• Home

  • Services

  • About

  • Media Portfolio

  • Blog

  • Contact

  • Links

  • FAQ

  • More

    How To Solve Your Sleepless Nights

    October 21, 2019

    Spring Forward Effectively: 5 Tips to Adjust to Daylight Savings Time

    October 4, 2019

    Stress Down Day 24/7

    July 31, 2019

    "Relaxation Techniques: Reduce Stress and Anxiety and Enhance Well-Being" is now downloadable on Audible!

    July 12, 2019

    NEW LIFEBLOCKERS BLOG

    March 11, 2019

    Tis the season to be...gloomy?

    December 19, 2018

    The Holiday Blues & End of Year Stress

    December 17, 2018

    The Benefits of an Approach Mindset

    December 17, 2018

    When Insomnia isn't the only Problem

    November 23, 2018

    Happy Gratitude Day! Five Ways to Cultivate Gratitude in Your Kids All Year Long

    November 21, 2018

    Please reload

    Recent Posts

    Five Steps To Stop Lifeblocking Yourself

    January 4, 2016

    1/1
    Please reload

    Featured Posts
    self-improvement

    Got a Problem? Here are your Options

    January 27, 2016

    |

    Dr. Lillian Nejad

    With every problem, comes a decision:  ‘Am I going to do something about this or not?' How you answer this question reveals your options.

     

    You don’t want to actively solve your problem, here are your options:

     

    Share it:  Some say sharing your problem is halfway to solving it. Talking about a problem can help, but if this is your only response to problems, you may end up driving your friends and family crazy.

     

    Deny it: Well this hardly seems a healthy or viable solution. Often it isn’t. Ignoring a problem can lead to more problems or bigger ones that are more difficult for you to solve on your own. But denial can be a useful coping mechanism for a short time until you are emotionally ready to deal with something.

     

    Avoid it: Avoidance of situations can provide immediate relief, but if used often and inappropriately, it can increase anxiety in the long-term. If your problem makes you unsafe or puts you in harms way, avoidance is a viable and worthwhile option.  If not, avoid avoiding instead.

     

    Reflect on it: Thinking about a problem may be a useful exercise but if reflecting turns into ruminating, this can lead to more problems including sleeping difficulties, anxiety, and depressed mood.

     

    Wait it out:  Sometimes passively waiting for a problem to solve itself or waiting for someone else (in a more powerful position) to solve it is more effective than if you try to solve it yourself.  Patience, in this case, can be a virtue.

     

    You want to actively solve your problem, these are your options:

     

    Solve it! Brainstorm all the possible solutions, pick out the top three and write pros and cons for each, then choose one, plan your approach, and see what happens. Complex problems may require more problem-solving attempts. Nothing’s working? Consider your other options.

     

    Reframe it: Change your perspective. Can you put a different spin on it or use this experience to learn something new or challenge yourself? Is there a silver lining, another door opening, or any other metaphoric opportunity? The way you think about a problem fundamentally affects how you respond to it, and an optimistic outlook is going to help you whether you can solve your problem or not.

     

    Ask for help: Can’t do it alone, enlist help and use the resources in the community that are available to you. Problem too big or personal to tell your friends, see a professional.

     

    Accept it:  The reality is not all problems have solutions, sometimes life just sucks. Acceptance is not a passive state, it’s not giving up, and it’s not saying it’s okay. Accepting is an active choice to see reality as it is, and move forward. 

     

    One final tip

     

    Humour always helps: If you are able to find a way to laugh at yourself or laugh about your predicament, you will not only lift your mood but also your ability to cope no matter what the outcome.

     

     

    Check out blog popcornpsych.com for articles related to psychology and the arts.

    Tags:

    problem-solving

    problem

    Please reload

    ACMI

    BPD

    Borderline Personality Disorder

    Christmas

    DBT

    Dialectical Behavior Therapy

    Emotion Dysregulation

    Gloomy

    HBO

    Holidays

    John Oliver

    John Oliver Live

    Last Week Tonight

    Melbourne

    NPD

    Optimism

    RussellBrand

    SAD

    TED talks

    The Daily Show

    TrewWorldOrder

    acceptance

    anxiety

    candycrush

    change

    choking

    christmas

    comedian

    comedy

    davidbowie

    davidbowieis

    depression

    emotions

    entertainment

    goal-setting

    gratitude

    habits

    health

    holidays

    insomnia

    life-blockers

    mastery

    meditation

    melbourne

    mental health

    mindfulness

    movie

    music

    narcissism

    onlineshopping

    patience

    perfectionism

    pressure

    problem

    problem-solving

    psychologist

    psychology

    realitytv

    regrets

    relaxation

    review

    revolution

    rustyrockets

    sadness