tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38213016817490764642024-03-04T21:47:11.354-08:00Shona Innes - PsychologistPsychologist helping kids, teens, grown ups, psychologists and other helpers.
Author of "A Big Hug" picture books for children.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10659437075466015898noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3821301681749076464.post-43887778248208973432014-12-11T21:57:00.000-08:002014-12-11T21:58:12.958-08:00Kids and gaming: The all-new family battleground<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">I'm sure if you have ever played a computer game or console game you know that they can be great fun and a good distraction. Like anything fun in the history of humankind, though, there is the potential for life to get out of balance if too much of our time is dedicated to one source of enjoyment. Until they are old enough to curb urges and delay gratification (jobs linked to the brain's cortex), children need parents to act as their cortex. Until children fully develop a cortex of their own they need limits set on their exposure to all things that might compete with living a happy and healthy life - they need some limits on gaming time.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: x-small;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">In all of the years I have been in clinical and forensic practice with young people, I have never seen a young offender who has been convicted of a violent crime solely because they played too many computer or console games. Child development is much more complex than that! </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">However there is perhaps a more frequent or common concerning trend and that is where gaming starts to interrupt a happy, healthy and social life for the individual or their family.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: x-small;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">The children I have seen who have developed problematic gaming patterns have usually done so because there's something else that's not-quite-right in their life. Sadly, sometimes there are a many very-not-right things. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="background-color: #eeeeee;">Among families who have presented to me with a child (primary, secondary school or uni student age) with gaming issues, there are some common themes.</span> The children usually declare that they are not being heard or getting a say and sometimes there is a lack of respect or the recognition of needs between family members. </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><em><strong>Similar to adults with internet and gaming issues, children can retreat to the gaming sphere to avoid unpleasant feelings or happenings in their lives.</strong></em> </span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"> Children retreating to games might be avoiding family conflict </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">or other strong feelings like grief, loneliness, family <span style="background-color: #eeeeee;">separation</span> or hurt from bullying, troubles with learning, or lacking a sense of achievement (at school or with friends).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Then, there are the children who just find it hard to comply with requests to turn the game off. Children will always find it difficult to move from an activity they are enjoying to a less-preferred activity. Playing a game is way more fun than cleaning your teeth and getting ready for bed.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Some children who are more oppositional will always find it tough and may need additional incentives to keep the household gaming rules and limits.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">It is rare (in fact it has never happened in any of my clients) that a child complains about having too much time for gaming. </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">I am loathe to suggest a set dosage rate for gaming time, but I'm happy to suggest it should be negotiated. When talking about limits to gaming, tell the child how their time on the computer affects you and other people. Depending upon the age of your child, it's important to assist them to understand their priorities (school work, music, chores, pets, siblings, friends, sleep) and help them to make a balanced decision about how much time would be a healthy amount of time and which days might be best. Sometimes it can be handy to draw up a simple calendar and purchase a timer. Younger children may need a timer set - with a five minute warning so they have time to save their advances.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Once you impose restrictions, don't cave in or make threats - just follow through with regard to the times you have set. There will be most resistance at the start of the limits while they are being tested to see how wobbly they might be. You will likely here how "<em>unfair"</em> it is, how they are the "<em>only"</em> child who has those limits in their class and how "<em>bored"</em> they will be. Stick to your plan. </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Indeed, think about having, at least, one day free of gaming each week or times where, maybe on holiday, there is a longer computer-game-free zone. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: x-small;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">When you are limiting gaming time for your children, be sure you also limit it for the adults in the household as well. Make sure that when you are with your child, that you are <em>with</em> your child and not just sitting next to them while you play or check messages on your phone or other portable device.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">B</span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">e firm about computer and console game time and content limits, but be interested in the themes, characters and goals of their games. </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"> <em><strong>Try to find out what it is they love about the game.</strong></em></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Many of the primary aged children I see would love for their parents to play on the games with them or at least to know some of the characters so that they understand why they are excited or disappointed after having played on a game for a time. Also, if you know what games most interest a child, it becomes easier to suggest </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">a real world equivalent way of pursuing this interest.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Encourage and help children to:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">build up alternative recreation options</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">meet up with friends face to face</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">share meals - maybe even help to cook </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">get to bed at a good hour</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">take part in family life</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">explore art, books, music or even homework</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Computer or console gaming is just one way of millions that everyone can enjoy their free time, but it is no fun when issues about accessing computer and console games become a battleground. All children need limits and everyone needs balance. Keeping an eye out for things that might be making a child seek out more than usual game time, modelling negotiation and problem solving around accessing games provide the best chance for peaceful solutions.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong></strong></span><br />
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<strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Shona’s tips</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></strong></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><strong><span style="color: magenta;"><em>Keep an eye out for the next Big Hug book, "The Internet is Like A Puddle". It will be available in Australia from early January 2015. Ask your favourite bookstore.</em></span></strong></span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><strong>Parents and Carers</strong><span style="color: black;"> - While it is tempting to use computer games as baby sitters, it is really important that someone responsible looks over the child's shoulder from time to time while they play. Set up gaming devices in a more public area in your home. This also lets you check whether your child is playing "on line", with strangers or with people that you know.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
<strong><span style="color: #e69138; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Teachers</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> – Keep an eye out if a child looks repeatedly sleepy in class or if the content of all of their writing and socialising seems game-themed. Whilst gaming may often be one of the limited interest sets of a student who has an autism spectrum concerns, if you see a change in the child over time, be sure to feedback what you have noticed to the student's parents or carers. Encourage children to spend time in groups that do not necessarily share a gaming interest and encourage their development and involvement in non-gaming activities and themes.</span><br />
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<strong><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Psychologists and Helpers</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> – It is often the parents who will present a child with internet addiction issues. It is rare for the young person to acknowledge any problems the first time they are dragged along for a treatment session. Keep an eye out for depression, impulsivity, sensation seeking, social anxiety and attention issues as well as getting a good sense of the family and friendship dynamics. Kimberly Young and Cristiano Nabuco de Abreu have edited a fabulous book titled "Internet Addiction: A Handbook Guide to Evaluation and Treatment" (published by Wiley in 2011) and if you are regularly seeing children or adults with internet or gaming issues, this is a great resource. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"></span><br />
