I am from Brooklyn. While a tree might have grown there for someone else, it certainly did not do so for me. A few shrubs here and there, some weeds poking up in the cement cracks perhaps, but nothing more verdant than that. I was thrilled, upon moving to my current home in Florida to have a mango tree on my property.
Everything I ever needed to know about therapy I’ve learned from that mango tree…but more about that in a bit. Each year like clockwork, the tree blooms, fruits, sheds and ultimately yields. And each year like clockwork, I worry that for a variety of reasons, it will not actualize its mission. And each harvest season, I must remind myself that this magnificent living thing has its own rhythm, its own wisdom and needs me there simply as a witness, unassuming caretaker and gentle guide.
In similar cyclical fashion, right around this time for the last two years, I received a call from Jamie’s parents. “Hi Larry”, says Tom, Jamie’s dad, “Jamie just finished 4th grade and asked to see you; he misses you.” Tom went on to describe how his creative, playful and precociously intelligent and self-aware child had flourished and evolved despite the challenging climate of public school. Now, a rising fifth-grader, Jamie was again expressing anxiety over leaving the familiar landscape of fourth grade.
I first met Jamie when a mere sprig of a second-grader, who at the time was nervous at home and at school, fearful of making mistakes, prone to clashes with his parents and the occasional classmate as well as very sensitive to criticism. Our therapeutic play was at his pleasure, not my design, as I believed a client-centered approach best fit his growing needs. I trusted that through his drawing, role-plays, arts-and-crafting as well as popular culture-based story telling that he would play out exactly what he needed to express; and that my non-directive feedback would provide whatever additional insight he might have needed.
It was now two and-a-half years later, and there stood Jamie in the middle of my therapeutic playroom, surveying all the possibilities before him. Without flinching, he quickly went to work; reminding the bobo doll who was boss, animating a group of hand puppets in lively conversation about fears, worries and confidence, and finally turning to me saying “I’m done, let’s go talk to my parents about why they brought me here.”
And so it was! This little mango tree named Jamie told me exactly what he wanted and needed, reminding me of my role and its limitations while imparting a simple lesson that applies to mango trees and child therapy alike. Trust in their wisdom, potential to grow and ability to tell you exactly what they need. The measure of the bounty will be its own reward.
from http://www.psychotherapy.net/blog/title/what-do-a-mango-tree-and-child-therapy-have-in-common
Monday, 2 July 2018
Fighting Perfectionism with Self-Compassion
“Be kind to one another.”
You don’t need to be a die-hard Ellen DeGeneres fan to appreciate the value of that motto. And while we’re reminded how kindness goes a long way in our everyday interactions with others, we often forget to apply it to those who need it most: ourselves.
Whether it’s setting a personal weight-loss goal, or believing that we can ace a final exam—all of us are familiar with the experience of setting high standards. We’re even more familiar with the inevitable let-down that comes from not living up to those very standards.
Enter, the life of a perfectionist.
But, importantly, not all perfectionists operate the same. There are different types that are associated with different psychological outcomes.
On the one hand, if you strive to attain your ambitious goals and prevent yourself from being overly self-critical, you might be a personal strivings perfectionist. This isn’t so bad. In fact, this type of perfectionism is more likely to lead to relatively higher levels of self-esteem and decreased levels of negative affect.
On the other hand, if you constantly believe that you are not good enough, if you judge yourself by your shortcomings, and if you are constantly worried that other people won’t approve of you, then you might be more on the side of maladaptive perfectionism. This form of perfectionism has been linked to depressive symptoms in both adolescents and adults.
It’s no wonder then that researchers are curious to know more about interventions that help buffer against this maladaptive perfectionism. In one recent study, researchers examined the possibility that self-compassion can protect us against the negative effects of maladaptive perfectionism. The questions is, can self-directed kindness increase our chances of living a full, healthy life? Can it combat the symptoms of depression that come from this less ideal version of perfectionism?
Understanding Self-Compassion
You may ask, “What exactly is self-compassion? And is it something that can be cultivated by anyone, or is a skill that is only available to some of us?” To shed some light on these questions, researchers have broken down self-compassion into three main components: self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness.
While the first component is self-explanatory, the other two require careful consideration. When something terrible happens to us, often the initial reaction is to sit and wallow in our grief and self-pity. We convince ourselves that no one else is going through similar problems in their lives. But that is simply not true. Statistically speaking, it’s an erroneous judgment.
