An explanation as to why doing hours worth of exercise is so beneficial for mental health

Hey everyone! I know it's been a few months gone now since my last post on here. This was partly because I have been keeping myself occupied with work.

However, a more larger reason was because that I have been feeling increasingly overwhelmed over the past month, and I just haven't had the energy to make any posts on here. Both to do with life in general & work related stress.

Since all of that has been sorted, I'm feeling in a much better place to be back blogging again.

As the above title states, I have also been taking time out by spending a lot of time doing hours worth of exercise each day. The main reason for this, is actually because I'll be taking on an epic challenge for 3 days (starting from the 18th & finishing on the 21st of June). Hence, I've been spending every free bit of time during the day to exercise/train as much as possible for this upcoming challenge. I also like to think that the other reason for me doing all of this exercise is positively impacting my mental health too after all the stress I've been dealing with.

*The above picture was taken from one of my training sessions on top of Colley Hill, Surrey*

Going back a few years ago, I have made some posts talking about why exercising everyday is so beneficial for maintaining good mental health. And because I too, suffer with mental health issues time & time again over the years, I have found out for myself that exercising everyday really helps me to feel better, as well as clear my mind of negative stuff. 

Although, in my case, I love nothing more than go out walking for hours on end. I enjoy taking in the surroundings of nature, buildings & views when I walk past a viewing point on a hilltop. I also enjoy doing loop routes, country routes & long pavement routes from one location to another. I just love walking so much, that I can't help but do it everyday for not only to keep myself in good shape, but to gain positive energy!

In terms of this challenge, I'll be taking on the 3 Peaks Challenge with around 20 other people, in aid of the YMCA East Surrey. It involves climbing up the 3 biggest peaks in the UK: Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike & Snowden. Due to the intensity of this challenge, I had to increase the amount of hours I go out walking for. Not that I'm complaining though!

In all seriousness, going out exercising for even just an hour can make your mental health a whole lot better, as it just processes the surroundings of where you are walking, and erases everything else trapped in it. Since beginning my 3 Peaks training, I have grown a liking to walking through the countryside. And even spending just an hour walking in the countryside, being surrounding by nothing but nature & stunning views, can make your mental health feel a whole lot lighter. 

So for those who are constantly feeling on edge all of the time, and want to find a way to make that feeling disappear - Get out exercising!

 

*I began this post during the late hours of the 15/6, but actually got published during the early hours of the 16/6*  

How it feels to have PDA

Good evening everyone!  

It's now been a fair few months since I was last on here, and for a good reason too... I have had the pleasure of working at Aurora Poppyfield School from the end of January to keep me busy, which I can say is very similar to Grafham Grange. Only with a fewer behavioural challenges. Unfortunately, my time there has now come to an end after Easter break due to permanent staff being hired in each class.

During my time at Poppyfield, I got to expand my knowledge of SEMH and how it differently affects different pupils in each class. Much like in every previous SEMH school settings I have worked in after Grafham. Also during my time working at Poppyfield, I got to gain more skills in working with students who happen to have something called Pathological Demand Avoidance, or PDA for short.

There was this one boy in year 7, who I was working closely with a majority of my time at the school, who had a complex level of needs. All of which include, ASD, ADHD, SEMH, Trauma, SPD, and of course... PDA. Obviously, I will not be naming this person for identification protection reasons, but I can share with you what I have learned about PDA just from spending time with this pupil, and turning it into another insightful post.

So, many of you reading this now will no doubt be thinking: "What on earth is PDA all about? I've never heard of it before." I'd say, try working with a pupil with PDA, then you'll find out for yourself.

To answer that question, PDA is where a person will avoid doing tasks and/or following instructions given by another person. Particularly from teachers. Although, it is important to keep in mind that people with PDA are not trying to be difficult in any way at all when it comes to not doing what they are told to do. This is because many kids living with PDA, are often overpowered anxiety, and in order to for them to feel safe & secure, they need to be in control of everything they are doing. 

To phrase the above explanation shorter, kids with PDA are constantly living in "survival mode".

As a good example, I'll use the pupil at Poppyfield I was working a lot with. He would almost NEVER go into the classroom to do any work, as his mind is constantly in survival mode whilst at school. And given the amount of needs this pupil has to cope with all at once, the very small demand of doing a simple worksheet will plunge him into overwhelm overdrive.

As a result, this pupil will do things to his own agenda just to feel secure, and in control to help him survive the school day without feeling threatened by anything that triggers his PDA. Even if this includes playing games with him all day. With that said, it's vitally important to be able to build trust with PDA pupils before you can even think about getting them to do what YOU want them to do.

God forbid, I know I have certainly struggled with this, and will probably still do to this day if I get to work with any PDA pupils again in the nearby future.

I hope everyone has found this little piece of PDA expertise helpful. Bye for now!