<strong><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Kids</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> – While it is fun to spend lots of time playing games on the computer or console, when people tell you to stop playing, there usually have very good reasons. Sometimes, it doesn't feel like you are being listened to when someone tells you that you can't have anymore of something that you love. Stay cool. See if you can make a deal with the adults and then be very careful to keep your side of the deal. When kids get stuck or bogged on just one area of fun, it can start to take over their lives. Make sure you exercise all of your "fun muscles", not just the gaming ones. </span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"></span><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10659437075466015898noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3821301681749076464.post-30003569621757815792014-08-01T02:54:00.003-07:002014-08-01T02:54:59.548-07:00How do you know if your child needs psychological help?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq4b576JEw6Rfajc56FRjOQTtQhaXzK5L6AwbjyQN5aC0HlmQSfc0Fvl9eZkLbSJ460sPMLhXOWkM6TE2ACndf4YMIdxD7nve8tSxWTlrqqx4ljhPm8dMyDoDybyA6gHDFs6GPMCs_3geB/s1600/P2230869.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq4b576JEw6Rfajc56FRjOQTtQhaXzK5L6AwbjyQN5aC0HlmQSfc0Fvl9eZkLbSJ460sPMLhXOWkM6TE2ACndf4YMIdxD7nve8tSxWTlrqqx4ljhPm8dMyDoDybyA6gHDFs6GPMCs_3geB/s1600/P2230869.JPG" height="150" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">“Your child needs help”
they said.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Something is not right with
him” they said.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Maybe you should take her to
see someone”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">That’s all very easy for
other people to say, but how do they know?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>How do you know if your child has a problem and if your child does have
a problem? How do you find the best person to help them? Surely it takes more
than just “seeing someone”? </span><br />
<br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">How
do you know when your child might need help?<o:p></o:p></span></b><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Yes, there are some days
when we could all use someone to talk to about our worries, fears or problems
and children are no exception!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In terms
of taking your child to see a psychologist, there is a general rule of thumb
that can assist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If your child’s problem
has <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">persisted</b> for some time and is
starting <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">to get in the way of them having
a happy and regular life</b>, then it might be time to consider getting them
(and you) some extra help.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">For a child, a happy and
regular life usually means that they sleep, eat, go to kinder/school, have fun
with friends, maybe they are involved with a class or group outside of school
and generally do what they are told (most of the time).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Things that might indicate that something is
not right could include trouble regularly attending school, taking far too long
and far too many companion toys and glasses of water before going to sleep at
night, melting down at the idea of a sleep-over or school camp or suddenly they
are not meeting the expected targets with their school work or their behaviour
takes a change for the worse. If a child is in danger because of how they feel
or what they are doing, your priority should be to get them help straight away.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">What
does a psychologist do?<o:p></o:p></span></b><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">A psychologist’s job is to help with emotions, learning and
behaviour.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Psychologists use scientific
research to understand how people think, feel and behave and to help them fix
personal problems.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They can help to
diagnose and treat mental health problems, learning issues or challenging
behaviours and relationships.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Psychologists
can work in hospitals, community health centre, for welfare agencies and in
private practice.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">To help a child with a
problem, a psychologist needs to get to know a lot about the child, their
experiences and the situation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They need
to ask personal information and keep it confidential.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In essence, the practice of good psychology
is all much easier to do if the psychologist can make your child feel
comfortable <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">and</i> retain professionalism.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You and your child and maybe even your child’s
school, need to be able to form a good working relationship.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">So,
how do you find the psychologist who is right for you?<o:p></o:p></span></b><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">The Australian Health
Practitioner Regulations Agency (AHPRA) is responsible for regulating many
health professionals in Australia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
Psychology Board of Australia assists AHPRA to regulate the practice of psychology
and protect the community by making sure practice guidelines are kept by
registered psychologists.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Psychologists
must be registered with the Psychology Board of Australia to practice
psychology (by practice I mean to engage in the art and science of applying the
theories of behavioural science to a person’s problem – I don’t mean that they
are still working on trying to get it right).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If someone is not registered with AHPRA/PBA, then they are not legally
allowed to practice psychology in Australia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You can check a psychologist’s registration status, their qualifications
and their endorsements (additional qualifications and supervised practice in a
certain type of psychology) on the </span><a href="http://www.ahpra.gov.au/Registration/Registers-of-Practitioners.aspx"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><span style="color: blue;">AHPRA website</span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Like many professions,
psychologists in Australian have a professional body that represents its
members’ interests.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The </span><a href="https://www.psychology.org.au/"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><span style="color: blue;">Australian
Psychological Society (APS)</span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">
is a group that psychologist can join to help them stay abreast on what is
happening in psychology in the country, to assist with keeping up to date with
new findings and to lobby the government or other authorities about
psychological issues.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Members of the APS
pay an annual membership.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Membership of
the APS is voluntary and psychologists don’t have to be a member of the APS In
order to practice psychology in Australia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The APS has a “Find a psychologist” service, but members also have to
pay to use this service and there are many psychologists who choose not to use
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The “Find a psychologist” service is
largely for private practitioners so it does not tell you about all the
psychologist in your area who might be working in a hospital, community health
centre or in a school. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Your general practitioner
may know the psychologists in your area.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Paediatricians and psychiatrists usually have a good idea about the
psychologists who work with young people in their area. I always like to think
that people could ask their doctor, paediatrician, psychiatrist, school
principal or teacher...<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“If it was your child,
which psychologist would you want them to see?</i> “<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Better still, call a few
psychologists in your area and have a talk with them about what they do and how
they do it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You will need to ask about
the costs of meeting with a psychologist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Your doctor should be able to tell you whether any rebates apply to psychology
fees.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">You might also want to ask
the psychologist about their qualifications.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The qualifications and requirements for being a registered psychologist
have changed a bit over the years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There
are psychologists who have doctoral or masters level degrees from universities and
some psychologists who have gained some of their qualifications from university
and from learning in the field.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some
psychologists will have additional qualifications and experience in certain
areas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Psychology is a growing
profession and the research and information about the most helpful ways to
assist others and it is important that a psychologist stay up to date.
