Hope & Harmony Headlines: The Key to Reaching Your Goals

December 30, 2018 at 11:53PM bp Magazine
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Just a Few Drinks Can Change How Memories Are Formed

December 30, 2018 at 11:32PM bp Magazine
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by Carol L. Rickard

One of the holiday traditions I created for myself  is making cookies and then giving them away. It started when I had no money for gifts, so my cookies became the gift!

I started with a cookie my mother used to make when she was alive: pizzelles. These are thin, Italian cookies you can only make two at a time in an iron!

Then several years ago, I added two more cookies: Rocky Road & Toffee Bars. Both involve chocolate and nuts…and are fairly easy to make.

So, this past Friday, at the hospitals holiday party people were thanking me for the cookies and saying how much they liked them.

One co-worker commented on how the Toffee Bars were “TOO GOOD!”

She went on to say, they were what her Weight Watchers group called a “Red Light Food”.

The truth be told – I probably gained 5 pounds because of all the Toffee Bars I ate this year!

Now, I don’t know for sure how many pounds because I don’t like using a scale, but I can tell you this: my pants got much tighter & almost didn’t fit!

I get the theory of the “Red Light Food”.  Stop – don’t go there!

But this didn’t capture what happened to me with the Toffee bars. I literally had NO self-control – I couldn’t stop.   

So, as I was driving home, I came up with this new LifeTOOL:

“Quicksand Food”

What happens when you step in “quicksand”? It pulls you in & won’t let you out!

This perfectly described what happened with the cookies.

Quicksand foods are just like this – the foods that ONCE you start – they pull you in & you CAN’T STOP yourself.

The only reason I stopped eating those Toffee Bars was I started feeling sick to my stomach, otherwise my brain was screaming for more…

The way to use this new LifeTOOL is simple:

STAY AWAY from the Quicksand Foods!

Write in the comment section below what your “Quicksand Food” is…

~ To Living Well TODAY! ~

 

via Esperanza – Hope To Cope
(This and our other articles are provided by some of our curated resources. We encourage readers to support them and continue to look to these sources in times of need and opportunity.)

by Carol L. Rickard

Last week, I shared a LifeTOOL to use for avoiding regrets. I promised to talk this week about how to learn from our decisions and grow.

During the past 25 years of helping people, I’ve discovered there are two places people have a tendency to get lost.

They are…

The Past & The Future

The unfortunate cost of this is, if we are in one of these two places – we are then not present  in TODAY!

Here’s a quote I came up with for my patients:

             ‘What-if’s’ get us lost in the future, ‘Why’s’ get us lost in the past.

How we can learn from our past without getting lost in it comes down to being able to look back but stay in the present  – stay in TODAY!

Here’s the LifeTOOL I created to help my patients be able to do this:

Being able to reflect gives us an opportunity to learn from our past without getting lost in it!

So, you might be thinking: ‘That’s great Carol, but how do I do that?’

Here’s how:

1. Take a piece of paper and write the current date in really big letters in the center at the top of the page.
2. Below that on the left-hand side, write the situation or decision you’d like to reflect on  & underline it.
3. Ask yourself this question: “Is there anything I would do different TODAY?” If so, write down what you would do differently TODAY.

By following these steps, you are able to look back and learn yet most importantly, stay present & anchor yourself in TODAY! 

Let me know your thoughts in the comment box below!

~ To Living Well TODAY! ~

 

via Esperanza – Hope To Cope
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Overcoming Isolation During Bipolar Depression

December 17, 2018 at 01:57PM Anja Burcak
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What To Do When Someone You Love is Diagnosed With Bipolar

December 14, 2018 at 12:08PM bp Magazine
(This and other articles are provided by some of our curated resources. We encourage readers to support them and continue to look to these sources in times of need and opportunity.)