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A New Year has arrived and with a New Year comes new hopes and dreams just bursting to be fulfilled. Losing weight, quitting smoking, and getting healthy are by far the most popular resolutions. And yet the attainability of a resolution has become virtually impossible to achieve for most people. Breaking down goals into pragmatic parts results in more successful outcomes. [More]

You walked the stage on the day of your high school graduation. But will you do it this time around? Though many bright-eyed university students walk onto campus filled with hopes dreams, not all of them leave with a degree. The university dropout rate is 16% in Canada.[1] In the United States, the situation is even worse: a mere 53% of American students actually walk the stage.[2] There are many challenges that make university life difficult, as outlined in Back to School Series: Are you Ready? Unfortunately for some, the academic challenges of university education simply become too overwhelming. Manage Your Time to Manage Your Stress A major obstacle to high scholastic achievement is poor time management. Personally, this was a lesson I had to learn firsthand during my first final exam. I had paid attention in lectures and done most of the readings, but I had not sufficiently prepared myself in the weeks and months leading up to the exam. So, at 1am on the eve of my assessment, I called my parents only to sob on the other end in utter fear of failing. I hardly slept that night. The next day, I dragged myself out of bed and walked down to the examination hall with one eye twitching from lack of sleep. I sat down in a room with hundreds of worried students, and then hurriedly scribbled my answer to the first question. Those three hours were grueling, and all I could think was: “I wish I had studied harder.” Thankfully, I decided that I did not enjoy the end result of my deliberate procrastination. Poor time management had made me into a tired, grumpy, and malfunctioning zombie with hazy thoughts and poor retention skills. After that stressful episode, I turned for help by setting up an appointment with an academic counselor. I also attended a variety of free sessions on how to time manage, study effectively, and manage stress. Combined, they improved my study habits in a way that was tailored to my personality, including my strengths and weaknesses as a student. Thankfully, you do not have to subject yourself to the same level of anxiety and stress that I experienced. Procrastination: The Road to Anxiety According to Palmer and Puri, there is a relationship between the passing of time and your level of stress or anxiety.[3] The closer you are to a deadline for an assignment or the day of an exam, the more likely you are to feel stressed. It follows that the earlier you begin working on an assignment or studying for an exam, the less stressed you will feel and the better you will be able to focus. As soon as you get your course syllabus, draft a study plan that covers all of the readings, assignments, and exams that you will have during the upcoming academic year. Academic Counseling Even better, revise your study plan with an academic counselor – and do not procrastinate on this one. He or she likely has a good understanding of which courses will be more demanding. This can help you achieve a balanced work distribution. Your academic counselor can also help you understand how to study for each course. For instance, a course in history will likely require a heavy amount of readings, while a course in mathematics will probably involve a great deal of practical exercises. These different focuses require different study skills. If you understand what is expected of you, you will also know how to balance your study time and free time. But if you procrastinate, you will probably end up having loads of free time for months and then a combination of stress headaches, cold sweats, and stressful all-nighters at the library - not a great way to end the year. Eat a Frog for Breakfast One of the best words of wisdom I received from my academic counselor was to “eat a frog for breakfast.” The meaning of this saying is twofold. Firstly, do not procrastinate your most challenging work; do your most difficult studying first and then turn your focus to easier tasks or courses. Secondly, work hard and then enjoy your free time – not the other way around. You can only be productive if you eliminate distractions, as argued by Forsyth.[4] To perform well, you need to focus. And this will likely involve studying in an environment – be it a library, a café, a park, among others – where you are not distracted by your fun and gregarious roommate, where you won’t waste your time watching the latest episode of your favourite TV show, and where you won’t be tempted to throw everything aside for a night out with your friends. Learn what your distractions are, as well as when to avoid them and when to enjoy them. Perfectionism Isn’t Perfect Another tendency for some students is to try to do everything perfectly. But this can also become an obstacle to proper time management.[5] Ask your professor or teaching assistant what you need to do to achieve high marks on your exam or assignment. You do not need to read every word of Plato’s The Republic if there will only be one question on the topic. You also do not need to discover the cure for cancer prior to your biology exam. Be reasonable with the amount of time that you devote to each assignment or to studying. You will then discover that you can actually enjoy your Friday night off. Your professors do not expect you to become the next Shakespeare or the next Einstein. You can aim high without going overboard. Time is Not Your Enemy University can be a challenging phase for many students. But you do not need to let poor time management get in the way of a brilliant academic career. Manage your time, and you will find the time to both succeed academically and delight in all the excitement of university life. And if you’re not sure how to plan your studying, then take the time to meet your academic counselor. [1] Postsecondary Status of Young Adults. 2005. Statistics Canada. [online] Available at: <http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/81-595-m/2008070/t/6000011-eng.htm> [2] Porter, E. 2013. Dropping out of college, and paying the price. The New York Times. [online] Available at: <http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/26/business/economy/dropping-out-of-college-and-paying-the-price.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0> [3] Palmer, S., and Puri, A. 2006. Coping with Stress at University: A Survival Guide. London: SAGE Publications. [4] Forsyth, P. 2013. Successful Time Management. London: Kogan. [5] Ibid.

