Next week (March 9th) is ‘World Panic Day’- a day aiming to highlight how this overwhelming feeling of anxiety can lead to sad, difficult and frightening thoughts and why it is so important to support people in staying calm during stressful situations. Yet, modern days lives can make it extremely difficult to remain calm even when suppressed emotions cause major freak outs and in some cases, nervous breakdowns.

A stereotypical image of somebody struggling with an eating disorder is a thin, teenage girl battling anorexia. Yet, the truth is eating disorders come in all shapes, sizes and genders, and it isn’t always possible to tell if someone is struggling with one just on appearance alone.

The truth is depression is a complicated process. It is a mental health condition that affects the way a person feels about themselves, the way they think as well as the way they sleep and eat. It is often misused in daily language as we aren’t able to physically see a person is struggling, but there is a clear difference between sadness and depression.

When visiting Bali, there are plenty of opportunities to discover spirituality and connect on a deeper level. Here are some of the top ways to experience this kind of healing energy and gain a deeper sense of self improvement.

Stress can cause you to feel overwhelmed, frantic and sometimes on the verge of tears. But new findings have found that stress is more dangerous than that: it can actually cause serious havoc on our body.

A new study has revealed that as we age, our circadian rhythm shifts and we feel tired later. So whereas young children need around 11-13 hours of rest a night, teenagers require around nine hours of sleep compared to when we reach adulthood and need about 8.[1]

We all know it is good to move our bodies, for both fitness and mental health. Whilst the effects on keeping active are often evident on our physical bodies- weight loss, toning, reduced blood pressure, a reduction in symptoms such as asthma, etc. Less evident is the effect exercise has on our mental health.

Have you seen the Netflix film ‘A Marriage Story’ yet? The Oscar-nominated film describes itself as exploring how ‘a stage director and his actor wife struggle through a grueling, coast-to-coast divorce that pushes them to their personal and creative extremes’ [1] Praised by critics as presenting a very real take on the breakdown of a marriage, it portrays the struggles- both physical and emotional that are often attached to our personal relationships.

If you are somebody who is struggling with anxiety, stress or other related disorders it may be time to consider ‘binaural beat therapy’. A self-help treatment that is incredibly easy to do (you literally listen to a specialized audio through your headphones)  it is a form of sound therapy which  is making waves in the therapy world for all the right reasons.

But what does it actually entail and how can it help me? Read on to find out more…

2020- a whole new decade! As we begin a new year it is a good time to evaluate our lives, draw a line under what has come before and set positive intentions going forward. Whilst setting resolutions is a good thing and can be a goal to work towards, setting the bar too high and being restrictive can lead to loss of willpower and an increase in anxiety. Many people use ‘January’ as a month to experiment with the changes they would like to make- not only does this help focus on the present rather than the end goal (making you more likely to succeed) but it enables change to be implemented gradually, letting your mind and body adapt.

Recently Dr Jeremy Alford welcomed 50 psychology graduates from around the world who came as part of SLV global- a company providing students and graduates from around the world the opportunity to gain valuable, practical psychology work experience – to Ubud Bali where he gave an informative talk on aspects of his work around mental health.

What is CBT?
You have probably heard of CBT… but do you know what it actually is?CBT (otherwise known as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is a treatment which uses psychotherapy. It works by placing emphasis on the fact that many of life’s problems arise when we have negative thought patterns and or behaviours. (This refers to the ‘cognitive’ part).

Bali: It isn’t all coconuts, palm trees and rice paddies- although it’s close! Better known as the ‘Island of the Gods’ Bali is an island closely linked to spirituality, religion and mental wellbeing. Often those struggling with depression, anxiety, burnout or just poor mental health, in general, are subjected to an environment which fuels this. Think chaotic, busy cities, where you are forced to move at a hectic pace, have little time for self-reflection and little opportunity to de-stress. This is why we believe at Choices Personalized Retreats that environmental factors are so detriment to full recovery.

For many, admitting you need help is one of the hardest steps towards recovery but it is also one of the most important.