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8 Ways to Prevent the Winter Blues Called SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder)
By: Diane Lang
With the clocks being turned back an hour and the days getting shorter, we can experience Seasonal Disorder. This is when people experience a change of moods during the winter months, particularly a feeling of depression and sadness. I have clients who start to feel the winter blues as early as the beginning of October. Typically, when the weather gets warmer, these feelings will begin to lessen. If you are feeling under the weather during the cold winter months but not sure if you are having seasonal disorder, you can check to see if you are experiencing certain symptoms related to the disorder.
Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) Symptoms:
1. Feelings of sadness, hopelessness and anxiety during the winter months.
2. Feeling fatigue, loss of energy, trouble concentrating and unmotivated.
3. The feelings of sadness, fatigue, isolated, etc. that start out mild and become more severe as the winter progresses.
4. Change in appetite and sleeping habits.
5. Social withdrawal – loss of interest in social activities and hobbies. Some people tend to “hibernate” during the winter months. They don’t leave their house very often during the winter months and they stop socializing and enjoying their daily activities. They start feeling isolated, lonely and depressed. Watch out for this pattern.
“The cause of SAD is still unknown, but we know environmental factors play a big role. “A person who lives in an area near a lake can get ‘the lake effect’ where he gets so much snow and very little sun all winter, resulting in SAD. We also know that SAD can run in the family – genetics play a role. Seasonal affective disorder is more common in women and we usually see symptoms starting in young adulthood.”
Treatment and How to Prevent
There are different treatment options available for SAD and even ways to help prevent SAD or at least the severity of it.
1. Light Therapy – we know that increased sunlight helps improve the symptoms of seasonal disorder. There are certain lights you can buy called “Light Therapy Box,” which mimic outside light and help you lift your mood and spirits.
2. Psychotherapy – a therapist can help you identify your negative thoughts and behaviors and help change them. A therapist can also help you find good coping skills to feel better.
3. Spend some time outdoors to grab some natural light – take a morning or afternoon walk and take time to sit in the sun to help lift your spirits. Even if the weather is cold and snowy, we do know that being outside in the winter months is beneficial.
4. Exercise – every time we exercise, we produce endorphins while reducing stress hormones. This gives us a boost of happiness.
5. Bring the outdoors inside – open up the shades and curtains. Move your desks and chairs near the window to bring the sunlight in doors.
6. Don’t let winter make you feel trapped. Make weekly plans to have fun whether it’s dinner with friends or catching a movie, just make sure to laugh and socialize. Surround yourself with family and friends to give the extra support you need.
7. Plan a vacation where the weather is warm, and the sun is shining. If you feel a sense of isolation and loneliness in the winter months, setting up vacation time in warm, sunny spots can help and give you something to look forward to.
8. Meds – Doctors have prescribed anti-depressants that have worked well for some patients that suffer with more severe SAD symptoms.
For more information please visit Diane’s website: http://www.dlcounseling.com
Email Diane at DLCounseling2014@gmail.com
November + December 2019 Appearances …
Coming soon!
About Diane Lang…
Therapist, Educator and Life Coach
As a Therapist, Educator and Positive Living Expert, Diane has dedicated her career to helping people turn their lives around and is now on a mission to help them develop a sustainable positive attitude that can actually turn one into an optimist, literally.
Through her three books, “Creating Balance & Finding Happiness”, “Baby Steps: the Path from Motherhood to Career” and “ Mindfully Happy- waking up to life.” Diane has been speaking and empowering people nationwide. She is also an Adjunct in Psychology at Montclair State University, where her college work includes mentoring students for personal issue advisement.
As an expert in her fields of therapy, Lang has been featured in the Daily Record, Family Circle, Family Magazine, Working Mother Magazine and Cookie Magazine, seen on NJ 12 TV, Good day CT, Style CT, The Veira Network, CBS TV and “Fox & Friends”. She has also participated in a reality based Internet show, ourprisoner.com, hosted Generation X-tinet.
11 ways to practice self-care daily
Self-care is care provided “for you, by you.” It’s about identifying your own needs and taking steps to meet them. It is taking the time to do some of the activities that nurture you. Self-care is about taking proper care of yourself and treating yourself as kindly as you treat others. Self-care is so important, but we seem to put it on the bottom of our priority list. We need to put it on the top of our priority list.
Why take care of yourself first?
You can’t give what you don’t have. Everyone benefits from your self-care. When you feel good emotionally, physically and spiritually, you can be there for others. If not, you run on empty and becomes stressed out, overwhelmed and can burn out.
Mood and emotions are contagious. If your unhappy, it affects others. What do you want to spread to your kids? We teach through actions.
Women who neglect their own needs and forget to nurture themselves often become unhappy, have low self-esteem and feel resentment.
• Remember self-care doesn’t equal selfish
11 ways to practice self-care
1. Are your basic needs met? This is a great place to start. We need a strong physical foundation. Make sure your diet is good, sleeping well, plenty of water and exercise.
