ACA Counseling Corner Blog

Changing behavior can be a good thing, but it's important to remember that change doesn't just happen overnight. There are frequently barriers that make changing behavior difficult.

While our memories and experiences of holidays past are not something we can change, we can try to ensure that the current holidays don't add to any emotional burden we may already have. That may sound complicated, but actually all it means is having a little more awareness of the emotions we face at this time of the year, and of taking a little more control of our lives and actions so that we don't end up feeling bad about this year's holiday season.

The perfect holiday world of ads and TV aren't the only reason some of us suffer the holiday blues. This is often a time of the year when we forget about eating and living healthfully. We overeat when tempted by holiday treats. We may drink more alcohol than usual. We probably are blaming the weather and our busy holiday schedule for not bothering to exercise.

When faced with anxiety and worry, our body reacts by pumping out a variety of chemicals, such as adrenaline, that cause various physiological reactions. These chemicals fueled our ancestors' "fight or flee" reaction when that bear attacked. Although we seldom face angry bears today, yet our bodies still react the same way. Sustained, chronic worry can raise our risk of heart attack and stroke, increase blood pressure, lead to high cholesterol levels, and give us stomach aches, headaches and even back pain.

Written by Rebecca Toporek, PhD & Ulash Thakore-Dunlap, LMFT

Relaxing is just a natural skill that we all have mastered, right? Unfortunately, especially in troubled times such as these, really relaxing can be difficult to make happen. Yet relaxing and giving your brain a rest from all the tension and worry that it is dealing with lately is an important and needed accomplishment. Here are some tips on how to focus on getting a little relaxation into your life.

With many schools closed, playgrounds restricted and summer camps and sports programs shut down this year, many parents are worried of the effects all this isolation may be having on their children. While there aren't many definitive answers, most experts advise that while the quarantining and social distancing may be making a lot of kids unhappy, the lack of social and sports activities probably has little long term affect.

This summer is likely to bring changes to what families were imagining would be their summer vacations. Trips to other countries or even airline flights to other parts of the U.S. are vacation ideas most families are going to find impossible or at least very frightening. Yet experts are advising that vacations can play a major role in helping us all relax and handle stress. A well planned driving vacation can offer a safe way to get family time together.

With so many of us quarantining at home and with so much of our in-person social activity reduced in response to the current health crisis, there has been an enormous increase in the amount of time both adults and children are spending with their electronic devices. While that often serves a lot of useful purposes, it can also easily get out of control. Developing a schedule is one way to keep those online activities from taking over your family and life.