I am re-blogging this post and hope you enjoy.
I like what she says about failure – how even porcupines can fall from trees. It’s helpful for me to feel connected to the natural world when I make mistakes.
Professional Website: http://www.BethLevineCounseling.com
My dog, Dali, is a steady presence to all my different ways of being.
If I’m sad, Dali is licking my tears.
If I’m angry, Dali follows me from room-to-room.
If I’m anxious, Dali sits patiently as I pace.
If I’m depressed and lay down, Dali lays down with me.
She is confident and courageous and calm and if she could talk, I imagine she would say, “It doesn’t matter how you are. I am here. I’m not going anywhere. You can count on me.”
I’ve learned from Dali what it means to be present to all my different parts. Through this experience, I’m better able to do that for myself.
Dali is closing in on 15 years of age and she is declining. I am afraid that I am not going to learn fast enough all that Dali has to teach me. But I am present and compassionate to that fear and in that way, and many other ways, Dali’s legend will live on.
(Professional Website: http://www.BethLevineCounseling.com)
I remember when Dali first joined our family, we lived in a downtown area. She was about six months old, maybe close to a year and filled with energy. She loved saying hello to people, all people. She would go up to everyone and greet them. And most people responded in kind, although there were always some who were busy or didn’t want to be bothered, which was no problem for Dali. She would just move on to the next person. Though she is nearing 14 years old, she still goes out of her way to greet people and it is clear how happy this interaction makes her.
Social interaction makes a big difference in our health. It is as important as eating healthy and exercising.
In this seven-minute segment, Shankar Vedantam focuses on the health impacts of social isolation for men, but it has good information for everyone.
Researchers Examine What Social Isolation Can Do To Men’s Health
Take time to connect with other people. Say hello to others on the bus or subway. Or when you’re on line. Strike up a conversation with a bank teller or cashier. I know from my experience, though brief, these interactions can boost my mood.
(Professional Website: http://www.BethLevineCounseling.com)
Short and insightful video on how to catch the winds of good luck.
In 11 minutes and 40 seconds Tina Seeling, who teaches innovation and entrepreneurship at Stanford, presents three ideas with vignettes that will inspire you to take steps increase your luck.
(Professional Website: http://www.BethLevineCounseling.com)
Oskar has a sense of humor.
He will stand at the top of the stairs and push a tennis ball to me at the bottom. When I get it, I throw it back – down the hall – so he has to run and get it. He’ll go back to the top of the stairs and wait for me to sit down on the couch and then he will push the ball down the stairs again, so I hear a thump, thump, thump as the ball bounces down the stairs.
As he grew up in our family, and I would give a chew treat to both him and Dali. He would hide his treat when I wasn’t looking and then give me this look like something happened to his chewy and he didn’t know what it was. I was thinking maybe Dali was taking it so I’d give him another. Until one day, I don’t remember why, I thought to look around the house and saw that he was hiding them. When he realized I was on to him, he stopped his prank.
There are other things he does in the moment and I find myself cracking up. I look at him and he has a big smile on his face. We connect over the moment of playfulness and I feel lighter and joyful.
Laughing boosts the immune system and relieves stress, depression, anxiety, pain and social conflict. Be sure to watch a funny video, movie, spend time with friends who make you laugh, or find other things that make you LOL on a regular basis.
https://www.webmd.com/women/especially-for-women-15/video-balance-laughter
Professional Website: http://www.BethLevineCounseling.com
I can get very stressed and have strong emotional responses to situations. Over the years, many people have suggested that I meditate or do yoga – neither of which appeals to me. So, I was pleased to come across the work of Ellen Langer, a social psychologist and professor at Harvard University. Her research shows how to be mindful without meditating.
Here are four take-aways from watching her video (below):
I’ve started noticing new things walks with my dogs. One of the things I’ve noticed is how different each tree is from another. They’ve got their own fingerprint. I enjoy the exercise of noticing new things and it certainly get me to be in the moment. And more relaxed.