2. How do you define happiness? What does it look like? Feel like? Write a list of the top 5-10 things that cultivate happiness for you. Does your life match your list?
3. Gratitude – spending time in gratitude helps us to re-train our brains to go from negative to positive. Ask yourself everyday: What are 2-3 things your grateful for today?
4. Step outside of your comfort zone – when we stay in our comfort zone, we don’t take risks, try new things and we can become stagnate. We need growth to be happy.
5. Flow – add in activities that cause flow. Flow create mindfulness and cultivate happiness.
6. Pay it forward – it’s a win-win. Every time you do an act of kindness, you get a boost of happiness and so does the person you did it for.
7. Unplug and do something for you! Take this time to re-fuel.
8. Learn to say “No”.
9. Ask for help
10. Socialization – connect with others. Socialization is the # 1 factor of happiness.
This includes: Community, Fun/play and Support.
11. Journal write – this is a mindfulness exercise. Take 10 minutes a day to free write. Write without judgment.
For more information please visit Diane’s website: http://www.dlcounseling.com or email Diane at DLCounseling2014@gmail.com
Is having it all a reality we should be discussing?
By: Diane Lang
Most people have heard the expression – “Can we have it all? ” I know I have heard the expression many times. And each time I heard it, I would become more and more frustrated.
I wasn’t even sure what it meant to me.
That’s the first question to ask yourself. What would having it all mean to you? What would it look like? Feel like?
I always assumed it meant you can have a career, family, social life and be happy. Maybe, for you it looks different. I knew I wanted it all, but, I wasn’t sure if it was possible. I realized for me, I could have it, but it wouldn’t be perfect. There would be many ups and downs. I was okay with the struggles, I expected them, and I think that’s how I got through it.
Be honest with yourself, if you want to have it all make sure you realize what that will look like? The obstacles that you can expect. Make sure you have a support system.
If you’re expecting the balance to be smooth, well, then you will be in for a big surprise. However, if you realize it won’t be perfect then you are starting out with realistic expectations.
I also realized that I “needed” to have a career, family and a social life. If I wanted to be a good wife, mom and friend, I needed to have it all. It’s something I knew about myself before I got married or had a family. Having a career is part of my identity along with being a mom and if I removed one, I wouldn’t feel complete or happy.
You need to ask yourself the important questions:
What will make me be the best parent? Spouse? Person?
Will I be living a life that is in accordance to my value system?
Will I have meaning/purpose in my life?
Once you’re aware of what you need, then, you can start creating the life you want. Your life will get messy and crazy, but it will be yours.
September 2019 – Events and Workshops – Open to the Public
Monday, September 23, 7pm – What Kind of Smart Are You?
The Adult School, NJ
Register: 973-443-9222
Tuesday, September 24, 6:30pm – Anger & Forgiveness
Caldwell Continuing Education, NJ
Register: 973-228-2092
Wednesday, September 25, 10:30am – Stop the Panic
Montclair Adult School, NJ
Register: 973-744-0500 Ext. 2224
Wednesday, September 25, 7pm – Coping with Change and Loss
The Adult School, NJ
Register: 973-443-9222
Thursday, September 26, 10:30am – Letting Go of Perfection
Mount Saint Mary College – Desmond Campus, NY
Register: 845-565-2076
About Diane Lang…
Therapist, Educator and Life Coach
As a Therapist, Educator and Positive Living Expert, Diane has dedicated her career to helping people turn their lives around and is now on a mission to help them develop a sustainable positive attitude that can actually turn one into an optimist, literally.
Through her three books, “Creating Balance & Finding Happiness”, “Baby Steps: the Path from Motherhood to Career” and “ Mindfully Happy- waking up to life.” Diane has been speaking and empowering people nationwide. She is also an Adjunct in Psychology at Montclair State University, where her college work includes mentoring students for personal issue advisement.
As an expert in her fields of therapy, Lang has been featured in the Daily Record, Family Circle, Family Magazine, Working Mother Magazine and Cookie Magazine, seen on NJ 12 TV, Good day CT, Style CT, The Veira Network, CBS TV and “Fox & Friends”. She has also participated in a reality based Internet show, ourprisoner.com, hosted Generation X-tinet.
For more information please visit: http://www.dlcounseling.com or email Diane at DLCounseling2014@gmail.com
Raising Your Self-Esteem
By: Diane Lang
What does it mean to have healthy self-esteem? It’s having a good opinion of yourself that is realistic. Being that the most important opinion of yourself comes from yourself, it’s time evaluate: how do you feel about yourself?
Let’s be honest, the only opinion that should matter is your own but the problem is for many us our opinions are negative. We are our own worst critics.
When we have a negative view of ourselves, we can spend our lives looking for ways to justify the negativity and be condemned to a life of self-criticism.
This isn’t a healthy way to live. Instead, there are things we can do to raise our self – esteem.