The origins of Thanksgiving have nothing to do with a bunch of Indians and pilgrims sitting down for a bountiful feast of turkey. In reality although the settlers with pale faces had been bothering the Indians in addition to giving them many new diseases they had never had were starving by this time. The Indians took pity on them and brought them some corn and fish. Thanksgiving has a lot of emotional disappointment and this article will show you how to deal with this. This is a period of time in which you are expected to give to others and be generous. Although the intention is good it often leads to self sacrifice and disappointment. This is a period of time in which you must balance your newfound humanitarianism with the demands on your own life. If you do not continue to reach your own immediate goals either at work or at home you will find yourself being irritable and exhausted. Remember that an obligation to give to others does not mean that you have to sacrifice your own needs. You must remember to give yourself some time for your own physical and mental well-being. It is a time when we most often neglect the things we do to make ourselves happy and keep ourselves balanced like exercise, yoga, or other spiritual practices for your own physical and mental well-being This is a time to find some positive solutions to deal with your family members past resentments. Remember that when I family system gets back together it quickly returns to whatever difficulties encountered before. Even if you're the only person in the room aware of this it may help you from dealing with the fallacy that "now that we're all together we must be alright." This leads to the need to decide on your priorities and organize your time adequately. I this will counteract your feelings that you have not a planned enough for Thanksgiving. If you find additional time you can always volunteer to feed the poor would do random acts of kindness. You may also need to have planned out some unstructured inexpensive holiday activity because this holiday evokes a feeling of being served good food rather than organizing fun things to participate in. Spending some time thinking about this will save the day when you are reunited with your family and no one knows what to do. One of the major fallacies are that Thanksgiving will take away feelings of loneliness, sadness, fear, anger and frustration. This holiday is heavily advertised is a time in which everyone appreciates being together. The fallacy behind that becomes clear when you are reuniting with family members and you realize why you have become independent of them. You may find yourself being overwhelmed with anger or fear or worse yet feeling alone being surrounded by your family. The worst emotion that creeps up on this holiday is resentment. It is usually triggered by a previous bad relationship with a family member. Beware of grudges and slights you have suffered in the past and keep them from resurfacing. Thanksgiving is designed to encourage gluttony. This is not an open invitation to eat too much. Remember that most people with eating disorders simply want to have something to control in their lives and to avoid the resentment and self-hatred you will naturally feel after eating way past feeling hungry. This includes other over indulgences. You know by now what you need to keep a careful eye on so that you don't lose control and this may be an opportunity to set an example with other family members who still have raging addictions. You may want to have some contingency plans when they become abusively angry, drunk or chemically impaired. If it the end of the holiday feast you find yourself still feeling depressed or resentful remember what the Indians did. They didn't like these foreigners who is strange customs and behaviors showed such a resentment towards nature that it disrupted and destroyed the Indian culture. Yet they still took pity on these poor starving people and threw them a fish or two.

