As a starter DO NOT GO TO BED UNTIL YOU ARE TIRED.  Going to bed earlier (in most cases) if you are in a cycle of not sleeping well will only create an association with your bed of difficulty getting to sleep.  So wait a little longer until you go to bed and hopefully you’ll be nodding off in no time.

DO SOMETHING RELAXING BEFORE BED.  Now that you’re staying up later don’t go doing something overly stimulating within an hour of your bed time.  Watch boring TV, read a book that you’ll be able to put down, meditate, pray, do a jigsaw puzzle, listen to a relaxation tape, write any thoughts or concerns in a journal or do some stretches.  Anything that slows down your body and mind is what we are after here.

EXERCISE DURING THE DAY, ideally giving yourself at least 4 hours between exercising and going to bed.  This helps with getting your body tired, relaxation, using up any nervous energy and also can help to calm your mind.

AVOID STIMULATING FOODS.  Caffeine, I’m told, has a half life of 6 hours, excess sugary foods aren’t good for anxiety or calming your body, and your best bet before bed would be foods high in carbohydrates  as your body needs to slow down to digest them (or something like that).  Don’t eat too much but make sure that you aren’t waking up during the night from hunger!

CREATE A SANCTUARY IN YOUR BEDROOM.  Make it as restful a place as possible – minimal lights and noise, comfortable temperature, uncluttered and cosy.  Wear whatever you feel comfortable in and won’t restrict your movement whilst sleeping.

TRY TO GET UP AT THE SAME TIME EVERYDAY.  Even if you are tired, getting up at a regular time helps to program your body clock so that it knows it has to get to sleep by a certain time.  The temptation when you haven’t been sleeping is to sleep whenever you get the urge but day time naps and irregular sleeping patterns don’t help you get into a pattern of good sleep.

Finally, if you do wake during the night try CALMING TECHNIQUES such as deep breathing or progressive muscle relaxation to try to get you back to sleep.  If you haven’t gotten back to sleep within 30 minutes get up and do something relaxing until your are tired again.  You want your body to know bed is for sleeping!!

If you continue to have difficulties then it might be worthwhile to see your GP or book an appointment with Inner Resources to investigate what other solutions you might need.

• Research suggests more favourable outcomes when adolescent initiation to alcohol use is delayed
• Children model themselves on their parents, therefore: do not drink large amounts of alcohol in front of children, and confine alcohol use to times when children are not present where possible
• If drinking in front of children, drink moderately with food
• If an adolescent is going to to drink, alcohol use should be supervised by parents
• To minimise the impact of indirect or external influences, try to develop open and honest communication with adolescents and be involved in broader monitoring of activities
• Early intervention is paramount, so help should be sought when guidance is needed or when warning signs appear

Whilst for some the absence of illness or distress is enough, others are highly motivated to get the ‘best life’ they can have.  So what is health promotion and what is wellness? Health and wellness is not about being the best, having the best or being perfect.  It is about loving your life for whatever it is and focusing on those aspects that bring about the healthiest outcomes for you.  Basically, it is about healthy living, healthy thinking and balance.  No you don’t need to see a Psychologist or have extensive psychotherapy to achieve mental health nor do you need to frequent a wellness spa or wellness centre.  There are many tools available such as the Act-Belong-Commit Self Assessment which can help you to identify areas you could improve.  However if you have struggled to identify what is the ‘best life’ for you, have had difficulty knowing what to do, or have found it hard to make and sustain the changes needed then short term solution focussed counselling may be a great option to get you moving toward optimal mental health.

Inner Resources offers counselling and health coaching tailored to your level of need including wellness plans, provides Wellness Programs/Wellness Training, and is taking expressions of interest for a Wellness/Relapse Prevention Group for those who would be interested in getting support and guidance to improve their resilience.  Call us on 9295 0089 for further information or to register your interest.

Need this type of relationship advice? It really is simple, just:

• Ring
• Visit
• Write

Inner Resources provides tailored training for Disability Employment Services staff at your workplace covering:

• When to do an assessment
• Methods to effectively gather information
• Components of a thorough assessment
• Interpretation and follow up research
• Involving the client in decision making to maximise motivation
• Implementing the results in action planning

With this knowledge participants will have additional tools to achieve durable outcomes and minimise client resistance to job goals.

Feedback from previous participants:

“Thanks Amanda for the great exchange of information and the learning experience. The depth of knowledge you shared with us and the demonstration of the practical use of that knowledge and experience was most valuable. Your flexibility in delivery and your shared experience was greatly appreciated. ”

 

“I wish to thank you very much for the training. I came away from the presentation truly inspired, motivated and in a positive mind frame. I can not wait to use the information learnt to enhance my clients ability to obtain and maintain employment [when] they themselves have been so involved in the whole process.”

Duration:     6 hours (1 session or 2 sessions of 3 hours)

Cost:           $1000 (for a group of up to 8 )

SUBSCRIBE TO UPADES ON THIS EVENT

Building Strong & Resilient Young People

This model is being used by practitioners all around Australia and overseas. The 7 factors that resilient young people and adults have in common are illustrated in the shape of a doughnut. Ways of helping a young person through stressful times and building their resilience are shown using the simple common sense formula:

“If something is working, do more of it”.

The Resilience Doughnut is fun and creative and, at the very least, the process of working with the Resilience Doughnut has the potential to strengthen the human spirit and build a sense of hope and optimism. It is a big help for students, teachers and parents.

For more info visit: www.theresiliencedoughnut.com.au

Bookings for 28th March 2012 event are now open – please register online via the ‘event registrations‘  tab above or calling 0417 201 523

Bookings and payment in advance essential

SUBSCRIBE TO UPDATES ON FUTURE EVENTS

Feedback from previous participants:

“ The Resilience Doughnut is an easy way to help people realize the skills they already possess and to nourish and to build on in order to use when and where you need to cope or survive some event. Thank you, I enjoyed this presentation!”

“I learned that I need to follow and expand on the things that already satisfy me and follow my gut. That it’s not about the negatives and having few friends doesn’t mean I should stop trying to make new ones.”

“You always have strengths somewhere in your life, even if you are focusing more on the negative ones. The things that make you happy is what you should focus on.”

“There is hope for everyone, no matter where they are at in life.”

“I gained new knowledge of ways for myself to cope with challenges and adversity and ways to help my children deal with life changes.”