Hap..Hap..Happy New Year!

Welcome to 2009! What a wacky, crazy, fun year 2008 was! We had road-trips, a wedding, new family members, new boyfriends to meet, figure skating competitions to attend, new jobs, concert adventures, and fun celebrations.

I can't wait to see what adventures & experiences this new year has to offer! I hope it brings joyful times to everyone out there!

Wishing you all peace & love, health & happiness in the new year!!!!!

New Year's Eve

It's started...the countdown to another new year. I can't believe this year has flown by so fast! So much has happened, so many accomplishments & events this year...phew! We will be celebrating & ringing in the New Year in style with family tonight.

Here's to all of you out there making resolutions, partying it up 'til the clock strikes midnight, getting toasty on champagne, or just chillin' at home reviewing the past year!

Peace & Love, Health & Happiness!

Relaxation

Ahhhh....now this is relaxed! I've got my lil tootsies in the toasty warm foot bath I got for Christmas, and I'm getting a full Shiatsu massage from my new massage pad (thanks to my honey for some great presents!)! What else could I ask for? Well.....maybe a warm beach, sunshine, a hammock & a cabana boy bringing me little drinks w/umbrellas in them. :) But since that's not happening this week...I'll settle for some warm feet & relaxed muscles!

The new job is awesome! And though it keeps me up on my feet more, it does keep me moving! When you're running, you usually don't have time to pay attention to the clock. One minute it's start of shift, the next it's time to go home! I love the pace so far!

Anyway, I'm going to get back to chillaxin' in my pseudo-spa!

Wishing a happy day to everyone!

Wonderful Weekend!

What an AWESOME Holiday weekend! We had so much fun spending time with family and friends! The parents & in-laws finally got to meet...which was so much fun, as expected. We had a blast going to a local hockey game, chillin' in the amazing suite that Britt hooked us up with, and watching our favorite celebrity figure skater tearing up the ice for an audience of 5,000+!

We spent a TON of time over at the in-laws', playing games, chatting, and just having an overall good time. I'm so glad the older girls could make it out for a bit, even with such scary driving conditions. We were constantly entertained by the boys & their puppy...she is sooooo sweet! I can't even remember all the tasty snacks we ate! And the crowning event of the entire weekend... we got my father-in-law to eat sushi! (Ok, it was "Gringo" sushi - with BBQ pork, chicken, etc from Guy Fieri...but it was still sushi-like). Baby steps...one of these days we will get him to eat the "real thing."

So here's to a wonderful Holiday spent with friends and family. Lots of warmth & love all around! Wishing peace, love, health & happiness for all in the upcoming year!

Psych Series: #2

#2: Histrionic Personality Disorder

Histrionic Personality Disorder is characterized by colorful, dramatic, and extroverted behavior in excitable, emotional people (Kaplan & Sadock, 1998). People with these disorders have intense, unstable emotions and distorted self-images. People with this disorder often base their self-esteem on the approval of others and does not arise from a true feeling of self-worth. This disorder is more common in women than in men and is usually evident by early adulthood.

Signs & Symptoms

• Usually have good social skills, but tend to use these skills to manipulate others so that they can be the center of attention.
• Be uncomfortable unless he or she is the center of attention.
• Dress provocatively and/or exhibit inappropriately seductive or flirtatious behavior.
• Shift emotions rapidly.
• Act very dramatically as though performing before an audience with exaggerated emotions and expressions, yet appears to lack sincerity.
• Be overly concerned with physical appearance.
• Constantly seek reassurance or approval.
• Be gullible and easily influenced by others.
• Be excessively sensitive to criticism or disapproval.
• Have low tolerance for frustration and be easily bored by routine.
• Not think before acting, make rash decisions.
• Be self-centered and rarely show concern for others.
  
• Have difficulty maintaining relationships, often seeming fake or shallow in their dealings with others.
• Threaten or attempt suicide to get attention.

Treatment

Generally people with histrionic personality disorder do not believe that they need therapy or treatment. Treatment plans are difficult for these people as they tend to exaggerate their feelings and dislike routine. People with this disorder may seek treatment for a symptom, such as depression, if the symptom causes them distress.

• Psychotherapy - generally the treatment of choice. This counseling-type therapy helps the individual uncover motivations and fears related to his or her thoughts and behaviors. It also helps the person learn how to relate to others in a more positive way.
  