By Tanya Glover Theravive.com Contributor Having claustrophobia can cause many problems in one’s life depending on the severity of the phobia. There are ways to cope with this condition though and that is what I would like to talk about today. What is Claustrophobia? Claustrophobia is considered to be a phobia but can also be classified as an anxiety disorder. This is because someone who suffers from claustrophobia can be easily pushed into anxiety attacks due to the original phobia. Claustrophobia is a fear of being in enclosed spaces. When most people think of this as being in a small space like a closet it is much more far reaching than that. There are many situations that can make one feel claustrophobic. ØFlying ØDriving or riding in a vehicle ØElevators ØLarge Crowds ØMedical Imaging Tests What is surprising to most people is that someone can become claustrophobic in a large room. Yes, it is a large room but if it is jammed with people then the claustrophobic can begin to feel closed in and this is when anxiety sets in. Many people who have this phobia cannot even comfortably shop in a crowded store. Being in cars for extended periods (or short periods depending on the severity of the fear) can be horrible as well. Personally, the worst for me is when I have to take an MRI; being put in a machine that feels like a coffin puts me over the edge. Everyday things that we take for granted can be nightmarish for a claustrophobic. What Causes Claustrophobia? While there is no one thing that can be blamed in all who have this phobia, the trend seems to be that a past experience in the claustrophobics life may be the root of the present phobia. These past experiences can be conscious or unconscious. If you can pinpoint the cause it can be very helpful in coping with it. For me it was when I was 5 years old. I woke up from a nightmare and jumped out of bed to run to my parent’s room. However, I was still in a daze and the room was pitch black so I was not really aware of my surroundings. I opened the bedroom door and when I tried to get into the hallway I could not. Something was blocking me. I pushed and pushed but it was like a wall was keeping me locked in my room. When I stared to scream my mother woke up and found me in my closet! In my dreamlike state I opened the wrong door and of course was blocked in by a wall! Ever since that night I have suffered from claustrophobia. There are many ways to treat this phobia. ØTherapy ØDrugs ØRelaxation Techniques ØSelf-help Programs Therapy is perhaps the most effective method of treatment for the most severe cases. The most popular form of therapy used for claustrophobic clients is CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy). CBT aims at retraining the client’s brain and reframe their thinking. The hope here is that the fear will be gotten rid of for good. Another CBT technique deals with facing the fears head on and is done by slowly introducing the client to what they fear most until they are desensitized to it and no longer afraid. This has had varying success rates but is still the best hope of actually curing claustrophobia. There are medications available to treat this phobia as well. Usually they are medications specifically for generalized anxiety disorder but can be effective for claustrophobic anxiety as well. These drugs can help put to rest some of the underlying symptoms of the claustrophobia. Relaxation techniques such as meditation, deep breathing and chanting can also help your claustrophobia. These things may not rid you of the phobia but help to keep your anxiety levels manageable and even stave off a panic attack. Self-help programs are a blessing for those who feel like they need to do things in their own time and in their own way. There are many programs out there so do a Google search and find the one that is best for you! How to Avoid Claustrophobic Attacks While there will be times when it is unavoidable, there are some things you can do to bypass a phobic attack. If at all possible, stay close to outside doors. If you are in a crowded room then locate the exits and stay close by to help keep your anxiety levels down. When riding in a car and the weather is nice, roll down the window so you can feel the air. This will make it to where you do not feel so closed in. Deep breathing while in elevators can be helpful as well. Airplanes are quite a different story as there really is no place to go. This is when medications would come in handy. In no way am I advocating drug use to control all aspects of your condition but in some situations it may be unavoidable. Make sure before you take any type of medication that you speak with your doctor first and that the medication is prescribed specifically to you. Taking medications that are not yours can be dangerous and may even worsen your condition. Help is Out There Whatever the cause or triggers of your claustrophobia are, you do not have to suffer in silence. There is help for you. Feel free to try any of the above suggestions and be sure to talk with your doctor about any other treatments that may be helpful for you.

By Tanya Glover Theravive.com Contributor If you are like me (and so many others in the world) and have driving anxiety you know how horrible it can be to be behind the wheel of a car when these anxious feeling kick in. Knowing what your triggers are and having a plan to overcome panic associated with your anxieties is the key to staying safe and possibly overcoming your fears altogether. Triggers for Driving Anxiety For someone with driving associated anxiety there can be many triggers that kick you into high gear. ØDriving in heavy traffic ØDriving in inclement weather ØDriving on interstates ØDriving in an unfamiliar place ØDriving at night Maybe just one of these things trigger your driving anxiety or maybe they all do. Personally, each one of these triggers apply directly to me so if they do to you as well know that you are not alone in this! Why Are These Triggers? All triggers have a root. Unless you suffer for general anxiety disorder, there is