Tips on how to form a good working relationship with SEMH students

Hello everyone! Hope you're all doing good.

As the above title states, I thought I'd share some useful tips on how to form a good working relationship with SEMH students. This is especially handy for anyone who is looking into going into this industry. Not to mention that the benefits that come out of this feel immensely rewarding too!

However, I must warn you that the process of forming a good relationship with SEMH students can come with a fair share of emotional obstacles along the way... As I have experienced...

DO:

• Be polite by saying "morning" to them - Even if you see the students walking around who you barely know, it's always good to greet them warmly first thing in school. Especially how it can really secretly brighten up their mood, as they may not be warmly spoken to in that manner at home.

• Try to start a friendly conversation with them - Again, if you come across a student you barely interact with, at least pluck up the courage to begin a friendly conversation with them, such as: "How are you doing today X?" Although a majority of the students (especially the ones I didn't interact with much) will tell you to go away at times, at least they will eventually see in time that you are trying to make an effort to get to know them a bit more.

• Be firm with boundaries & behaviour - I know this will be nerve-racking, but you need to be very consistent with verbally telling students about the inappropriate behaviour they are displaying, as well as to firmly inform them of the consequences should they choose to continue with their inappropriate behaviour. Believe me, they will be thanking you inside their heads later, as SEMH kids crave on a sense of security.

DON'T:

• Keep on changing their routine during their school day - If there is 1 thing that SEMH kids HATE the most, it's definitely change. Every structured routine in their school day must be kept the same where possible, as sudden last second changes can REALLY cause SEMH kids to have some serious dysregulations! Trust me, witnessing a SEMH pupil dysregulated is not the prettiest thing to experience.

• Expect or make them do paperwork for the whole lesson - I know this may sound weird to some people, as you'd typically expect any pupil to get on with doing paperwork for an entire lesson, but with SEMH pupils, that is a different story, and this can cause them to feel tired & overwhelmed, as being in a classroom for too long can stress them out due to carrying an excessive amount of energy then other kids from non SEMH school settings. 

• Make them feel ashamed of their needs - Just because your purpose is to discipline SEMH pupils when they display inappropriate behaviour, doesn't give you the excuse to blame their needs for who they are as a person. The only thing this will do, is cause SEMH kids to have their confidence crushed, as they cannot change who they are inside.

I hope these tips will come into use for anyone who is looking into working in a SEMH environment. Especially having first-hand experience & knowledge. 

*I began this post on the 7/7, but didn't finish it until the 14/7*

The best way to understand people's behaviour

This is a post which will be relating to my job as a disability play/youth worker. Not only that, but I will also be dishing out tips & advice for the best way to get to understand children & young people with complex needs.

What does a play/youth worker do?

A play/youth worker is a member of staff who works on play or youth scheme, (or in my case, Disability Challengers) and basically gets to work with children & young people while they get to have fun playing on scheme.

However, a playworker doesn't just play with children & young people, a play/youth worker also has an important job to ensure everyone is safe while playing on scheme. This is essentially called safeguarding.

Going into safeguarding, I, as a play/youth worker, must keep my vigilance at all times when it comes to children & young people's behaviours. This is because behaviour can either be represented verbally or physically, which could eventually become a risk to everyone on scheme, as well as themselves. If a behaviour really was to escalate into the too dangerous category, then a play/youth worker will have no choice but to perform a safety intervention. (SI) This is where a play/youth worker (who MUST be trained in SI to do this) physically removes a child or young person off from another person if they are physically hurting them.

All in all though, a play/youth worker ensures any child or young person has the best day on scheme regardless.

What is the best way to understand children & young people with complex needs?

We always do a briefing 15mins prior to the children or young people coming onto scheme. This helps us to get to know the children or young people who will be coming in for the day, as we get to read through their information sheet. Or as we call them, CIS's.

I'll use the example if I was to going get put with a 1:1 child or young person for the morning & another for the afternoon. I usually let that 1:1 child or young person do what they want to do, so it helps me to understand what they like to do best on scheme. I also pay close attention to how they communicate, whether they use a device, body language, noises or just verbally talking. No 2 people I work/interact 1:1 with are the same. 

If I was to bullet point some handy tips for you all when it comes to working with children or young people with complex needs at a place like Disability Challengers, they'll be things like:

• Always communicate to non-verbals using sign language, as they would benefit from this more
• Ensure you read through their CIS's thoroughly, so you know how to handle them on scheme
• Never show your impatience with trying to get your 1:1 to do something, like going to the toilet, as A) It will make yourself look unprofessional, and B) It may traumatize them
• Never punish a child or young person if they did something wrong on scheme, like hitting someone, as it is not our protocol to give them punishments
• Always listen to what any child or young person comes up & says to you on scheme, as they feel like they can open up to you about anything on their mind
• If you get asked to hang around with the non-1:1's on scheme, do try to interact with them all, because some of them may feel lonely without staff interaction
• In relations to hanging out with the non-1:1's on scheme, try to get them all playing together

I think that's pretty much everything covered for this long post now. 