AHPRA/PBA keeps track of psychologists’ additional qualifications and they also
check whether psychologists are keeping their skills up to date.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><o:p><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></o:p></span></i><br />
<strong><u><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Shona’s tips</span></u></strong><br />
<br />
<strong><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Parents
and Carers</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> – Don’t
be frightened or put off by suggestions that your child get some help.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You know your child. Listen and watch them
and spend time with them in the places or at the times when the issues seem to
be biggest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you do decide to see a
psychologist for your child, you may want to see the psychologist on your own
first.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(You’ll need to check whether a
session without the child is eligible for any rebates because this is sometimes
a tricky area with funding bodies). Seeing the psychologist alone can mean you
can talk without little ears hearing your worries.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Alternatively, ask the psychologist if you
can have some brief time alone with them before the child joins you for each session. If you are still not sure about the type of help that would be best, you can always call <a href="http://www.parentline.com.au/"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><span style="color: blue;">Parentline</span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> or its equivalent in your State.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<strong><span style="color: #e69138; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Teachers</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> – It helps to encourage a family to
engage with a psychologist if you can tactfully explain what you are seeing
that concerns you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It can help if you
find out a few psychologists in your area that may be able to assist so that
the family has less leg work to do to engage with a psychologist.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<strong><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Psychologists
and Helpers</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> – Make
sure you take time to welcome young people to your service with an age
appropriate greeting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t try too hard
to be “hip and jiggy with it”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Children
can tell when you are faking it or trying too hard and this can be
off-putting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Make sure you have some
age-appropriate reading material in the waiting area and also that you have
some “things and stuff” to visually demonstrate concepts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Children don’t usually sit down opposite a
grown up to talk. Be prepared to take some time to play or engage and explain
what is going to happen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<br />
<strong><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Kids</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> – Seeing a psychologist doesn’t
mean that you are looney or crazy. You would probably be surprised to know how
many of your friends have seen someone else outside family and school to help
them with different problems.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may
never know which of your friends is already seeing a psychologist because
psychologists are good at keeping that information to themselves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s not something they want to blab
about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can find out more about what
it might be like to see a psychologist by visiting </span><a href="http://kidshealth.org/kid/feeling/emotion/going_to_therapist.html"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><span style="color: blue;">http://kidshealth.org/kid/feeling/emotion/going_to_therapist.html</span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span><br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10659437075466015898noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3821301681749076464.post-84413829856102421222014-07-22T00:16:00.001-07:002014-07-22T00:23:53.700-07:00<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: x-small;">Workshop/Information session</span></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 48pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Teenage
Girls <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 28pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Things you should “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">totally”</i> know</span></span></b></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><v:stroke joinstyle="miter"><v:formulas><v:f eqn="if lineDrawn pixelLineWidth 0"><v:f eqn="sum @0 1 0"><v:f eqn="sum 0 0 @1"><span style="font-size: large;">A biopsychosocial look at mental health during the adolescent years including:</span></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:formulas></v:stroke></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">
</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDxLaia6gkzyNZP30iGyWnXScytWf07-9oWmupHOFsCgK5artZeKUwBPu48-rAhzHV7MOJYKYdhw4m7gE_ZRnpTGfxHdjapKxZx-31Qag1MZNy3jkgzF_yQZN8jGiIVKlnVG2kYT8SO7Sw/s1600/P3021007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDxLaia6gkzyNZP30iGyWnXScytWf07-9oWmupHOFsCgK5artZeKUwBPu48-rAhzHV7MOJYKYdhw4m7gE_ZRnpTGfxHdjapKxZx-31Qag1MZNy3jkgzF_yQZN8jGiIVKlnVG2kYT8SO7Sw/s1600/P3021007.JPG" height="200" width="150" /></a><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Brain development</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Identity formation</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Risk taking – substance use, self harm</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Relationships</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Socialising and social media</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Counselling, parenting and support<o:p></o:p></span></span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">A framework for
understanding what might be going on for her.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #100c57; font-size: 24pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;">Shona Innes<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #100c57; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Senior
Clinical & Forensic Psychologist<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">499 Hargreaves Street (Corner Myrtle & Hargreaves Sts)</span></b></span><br />
<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 18pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Daytime: Saturday 23<sup>rd</sup> August 11-12.30<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 18pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">or </span></span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 18pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Evening:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wednesday