In order to be more accepting of ourselves, we need to realize that we are never as alone and isolated as we think we are. This is at the heart of common humanity.
At the same time, many of us are prone to over-analyzing painful experiences, or trying to avoid negative feelings altogether. Mindfulness then, is about acknowledging our thoughts, feelings, and emotions without judgement, and accepting them as part of the common human experience.
Back to our study. Taking into account these three sub-components, the researchers in the present investigation set out to predict that self-compassion would weaken the relationship between perfectionism and depression in both adolescent and adult populations.
The Study
541 adolescents from grades 7 to 10 were recruited for the first study. Participants were asked to complete three online questionnaires during school hours, as part of a larger well-being intervention study. The questionnaires tapped into perfectionism, mood/feelings, self-worth and self-esteem, as well as reported self-compassion.
As predicted, self-compassion was found to moderate, or weaken, the relationship between maladaptive perfectionism and depression in this sample of adolescents. Next, the researchers wanted to see if the results would hold for adults.
515 adults from the general population were recruited through online advertisements. Again, participants were asked to complete the same questionnaires. Once again in line with the researchers’ predictions, self-compassion was found to weaken the relationship between perfectionism and depression in the adult sample. What was true for teens was also true for adults later on in life.
Why It Matters
It seems that more than anything, today’s culture values perfection. Parents and teachers may push us towards excellence at school, our friends may judge us by how we dress and act in their company, and perhaps worst of all, our social media accounts constantly fool us into thinking that there are people out there who actually have perfect lives.
Good news, bad news. The bad news is that we can’t completely eradicate perfectionistic thoughts. Good news is that we can try to change our relationship to those thoughts through self-compassion. If we learn to cultivate self-kindness, connection, and mindfulness as we strive toward achieving our goals, any setback we face along the way will be met with greater resilience and mental strength. As a result, we are less likely to fall victim to the debilitating effects of depression, and more likely to live a happy, balanced life.
So, as Ellen DeGeneres reminds us, always be kind to others. But before you do, be sure to look after yourself first. In this case, it’s okay to be a little selfish.
References
Ferrari, M., Yap, K., Scott, N., Einstein, D., & Ciarrochi, J. (2018). Self-compassion moderates the perfectionism and depression link in both adolescence and adulthood. PLOS ONE, 13(2), e0192022. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0192022
Hill, R., Huelsman, T., & Araujo, G. (2010). Perfectionistic concerns suppress associations between perfectionistic strivings and positive life outcomes. Personality And Individual Differences, 48(5), 584-589. doi: 10.1016/j.paid.2009.12.011
NEFF, K. (2003). The Development and Validation of a Scale to Measure Self-Compassion. Self And Identity, 2(3), 223-250. doi: 10.1080/15298860309027
Stoeber, J., & Otto, K. (2006). Positive Conceptions of Perfectionism: Approaches, Evidence, Challenges. Personality And Social Psychology Review, 10(4), 295-319. doi: 10.1207/s15327957pspr1004_2
This guest article originally appeared on the award-winning health and science blog and brain-themed community, BrainBlogger: How Self-Compassion Can Fight Perfectionism.
from World of Psychology https://psychcentral.com/blog/fighting-perfectionism-with-self-compassion/
Bummer in the Summer: How to Deal with Summertime Seasonal Affective Disorder
As I write this, sunlight glares off the pavement outside my window, the sky remains a plain of ceaseless blue, and the air is so bogged down with heat that the usual cheery birdcalls trilling through the neighborhood now sound shrill.
It is summer; I am sad and annoyed — and there’s not a big overreaching reason why (not any more than all the other seasons, at least). I haven’t always been a “bummer in the summer” kind of person; in fact, it used to be my favorite time of year. All the way through childhood and even past my college years, I relished long days swimming in the ocean and countless nights sitting around bonfires with friends. When I became a parent, I still loved the summer season, planning seaside vacations with my family and reading to my kids under the canopy of the city park’s huge oak trees.
But as my children turned into adults and I transformed into a middle-aged woman, I find that the long, light-filled days have grown increasingly challenging. One of my friends feels similarly, joking that maybe it’s because our skin has literally become thinner, making us more sensitive to sunlight and prone to sunburn. Although that may be true, our more delicate epidermis doesn’t account for the ever-thickening sadness. And… I also know a 26-year-old who also notices that she gets the summertime blues as well.