Anyway, I hope my personal insight to what I do at work, as well as my tips has provided sine useful insight for anyone wishing to work as a play/youth worker one day.

If anyone has made it all the way down to this point, I just like to thank you for taking the time to read all of the way through, and I shall hopefully be back very soon with another post!

*I began this post on the 12/8/23, but didn't get round to finishing it until the 18/8/23*

Quote of the day... (Explained)

This has now been my 3rd recent post in about almost a month of absence... Yes, I did have a reason('s) why. Rather than waste this post rambling on about them, as could end up boring people. I am just going to cut to the chase by saying that I have been taking the lengthy time out to focus on myself. This is because I have, and will probably still have some very important decisions to make in my life going forward. I know for sure that it won't be an easy journey, but me being the determined & dedicated human being that I am, I'll find a way to keep pushing through without giving up.

Back onto the post. The chosen quote I have picked out for you all is called: "Mental Health... is not a destination, but a process. It's about how you drive, not where you're going." - Noam Shpancer, PHD.

Why this quote? Like I said before, I now have some important life choices to make which will require me, as well as my mindset to just focus on driving towards that route of my life journey. This comes with all the best intentions of me wanting to psychically & mentally drive myself down that road, so it helps me to keep within that pace of keeping myself in check that I am actually going down the right road towards my destination.

It's important to keep in mind that's it's not all about just simply getting to my destination in life, because it matters more of how I intend to control my own car (if you like) that will only teach me I must embrace the upcoming challenges stood in my chosen path, so they can be used as learning curbs which will all be part of me gradually becoming more successful in which way I tackle them.

To raise awareness for #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek

Hello all, I hope every single one of you has had a good week, whatever you've all been up to.😉 As for me, I've been keeping myself busy as usual, in terms of doing coursework, as I've now got more work pilling up which does require my full focus within the upcoming weeks. Most of which has had its ups & downs mood for me in the duration thus this week gone.

While I'm on the very subject of 'work' and yes, I do just mean that subject alone, and it can mean many different things to people when they hear that one word.

In a bid to get involved with raising awareness for MentalHealthAwarenessWeek, I personally want to highlight what goes on in my head whenever I try to work as hard as I can to try and get things done. Especially if it has to be done within a time frame.

As I get given a task to do (more specifically coursework) I like to think to myself: "Okay, this looks easy enough to do". However, I tend to scan the task instructions over and over, (probably about 5+ times) so I can figure out the best way to tackle that given task in my head.

However, a majority of the time, this tactic can heavily backfire on me. My mind will then experience a period of blankness, like it has been totally cleared out with nothing left in it at all. This will lead to me putting my task off for a while, due to the emptiness of my mind not having any room for thoughts to come in and therefore, not do any work.

A while later, I would've summoned some thoughts to be able to help me get a kick-start on my task. To me, everything I do would be a walk in the park at this stage, as I would currently have enough urge to keep working on my task. That is, until I decide that I've done well enough during that time, so I decide to reward myself by stop working on my task for the moment.

But, before I know it, there comes a day where my task will be due in within a short amount of time. 

I get this sudden urge in my mind saying: "Come on, you need to be doing better, otherwise you are not going to succeed". Moreover on that, it's like there is a drill alike coach who is trapped inside my head that will continuously tell me to keep pushing myself, regardless of my mood and motivation.

Also at that time, my mind would've now inhaled all off that inner drill voice, that it leaves me, as a human being, feeling frustrated for not handling my task the way I had intended to handle it. Sometimes, my lack of urge to try and get any task done, would cruise past the 'due in' time. Yes, I know I will always get frustrated with myself for having to do keep on doing this, but in reality, this is just who I am when it comes to prioritizing work.

All of this even includes me trying to get my blogposts done as quick as I try to get them done. (Including this very post as I speak)

My one outcome is that I hope everyone who just read my long personal insight, will vision this as a beneficial talking point, so it helps them to feel unashamed of admitting of what psychological effects go through their mind when trying to work.

Thank you to everyone who has taken their time to read through this important post, and as always, please feel welcome to let me know your feedback.

Does living in your thoughts help you escape reality?

A fairly quick, but interesting post tonight.

As the Rhetorical Questionized title says, I've pretty much more or less spent today 'Living in my thoughts'.

Only because today was a purposely nothing day, so I thought thinking would help me to keep my sanity.

Don't take the above sentence the wrong way, as just casually thinking can very easily turn into overthinking. If you can relate to the stresses of overthinking, then you can understand my point of view.

To justify my unexplained reason in the 3rd paragraph, I felt like thinking about my good times in the past. This helps me to take a momentarily break from my present reality, as I think about my successful moments that were worth applauding for. I like to use moments like these as self motivation fuel.