6 tips to raise your self-esteem:
1. What are you thinking about? Start being conscious of your thoughts. What is that internal voice saying? To start the change process, you need to know what you think about yourself. Ask yourself where do these thoughts come from? How have these thoughts stopped your life? Lowered your self worth? After hearing these thoughts and repeating them to ourselves, they become auto pilot thoughts. We have them without even recognizing them anymore. These thoughts are learned. That’s the good news. If it’s learned, you can unlearn them.
*Start by thinking about: what kind of thoughts about yourself do you want to have? Make a phrase of what you want to feel and start repeating it daily. This will be adding positive affirmations into your routine.
2. The stick figure exercise.
Draw a stick figure of yourself or cut and paste a picture of you. On one side of the figure write your accomplishments. On the other side write down all your roles/descriptions. On the bottom write down your goals/dreams
You can look at the stick figure every time your feeling down and see how much you have accomplished, how much you do everyday and where your going. Add to it as things come up.
*You can also write a list of all the things you like about yourself and review it every morning.
3. Throw in some positive psychology exercises;
Gratitude – every night before bed, ask yourself: what are 2-3 things I’m grateful for that happen today?
2-3 things you did well today – every night after the gratitude exercise, ask yourself: what are 2-3 things I did well today?
4. The comparison game
Are you comparing yourself to others? The only person you should compare yourself to is who you were yesterday. If you notice comparing yourself to others, what’s triggering it? Is it toxic friendships/family members? If so, boundaries/limitations or a break up is in order.
Is it social media? Limiting your social media intake is very important.
5.Remind yourself of your strengths by taking a personality test. Everyone has different strengths. Knowing yours and using them can up our levels of happiness and self esteem.
6. Pay it forward -raises our self esteem and takes our mind off of ourselves while cultivating happiness. Doing for others gives us a sense of accomplishment and pride. These positive emotions cultivate happiness and give us a sense of value and meaning into our lives.
*Remember, self-care-because you are worth it!
September 2019 – Events and Workshops – Open to the Public
Tuesday, September 17, 1pm – Create Balance & Relieve Anxiety
Livingston Senior Center, NJ
Register: 973-535-7925
Tuesday, September 17, 6:30pm – Coping with Change and Loss
Caldwell Continuing Education, NJ
Register: 973-228-2092
Wednesday, September 18, 6:30pm – Stop the Panic
Northampton Community College, PA
Register: 570-369-1881
Thursday, September 19, 6pm – Finding Your Passion
Warren Community College, NJ
Register: 908-839-2223
Monday, September 23, 7pm – What Kind of Smart Are You?
The Adult School, NJ
Register: 973-443-9222
Tuesday, September 24, 6:30pm – Anger & Forgiveness
Caldwell Continuing Education, NJ
Register: 973-228-2092
Wednesday, September 25, 10:30am – Stop the Panic
Montclair Adult School, NJ
Register: 973-744-0500 Ext. 2224
Wednesday, September 25, 7pm – Coping with Change and Loss
The Adult School, NJ
Register: 973-443-9222
Thursday, September 26, 10:30am – Letting Go of Perfection
Mount Saint Mary College – Desmond Campus, NY
Register: 845-565-2076
About Diane Lang…
Therapist, Educator and Life Coach
As a Therapist, Educator and Positive Living Expert, Diane has dedicated her career to helping people turn their lives around and is now on a mission to help them develop a sustainable positive attitude that can actually turn one into an optimist, literally.
Through her three books, “Creating Balance & Finding Happiness”, “Baby Steps: the Path from Motherhood to Career” and “ Mindfully Happy- waking up to life.” Diane has been speaking and empowering people nationwide. She is also an Adjunct in Psychology at Montclair State University, where her college work includes mentoring students for personal issue advisement.
As an expert in her fields of therapy, Lang has been featured in the Daily Record, Family Circle, Family Magazine, Working Mother Magazine and Cookie Magazine, seen on NJ 12 TV, Good day CT, Style CT, The Veira Network, CBS TV and “Fox & Friends”. She has also participated in a reality based Internet show, ourprisoner.com, hosted Generation X-tinet.
For more information please visit: http://www.dlcounseling.com or email diane at DLCounseling2014@gmail.com
Is old school really so bad?
I like a world with long deep conversations not a one or two line text
I like face to face interaction
I like hands on learning not watching a video
I like being outside in nature not inside with 5000 friends on social media that I don’t know
I like binging on books using my imagination not binging the latest TV show
I don’t want to follow your life thru an app
I want to hear it first hand
I don’t want to record everything I want to live it in the present moment
I don’t want to live in auto pilot, I want to be conscious and mindful of my actions, behaviors, feelings and patterns
I want connection not likes
I want real food not genetically modified
I want an actual customer service rep not a machine
Not everything should be googled…Our brains are the best computer out there don’t let it go to waste.
Call me old school but it feels more real, more authentic and more interesting
For more information please visit: http://www.dlcounseling.com or email Diane at DLCounseling2014@gmail.com