Another tip on how to deal with stress

We know when we feel stressed. Our thoughts are flying all over the place, our body is all tensed up, we feel anxious and overwhelmed. Practices in mindfulness suggest that one way to deal with stress is to notice what is happening when we are NOT stressed: to notice...

Ways to Look After Your Mental Health

The Centre for Mindfulness Studies suggests 10 Practical Ways to Look After Your Mental Health (See image for the list). Many of the clients at the Ateneo Bulatao Center acknowledge that they are not very good about doing the following: 1. Talking about their feelings...

Mindfulness and Social Anxiety

Research shows that part of the problem of social anxiety is the clients’ heightened ruminations about what could go wrong in social situations. Their minds get hijacked with their worries and fears and body sensations. Teaching mindful meditation can help take back...

Connecting or Correcting?

What is your goal when you talk to your child today? Is it to correct or to connect? Studies on effective parenting suggest that we must begin with warmth and affection, thus forming the foundation for guidance, boundaries and control. Without the warmth, our efforts...

Leadership and Mindfulness

Discussions between the Ateneo Bulatao Center and leaders of corporations have shown that leaders seem to forget the factor of the self in the equation of effective leadership.  The “self,” as conceptualized in mindfulness, does not refer to personality...

Math Anxiety and Comic Strips

Comic strip creation, as an art, is a viable vehicle to cognitive behavioral therapy. Because art is considered to be an enjoyable activity, comic strips provide means for a safe and secure exploration of unruly and uncomfortable thoughts and feelings (Smith, 1985)....

Explaining “meltdowns”…

One client at the center was recently referred for intense psychological outbursts where she lashed out at her parents and siblings. In therapy, when asked what she wanted as a goal of her sessions, she said she wished to not feel intense emotions. Studies show this...