Furthermore, I utilise that break from reality, in order to stop any negative thoughts come into my head, and potentially, waste my day feeling worried about silly scenarios which will never happen.

*A pictured definition of what my mind was like today*

One thing you all need to bare in mind is, your mind is like a magnet, in which, it has the capacity to play tricks on you. 

Best feed it with success and positively, regardless of how you want to take a mental break from reality.👍🏻👍🏻

There is always a light at the end of every tunnel

Just a quick one for today.

For all of you out there struggling with life right now, be sure to read this...

If you suddenly fall into a hole of Anxiety or Depression... and you feel like you can't find a way to escape it. Keep a special message in mind... as this is what I like to think when I have a down moment.

There will ALWAYS be a light at the end of every tunnel, regardless of what your struggle is. Struggles are a part of learning in life, but NEVER take struggling for granted, meaning it's never around to permanently stay.

If anything, you can use your struggles to help you learn to improve on yourself. Trust me, I guarantee you will feel so much better once you embrace the struggle!😁

Why is #Anxiety linked with #MentalHealth?

Disclaimer: This will be a follow-up post, in relations to my previous special post. See here: Just a little something for #WorldMentalHealthDay 

Hello and Happy Friyay! Yes, I've been in a great mood this week and I've hope you all been the same way too throughout this week. 

As of such, I've been wanting to talk about for awhile (until it was actually the most convenient time to talk about it. I'll explain in a bit) why Anxiety is linked to Mental Health.

From where I stand, I see this topic of discussion somewhat personal to me, as I suffer from Anxiety time-to-time, hence my reasons for a lengthily break. However, as I'm sure you all know by now, talking to an audience by writing/typing really helps me to feel better about myself, as well as taking a huge weight off my chest. 

Whenever it DOES happen, I start to think about the worst case scenario('s) in regards to what's going to happen? Or will it even get better? In shorter terms, all of the mentioned can be referred to as 'Overthinking'

Reason and being the most foremost as to why it links with Mental Health, is because you will be thinking of too many things at one time, (basic definition of overthinking) causing your mind to overload and therefore not being able to cope with anything for a short period of time, as your potentially putting yourself off your own focus.

Well, I say a short period of time, as it never lasts forever, but in reality, it all really depends on how long YOU go through it all.

The best advice for trying to avoid your Anxiety by overthinking too much, is to take everyday as it comes. Do everything one step at a time, so your mind will be able to adapt to the one priority you intend to prioritize first, in order for you to succeed at trying to accomplish something. My biggest example of this would be coursework. With that said, I'm sure many of you can relate to that too.

Furthermore, keeping with the "Do everything one step at a time" strategy will make life a hell of a lot easier for you when you try to get any work done, as well as making you feel good about yourself when you acknowledge that's the strategy to success.

I hope I've taught you all something, by gaining a more in dept understanding of why that link is strongly paired between the two factors. 

Bottom note: Research definitely helps to gain more knowledge.

Thank you for reading, please do feel free to notify me and I hope to publish again soon!  

My definition of "Everybody is running their own race within their own time"

Hello, I'm back once again from my break, reflecting on how I can improve on myself with this blog and what my upcoming posts will be...

Anyway, I hope you're all keeping healthy and well lately, as I now feel completely refreshed in terms of getting my new ideas going for blogging again.😁 

I know this is something which I keep saying a lot, but the truth about running a blogging business is, sometimes when I typically write too much within a short space of 2 weeks, my mind and thoughts will go "blank" as my brain will momentarily struggle with processing too much ideas, by holding all of my thoughts in just one place at the same time when I think about them. So this is why it is always a good thing, to just step away from my work, in order to allow my mind to calm down, by slowly clearing out my thoughts and to reflect on myself, to see where I could improve and why.

All of these mentioned statements are totally relevant for my post today, which is why I want to highlight the meaning, the reason and the benefits.

What does this quote mean and why?

The quote, "Running their own race within their own time" means that your are in the process of working towards achieving your goal, but you are doing so within your own time. This intention is also showing that you have the capacity of having the patience to wait a very long time, in order to make it all work out for you in the end.

Not only does it mean achieving your own goals within your own time, but it also means that you're able to ignore peer pressure from those around you, meaning, those who boast about being able to achieve their own goals within THEIR own time, because they have a strategy which works out for them. They're the kind of people who will say to themselves and possibly out load: "Oh, look how far ahead I am compared to everyone else. I must be the best person ever!" These are known, as narcissist people, who like to compare and degrade others, to make them feel good about themselves.

*Note to self: Always be careful with what you think about.*

This is where your mind will respond by saying: "Do you know what, I'm not interested in focusing on anyone else but myself, as I know I will become a successful person" Statements like these, will be beneficial to keep yourself focused on slowly chasing your success, as it helps your mind to continually talk to you, as you do it.

