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Parent and Child Psychological Services PLLC 
941.357.4090 (Office)/ 727.304.3619 (Fax)
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The Benefits of Gratitude By Kirsten Ellingsen, Ph.D.

11/23/2019

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There are proven benefits to gratitude. Research has established a positive association between gratitude, happiness, and well being. People who frequently feel and express gratitude have shown increased positive emotions, lower stress, improved physical health, and stronger romantic relationships.  Even writing just a few sentences expressing gratitude each week for 10 weeks was linked to reports of higher levels of optimism, increased amount of exercise, lower rates of illness, and generally feeling better about life for adults. (To see a list of physical, psychological, and social benefits of gratitude see the following article https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/why_gratitude_is_good.)
 
Cultivating gratitude begins with a practice of noticing, appreciating and expressing (or thinking about) what is good and appreciating what someone else has done. It increases with deliberately taking time to recognize moments and express thanks for what might sometimes be taken for granted (clean water, food, safe shelter), the important people in our lives, the actions of others, opportunities or enjoyed experiences. It runs counter to entitlement.
 
Positive associations between gratefulness and happiness, satisfaction with life, and engagement in school has also been found for children and teens. Helping children express gratitude can help build connection and positive relationships. It can encourage resiliency when faced with challenges, frustration, and disappointment. (Acknowledging feelings of frustration or disappointment before helping children or teens refocus or identify something they are grateful for is also important to show and model empathy). Gratitude is a positive emotion and can balance out negative emotions and lead to positive behaviors. Parents can increase their children’s awareness of good events and moments when they occur.
 
Promoting Gratitude. Based on the positive outcomes identified in their research Jeffrey Froh & Giacomo Bono outline 32 specific strategies to building gratitude in the book Making Grateful Kids; the following 7 themes were identified to underlie these strategies:
 
1. Model and teach gratitude
2. Spend time with your kids and be mindful when with them
3. Support your child’s autonomy (help them take ownership over their skills and talents) 
4. Use kids’ strengths to fuel gratitude
5. Help focus and support kids to achieve intrinsic goals (as engaging in activities that provide community, affiliation, and growth)
6. Encourage helping others and nurturing relationships (to help children strengthen their relationships, encourage children to be thoughtful of others, to thank others regularly, and to be cooperative, helpful, and giving)
7. Help kids find what matters to them
 
Activities.  Parents can encourage their children by building daily habits that focus on identifying and expressing what they are thankful for and what is good or going well in their lives.
  • Make it a routine to talk about something good that occurred during the day at dinner time or bed time (e.g., the best part about today, a fun experience I had, I am thankful for, I enjoyed…)
  • Make a gratitude jar and have children write notes all week to put in the jar and then review together at the end of the week
  • Share prayer, meditation or mindfulness
  • Teens and older children can keep a gratitude journal of things thankful for
  • Write thank you notes
  • This Turkey on a Table can be used in November to help identify and document what each person in a family is thankful for: https://turkeyonthetable.com
 
 (For adults, Robert Emmons, a leading expert on gratitude and professor of psychology at the University of California, Davis also provides recommendations to build gratitude in the article “10 Ways to Become More Grateful” https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/ten_ways_to_become_more_grateful1/.  
We are grateful for the children and families we work with and support, and wish you a Happy Thanksgiving!
 
RESOURCES

https://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletter_article/in-praise-of-gratitude
https://www.webmd.com/women/features/gratitute-health-boost#1
https://www.health.harvard.edu/mind-and-mood/in-praise-of-gratitude
https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/seven_ways_to_foster_gratitude_in_kids
https://kidshealth.org/en/teens/gratitude.html
https://kidshealth.org/en/teens/gratitude-worksheet.html?ref=search
https://www.therapistaid.com/worksheets/gratitude-jar.pdf
https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/seven_ways_to_foster_gratitude_in_kids
​

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EMDR Explained By Tara Motzenbecker, MA, NCSP

11/12/2019

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Parent and Child Psychological Services is now offering EMDR as one of our many empirically supported modalities. 

EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. It is a form of therapy that helps people heal from trauma or other distressing life experiences. EMDR is recognized as an effective treatment for trauma by many organizations including the American Psychological Association and the World Health Organization. 

Our brains have a natural way to recover from traumatic memories and events. This process involves communication between the amygdala (the alarm signal for stressful events), the hippocampus (which assists with learning, including memories about safety and danger), and the prefrontal cortex (which analyzes and controls behavior and emotion). While many times traumatic experiences can be managed and resolved spontaneously, they may not be processed without help. Stress responses are part of our natural fight, flight, or freeze instincts. When distress from a disturbing event remains, the upsetting images, thoughts, and emotions may create feelings of overwhelm, of being back in that moment, or of being “frozen in time.” EMDR therapy helps the brain process these memories, and allows normal healing to resume.  The experience is still remembered, but the fight, flight, or freeze response from the original event is resolved.

EMDR therapy does not require talking in detail about the distressing issue, or homework between sessions. EMDR, rather than focusing on changing the emotions, thoughts, or behaviors resulting from the distressing issue, allows the brain to resume its natural healing process. EMDR therapy is designed to resolve unprocessed traumatic memories in the brain. Part of the therapy includes alternating eye movements, sounds, or taps. 

“Recent research has demonstrated that certain kinds of everyday life experiences can cause symptoms of PTSD as well,” says Francine Shapiro, the originator of EMDR. “Many people feel that something is holding them back in life, causing them to think, feel and behave in ways that don’t serve them. EMDR. therapy is used to identify and process the encoded memories of life experiences that underlie people’s clinical complaints.”

HOW DOES EMDR THERAPY WORK?
The therapy heals trauma by teaching a patient skills to handle emotional distress and using stimulation such as eye movements and taps.

Before beginning EMDR, the therapist will teach coping skills and strategies so the patient feels safe and grounded. The therapist will also work to increase the patient’s resiliency and teach the patient skills to self-regulate emotions. Once prepared, the patient can identify negative feelings and beliefs that may have developed as a result of the experienced trauma. The EMDR process helps patients release the impact of trauma from their minds and bodies so that they feel stronger, safer, and more secure. 

EMDR is shown effective to help with life’s small ‘t’ traumas (distressing events that are not inherently life or limb threatening, yet still leave us feeling helplessness such as parenting a child with complex behaviors, a traumatic delivery or childhood bullying) as well as life’s big ‘T’ traumas (the larger events such as a natural disaster or a car accident).

​Please reach out to us at (941) 357-4090 for a free phone consultation with Tara Motzenbecker to determine if these services could assist you, a family member, or your child. 


​
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    Parent and Child Psychological Services is a private practice serving children and families in the Sarasota, Florida area. The practice is owned and operated by Dr. Gibson, a Licensed Psychologist who is Board Certified in Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology. ​

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Parent and Child Psychological Services PLLC 
info@childtherapysrq.com
941.357.4090 (Office)
727.304.3619 (Fax)                                                                                                                                                               
4071 Bee Ridge Road, Suite 204                                                                                                              
Sarasota, FL 34233                                                                                                                                   
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