*I began this post on the 13/4, but didn't finish it until the 14/4*

How spending so much time out of an education setting can have a devastating impact on a young person

Hello everyone! How are we in September already?! I feel like this year is coming & going too fast.

Anyway, I have began a new job on Monday (1st of September) in a nearby college, and as the above title states, I want to share something very important that I have seen for myself whilst I was working there. This is all in the hope that other people reading this will find this post as insightful as it was for me having to witness it. Plus, this will give me something to do whilst I'm off work ill today as well.

On my 1st day working at a nearby college, I was working in a class where there was a boy who would not come into class, and had spent the whole day standing outside. This was all because he had been out of education for a WHOLE year. With that said, just spending 1 whole day in an education setting was enough for him to be overwhelmed, as he has unfortunately been so used to not being in one for this long. 

Now, you'll be asking yourself: "Why was this boy out of education for an entire year?" The answer was (according to my colleague) the school was having problems with him, so they couldn't cope with him anymore. This, in my eyes, is nothing other than totally unacceptable for any young person. Let alone for anyone who has special educational needs, like this boy does.

There is proven evidence that being out of any educational setting for a prolonged period of time can have a really devastating impact on young people, as they fills their head with so much uncertainty, and not having any learning in an actual learning environment makes young people feel anxious, because they will be behind everyone else, regardless whether they are neurotypical & non-neurotypical people.

Although it is valid there are loads of educational settings that are struggling to accommodate SEN kids due to a sky high new cases for ASD, ADHD or any other condition, it is NOT valid for young people with SEN to be out of education just because the education system cannot find a way to cater for their needs. This is why so many SEN kids are falling behand in life due to a lack of education. I know things are getting done to improve the statistics, but this simply cannot continue for the foreseeable...

Luckily, Challengers (the part-time organisation I work for) have 2 specialist settings in Guildford & Farnham that run during the weekday where they support people from the ages of 2 - 18 who are currently out of education. Although they are not education settings in any shape or form, they do, however, provide these young people with activities that will become really beneficial for their social & emotional development. They know what it's like when a young person with SEN feels insecure by having their education placement broken down, as well as knowing the ripple effects it has on their families.

To gain a more visualised insight, I have attached a video:

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*

Growth Mindset VS Fixed Mindset

Happy Sunday all! I hope you've all had a great week, wherever you are in the world. I've mainly been busy prioritizing my self-care throughout this week by not spending too much time on the internet, as spending too much time on the internet does genuinely kill my productiveness.

Anyway, as the title states, I shall be explaining what is a growth & a fixed mindset, as well as explaining the differences between them both. This was another one of those psychology studies which I have learned about back in my 1st year of my Public Services course at college, but had never gotten round to sharing it onto here. The fascinating aspect about this study, is that it can be used to analyse other people's minds. This can mostly be effective for when you are watching studying answer some questions in a classroom. The same method can also apply for when your mind is being studied by somebody else.

What is a growth mindset?

A growth mindset is where you are always looking for ways to learn & grow. This is very commonly used when it comes to making a mistake. For example, when you see somebody being asked to work out a question on chemistry, and they get it wrong, they would want to know where they went wrong in order learn from that mistake.

What is a fixed mindset?

A fixed mindset is where you like to think you are perfect all of time by not making any mistakes. In fact, you try to avoid making mistakes all together for the sake of looking like a genius all of the time. For example, when you see somebody in a classroom copying somebody else's answers in chemistry, because they are too headstrong about making mistakes if they were to provide their own answers. The trouble is that person won't be able to learn how they got their answer in chemistry, as there are no mistakes to help them learn.

Here is the attached picture that shows the characteristics of the 2 contrasting mindsets. Although I may do a separate post on here fir another time, which involves discussing each of them in more detail.

*I began this post on the 29/10/23, but didn't finish it until the 31/10/23*

The psychology behind social media influencers

Good evening everyone, and happy Friday! I hope you've all had a good week doing whatever you've been up to.

As for me over here, I've been busy for the first 3 days with my extra credit, then I had 2 days of doing nothing. As of right now, I thought about doing another blog post, since I currently have nothing else more important to do. 

As the title states, I will be explaining the psychology of what makes people think they are social media influencers. I was actually doing my research on this whilst on my lunchbreak on Wednesday. 

What is a social media influencer?

A social media influencer is a type of person who likes to make themselves look, as well as be popular across every social media existing. They do this by constantly posting what they like doing, with the sole intention of attracting followers, and people liking their posts. 

What makes social media influencers popular in today's society? 

Social media influencers are becoming increasingly popular by the second of every day due to the amount of money they are making just by posting on their social media. This can also be done due to the fact that it's easy to become addicted to social media. On the subject of social media addiction being easy to get into, a lot of people use it to create their own businesses on it to earn money. If we even look at the term 'influencer' this is where social media influencers encourage other social media influencers to get involved in the world of social media influencing by purposely making posts that will make their followers think: "Wow! They look really cool doing that!"