So out of curiosity, I Googled “Seasonal Affective Disorder in the Summer,” not expecting any concrete results. I was surprised to find that it really is a “thing.” Even WebMD had an article on it titled “Tips for Summer Depression,” saying that about 10 percent of people with SAD get it in “the reverse” — that is instead of depression being triggered during the typical SAD season of winter, it creeps in during summer months instead.
Symptoms of summertime SAD include loss of appetite, trouble sleeping, weight loss, insomnia, and anxiety — and, of course, sadness. According to this article, the director of the Depression Research Program at UCLA, Ian A. Cook, MD, says that some studies have shown that SAD is more common during the summer than winter in countries near the equator. Experts theorize that longer days and increasing heat plus humidity may play a role.
So what can we “summer-bummer” folks do to help save ourselves from drowning in the summertime blues? Whether we are suffering from a clinical bout of summertime SAD or dealing with situational depression during these hot, sweaty months, below are a number of ways that can help us cruise through the dog days of summer.
Dealing With the Extra Light. Staff writer Olga Khazan at The Atlantic wrote a piece about summertime SAD in which she cited a theory by Alfred Lewy, a professor of psychiatry at Oregon Health and Science University. Lewy theorizes that the intense light of summer may be just as disruptive as winter’s short days and long nights. Because people have a tendency, as well, to stay up later in the summer, we can further throw off our body clocks. Lewy suggests that people suffering from summertime SAD may be able to reset their clocks by taking melatonin and exposing themselves to early-morning light.
Dealing With the Extra Heat. The simple fact that heat can also affect people in negative ways (irritability, anger, lethargy, etc.) can very well contribute to summertime SAD. According to the article posted in The Atlantic, Thomas Wehr, a scientist emeritus with the National Institute of Mental Health who first documented SAD, notes that when people with summertime depression were “wrapped in cooling blankets at night, their temperatures dropped and their symptoms disappeared. As soon as they went outside into the summer heat, their depression returned.”
Dealing With the Extra “Fun.” Aside from the biological reasons behind summertime SAD, people often have to deal with extra stressors of the season, including body image issues (the thought of donning on shorts and bathing suits can make some people feel horribly self-conscious), disrupted routines (kids home from school and/or college, anyone?), even vacations can contribute to summer depression because they disrupt exercise, sleep, and eating habits. It’s important, therefore, to either find a way to work on body image issues and/or allow yourself the freedom to wear a nice, cool dress or loose pants and shirts instead of shorts and tank tops and swimming trunks and t-shirts rather than bikinis), plan summer camp activities for the kids and/or make sure that your college-aged kids know you’re not going to work as their personal maid, and lastly, try to maintain a healthy exercise routine (maybe an air-conditioned gym may be in order?), a steady sleep schedule, and try to eat as healthy of a diet as possible.
And… you can also do what I do: By seven at night, I often shut all the blinds, curl up on the couch, and enjoy a good book or my current binge-worthy show, while ignoring the evening sun outside my front door as well as my neighbor’s beer-enhanced barbecues. Ah, how wonderful the mellow light of autumn will be!
from World of Psychology https://psychcentral.com/blog/bummer-in-the-summer-how-to-deal-with-summertime-seasonal-affective-disorder/
Ep 16: Violence, Schizophrenia, and Bipolar. Oh My!
Many people believe that violence and mental illness are linked in such a way that all mentally ill people will – eventually – be violent. Some people go as far as to believe that violence is only perpetrated by people with mental illness.
In this episode, Gabe & Michelle explore these assumptions, thoughts, and ideas from their perspectives as people living with bipolar and schizophrenia.
They discuss the president’s views on people with mental illness being responsible for seemingly all gun violence. They discuss why society is so quick to believe that mental illness and violence are intrinsically linked. But, ultimately, they discuss how these beliefs make them – as people living with bipolar and schizophrenia – feel.
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“Evil is not a symptom of mental illness.”
– Michelle Hammer
Highlights From ‘Bipolar, Schizophrenia, and Violence’ Episode
[2:00] Michelle talks about her aggressive lacrosse playing. Was it mental illness?
[6:10] Gabe talks about police and mental health crisis interventions.
[10:50] What the courts and society say about mass shooters and mental illness.
[16:00] What if the media is right about mental illness and violence?
[20:00] Why does society believe that violence is only caused by people with mental illness?
[21:30] Unpacking schizophrenia and privilege.