20<sup>th</sup> August 6.30-8<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 18pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">$45</span></span></b></div>
<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Limited
places available</span></span></i></b></div>
<v:shapetype coordsize="21600,21600" id="_x0000_t202" o:spt="202" path="m,l,21600r21600,l21600,xe"></v:shapetype><br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Phone
Irene or Alicia <span style="color: #990000;">5443 2284</span> or email <span style="color: #990000;">admin@bendigopsychology.com.au </span>to secure your
place with a payment.</span></span></b></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10659437075466015898noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3821301681749076464.post-47023512351076116342014-07-20T02:56:00.002-07:002014-07-20T02:57:55.647-07:00Talking to your child about media coverage of tragedy<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSdou45BJyab9a5rw7w1YJCpwz7aaPUHepaPkuku9kRHh0dyTBctZxjFJQAnP6zg6jUX5m7NWQm5ruiPBfTLDK_lGS_5wtOVLnfRuWZGEP-qf_brNGtjcedOWQkQGepAXs014pWnwCMIMU/s1600/P2230855.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSdou45BJyab9a5rw7w1YJCpwz7aaPUHepaPkuku9kRHh0dyTBctZxjFJQAnP6zg6jUX5m7NWQm5ruiPBfTLDK_lGS_5wtOVLnfRuWZGEP-qf_brNGtjcedOWQkQGepAXs014pWnwCMIMU/s1600/P2230855.JPG" height="150" width="200" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The world is not always a predictable place.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes it can be just cruel and
awful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This week, the incident involving
the Malaysian Airlines passengers flying above the Ukraine has been a terrible
example of the unexpected side of the people of our world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Our special wishes need to be extended to all of those who are some way
involved or related to those who lost their lives in the tragedy.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">News of such a tragedy usually starts to flood our heads and
our homes via screens or over the sound waves. Often, the updates are accompanied by graphic pictures on the
television and in the papers. Special updates interrupting normal viewing or
listening habits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our conversations and
our tones of voice change.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, it is important
that we are mindful of our children’s responses to these kinds of events.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The way that we react can affect the way that
they react and how they learn about the world and coping when tragedies
occur.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong><em>If your child seems to be upset
about it, how do you explain or counsel them when it is truly an atrocity?</em></strong></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Depending on your child’s age and understanding, you may
want to explain the known circumstances.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>For a late primary school child, if they have questions, you may like to
get out a map and just briefly (and age appropriately) explain the goings on in
the Ukraine – “a place where people are fighting about who should run and make decisions about their
country”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The newspapers have some handy
diagrams you can use to explain the areas of the world that are involved. Look for reliable and sensible information and screen it first before showing your child.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">It might also be handy to explain
to your child that whenever their is an awful event, some people who are sad will sometimes get angry or want to blame
someone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> You might see or hear some of these people in the news. </span>Sometimes sad people want answers to their questions. Some questions have no easy answer or the right answers can take time to get.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
it is understandable that people might be upset. </span>More anger usually doesn’t fix things, but if your child feels angry,
help them to express it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They might like
to write a letter to someone they think is important or who they think could make thing
better in the future.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">If your child is sad, in a grieving kind of way, they might
like to write about their feelings, draw a picture, light a candle or plant a
flower or shrub in the garden.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They may
need a little extra time at bedtime and a few more hugs. It is perfectly okay to feel upset by upsetting events.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">If your child is anxious, it can be helpful to reassure them
about the things that you know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Be sure
to explain about the role of news broadcasts in our lives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I like to tell children that the reason news
is called "news" is because it’s not something that happens every day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If it was something that happened every day,
it would not really be "news".<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> We might even have to call it "olds". </span>“CHARLIE EATS BREAKFAST” is not a common headline.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Charlie
eats breakfast every day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s not a
"news" thing. It happens everyday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The news reporters like to
talk about things that don’t happen very often.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The reason these event are news is because it is something that happens,
thankfully, very rarely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The chances of
it happening are usually very small.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While
this horrible situation did actually happen, it would be silly and sad to spend time ruining our
life with worry about something that happened so rarely. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also usually say that </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong><em>"if worry really could
help, then I would tell everyone to worry their hearts out"</em></strong> </span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">but worry just
tends to make us uptight and upset and we are better to spend that thought space
being kind to others and doing nice things.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">If your child is truly distressed, it is a really important
time to try to make life as predictable as it can be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Try to make bedtimes and meal time’s routine.