some reason that specific conditions trigger your driving anxiety. Listed below are some common trigger roots. ØFear of getting lost ØFear of getting into an accident ØFear of being driving at high speeds ØFear of other drivers in general These are all common roots to your driving anxieties. Again, you can have them all or just one or two but for me it is all of them! I have always had a fear of driving at high speeds and this is linked to the trigger of interstate driving. It was not until after I had my driver’s license for 10 years that I actually took control and learned to drive on interstate highways. I still cannot do it anxiety free but I can do it! Many people also fear getting into an accident which links to all of the triggers! Rain, heavy traffic, speed and darkness can all contribute to accidents. Fear of getting lost and fear of driving in unfamiliar places can also tie in with the heavy traffic trigger. In my mind, if I get lost then I have to find a spot to turn around and this may get me lost even further and put me back into traffic. If I am in an unfamiliar area when I miss a turn then the anxiety amplifies by 10X! Even though I have these anxieties I have learned not to let them cripple me as I do not want to lose the freedom that driving provides me with. You do not have to let it overcome you either. There are things you can do to ease your anxiety in all driving situations that make you fearful so read on to find your freedom! Build an Anxiety First Aid Kit If you know you may get into a driving situation that will bring on your anxiety bring with you an anxiety first aid kit. In fact, always keep this in your car as you never know when the need for it may arise. What should you include in your kit? ØCell phone charger- Make sure you can easily contact someone if you need help on the road. ØRelaxation CD- This can be soothing sounds, classical music or anything else that may be relaxing for you. Mediation tapes are great as well but make sure you keep your eyes on the road! ØGPS- Having a navigation system can help you to find your way around easily and eliminate the fear of getting lost or missing a turn. ØAnti-anxiety medication- If your doctor has prescribed an anti-anxiety medication make sure you keep some in your car at all times. This can help put a stop to your anxiety before it gets out of control. ØA paper bag- While some medical professionals are now saying this is not the best idea to deal with hyperventilation, if you are old school and have used it in the past then throw a paper bag into that kit as well or ask your doctor about other methods you can use for hyperventilation. ØA bottle of water- This is to keep you hydrated (getting overly anxious can dehydrate you quickly) as well as to have something with you to take medication if necessary. If none of these items bring you anxiety relief then there are other options for overcoming it. Self Help Programs Self Help programs can teach you how to overcome your fear of driving and as well as tips to overcome your driving anxiety. A program that is directed specifically toward driving anxiety should include a CD and that can be very helpful to listen to when you anticipate any of your triggers being present. Do not use just any program however. Do your research first and then choose the right one for you. Using Relaxation Techniques Sometimes when our minds become over stimulated due to fear and anxiety it can be helpful to use relaxation techniques to bring your anxiety level down to a manageable range. Try counting, deep breathing exercises and self talk. Self talk is basically giving throwing a pep rally for yourself! Use positive language such as “I can do this” or “this will pass if I just keep my eyes on the prize”. You can also talk yourself through the details of what you are doing and where you are going. The trick to all relaxation techniques is to refocus your mind of something else other than your anxiety until it hopefully disappears. Therapy If your anxiety has become too much for you to handle alone then it may be time to see a therapist. The most common type of therapy used for curing fears and anxieties of all kinds is cognitive behavioral therapy. CBT can help you retrain your thoughts and beliefs and get to the root of the issue. Once the cause of your anxiety if found the therapist can work with you to retrain and refocus your behaviors and negative thinking. Group therapy can also be wonderful for someone dealing with driving anxieties! Just sharing your feeling with others who are going through similar things can be highly cathartic and give you the courage to move forward to overcome your anxiety. Rules for the Road While this information can help put you on the road to success (Pun INTENDED) they may not be enough to totally cure your driving anxieties and you still may be subject to having driving anxiety to the point of going into full panic mode. If a panic attack occurs while you are driving you must take special care not to hurt yourself or others. If you have ever had a panic attack then you will know when one is about to hit. If you can get off the road before it happens then all the better! If you cannot then you must do whatever you can safely do to get the car in park. ØPull over in the first safe place you can find. ØTurn off the engine and practice your breathing. ØGet out and walk around if it is a safe place to do so. If not then recline your seat and lay there will the attack washes over you and finally leaves. ØTake your anti-anxiety meds if that is applicable to you. ØCall someone if you need more help even if that means dialing 911. Driving anxiety is no joke and if you suffer from it you are just one a great many who do so rest assured that you are not the odd man (or woman) out. Take this information and these tips into consideration if you are looking for ways out of the anxiety circle. If you need help do not be afraid to ask for it. By admitting the problem and searching for a way to fix it you are taking the first – and biggest steps on the road to recovery.