If you decide to try some of these lessons, feel free to let me know how it goes.
(Profession Website: http://www.BethLevineCounseling.com)
Walks with my dogs help me not only to get outside and get exercise, but also savor the pleasant and interesting things around me. Just this morning, I saw a baby fox looking at us from a safe distance. Often, I take a photo of what I am enjoying (unfortunately, I didn’t get a photo of the fox) which helps me amass a riches of positive feelings. Taking time to stop and smell the roses boosts my positive emotions.
In our daily lives, we are often distracted by our thoughts or tasks at hand, so it is good to purposefully take some time to notice and savor positive things around us. This is one thing we can do to increase our happiness. A trip to the Bahamas or Belize, though awesome, is not needed for us to savor the everyday beauty around us.
If you like, try taking a short walk of about 15 – 20 minutes each day, or however often works for you. Use your different senses to notice some charm in the moment. Feel the cool breeze on your skin. Notice the dramatic cloud formation. Smell the roses. Keeping a written journal or a photographic journal is an additional way to accumulate a treasure chest filled with simple pleasures.
The photos on this blog are some of the visual treats I’ve enjoyed. Most are from walks with my dogs, but some are from walks I’ve taken without Dali and Oskar. Yes, that does happen from time to time. I hope you enjoy.
And if you decide to give this “helpful hint” a try, feel free to let me know how it goes by writing below.
(professional website: http://www.BethLevineCounseling.com)
I went for a hike on both Saturday and Sunday this past weekend.
Being in nature. Hearing the birds. Getting my body moving.
I returned, energized to work on projects I’d been avoiding.
Want to create change? Pump up your energy.
Connecting with your body in a slow, gentle way is important, but so is experiencing the joy and excitement of movement.
I remember taking a dance class many years ago. We’d learn steps and then dance to pounding music. I left feeling like I could take on the world.
So walk, dance, move and experience the energy within you.
Good for your heart and good for your soul.
(professional website: www.BethLevineCounseling.com)
As I try to find the just right idea
To write about
Different possibilities float up
And some part of me bats them away
Like some expert gnat swatter
Nope, that’s not five-star
Not that one
Or that one either
In rapid succession
A firing squad to ideas
And so I sit
And sit
And sit
Not writing anything
Because nothing is
Good enough
For this Judge
Click the link below for Tips on Quieting Your Inner Critic
https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/podcasts/item/quieting_your_inner_critic
(professional website: http://www.BethLevineCounseling.com)
I have written about connection and attachment and love, but what about when that romantic bond is broken. What about heartbreak?
I thought I’d share with you my take away from the TED Talk, How to fix a broken heart, by Guy Winch, shared below.
Whoever came up with the term “heartbreak” was right on. Heartbreak is painful like a heart that is broken.
Heartbreak is an injury. It is complex and psychological in nature. It can cause insomnia, intrusive thoughts, and immune system dysfunction.
When we are recovering from a heartbreak, our brain tries to make the pain go away by figuring out what happened, what went wrong: as if it is a math problem with a solution that will provide a soothing balm to our wound.
But indulging in that craving is actually a way of feeding our love addiction when we can’t get the real thing.
Brain studies show that the withdrawal of romantic love activates the same mechanisms in our brain that are activated when addicts go through withdrawal from cocaine or opioids.
We get a hit by thinking of all the good times, hoping our romantic interest will come back to us, trying to figure out why the breakup happened, and/or idealizing our ex or the relationship. To beat the fix, we need to:
In addition, we need to rebuild our lives and get back to who we are, what we’re about. We need to make efforts to fill in the missing links of our social lives and invest in activities that interest us. We need to leave ourselves open to connection by learning about ourselves in relationship.
Recovery from a breakup is an arm wrestle we win in a multitude of ways.
(professional website: http://www.BethLevineCounseling.com)
On Being: Lessons I Learn From Animals 