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do whatever you might normally do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It can be tricky when normal television
programming is replaced with scenes of a traumatic incident.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If that is happening a lot at your place, maybe switch off the news channels. It might be a good time to get out a packet
of cards or a board game and have a family games night instead of watching the
"tele".</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">If your child starts to change their behaviour (more
fearful, clingy, challenging than usual) over a lengthy period of time they may
need some extra help.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Be sure to let your child's teachers and other carers know that they are not quite themselves. </span>Talking to your GP is a good place to start. Your doctor can help you workout if further psychological intervention might be needed.</span></div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10659437075466015898noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3821301681749076464.post-25215694455577196682014-03-31T00:14:00.001-07:002014-03-31T00:14:24.207-07:00"Tell Me About Your Childhood"<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"></span><br />
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why psychologists want to know and the
implications for healthy child development<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiACQ1I1rPPSez0rDeUYeLsg5u6S_Mzz1bUgIYI5i94r6EJSOfl1gLSBGk9wSybFrNQsnSB5uY8CYjMbL8ON0uoBJtDVz70RAPfDCUpjd3XWe_0Q9ZU-YmEmHUk-XMOqnIJrye7jXl8WfBA/s1600/P2230923.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiACQ1I1rPPSez0rDeUYeLsg5u6S_Mzz1bUgIYI5i94r6EJSOfl1gLSBGk9wSybFrNQsnSB5uY8CYjMbL8ON0uoBJtDVz70RAPfDCUpjd3XWe_0Q9ZU-YmEmHUk-XMOqnIJrye7jXl8WfBA/s1600/P2230923.JPG" height="150" width="200" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">As t</span>he amazing human brain develops, it moves from a pretty
primitive state of jumbled up nerve networks, through to a very complex series
of coordinated networks over the years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The first networks that come on board start to link our senses to our
brains – we can start to see and hear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>As we age, our biology and our growing experiences connect pathways and
we are able to do things that are more complex – so complex that some of our
brains can even master algebra, fly fishing or a baking a sponge cake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br /></div>
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our brains also start to become more efficient.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We start to prune back the pathways we don’t
need so that we can become more efficient at what we do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At about age 25, the pathways in our brain
are covered in an insulating substance called myelin, which essentially stops
messages leaking out on their journey along the pathways and we get even more
efficient at the things we practice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Some things even become automatic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">So, as we journey through life, we are taking information
into our brain and trying to work out where it should fit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In essence we make a set of rules, core
beliefs or schemas upon which we build up our bank of ideas about how the world
works and what is going to work best for us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The rules that govern our thoughts, feelings, and behaviours are buried deep
within our brain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Each of us has a unique
bank of rules because we all started with varying biology and then from the
very get go, we all began to experience the world differently.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><em>The things we experience in childhood, and while our brain is
still developing, may be pivotal to the ways we choose to cope when a problem comes
along.</em></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">As we develop through life, we take in new information and
either decide to keep the rules we have, alter them, or get rid of the rule
completely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I see a man and make a friendly
comment to him one day and he turns away, the way I make sense of his behaviour
is likely linked to what I have experienced before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I have experienced a lot of rejection,
then I may not think much of his reaction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If I have had lots of acceptance before, then I might find his reaction
odd.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the man is wearing a hearing aide,
I might decide that he may not have understood me and I might try again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The ways I interpret the other person’s
reaction will depend on my past experiences of other people in similar
situations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What I do, think and feel
next will also be determined by how I have automatically interpreted his behaviour
in my brain.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><em>This is just one little scenario – imagine a lifetime of
scenarios built up in our brains!</em></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">If we face a problem and we do, think or feel something that
takes that problem away or makes it more bearable, then we will remember what
works and keep it for next time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If a
rule is never tested, then it’s likely that it never gets adjusted to fit our
new circumstances. If I was frightened by a dog once and then avoid dogs for
many, many years then it’s likely that my rule that “dogs are frightening” will
stay because it has never been tested.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The other problem we might face is that we come across a
situation where we have become quite set in our ways.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes, we get a problem and none of our
past rules seem to work, but we might still keep on using them anyway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It could be that we are lonely and we have a
rule that tells us not to approach new friends because we worry that they will
be mean to us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Making change takes
effort and insight. If we keep doing something that doesn’t work, then there’s
usually a reason behind that, too – it may not be obvious but it might be
buried in our pile of rules way down deep. </span></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">So, when a psychologist wants to know a little bit about
your past, the psychologist is looking for some of the most important events that
occurred in your life as these are the ones that will likely have left you with
your strongest core beliefs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If your
core beliefs and the automatic thoughts they lead you to generate are working
for you, then life should be sweet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some
of the rules we laid down very early in our childhood may not have been tested
for some time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you have some core
beliefs that are built on some faulty or out-dated logic, then it might be time
to run a system’s upgrade. </span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Problems can be great opportunities to consider our core
rules, think about an update for our beliefs, readjust our networks, and learn.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">As parents, carers, teachers and therapists, it’s important
that when a child has problems, we encourage them to problem solve, to think
about the advantages and disadvantages of what has worked or not worked
before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some children will do this
automatically and some, for various reasons of biology and experience, may need
more help. There are very few absolutes in life, so we need to be sure that we
promote flexible thinking in children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What we model and say, the things we celebrate, and the kinds of
achievements we praise can all assist a more flexible and adaptive system of
responding to the inevitable ups and downs life brings us.</span><br />
<br />
<strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Shona’s tips</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br /><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"></span></strong><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><strong>Parents and Carers</strong></span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> – Listen to your own thoughts and see what beliefs you keep telling yourself. Be especially vigilant when you feel a strong emotion rise in your belly - this is usually a sure sign that a core belief has been activated deep inside your brain. Some of the core thoughts might relate to your parenting and why you come down so hard on your children for some things, but turn a blind eye to others. You might find this <a href="http://www.cci.health.wa.gov.au/docs/Dep-MHP_Thought-trifold.pdf" target="_blank">worksheet by CCI</a> a handy reference for identifying and working on your more troublesome thoughts.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"></span><br />
<strong><span style="color: #e69138; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Teachers</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> – Keep an ear out for the core beliefs that children may have with respect to their learning. You might hear them out loud when you suggest a new task or give them feedback on a test. Some students may be stuck in a faulty belief system that tells them that they are not a good learner - "I suck at maths" or "I'm no good at sport". Encourage children to gently test their beliefs with safe and well-thought-through challenges to their automatic thinking.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"></span><br />
<strong><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Psychologists and Helpers</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> – Some of you may have some core beliefs that stop you from being as helpful as you might be. If you think you have some thoughts interrupting your process of therapy with a client, be sure to speak about them the next time you have supervision or a peer consultation. You may need to work on a plan to make sure that any faulty thoughts that you have about yourself as a clinician or helper are highlighted for some gentle work. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"></span><br />
<strong><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Kids</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> – When you get a strong feeling in your body, check in with what your brain is saying. You might want to write it down, draw it or share it with someone. Don't worry if you can't do it at first - it's a little bit like trying to chase a butterfly. Sometimes thoughts just flit in and out really quickly, but the important ones tend to hang around for awhile.</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10659437075466015898noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3821301681749076464.post-52731160984431540562014-03-15T23:03:00.004-07:002014-03-15T23:56:38.929-07:00Kids These Days - What's Going On Out There?<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Every day, the phone rings
at our psychology practice with a range of calls about children with problems. Parents, carers, doctors, psychiatrists, paediatricians, teachers and welfare workers all call about children that need help. We get calls about tots, teens and "tweens".</span><br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPFvTw6uARu1mzyamDDWVoUeEAh3hOagyUBXD0A5yNqhhI55smL8CCm00Wrrwpg36nqu4MpxtX6CVMHIK1iSWyampRyFw2tzezcmRlysoKlon5neWBQQZWANcyz2R_Jc6uvtaPlOkRwKL9/s1600/P3020998.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPFvTw6uARu1mzyamDDWVoUeEAh3hOagyUBXD0A5yNqhhI55smL8CCm00Wrrwpg36nqu4MpxtX6CVMHIK1iSWyampRyFw2tzezcmRlysoKlon5neWBQQZWANcyz2R_Jc6uvtaPlOkRwKL9/s1600/P3020998.JPG" height="150" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> Looking at the types
of calls coming through can tell us a bit about what is going on for kids out there these days. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">The health and happiness of our children is a great measure of how we are doing as a society.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span>So, if children aren't healthy and happy, what are the things that are
not working for them?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What is it they
need?<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">In no particular order,
here is a broad sample of our current, most common, requests to help young
people and some ideas about what these problems tell us about children's needs. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Please keep in mind that the enquiries we have won’t include the huge
number of wonderful things happening for children in the world.</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember, in a psychology practice, we are
always going to see a skewed sample. It’s the nature of our business. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Anxiety
– There are so many things in the World you could be worried about.</span></b></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">When we see children who
are anxious or frightened, it tends not so much to be about the fear of the dark
or the bogey men anymore.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It seems to be
more of a generalised sense they have that the world is a dangerous place.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Children might reflect the anxieties of their
grown-ups. For some children and their families there is so much heightened
arousal about the world and their role in it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There is so much that can go wrong or so much that you might get wrong –
exams, fitting in, missing out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
child is convinced they need to be constantly prepared for catastrophe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Children
need a balanced view of the world – sometimes it is beautiful and sometimes it
is tragic – always has been and, likely, always will be.<o:p></o:p></span></i><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Friendship
and loneliness issues – from bullies to heart break.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></b></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">A number of children present
with significant sadness and worry about having no friends, feeling left out or
being avoided by other who used to be friends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Some have broken hearts - not necessarily of the boyfriend/girlfriend
type, but more about the abandonment of previously held friendships. Some of these
children have autism and developmental problems and need help with skills.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is so easy for some children to give up
and stop trying to make friends because they can get so caught up in what’s wrong
with them that they just don’t see how much of them is perfectly fine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Children
need connections.<o:p></o:p></span></i><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Family
breakdown – Can you really hate your ex more than you love your child?</span></b></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">The time and effort that
ex-partners can put into hating each other is astounding.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is tough to see a child who loves both
parents being torn because the parents are at war with each other. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s great to know that many separated
families can do an exceptional job or raising a child across two homes, but the
Family Court is still busy with the couples who have a situation so complex,
that the child or children miss out on so much of what is needed to be settled,
healthy and content.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Long and extended
Court battles over custody seldom bring out the best in grownups. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Children
need grownups who put their needs ahead of their hate for the ex-partner</span></i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They certainly don’t need to hear what an awful person Mum thinks Dad is
or vice versa.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Self
harm – Trying to find ways that can soothe when life gets hard</span></b></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Self harm - cutting,
burning or injuring yourself - has spiked in referrals in recent years and can be
complex to understand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Ironic as it sounds, s</span>ome of the presenting
self harm issues are attempts to soothe when life gets too hard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes talking and posting about your self harm is a way to belong with a large
online community - an attractive proposition to the otherwise lonely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span> The more recent trend in referrals to treat self harm include younger children in their late primary school years. Self harm is something that needs a