Most importantly, always be proud of how you choose to run your race within your own time, as it may very well be the best successful strategy you've found to help you become the person you will eventually turn out to be. Make sure you find a gap in between to be able to take a short moment to reflect on how far you've come, so you'll be able to thank yourself every time for when you've overcome a mental obstacle during your race. If necessary, use them as fuel to help you learn from those mistakes, to become better and better as you progress onwards towards to goal.

In conclusion, everyone has a right to be able to run their own race within their own time, as everyone finds different strategies to help THEM succeed the way that they want to. However, it doesn't give them the right to judge other people. NO ONE HAS THE SAME MINDSET. This is something I'm still working at too, by keeping myself and my mind occupied with blogging. One of the many hences I created this blog, so I can start investing in myself, but in MY own time, at MY own pace.

I think I've just about covered everything.

Thank you so much for reading through. I hope I've inspired you readers to take my useful advice to becoming successful, and please do feel free to let me know your thoughts in the comments or in person.

I hope to publish again this week!😉

     

The benefits of "Putting Yourself in Timeout"

How has this week gone by quick?! All I've done is mostly chill out, as I had a busy holiday last week.

Which is why I want to discuss all of the beneficial methods of "Putting Yourself in Timeout" with you, as you may find these tips helpful for yourselves.

What does this expression mean?

It means, that you decide to be somewhere else, doing something else, when your mind gets overwhelmed by everything around you. This is where it screams: "STOOOOP!"

(The above picture shows MY definition of Putting myself in timeout. Everyone has their own way)

My top 5 bulleted points:

• Go for a long walk - This will help you to clear all the current worries in your mind, by replacing them with your distance goals.

• Listen to music - You could use this method to help keep your mind calm when working on something or to help keep your mind calm when you need alone time.

• Drawing - This is something which I find therapeutic, as your mind just focuses on your imagination sketched out on paper,  as well as being a silent activity.

• Relaxing - This not only helps your body to recharge itself, it also sends messages to the mind by saying: "Just relax, you're in no rush to do anything."

• Watching TV - Use this method to help escape your own stressful mindset, by going into the world of comedy, celebrity gameshow's or sport.

These are all my choice of activities to do when my mind gets overwhelmed by everything and needs to go into timeout. 

It does deserve a well-earned break when you think about how many things it thinks about day-in, day-out. Just so you can keep it happy and healthy for when you need it for important stuff. I.e. Researching.

That's concludes today's discussion.

Thank you for reading through. Please do feel free to let me know what your thoughts are in the comments or in person and enjoy the rest of your afternoon!😊

What goes through your mind when you've achieved something?

Hello all, I hope you've all had a good weekend and enjoyed watching the last of The Olympics. I'd say 4th place was decent for us to finish in, considering the competitiveness of the top 3 countries above us.

Anyway, this will be yet another related post to The Olympics, only this time, I'll be talking about what feelings, thoughts and emotions go through your mind when you've achieved something, as this is a BIG achievement when you think that it's just ordinary people (meaning you and me) doing extraordinary things!

When you finally achieve your very first gold medal after 8 years of waiting, you will first feel your heart jump out from your body, due to the shock that has just entered your mind which says: "OMG! I can't believe I've finally done it!"

You then become speechless, as your mind is still processing all kinds of happy emotions, which causes it to become increasingly overwhelmed with everything around you.

When it eventually settles enough by taking all of the emotions and the achievement in, your mind will keep saying to you: "I am so happy that I've managed to do that. This is something I will never forget, by always keeping it as a memory." Therefore, you still feel excited after what has just happened to you, so you feel the need to announce it to your friends and family, as your mind is telling you that it could do with more praise from other people, to help keep the proudness flowing inside of you.

Not only does it make you feel like that, the achievement can make your connecting people feel just as proud as you are, as they have your full support in everything. Believe me, it feels just as good to applaud people, when THEY are the ones who have achieved something.

This is what is known as using "Reverse psychology" because you share you intend to share your achievement news to your connecting people, so THEY can feel proud of you, in order to make YOU feel proud about yourself in that way.

With that achievement completed, your mind then says to you: "I'm glad that I've finally done that, but do you know what? I reckon that I can go one step better than last time!" This very mind statement will help engage your confident emotion to chase down and succeed that next step. My advice would be to keep repeating it over and over to ensure your mind to stick to it. (Meaning, keeping focused)

That concludes my post for today. 

Thank you for reading through. Please do feel free to let me know what your thoughts are in the comments or in person and enjoy the rest of your week! 

How does watching sport inspire us?

Happy Friyay people! We have now finished day 7 of The 2020 Olympics. I have to say, the UK are doing well, but at the same time, we could still be better, as we're only at the halfway mark during the duration of the games taking place.