Meet Your Bipolar and Schizophrenic Hosts
GABE HOWARD was formally diagnosed with bipolar and anxiety disorders after being committed to a psychiatric hospital in 2003. Now in recovery, Gabe is a prominent mental health activist and host of the award-winning Psych Central Show podcast. He is also an award-winning writer and speaker, traveling nationally to share the humorous, yet educational, story of his bipolar life. To work with Gabe, visit gabehoward.com.
MICHELLE HAMMER was officially diagnosed with schizophrenia at age 22, but incorrectly diagnosed with bipolar disorder at 18. Michelle is an award-winning mental health advocate who has been featured in press all over the world. In May 2015, Michelle founded the company Schizophrenic.NYC, a mental health clothing line, with the mission of reducing stigma by starting conversations about mental health. She is a firm believer that confidence can get you anywhere. To work with Michelle, visit Schizophrenic.NYC.
from World of Psychology https://psychcentral.com/blog/ep-16-violence-schizophrenia-and-bipolar-oh-my/
Sunday, 1 July 2018
Using Humor and Tragedy When Writing about Addicts
At its best, addict lit satiates our quintessential human yearning for stories that may lead to salvation. We want warm fuzzies. We want sweet, sweet, redemption.
We started each morning of residential treatment with burned muffins, a house meeting, and introductions.
“My name is Tom and I’m a junkie here on vacation. My goal today is to lay in the sun and sample the delicious food in this all-inclusive resort.”
Tom’s sarcasm made orange juice squirt out of my nose. Humor was an elixir for the boredom of early sobriety and monotony of the rehab center’s strict daily schedule.
Our addiction counselor corrected Tom: “You need to take this more seriously. I need you to redo that and tell us your real goal for today.”
The story that society tells about addiction is one of tragedy. When we talk about addicts, we talk about pain, drama, and heartbreak. Of course, addiction is all of these things, but it’s also a rich, multi-faceted story with humor and joy. When we let addiction define the entirety of a human being’s existence, we flatten people to one-dimensional caricatures.
The story that society tells about my favorite tragic hero Kurt Cobain is a prime example; his sense of humor gets buried beneath his pain. The media glosses over parts of his personality, like how he wore pajamas on his wedding day and a puffy-sleeved, yellow dress to a heavy metal show on MTV. “The show is called Head Banger’s Ball, so I thought I’d wear a gown,” Cobain deadpanned. “But nobody got me a corsage.”
Two weeks after Nirvana released Nevermind, they pranked the famous British show Top of the Pops. Wearing sunglasses and a smirk, Cobain infuriated producers and the audience when he dramatically sang “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” in a mopey style that evoked Morrissey from The Smiths.
If you want to write about addiction, remember that two seemingly contradictory things can be true at the same time. Addicts can be both funny and tragic…
Find out how you can mix both humor and tragedy when writing about addiction in the original article So You Want to Write About Addicts at The Fix.
from World of Psychology https://psychcentral.com/blog/using-humor-and-tragedy-when-writing-about-addicts/
Are You Using Work to Numb Yourself?
While my dad was in the hospital, on a ventilator with five chest tubes attached to his body, I thought it was a good time to start working on my website and a new blog. I’d sit in his room every day for two months reading about WordPress themes and coding tips. I’d spend lunch thinking of clever names for my blog and equally clever topics.
As I think back, this was ridiculous. While my father was lying in hospital bed, in a medically induced coma, I was learning how to create headers. But, at the time, this seemed like a perfectly reasonable, terribly necessary and very normal thing to do.
When he died, I returned to writing fairly quickly, and ramped up my workload. I had to. Because I often use work to retreat, to escape, using it as a hole to fall—headfirst—into.
Do you, too? Do you, too, use work to get away? Frequently? Regularly?
Maybe you use work as a “stress reliever.” Maybe you prioritize work over your well-being. Maybe you’re unwilling to take time off.
According to Natalie Rothstein, LPC, these are some of the signs that you’re using work to numb yourself. Rothstein is a psychotherapist who practices in the Chicagoland area and specializes in anxiety, depression, grief and loss, attachment issues, relationship issues and eating disorders.
Her clients turn to work to run away from relationship issues, insecurities and loss. They turn to work when they’re unsatisfied with their lives. For instance, one of her clients went through a breakup. She started devoting all her time and energy to work. She took on bigger projects and went unnecessarily above and beyond. With Rothstein’s help, she realized that her breakup was devastating to her, and she’d been avoiding connecting to her pain.