• Medication - may be used to treat individual symptoms, such as depression or anxiety.

Outcome

Many people with histrionic personality disorder are able to function socially and at work. Those with severe cases may experience significant problems in their daily lives. Those who deal with this disorder daily may benefit from treatment, allowing them to learn more productive & positive ways of dealing with life's situations.

If you or a loved one are dealing with histrionic personality disorder, you can find more information through NIMH (National Institute of Mental Health), the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, or your local psychiatric health care provider.

Wishing you good health and good luck!

Go Broncos!

Cheerin' for the Broncos in tonight's Poinsettia Bowl! Go Big Blue!

Psych Series: #1

In this series you will find symptoms, treatments, and general information about a variety of mental health illness & disorders.

#1: Borderline Personality Disorder

Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is a controversial diagnosis these days in psychology. According to DSM-IV criteria, a diagnosis of BPD requires a person to present with at least five (5) of the following nine (9) criteria:

1. Shifts in mood lasting only a few hours.
2. Anger that is inappropriate, intense or uncontrollable.
3. Self-destructive acts, such as self-mutilation or suicidal threats and gestures that happen more than once.
4. Two potentially self-damaging impulsive behaviors. (These could include alcohol and other drug abuse, compulsive spending, gambling, eating disorders, shoplifting, reckless driving, compulsive sexual behavior.)
5. Marked, persistent identity disturbance shown by uncertainty in at least two (2) areas. These areas can include self-image, sexual orientation, career choice or other long term goals, friendships, values. (People with BPD may not feel like they know who they are, or what they think, or what their opinions are, or what religion they should be. Instead, they may try to be what they think other people want them to be.)
6. Chronic feelings of emptiness or boredom.
7. Unstable, chaotic intense relationships characterized by "splitting."
8. Frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment:

• Splitting: the self and others are viewed as "all good" or "all bad."
  
• Alternating clinging and distancing behaviors (I Hate You, Don't Leave Me).
• Great difficulty trusting people and themselves. Early trust may have been shattered by people who were close to them.
• Sensitivity to criticism or rejection.
• Feeling of "needing" someone else to survive.
• Heavy need for affection and reassurance.
• Some people with BPD may have an unusally high degree of interpersonal sensitivity, insight, and empathy.

9. Transient, stress-related paranoid ideation or severe dissociative symptoms. (This means
feeling "out of it," or not being able to remember what you said or did.)

Other symptoms & attributes of people with BPD:

1. Affect - chronic/major depression, helplessness, hopelessness, guilt, anger (including frequent expressions of anger), anxiety, loneliness, and emptiness.
2. Cognition - odd thinking, unusual perceptions, non-delusional paranoia
3. Impulse action patterns - substance abuse/dependence, sexual deviance, manipulative suicidal gestures
4. Interpersonal relationships - intolerance of aloneness; abandonment, engulfment, annihilation fears, counterdependency, stormy relationships, manipulativeness, demanding, entitlement
5. People with BPD are often bright, witty, funny, life of the party.
6. They may have problems with object constancy. Often, they want to keep something belonging to a loved one around during separations.
7. They frequently have difficulty tolerating aloneness, even for short periods of time.
8. Their lives may be a chaotic landscape of job losses, interrupted educational pursuits, broken engagements, hospitalizations.
9. Many have a background of childhood physical, sexual, or emotional abuse or physical/emotional neglect.

Treatment Options:

• Psychotherapy - used to help people learn new coping skills and emotional regulation.
• Hospitalization - intensive medication therapy in conjunction with psychotherapy sessions. (this method is rarely appropriate for long-term care of BPD patients.)
  
• Medications - antipsychotic drug therapy may be useful for brief reactive psychoses , neuroleptics may be helpful for disorganized thinking and some psychotic symptoms, anti-depressants & anti-anxiety agents may be appropriate at certain times
• Self-Help - encouraging people with BPD to gain additional social support is an important aspect of treatment.

If you feel that you, or a loved one, meet the criteria for this disorder, I encourage you to contact your local healthcare provider or psychiatric professional for more assistance with this diagnosis.

More information about this disorder may be found at:

NIMH - http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/borderline-personality-disorder.shtml

&
http://www.palace.net/~llama/psych/bpd.html

Wishing you good health & good luck!