Yes, my above title will be related to The Olympics, as I really find it fascinating how it can inspire us all around. Plus, I thought about selecting the most appropriate picture too!

My objective for this post, will be to further inspire the minds of other people, when I explain all of the how's and why's in my thoughts explanation.

  Why are The Olympics so popular to the public?

The Olympic Games have been an ongoing 4 year tradition, ever since its first games hosted in Athens - Greece in 1896. The games had a vary of events, such as: running, long jump, boxing and javelin.

Even though, technology was non-existent back then, so everyone had to use their own imagination to think of the many ways they can recreate THEIR own Olympic Games, by using sticks, walls and heavy rocks for the lifting.

Nowadays, technology is the most popular form of entertainment, so we were now able to use special gym equipment to help work us out and then make endless videos for other people's amusement, as well as inspiration. Plus, we have now got many newly invented events, such as: swimming, skateboarding, fencing and cycling.

Overall, the more games there are and the more people there are, the better the attraction. 

How can they inspire us and why?

By watching different athletes doing different sports, they perform them in such a professional way, that it makes your mind say "WOW! I love watching the athletes run like that. I reckon I could do that myself!" This is where your mind starts filling up with initiative ideas with training yourself up to become a just as good enough athlete as THAT person you watched. Your mind will keep on telling you to watch them, to help you become better an better, until you get to that stage where you're ready to progress onto Olympic level training. The same goes for any other sport.

Not only can you get inspiration from Olympic athletes, you can also get it from internet videos (YouTube) or on social media of other people doing these Olympic style training by using THEIR own initiative ideas which helps THEM train, until they get to the Olympic level. You never know, they could be your friends or family!

I think I've explained everything for today's post. Thank you for taking your time to read through. Please do feel free to let me know what your thoughts are in the comments or in person and have a great weekend!😊    

Why is it important to make yourself into an example?

I said I'll hopefully be back in 2 days time from my previous post... and I was right! Anyways, I hope everyone is enjoying their week right now, as I currently am. Hence I feel like creating an exciting post today.

In this post, I shall be highlighting the several ways of "Making yourself into an example" as well as talking about why is it important.

*After reading this post, I guarantee that you'll be feeling inspired to give my advice a try!* 

  

How can you make yourself into an example?

• Be positive - This will reflect good on other people including yourself.

• Highlight your interests - This will encourage your audience to the same.

• Motivate your mood to the audience - This will help THEM to feel motivated with whatever they wish to achieve. 

• Give out a backstory - This will help people to understand you better, as well as praise you for your journey and inspire THEM to tell you theirs in order for THEM to be praised.

• Be knowledgeable - This will help your audience to remember and keep any useful advice for becoming THEIR own example figure.

Why is it important to make yourself into an example?

It is important, because you need to learn how to cope with your journey in order for you to become a successful person in life. This means that you MUST overcome the obstacles in your journey to help your mind become stronger and show no fear to anything.

Furthermore, by self tackling these obstacles throughout your success journey, you will be able to have the built-up confidence to express those feelings of courage, motivation and determination to anybody your audience.

As of such, you may wish to become an entrepreneur. (I suggest looking on Instagram would be a good place to start)

Thank you for reading through. Please feel free to let me know what your thoughts are in the comments or in person. Even if you wish to share your own example ideas with me.

I hope to post again sometime this week. Have a gooden!😉  

"The internet is like a genie in a lamp" My own definition with added psychological explanation

Yes, I am fully aware that this title may sound strange to most or even all of you, but once I begin my explanation about it, you'll understand what I am talking about.

This is a definition which I've come up with ages ago now, so I thought about sharing its meaning, as well as what people think about when using it.

What does this definition mean?

It means, that when you think about anything you wish to look for on your mind, you type it up in the search bar on the internet and... BOOM. The internet finds EXACTLY what you wanted to look for! Example given: You want to find out the best Spanish recipes

 

Why does a genie relate to this definition?

You know when you rub a genie's lamp or bottle and they appear straight away? You then say: "I wish I can play my favourite computer game on the internet" Before you even know it, you get your wish granted and you're playing your favourite computer game on the internet, as it felt like yesterday enjoying them good times, except it could've been years ago.

It is the same scenario when you type in your wish to play your favourite computer game in the search bar on the internet, so it appears straight away and you therefore, have your wish granted.

 

What does this definition make people think?

As these 2 scenarios link very well with each other, it makes people think that the internet is the best way to fore fill you down time, by wishing what you would like to look up on the internet and see if you get that wish granted.

This could be the most typical reaction of most people: "WOW! The internet is like having your own genie in your computer/laptop, as I can look up anything!" Which is very true in that statement, as the internet is purposely hand created, so it can help the public find useful information with whatever they need to use for in their work purposes.

Since one source of internet became increasingly popular for the worldwide public to use, there were many other sources created, such as: Bing, MSN, Yahoo and Google Chrome. (Which is my personal favourite) More people began responding with: "I love the internet so much! Every source has what you are wishing to look for!"