proper, professional assessment. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Generally speaking, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">children need to be encouraged to speak up
about their problems to attentive adults and to learn how to soothe themselves
without the need for inflicting pain on themselves, or others.<o:p></o:p></i></span><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Child
maltreatment and trauma – Oh, how I would love to live in a world where
children could grow up without early exposure to abuse or neglect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></b></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Brain research is now showing
us the biological and long term impacts of child maltreatment on young brains
and the protective factors that abound when there is healthy early attachment
to a predictable and loving grown up. Attention problems, hyperactivity,
anxiety, depression, anger and difficulties regulating
emotions and behaviours can all stem from abuse and neglect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mum and Dad may love you, but they may also
be what I call “parentally-challenged”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Their substance abuse issues, working hours, or their priorities about
keeping up with the Joneses can trump time at home with the children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These days neglect can also mean long hours
spent on the internet or gaming devices without supervision or without someone
to tell you to go to sleep or eat some breakfast. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Children
need safety, affection, attention and boundaries.<o:p></o:p></span></i><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">The
cyber world – faster, broader, easier to access, difficult to monitor, but the
way of the future.</span></b></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">At the nuisance level, children
(and indeed adults), can have trouble moving from a most preferred activity to
a least preferred activity – asking a child to get off the computer can
sometimes cause a huge reaction. There can also be a gap between what Mum and
Dad know and what children are actually exposing themselves to online. At the
more sinister end is the exploitation of young ones who inadvertently click
or swipe their way into a dangerous liaison.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There
is also a trend to seeing more young people in trouble with the Law for sharing
too much of themselves, or too much of their boy/girlfriend, with
others. On the other hand, there are not too many school rooms with chalk boards
these days – chalk boards may as well be stone tablets etched Fred
Flintstone style. Connection to the cyber world is a really important part of current educations and learning.</span><br />
<br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Children
need to be exposed to the cyber world because it will continue to be a large
component of their lives and future lifestyles.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>However,</span></i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">children need someone on yard duty in the cyber playground!</i><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Access
to substances – using alcohol and illicit substances can make the dumb
decisions sometimes expected in adolescence, even dumber!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></b></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">It would be great if we
knew that children were never going to be exposed to substances that could harm
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of the most harmful substances
are the ones that are legal and<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>used
often in the household.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While the brain
is still growing, it needs to be sheltered form additional toxic chemistry
associated with alcohol and drugs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
thrill seeking that naturally accompanies adolescence means that often alcohol and substance
use is combined with fast cars and other potential dangers. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Children
need to learn about harms and their risk-taking in age appropriate ways and to
feel supported to make a brave, smart decision even though it may be unpopular
with their friends.<o:p></o:p></span></i><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Perfectionism
and body image – Eat (or starve), sleep, school, repeat. <o:p></o:p></span></b></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">While eating disorders
remain some of the most dangerous mental health problems amongst young people,
there is also an insidious amount of perfectionism sneaking into to the belief
systems of our younglings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some young people can
freeze or melt down at the thought of making a mistake or not getting an “A” on
an assignment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are driven to make
tighter and tighter rules and higher benchmarks for themselves to avoid an ever
present fear of letting someone down or not being good enough. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Children
need to know that it’s human to make mistakes and to know that they are already
so very loveable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is also a need
for children to understand the importance of balance and healthy fun with good
friends.<o:p></o:p></span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><o:p><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">So, the issues that
children bring to their psychological treatment reflect a lot about what is
going on in our society.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Child safety
and the need for affectionate and warm relationships with grownups are still
paramount. Their current issues show difficulties adapting to, and getting the
most out of, our fast paced and changing society without compromising
themselves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Children need healthy and
safe grownups and lots of opportunities for connecting and communicating with
others to help them find their way.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<strong><u><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Shona’s tips<o:p></o:p></span></u></strong><br />
<br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #9bbb59; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: accent3;"><span style="color: blue;">Everyone</span></span></b><span style="color: #9bbb59; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-themecolor: accent3;"><span style="color: blue;">
-</span> </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">It’s really important
to remember that there is always going to be more right with a child than
wrong with them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When we help, we need
to consider what is happening with their developing biology and brain and their thinking and beliefs, but also their home, their school, their friends and the society that they live in.</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10659437075466015898noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3821301681749076464.post-49923571678396992962014-03-07T22:58:00.002-08:002014-03-07T22:58:50.292-08:00The Chook Brain and the Cortex<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIAAMze4w4Tb-Q_mNdIFaPCS2aqJW2Bi80nYSfGN1d08ofmSu2PjipZ081jszymUJIU6_JSH9n0e4ENfjaJBmYWlyDUM6EXLZiw8AO6dT0VRxM10dtS1cffl8gFuQgkg499YQV1pcysUGe/s1600/P3020977.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIAAMze4w4Tb-Q_mNdIFaPCS2aqJW2Bi80nYSfGN1d08ofmSu2PjipZ081jszymUJIU6_JSH9n0e4ENfjaJBmYWlyDUM6EXLZiw8AO6dT0VRxM10dtS1cffl8gFuQgkg499YQV1pcysUGe/s1600/P3020977.JPG" height="200" width="150" /></a><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The human brain
never ceases to amaze me. It is truly an amazing piece of equipment made
up of miniscule and precise parts that coordinate and move our body in ways we
think about and ways we don't even have to think about. You would think
that having had a brain for as long as humans have existed, we might know a bit
more about it by now. Technology and machines that go "ping"
are helping us to advance our knowledge further and further each day. In
the meantime, I find it easy to explain a lot of human behaviour by
thinking about the brain being made up of sections or parts that each have a an
important job to do when we react to things.</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The brain seems to
have some really quite primitive parts and some really extra clever bits.
