone that has tried more than 15-20 diets and failed to meet their goal is full of despair and sadness. What has changed a lot in the last 15 years or so is our knowledge of genetics. DNA and the complexities are slowly being unravelled to expose the secret of why we are what we are. Everything about you will eventually be known. Including why we are overweight. Then there is the post birth reasons. Your food (both quantity and quality and how its prepared), environment, exercise etc all come into the mix that can add to over weight issues. We know that mental illness is often a life of extreme behaviour but it is also extreme with feelings, sensitivity, more need for comfort food and things like alcohol. Some people reach for a lolly when anxious....we'd reach for a packet or two. Can we blame mental illness for our appetite? Well, so many people out there would say no sadly, they'd say "just stop putting food in your mouth". Such is the same naivety with over eating as there is with mental illness itself. What I would like to promote, as a person that has always been over weight is a few observations using myself as an example- - I was clearly over weight at 18 months old. I have a photo - My mother was obese and my father had a beer belly (but didnt drink alcohol) - All members of my family (except my late brother who was diabetic 1) has tried many many diets and not succeeded. - The urgency of losing weight is clear. Failing knees, ankles and backs I'm 6ft tall. My weight peaked in 2012 at 135kgms, the maximum my scales measured. It was the ultimate insult. I felt obese, I puffed, I rolled out of bed, I was unhappy. So what could I do. My wife and I (yes she is overweight) embarked on the following plan. No we didnt call it a diet. - Eat healthier. Keep carbs down eg less white food like pasta, rice and flour - when we eat out (often Chinese) cut down one dish. - Eat more fish and white meat, less red meat. (this is also as I get gout) - sugarless chocolate - whole oats for brekky -home grown vegies is also therapeutic - Worry does nothing towards reaching your goal so stop it!. - a little exercise but only do what is sustainable. A quick 15 minute walk. I'm now 122 kgms down 13. And this has been going for 2 years and is indeed sustainable. We dont ignore our cravings but we limit them. Easily achievable goals is best. Accept you for being you and that includes your size. As long as you do your best to eat sensibly,exercise and stop worrying..

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A Bouquet for Pearls - share your appreciation for other members

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