Final conclusion: The internet will always be the best source for looking up stuff, as it comes up straightaway and the answers can appear on multiple browsing sites! "Just like a genie!" (A quote from Spongebob Squarepants)😂

Thank you for reading through. Please feel absolutely free to comment your thoughts below or tell me in person and I shall hopefully make another post in 2 days time!

Have a good night.

  

The definition of "Your mind is a magnet"

Hello one and all! I know it's been a while since I was last active on here, this was due to me working throughout half term, so I didn't have much time to maintain my focus on my site...😔

However, I finally once again have some free time to kill, so I can continue with my blogging!😁

I shall be talking about the used expression "Your mind is a magnet"

What does this expression mean?

It means that your mind has the capacity of attracting positive thoughts and negative thoughts.

How does this expression work?

First of, try and imagine that your mind is a magnet. You could either think about positive thoughts or negative thoughts.

What does it do to you?

Word of warning and foremost, when you choose to think about either one of these thoughts, they keep on coming into your mind like a travelator, which therefore, will be stuck in your mind like glue.

When you choose to attract positive thoughts into your mind, they will help to boost your mood in full-on happy mode for a long lengthly period of time. But if you choose to attract negative thoughts into your mind, they will only decrease your mood by making you miserable. 

Conclusion: When you are alone, be careful with your thoughts. (Psychological fact)

Thank you for reading through this post, please feel free to let me know about what you think in the comments or tell me in person.

Goodbye for now!

How does your mind play tricks on you and how can you deal with it?

Ello all, I hope you're all enjoying your week so far... For me, I had a great day at College yesterday, and I did some Maths revision this morning. (Just in case I need to retake my final exam the following month)

In this post, I will be highlighting all of the ways that your mind plays tricks on you... as well as the best ways of how to overcome them.

Remember: 

YOU are capable of being your own worst enemy, so always be careful with what you think about.

Keep repeating those words.

Example 1:

You are at home currently doing some English revision, when all of a sudden... you begin to struggle with how to answer one particular question and your thoughts have gone all "blank" as you cannot think about anything at all.

At this stage, your mind starts playing tricks on you by muttering these kind of words: "You'll never do it, so just give up now" "I'm such a disappointment" "I will always be stupid, because my friends can do these easily but I can't"

One way of managing these mind tricks, is by memorizing all of your previous achievements when doing revision tasks, as they will help encourage you find the success in completing them, Another good way is just to simply take a break, so your brain will be able to recharge its batteries in order to help you think better.

(These are all of the things I do, when I experience these problems whilst doing revision - They really help!)

Example 2:

You are on your own somewhere, with no one else around in sight, (let's say in your bedroom) then out of the blue... you start to feel angry about something you did in the past or even just recently which you were not proud of.

Again, your mind starts playing tricks on you, however this time, you experience something called: "self confrontation" which means, you say bad things to yourself in order to make you feel bad or imagining yourself saying these bad things to another person and imagining THEIR anger. This is where you unnecessarily compare yourself to somebody else, as your "self confrontational" mind tricks have now built up your intensity level to no longer think straight.

The best and foremost way of handling it, is to break the habit of comparing yourself to other people and not dwelling about your past, so you will be able to ensure yourself to keep on pushing through with your life no matter what. Although, using "self confrontation" may actually be a good thing for you, as it helps to practise test the mental strength of your own mind, so when someone starts having a go at you, you'll be able to soak up their negative words like a sponge by doing all of that practise.

(Believe you me, this is something which I do almost on a daily basis! And it works a treat in reality!)

Thank you ever so much for taking your time to read through this long post. Please do feel free to comment or message me in person about a similar experience you may haver had before.😊

But just before I end this post, I thought about sharing one of my favourite songs with the above title. 

*Warning, this song contains explicit words* 

 

  

 

Why do people tend to rage over video games?

Personally to me, this is something which I've ALWAYS found funny about, so with that said, I intend on sharing my thoughts, as well as probably giving out some facts and advice to help you readers or other people you might know that can't help raging over video games.

Fun fact for you guys:

I used to rage over video games when I was a lot younger! Before I even knew it, I eventually grew out of this habit! More to the point, I no longer have an interest in video games.

How do video games cause rages?

They usually occur when one tries so desperately to complete some kind of mission without messing up or trying to win something, so it makes them feel accomplished at the end by acknowledging they have something to brag about to others to make them feel jealous. 

But, in order to do so, they have to insert full-on-concentration mode, as this method helps them to just focus on winning the game. This method is known to cause 'square eyes.' 

If one does lose at a game, in which they've been constantly focusing on for a long period of time, they will typically end up raging so heavily about it, as they've tried ever so hard to maintain their focus at winning the game, just for the sake of feeling proud and accomplished at the same time. It is especially worst when they play against one another in a battle game, as that other person might have the intention of winding that person up to be able to claim bragging rights over them.