Erin K. Tierno’s clients turn to work to escape feelings of loneliness, the pain of disappointment (both being disappointed and disappointing others), and the fear of being unlovable. She also noted that numbing yourself with work might be a sign of underlying anxiety or depression.
When we use work to anesthetize our pain, we also anesthetize our pleasure. “[O]ur psyche does not know how to only numb the negative feelings,” said Tierno, a licensed clinical social worker and founder of Online Therapy NYC, where she specializes in helping dynamic, intelligent, driven, busy people to connect in healthier, more fulfilling relationships through online therapy. Which means that the further away we get from our sadness, anxiety and anger, the less access we also have to joy.
But this is a pattern we can break. It’s not easy, and you may take two steps forward and five steps back. However, you can absolutely make progress, and learn valuable insights about yourself in the process. Below, Rothstein and Tierno shared their suggestions.
Set boundaries around work. Rothstein stressed the importance of establishing limits around work and making time for yourself. For instance, she said, you might leave work at a set time; turn off email when you’re not at work; let go of work-related thoughts when you leave the office; and carve out time for uninterrupted self-care. What boundaries would make an important difference for you?
Get curious about what’s happening internally. “I like to think of this as becoming a neutral third-party observer of oneself, the way a journalist might observe a scenario and be curious about the information they might glean. No need to judge what is learned, just notice it for now,” Tierno said.
Rothstein also recommended reflecting on how you really are, and how you really feel. It may help to carve out 10 to 20 minutes every evening to journal about the feelings you felt that day. Or it might help to think about what you’re struggling with or what’s going on in your life right now—and identifying the feelings you’re having about it. What’s bothering you? What are you fleeing from? What’s going on that’s making you uncomfortable? Have you been working longer and longer hours? Why?
When you explore the full range of your thoughts and feelings on a regular basis, you’re able to take thoughtful, deliberate action—which will actually make you even more dynamic at work and other areas of your life, Tierno said.
She shared this example: You realize that you get freaked out about others thinking your coworker is much better than you, which leads you to ignore him and cut him out of important meetings. You also realize that your coworker is great at his job, and you decide to foster a positive work relationship, helping him to be even more successful, which helps you be successful, too.
Plus, once you pinpoint what you’re actually avoiding, you can work through it. You can make it better. Maybe you can even resolve it, so it stops following you around like a dark cloud.
Add instead of taking away. According to Tierno, we can think of a fulfilled life as a Trivial Pursuit game piece pie: the different colored wedges represent different areas of fulfillment, which each person will fill differently, depending on their values. For instance, a sample pie might include: work, family, friends, pets, hobbies and volunteering.
Instead of cutting back on work hours, she said, add in something that feels good, a piece that might be missing from your pie. This might be a leisurely walk in the park in the middle of the day, or dinner with a friend on a random Monday. “Try to protect at least one non-work-related plan per week as if it were as important as that business meeting.”
There are many reasons why we turn to work to numb ourselves. Seeing a therapist can help you identify and understand those reasons and process your emotions (which is especially vital if you’re struggling with anxiety or depression).
As for me, it’s been almost nine years since my father’s passing. And the temptation to turn to work is something I continue to work at.
from World of Psychology https://psychcentral.com/blog/are-you-using-work-to-numb-yourself/
If You Don’t Use It, You’ll Lose It: 4 Tips for Aging Well
My grandfather was a true Yankee farmer. Taciturn and dignified, he rarely said a paragraph when a few words would do.
Once, when I was in my mid-twenties and totally clueless about what it means to be dealing with old age, I found him sitting at the kitchen table translating poetry from German to English. Then in his late 70s, it had been over 50 years since he took basic German at the agricultural college he attended. I didn’t have any idea he knew even one German phrase. Yet there he was, diligently working out the poem, word by word by word.
“Why don’t you just get an English translation?” I asked.
He looked up briefly and growled, “If you don’t use it, you lose it.”
“Oh,” was all I could think to say.
Later my grandmother explained that he was fearful he was losing some of his memory. Characteristically, he decided to do something about it. He was using the task of translating the poem and the pleasure of conquering it to exercise his brain. Fast forward 50 years. Now in my 70s, I have a new appreciation for my grandfather’s concerns.
Like many in my age group, I’ve watched a number of my friends slip into dementia. It starts with simple problems with memory and word-finding that we all have. (I know I’m not the only one to run through all my kids’ names before hitting on the right one.) But the symptoms of Alzheimers and the other dementias aren’t funny or brief. They result in increasing frustration and confusion for the patient and increasing frustration and sadness for those who love them.