The primitive parts are the bits that look after our essential survival -
things like breathing, eating, pooing and running away from dangerous things.</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The
Chook Brain</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I have two
backyard chickens, Daphne and Valma. Now, while I love them lots, I can acknowledge that Daphne and Valma are great
at eating, pooing and laying eggs, but they are not great at more complex
things like playing the piano, helping me with my homework problems
or knowing the difference between my vegie seedlings and weeds. Compared
to human brains, Daphne and Valma have very primitive brains. Daphne and
Valma have chook brains that help them with the things they really need to know
how to do - eat, poo, lay eggs and run away from danger - "Bercark!!!"</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Humans have
a part of their brain that is kind of like a chook brain. The chook brain part
in our brain is really quite primitive and responsible for helping us with basic
jobs and with keeping our bodies safe.</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span><strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Cortex</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">As well as a chook
brain, we humans also have a part of the brain that allows us to do all those
things that chicken cannot do - solve problems, think things through, focus on
one thing for a long time and put off things that we want to do because there
are other things we know are more important. This region of the brain is
generally referred to as the human cortex. </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It takes about 25
years for humans to have a fully grown cortex. When we are newborns, our
brains are very primitive. When we are newborn we can poo and eat and
startle if we get a fright. As we age and our brain grows, the
cortex gets able to do more and more things. </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Until we have a
fully developed cortex part of our brain, we really need to borrow the cortex
of safe and loving adults to help us make good decisions.</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Reacting
to Threats</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The other amazing
thing about our chook brain and cortex, is how they react to danger. If something is a really big
threat, then our chook brain (the bit that looks after us if we need to run
away) kicks in and takes over total control of our brain and body. If
it's a really big scary thing, our chook brain will get us ready to run away or
to fight it off. </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">When you think
about it, this is really important. If you are, say, walking through the
jungle and see a tiger, this is not a good time to sit down to do
homework, remember to get milk and bread on the way home, make and eat a
sandwich, or to calculate the square root of a very large number. We
don't have time to use our cortex much.</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">When you see a
tiger in your jungle, its a good time to run - and run fast. Our chook
brain helps us do this. The cortex shuts down thinking and planning and our
body gets ready to take care of us. Our heart goes faster to beat more
blood to our big muscles, our breathing changes, our muscles get tense, our
vision changes, our bellies can get uptight and sore (and our bowels can
get loose), we get sweaty and all we can focus on is the scary
thing. "Bercarck!!!"</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">After we have run
from the tiger or have beaten it down with our bare hands and big
oxygen-rich-blood-filled muscles, we
can take a big breath out and sigh with relief. Our cortex can start to
come back online. We can start to think, remember and make sense of more
things. The process of moving from chook brain to cortex mode might
take awhile and we can feel a bity wobbly while this happens and sometimes we
can be on high alert for quite some time.</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span><strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Tigers These Days</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">These days, not
many of us come across actual tigers in jungles. Many of the things our
brain thinks are scary are ideas or worries or memories that frighten
us. We can go chook brained even just thinking about or imagining something
that threaten us - an accident, a trauma, or something that causes death -
bodily death or social death. We don't run or take on too many tigers,
instead we react in a range of different ways - maybe tantrums, panic or meltdown.</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span><strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Calming the Chook Brain</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The chook brain
and the cortex have lots to answer for when it comes to managing anxiety,
worries and trauma. They can also help us understand what we need to do to be
able to stay calm and help children (who don't yet have a fully grown cortex)
to stay calm.</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">To get to know
your chook brain a little better, think about the things that threaten you or
that might be threatening your child. The threat may be real and
current, a memory of a past threat (trauma) or a prediction about a threat
that hasn't even happened yet (worry). </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Get to know the
early warning signs that you (or your child) are about to go chook-brained. Do you notice a change in your heart rate, a change in your breathing, or
tightness in your muscles? When you notice the warning signs, try to keep
a hold of your cortex or step in to help your child use more
cortex. Check in with your breathing and try to slow it and try to
encourage your child to do the same. Try to stretch your muscles or check
in with your thoughts to see if you really need to be so alarmed. Think,
say and do things that will soothe you and soothe your child.</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">When your cortex comes
back, have a talk about what happened and use your full brain to problem
solve plan ahead for what you might do if the scary thing, thought or
memory comes back again. Your child might like to draw or write a story or poem
to help them.</span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Shona’s tips</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<strong><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Parents
and Carers</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> –
In your role as the extra cortex for you child, be sure you try to model
healthy ways of dealing with fears and worries. Your child will look to
you when they are unsure and if you look calm, they will fell better. If you
look like you are chook-brained......then there may be more than one of you
going "Bercarck!!!".</span><br />
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<strong><span style="color: #e69138; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Teachers</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> – Children who are chook-brained
are not going to be able to concentrate on learning. <a href="http://www.ccyp.vic.gov.au/childsafetycommissioner/downloads/calmer_classrooms.pdf" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Calmer classrooms</span></a> is a great resource for assisting
children who have been traumatised, but also can give you ideas that can calm
many anxieties in children.</span><br />
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<strong><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Psychologists
and Helpers</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> –
Make sure you don't make assumptions about what may soothe your client based on
the things that soothe you - different things soothe different people
differently. Encourage them to explore, experiment and gather the
information for themselves. <a href="http://www.cci.health.wa.gov.au/resources/infopax.cfm?Info_ID=44" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">The Centre for Clinical Interventions</span></a> has some useful
workbooks for adult clients.</span><br />
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<strong><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">Kids</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> – You might like to draw a
picture about what you are like when you are chook-brained and where
you notice it in your body. It might also be nice to keep a box full of
things that make you feel relaxed and calm - things to cuddle, things that smell
nice, nice music and sounds or pictures of people you love. Staying calm
helps you keep your whole brain working together.</span><br />
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