What goes through a person's mind when they rage?

Here comes the interesting part... When one starts heavily raging at a loss of a video game, they get these thoughts of anger, frustration and upset, as they then feel that this is the absolute WORST moment of their life, so they start saying things like: "That is it! My life is over!" "I'm gonna kill you!" "Shut up and die!" "You know what... F*** this stupid game!" 

*I sincerely apologize if I sounded too over the top there. This was to thoroughly explain my point*

After their raging moment, they experience this feeling of wanting to get 'revenge' on the game by keep trying ever so hard to beat it, so therefore, they try hard even harder! However, this will only make them angrier.

 

How can you help yourself or others to keep calm?

One of the best ways of telling yourself or others when getting angry at video games, is by just simply saying: "It is just a game" With that said, there is seriously no real life accomplishment at winning video games, as it is all a creation made from a group of people. Plus, it is all based INSIDE of a computer/TV screen, meaning, nowhere to be found on planet Earth.

It is nowhere near the same accomplishment as winning a 400m race in the Olympics or winning an art competition, as these are all real life events. Does anyone see the difference?

Perhaps you can inform your rage gamer about all of the real life accomplishments you've managed to achieve, as this could inspire them to be just like you or achieve something of their own in the real world. These options will be better for their eyes as well! And... Feeling proper proud about achieving something too!

Thank you so much for reading through. Please feel free to tell me about a similar experience you might have had with this topic or other kind of advice to help out one another. That's all for now guys. I shall see you soon!

My useful advice for blocking out negativity

Hi all, I hope everyone is well and happy, and I am very pleased to announce that I have now finished all of my Maths exams! Woohoo!🎉 This means, I now have more free time on my hands, meaning, I can start posting more regularly again.

As the above title says, I would like to advise everyone out there in the world, that negativity is just words that come out of people's mouths. Yes, I know it does sound blunt, but this is how I personally choose to see it. In addition, I am secretly hoping that everybody else would agree with me on this opinion.

 

Here are the bulleted points on the various ways of how you can block out the different types of negativity:

• Jealously - When someone happens to say mean things about you for no reason, it means they are annoyed, because they haven't got your kind and caring qualities, in which, they enjoy putting other people down to their poor standards. Give them a sarcastic laugh and say "Hehe, that is SO funny." This shows you don't care about their negativity.

• Criticism - You begin to realize that somebody or more, is constantly targeting you with verbal abuse, as they do it for their own personal entertainment. If it gets too much to handle, talk about it to friends or family who will help you to stand up to them, by saying "What's your problem?" This should make them go silent. 

That's all I have for today. Thank you for reading through and please feel free to tell me your thoughts on this topic, even if you would like to share about a similar experience you may have had.

See you all soon!

 

The psychological benefits of taking a break from the internet

Well, I'm back from what I've just stated in the above title: "Taking a break from the internet" This was because I wanted to be more productive with my spare time, rather than spending long hours surfing the wonderful world of the internet.

More to the point, I feel like advising you guys about how taking a break from the internet can really make you feel more engaged with yourself, otherwise more positive.

*Hence as to why I had a decent day yesterday*😁

My main objective of this topic, is that everyone who reads this post, will feel encouraged to follow my discussed examples when they decide to come off the internet for awhile.

How does spending long hours on the internet make you feel?

For me personally, I always feel completely normal. However, DO NOT be deceived by that statement!

Let's say, after about 3 hours later of casually surfing the internet, you start to experience this feeling of your mind going 'blank' which means, you've wasted all of that time just looking up random stuff (if you like) that has now overpowered your important train of thought. To put it in more basic terms, you can no longer think straight.

This is what most people refer to, as it's their way of feeling 'normal' but the reality is, this will only make you feel depressed, by not wanting to do anything productive in your life.

What productive things can you do to take a break from the internet?

One of the things I've been doing lately, is going out for long walks in my local area. By doing so, will help to take your mind off with whatever is bothering you, as you focus on how many miles you intend to do, as well as getting to your chosen walking destination. Don't forget to focus on how brilliant you feel about doing it too!

Learn how to play a musical instrument. In my case, I've been improvising at my drumming skills. Even though I don't actually own a drum kit, I just use any surrounding hard surface to tap my hands on and create different rhythms.

Improve your reading skills, by reading actual books. (Not a kindle tablet) I have various books in my room, which I use to either use to educate myself or to get myself 'lost' in the author's story. What I mean by that expression, is focusing on what the story is about.

Do home-based workouts to help increase your current level of fitness. (See: The psychological benefits of working out regularly  For further explanation)

This brings an end to this topic. Thank you for reading through, I really hope you've learned a lot by reading these chosen examples and please feel free to talk about any similar experiences you may have.