By Tanya Glover Coping With Your OCD As someone who suffers from Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder I understand how frustrating it can be to deal with. Each night I lie down in my bed and get comfortable and I am not there for one minute before I wonder if I have turned off the oven or if all the doors are locked. I obsess over small things like if my cat’s water bowl is full or if the closet light is turned off. This is what OCD is all about and over the years I have found ways to cope with this condition that I would like to share in hopes of others being able to benefit from my experience. What is OCD? OCD (Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder) is a type of anxiety disorder. While there are some people who would call themselves neat freaks, that does not mean that they have OCD. This disorder is basically an obsession (fear of touching another person because you are afraid of getting germs) with a compulsion (constant hand washing due to fear of germs). The obsession is a thought issue while the compulsion is the routine done in order to calm your obsession. As I said above, for me it is checking. I check doors, lights, and ovens. I even have to triple check to make sure my four year old is sleeping in a position where his face is not buried in his pillow as I am obsessed with the thought of him suffocating. The symptoms can be different for everyone. Some people have obsessive thoughts about something they think may have happened. For example, a woman drives by a pedestrian and looks back to see if he made it across the street but he is already out of sight. She may turn around to make sure she did not hit him (irrational thought as if she hit someone she would have noticed). She finds that she did not hit anyone and continues on her way. However, the thought grips her again and she must turn around to make sure she really didn’t hit anyone. This could go on for hours for someone suffering from OCD. At What Stage in Life Does OCD Set In? Typically, if you have OCD it will be noticeable at a fairly young age. Rarely does an adult have a sudden onset of OCD symptoms when they were never there before. For me, I realized there was something wrong when I was only 10 years old. I was given the job of caring for a dog for someone in my apartment complex while she was away on vacation. I had to walk across the entire complex at night and walk the dog. Once I did my job and locked the door I could not stop going back and checking to make sure it was really locked. This went on for over an hour until my father came looking for me because I took so long. My parents never saw the signs and just figured I was an odd child. It was not until I was nearly 20 that I was diagnosed with OCD. For those of you with children, make sure that if you do see any peculiar behavior you take it seriously. It may be more than an oddity. Medical Treatments for OCD Once you are diagnosed with OCD your doctor or therapist may want you to try drug treatment. Typically, the first types of drugs that are tried are antidepressants. The reason for this is simple. One theory of why people develop OCD is that they have low levels of serotonin in their bodies. Antidepressants can help raise the levels of serotonin in your body and therefore take away some of the symptoms of OCD. For some people this type of drug treatment works. If you decide to give it a shot then be sure to give the meds a chance to work for you. It may take up to a week for you to notice a difference. If you do not think it is working, do not just stop taking the medication. Talk with your doctor first as all that may be needed is a dosage change. Also, there are some antidepressants that you do not want to quit cold turkey; you must be weaned off instead. My personal experience is with taking the drug Paxil. I took it for over a month and did not like the side effects so I spoke with my doctor and I was taken off the drug. My choice was to go it drug free but this is not the best decision for everyone with OCD so be sure to discuss the options with your doctor before making any decisions. How I Survive With OCD If I am to be honest, it is not always an easy task. There are some nights (night time is when mine kicks in hardcore) I just want to cry because I do not want to get up again to check everything in the house for the 10th time. However, I have actually learned to retrain my thinking in order to cut out some of the unwanted compulsions. · Make a check list of everything you need to do before bed or work; whenever your OCD affects you the most. Then go through the house and as you check everything, mark it off on your list. This may not stop the obsessive thoughts but it can help curb the compulsion to act on the obsession. · Share your condition with your family and friends. They can help put your mind at ease when a hard moment hits. It also helps to talk out loud about your condition because by admitting to it you are in a way freeing yourself. It will not stop your OCD but at least you know that your behaviors are unreasonable and irrational. · As difficult as it may be, if you feel the compulsion to check something do not do it! Repeat to yourself that this is your illness talking and you know for sure that the door is locked/the oven is off/the lights are out. That may not work well for some people and there are times it does not work for me either, but it is worth a shot. Therapy for OCD Therapy is a good place to start dealing with your OCD. This is especially true when using CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy). This type of therapy is aimed at changing the way you think and therefore changing the way you behave. A therapist can give you insight into your problem and come up with a plan to help you to better cope with it. In some instances, the best treatment is a mixture of therapy and medication. Each can help you to treat your symptoms in different ways and both together can be more effective depending on the degree of your OCD. If you feel that your life is out of control and your OCD effects everything in your life negatively, it may be beneficial for you to seek professional treatment. You Don’t Have to Suffer in Silence While this may be an embarrassing illness for you to admit, please know that you are not alone. Hundreds of thousands of people all across the world suffer from OCD. This is a very common anxiety disorder and by reaching out for help you are taking the first and most important step to overcoming this debilitating illness. Talk out loud about it. See a professional for help. Join a support group. (Many support groups can be found online.) Try the tips listed above as well. Just do what you must to take back control of your life and you may just see that there is a light at the end of the OCD tunnel.