Put simply, dementia is a decline of the mental faculties we so take for granted when we are young. According to the Alzheimer’s Foundation, to be diagnosed, a person must show decline or adverse changes in two of the following: Memory, Language, Thinking, Judgment and/or Behavior. The Merck Manual states that approximately 5 percent of people aged 65 to 74 years and 40 percent of people older than 85 have some form of dementia. It’s a frightening possibility for most of us as we age.
Some medications seem to slow it down, but science has yet to find a cure. Although it sometimes feels like fending off dementia is just dumb luck and genetics, there is now some good research that shows that we may be able to at least slow down the mental decline of advancing age by taking care of our whole self. Those who care for their bodies as well as their minds, who continue to do things that give life meaning and, yes, those who continue to enjoy life, may in fact be protecting their brains in ways that science has yet to understand.
4 Ways to Slow Down the Effects of Aging:
1. Take care of the basics: The basics don’t get any less important as we age. Sleep, diet and exercise are the building blocks for good health and for slowing down the effects of aging.
Getting enough sleep matters. Most adults require 7 to 9 hours of sleep, even if they don’t think so. It may become more difficult (44 percent of seniors experience insomnia and certain heart conditions and medications do intrude on sleep) but those are problems to solve, not a reason to give up on sleep.
Continuing to eat well is equally important. Nutritional requirements don’t really change although some people find that they eat less. A 2015 article in the Healthspan Campaign Newsletter quotes Simin Nikbin Meydani, D.V.M., Ph.D., the director of the USDA Jean Mayer Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University, as saying that “malnutrition, both under-nutrition and over-nutrition are prevalent among older adults.” So don’t give in to the temptation to skip meals or to limit your diet to a few favorite foods. Your body and your mind need to be fed.
And then there’s the question of exercise: We don’t need to become marathon runners to stay mentally sharp. A 2015 study conducted by scientists at the University of Kansas Alzheimer Disease Center and other institutions found that although participants who exercised 225 minutes a week scored higher in cognitive tests than those who exercised less, the difference was not markedly significant. Yes, those who exercised more became more physically fit. But it seems that just walking briskly for 20 to 25 minutes several times a week may help keep your memory sharp. Working in your garden, energetically doing the housework, and even keeping up with the grandkids counts.
2. Take care of the mind: Grandpa may have been right about the importance of exercising his brain but the jury is still out on the success of computer based brain exercise programs. A report by the National Institute on Aging states that there is no evidence that computer brain games are significantly effective. But the results of some studies, though not conclusive, are encouraging. In 2013, the Canadian Medical Association published a review of 32 studies of strategies to slow down the mental decline in aging, including 3 that looked at the success of mental exercise. All three reported significant improvement in brain function. So translate poetry, join a book club, do challenging puzzles or engage in good conversation that stretches your mind.
3. Continue to do things that give life meaning: Even as he aged, my grandfather did volunteer work with his church and with his men’s club. He wasn’t doing it to protect his brain, but it’s likely that it did exactly that. Dr. Martin Seligman, former president of the American Psychological Association, has been called the father of positive psychology. He states “well-being cannot exist just in your own head: Well-being is a combination of feeling good as well as actually having meaning, good relationships and accomplishment.” Continuing to be involved with others in doing things that matter contributes to happiness and, probably, to aging well.
4. Have Fun: Imagine my surprise when my grandpa started taking mandolin lessons in his mid 70s. He had inherited his grandfather’s instrument but had never played it. “Now or never,” he said. Little did he know he was doing his mind a favor. A study done at the Albert Einstein School of Medicine states that “leisure activities such as reading, playing board games, playing musical instruments and dancing were all associated with a reduced risk of developing dementia.” If you’ve been waiting until you “have time” to start oil painting, to learn to play the piano, join a chess club or learn to dance — make the time and go for it!
My grandfather moved into old age with a sharp mind and an open heart, feeling useful and loved. There are no guarantees that doing any of the above recommendations held off dementia for him — or will for me. But they certainly will keep me healthier and happier. It’s comforting to know that there is a developing body of evidence that doing these things may also have important protective factors for our aging brains.
from World of Psychology https://psychcentral.com/blog/if-you-dont-use-it-youll-lose-it-4-tips-for-aging-well/
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