I shall see you soon.

   

"Putting yourself in other people's shoes"

Once again, I've recently been keeping myself occupied with revision, so I haven't found the time to make a post on here. But here I am now, and I somehow feel like talking about the expression in the above title.

This expression: "Putting yourself in other people's shoes" means that you try to imagine yourself how other people are feeling or how other people see the world.

A good example of doing so, would be to imagine how your friend feels about going on a rollercoaster. You may find going on a rollercoaster a walk in the park, but however, your friend sees this task as the most traumatic experience ever.

This is when you think about all of the emotions that are currently going through their head, anxiety, fear, panic and doubt. Use your vision of how you see the whole 'going on a rollercoaster' scenario, to help your friend to be able to "Put them in YOUR shoes."

With enough explanation, they'll eventually see your vision that going on a rollercoaster isn't so bad after all! 

I think I've covered every detail for this topic now. Thank you for reading, do feel free to comment about a similar experience you had with this expression, and I'll be back soon!

Lockdown... A whole year of reflection

Yes, the title illustrates this post as a whole. Also, I promise you, this will be the last time that I talk about COVID-19 and the lockdowns, as I'm sure most people have had enough of hearing those words by now.

However, today of all days, was simply just too important for this topic to go unmentioned, and here's why...

Today, (23/3/21) marks the 1 year anniversary of the EXACT date that the UK got slammed into a full on 'Lockdown' due to COVID-19 killing hundreds of people per day. (23/3/20)

Meaning, we were instructed to "Stay at home" as non-essential, restaurants and education places were forced to close for the foreseeable future. 
    

However, supermarkets and pharmacies had to remain open, as buying groceries and medicine was important for maintaining our well-being and health.

The only time we could leave home, was to go out for daily exercise once a day. (Back then, it was only within walking distance)

                                                                 

How did living in lockdown make us all feel?

I can imagine for most people, it made them feel lonely, bored and frustrated during the 1st month, with not being able to normally socialise with anyone, as well as not being able to go anywhere. To summarise all of the above with one word, we was all experiencing this feeling of "Isolation" as we had to "Stay home".

To share a personal insight with you all, I too, was struggling to cope to terms with being in lockdown for a short while, as I was constantly feeling bored all of the time with being stuck at home. I also didn't like the idea of my freedom being snatched away from me, as I love to go out and explore different places, this includes my education and time with friends face to face being snatched away from me. I eventually got SOOO bored, that I honestly had no idea with what to do with myself during my time in isolation, as I was doing the same routine over and over again. Further explanation in next subheading...

How did I utilise my time in lockdown?

One of the things I did to break my habitual routine, was watching every old episode of Coronation Street from 2008 up towards where I am now. I had to say, I found it very interesting how the cobbles' scenery was so different that long ago!😂 (Still laptop related) I was scrolling up and down the roads of different places on Google Maps to get from A to B. This significantly helped me to get better with my Geography!

Asides from my laptop, I thought I'd improve my cooking, by making a 3-course meal originated from various countries. Also, with cooking puddings too. I actually found cooking very therapeutic afterwards!

During the warm weather, I would sometimes go into my back garden to do a bit of sunbathing, to help me take my mind off the current COVID-19 related news. This also helped me to get my "Relaxation" mood on. Other times, me and my brother would help out in the front garden, by getting rid of all the weed and the bamboo (Don't ask, I had no idea why we had bamboo growing in our front garden?!)🐼😂 Anyway, this was a refurbishment task which we all decided to do, as our front garden was literally looking like a jungle.

Bonus fact: This was the VERY reason why I wanted to create this blog. 1: Because I am very passionate with sharing my psychological knowledge with you all. 2: This is just something which keeps my occupied during my free time.

What have we learned during our time in lockdown?

Ever since day 1 of lockdown, we have learned to help our minds to adapt to this sudden change of how we interact with ourselves, as well as one another from just one household. By doing so, it is very important that we check up on others by texting: "Hey, how have you been doing recently?" This kind of thoughtful message could really make someone's day, by making them think that their friends and family actually still care about them whilst in isolation. This is something which I like to do time and time again, as I am a caring and considerate person.

We have also learned that staying at home, doesn't give us an excuse to sit around and do nothing all day long. In exchange of that, we encourages ourselves to find more ways of unleashing our hidden creativity inside us. You'll never know, this may well could become your new favourite hobby!

Most importantly, we have learned that this ENTIRE nation has the capacity to come together and be willing to help out one another during these dark times. A heart whelming discovery to us all.💗

As of now, a whole year on from our first lockdown, we have been very successful with making the vaccine and giving them out to the public, that I believe half of the UK adults have been vaccinated already!

Thank you ever so much for taking your time to read through. Remember, stay safe and follow the guidelines. Hopefully we'll be out of this tunnel by the 21st of June!🤞 Bye for now.