Why do people behave like a social media influencer?

This is because they follow a lot of already social media users all over social media, and they feel like they want to be like them by mimicking their influential behaviour on their social media. Doing so also helps these people, who are under the influence of social media influencers, to feel like they are being social with every single person they are connected with on social media. This would be known as the now typical social interaction. *If anyone reading this is old-skool in terms of this topic, I suggest you take your allergy tablets*

Conclusion: I think we can all agree that social media influencing will STILL continue to get competitively popular in general as time will go on. Moreover on this, social media will still be an effective tool to use when it comes to promoting, marketing or campaigning, which will encourage influential behaviour to their followers. At the end of the day, there is no right or wrong use when it comes to social media influencers, as they can make post their own content on literally anything at all to attract their social media audience. I personally am not into social media influencing, so I do not want to showcase my opinions on here, as it could cause controversy. Link to my research source: https://www.bcu.ac.uk/media/news/blog/are-social-media-influencers-really-that-significant

Anyway, hope you've all found this topic post beneficial by gaining a useful insight into what social media influencers are all about, and I shall be back very soon.

*I began this post on the 20/10/23, but didn't get finished until the 21/10/23* 

Why looking after your mental health is important during the autumn season

Well, October has come around again as quickly as that. Which also means that autumn has officially begun, and those longer nights will be slowly drawing as we head towards winter.

As the title says, I came across this post on the Samaritans Facebook page, and thought that I would share what I have seen on here, so you all can get a glimpse of it as well. Although Samaritans had actually shared the post from another blogging website, called: MentalHealthUK.

Rather than break this bit down into rhetorical question paragraphs, I'll just insert my personal insight, which will explain what I like to do during the autumn period.

First off, I try & make an effort to go out exercising as much as possible during my spare time. This is mainly because I want to keep myself in good shape when the temperature turns colder. But also, I like to do this to keep my mental health in sanity mode.

Whilst on the subject of mental health, I like to keep myself occupied with different things as well. All of which can vary from writing, blogging, drumming, cleaning or even trying out a new hobby. 

It is important to be mindful of your mental health during autumn, as it's easy to just sit back by hardly wanting to do anything at all. To extend this point, this could be down to you suffering from seasonal affective disorder as a result of feeling uninterested in life due to the colder months & those longer nights. This is why keeping yourself busy as possible will help destract you from feeling unactive.

I think that's everything covered for this post now. I hope you've all found this piece of advice beneficial to you, as well as to myself, and I shall hope to publish again sometime next week!

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Since my mindset is now in a good enough place to be working back on here again, I thought about posting some more professional content on here by talking about something which I have learned at college last year. (The title says it all)

Who is the creator?

Abraham Maslow is an American Psychologist whom is famously known for his self-created theory of Hierarchy of Needs. 

What does the Hierarchy of Needs theory mean and why?

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs is a triangle which consists of 5 individual needs. The bottom being the most essential to the top being optional. It is formatted in the way that is is because the needs at the bottom half of the triangle have to be met before any of the other needs.

*The above picture shows the Hierarchy of Needs triangle containing its 5 needs*

Physiological needs: 

As what is mentioned beneath, these are the most essential needs that have to be met before all the other ones above on the triangle. This is because these are the needs which will keep you alive and breathing by managing to provide basic survival needs.

Safety needs: 

Along with the topmost set of needs, safety needs are the second range of needs which centres around prioritising things that help to maintain your safety. It is important to be able to prioritise your safety, so it keeps yourself secure when out & about doing stuff in the world. All of these mentioned factors play a vital role in preventing yourself from insecure harm.

Love & belonging: 

By the time you've met the satisfactory level of both the most vital bottom needs on the triangle, your mind can start to adapt to working on what your love & belonging is. Of course, family being the most obvious, but you could also utilise this need to think about who else you wish to fit into your relationship circle to help you feel connected with other people. 

Esteem:

Now that you've come up this far on the triangle by working on building up the most essential needs, your mind can start to concentrate on building up a reflection of how you want yourself to be. The purpose of esteem being second top is that it gives you the chance to identify your own strengths & weakness, as well as making room by using them to unlock success.

Self-actualisation:

At the summit of the triangle is where you have met every satisfaction of the 5 needs, so you can go out and be the best person you could possibly be by putting the accomplished needs to perfect use for when you get to use them in the world. Don't forget to also put this need to its best use for when you believe you could achieve absolutely anything as humanly possible. 

Conclusion:

If we are talking about Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs in terms of psychology here, it would be defined as prioritising the most essential needs around you to help you survive day in day out to being able to go forth and achieve the best in yourself. In a way, we could otherwise say that you must always start from the beginning to work your way upwards to getting to the top of somewhere, whatever it may be with where you are going in life. There is no skipping this whole process, as it HAS to be done by taking small steps at a time.

For anyone who is interested to learn more about what I've been discussing, click on this link: https://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html 

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 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.