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As a new year is coming soon, many aim to set goals for increased health and well being.  One practice that I highly recommend is adding exercise as a regular part of your week.  The benefits to your body are well known; decreased levels of stress, higher metabolism, building muscle, increased burning of calories, and a higher level of energy.  There is also evidence that exercise has huge benefits to our brain and our emotional well being.  Here’s a link that shows the immediate benefits that only 20 minutes of exercise has on our brain and our sense of well being.  Make it happen in 2015!

What effect does loneliness have on us?  Whatever we may be going through, we can decrease our stress level by not going through it alone.  We are created to live in community, “two are better than one”.  Increasing our level of connection with friends  and family is always in our best interest.  Living life on our own and subjecting ourselves to loneliness has been shown to have an adverse effect on our health.  Take a look at this article for more insights.

With the recent and shocking death of Robin Williams, substance abuse, depression and suicide have been public topics of conversation.  Raising public awareness about how these are linked will hopefully lead to more people honestly looking at their life and seeking help if they need it.  The truth is out there, substance abuse is linked to higher levels of depression, and depression is unquestionably the leading cause of suicide.

Robin Williams tragic death also raises our awareness that an energetic, humorous , successful persona can be a mask for desperate, personal , hidden agony underneath.   Few of us will know what Robin Williams personal struggles and battles and inner life was really like.  However all of us have our own circle of relationships, perhaps these kind of public tragedies can prompt us to find out how those we have contact with are really doing.   And if depression is part of your life right now, please reach out for help.  Our brain like any organ in our body can become ill.  However when our brain is ill it doesn’t manifest with symptoms such as fever, but with emotional symptoms such as anxiety and depression and thought disturbances such as a distorted view of ourselves and our circumstances.  Much like an antibiotic helps pneumonia, anti depressants help depression.   Research consistently shows that medication and therapy are the most effective treatment for depression

Many bloggers have weighed in today with their thoughts on Robin Williams death and depression.  Here are links to some of the best ones I have seen.  The first outlines the links between substance abuse and depression.  The second by the gifted writer Ann Voskamp discusses how the church views mental illness and depression based on her own experience.  The third  considers the truth that no matter how outwardly successful a life may appear, without spiritual peace found in Jesus Christ there is no peace.

EMDR continues to show itself effective,  here’s an interesting story about musician Kristin Hersh who benefitted from EMDR after suffering a car accident.

Dr. Daniel Siegel , bestselling author and professor of psychiatry at UCLA recently published (2013) a book describing the brain changes that take place in the adolescent brain.  It is entitled Brainstorm .  He describes it as an “Inside-out guide to the emerging adolescent mind, ages 13-24,” and “The Power and purpose of the Teenage Brain.”  In it he describes in an understandable way, the neurobiological changes that are taking place in the adolescent mind that transition the teen from childhood to adulthood.  Refreshingly he doesn’t talk about only the challenges ( risk-taking behavior without thought of consequences, withdrawal from adults, moodiness, and apathy), but he also discusses the tremendous positive aspects of this time of life as a teen navigates these years with passion, energy and creativity which can endure and enrich their adult years.

The book also includes a section on making sense of your own adolescence whether you’re there now or long past it. Understanding how your family of origin shaped you into the person you are today can create growth in  your own emotional life and significant relationships.

Another valuable component of the book is the practical “mindsight” tools that are included.  These are research supported exercises and activities that are described to help both the developing adolescent mind and also the adult mind achieve greater brain health and integration.  Adults can benefit from walking through this and understanding their own adolescence and completing any unresolved developmental tasks in their own life and evaluating their own current relationships.

I would highly recommend this book for adolescents and their parents and also for any adult who has yet to make sense of their own adolescent experience or who simply desires to achieve greater brain and emotional health.

Still wondering as to whether or not you would benefit from EMDR?  This article gives a great explanation of both how trauma is stored in your brain (and still there after many years), and also how EMDR can resolve it.