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The pandemic drove an already challenging situation for youth mental health to crisis levels. One outcome of that trend is a heightened risk of suicide among young people. In this post, we’ll share details about factors driving the crisis and how educators can help identify at-risk students and create an environment supportive of student mental health and wellbeing in their school or district.

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Do you ever find yourself jumping to the worst possible conclusions in everyday situations? When you’re facing an upsetting scenario, do you find yourself preparing for negative outcomes as if they’ll inevitably come true? If so, you’re “catastrophizing” — and you’re not alone. Catastrophizing is a distorted way of thinking that causes people to assume the most destructive outcomes, typically without much justification, sending them spiraling into a loop of fearful thoughts. It’s a behavior that can be easy to fall into and hard to overcome.

Clinical Licensed Psychologist, Patrick Moran, PhD explains, “Catastrophizing takes an often-minor true experience and projects the probability of it being a reality in the future without sufficient and reliable evidence, usually in larger proportions than the original experience. It’s often comprised of ‘Fortune Teller Error,’ and ‘Mind Reading’ where people believe in their accuracy in predicting future outcomes and/or what others are thinking. It can make people very anxious when catastrophic thinking habits are not balanced by contradictory facts, or if the facts are dismissed or minimized.”

The mind-body connection of catastrophizing

Beyond the effects on your mental health, this kind of fearful thinking can trigger strong physical reactions in your body. The amygdala, located in the center of the brain, is activated by fear and alerts the nervous system. This causes a release of adrenaline and the stress hormone, cortisol, which can trigger your “fight or flight” instinct. This instinct results in elevated heart rate, blood pressure, and respiration as well as increased blood flow to your limbs to help you “fight” or “run for your life”.

While this “fight or flight” response is meant to prepare us for danger, the increased adrenaline affects our cerebral cortex, the area of the brain that controls judgment and reasoning, cognitive functioning, and ability to think clearly — ultimately coloring our decision making.

How can I stop catastrophizing?

If this is a common experience for you, you may want to try cognitive reframing, a psychological method that involves identifying and changing the way you view experiences, events, or emotions in order to stop yourself from “making a mountain out of a molehill”. The technique allows you to shift your mindset so you're able to look at a situation, person, or relationship from a slightly different perspective and replace your negative thoughts.

For example, if you find yourself catastrophizing frequently at work, consider some of the situations that may trigger those thoughts. Is it conversations with specific people or working on specific projects? If you identify those potential triggers, you can practice reframing your thinking in advance of the situation to help avoid fearful thoughts. Before facing the triggers you’ve identified, envision positive scenarios and ideal outcomes. Expect the best instead of preparing yourself for negative results or failure. Be specific and walk yourself through an ideal experience. Include details like positive conversations and outcomes. Envisioning these scenarios with a positive mindset can help you avoid fearful thinking and the effects that come with it.

What strategies or tips do you find helpful to promote positive thinking?

If you've found this article helpful, please feel free to share it! Be sure to read the other articles in this series, including The End Of The Mental Health Care Stigma.

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Mental health concerns are not a new topic by any stretch of the imagination, but what is new is the validation and support that has been desperately needed by so many... for so long. Throughout history, people with mental illness have been ostracized, lobotomized, institutionalized, and demonized, but as our understanding of many of these common conditions has grown, so has our capacity for compassion and treatment.

If recent events have taught us anything, it’s that we are all facing private battles, often waged internally. In the United States, an estimated 15% of kids and 20% of adults are living with a mental health condition at any one time. While many feel comfortable talking about mental health, others are still lacking support to find the resources they need.

Culturally, there is still a wide range of thinking when it comes to conditions such as depression and anxiety. While some communities still prefer to encourage their members to internalize their struggles or share them only with leaders, many others have adopted a broader mindset on mental health resources by setting up support groups and treatment centers and speaking openly on topics that were once considered “sensitive”. This mindset shift has led to a more global normalization of mental health concerns — and not a minute too soon.

Here are a few ways you can reduce stigma and bring more awareness to mental health concerns in your community.

• Speak openly about mental health. Stigma is rooted in ignorance, so educating yourself and those around you helps counteract lingering negativity. If you feel comfortable speaking about your own mental health with a trusted person in your life, it may help that person feel safe to do the same.
• Utilize local support groups. Open dialogue often leads to discovery, so having available resources at the ready could be a game-changer for the next person you talk to!
• Share relevant articles. Social media’s influence stretches way past the bounds of what we’re eating for dinner, so if you find an article with a positive spin on mental health, share, share, share!
• Reach out to the experts. If you're looking for someone to talk to about your mental health, we’ve gathered some additional mental health resources to help you find support and information.
  • NAMI
  • Mayo Clinic
  • Children's health

Do you have any ideas to share on reducing the stigma of mental health in your community?

Be sure to check out our article on improving your mental health at work!

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How many times have you gotten into your car after a particularly challenging day, turned on the radio, and suddenly felt your mood improving? Believe it or not, there’s actual science behind this phenomenon. Music’s rhythm and repetition engage the neocortex of your brain, and research supports the use of music therapy for various mental health conditions, including depression, trauma, and anxiety. Creating a “rainy-day” playlist can be a lot of fun and might just save the day tomorrow! Here are a few of our favorites...

Five foot-tapping fan favorites

1. I Can See Clearly Now by Jimmy Cliff — This transcendent, joy-inspiring song perfectly encapsulates the jubilance that comes from a bad day that’s suddenly turned itself around. Look straight ahead; there’s nothing but blue skies!
2. I Got You (I Feel Good) by James Brown — From the iconic “Whoa!” that sets the tone for James’ buoyant lyrics, this ultimate “feel good” song will have you singing along in no time (and you knew that it would now).
3. Happy by Pharrell Williams — Seems as if Pharrell knows a thing or two about turning lemons into lemonade when he sings, “Well give me all you’ve got, don't hold back. Well, I should probably warn you — I'll be just fine.” Clap along if you know what happiness is to you!
4. Young Folks by Peter Bjorn and John — Sometimes we just need to feel accepted, imperfections and all. Young Folks tells the tale of two friends who turn a blind eye to one another’s pasts and choose to live in the moment. If the whistling doesn’t turn your frown upside down, the message certainly will!
5. What a Feeling by Irene Cara — If you grew up in the 80’s, three things are true: You used waaaaay too much hairspray (yes... you did), you got up early every Saturday to watch cartoons, and you kicked and stomped your way through this song like a champ. Your hairstyle may have (drastically) changed and cartoons are now available on-demand, but this song will ALWAYS inspire you to dance right through your life.

We hope we’ve inspired you to create your own rainy-day playlist! If you enjoyed our list of up-beats for down days, check out Five easy-to-implement habits for improving your mental health at work.

 

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You may be feeling the added pressure at work these days, and most days it probably feels like everyone wants some of your time. Here are a few easy tips for maintaining your positive attitude and protecting your headspace in your professional life. After all, you can’t pour from an empty cup!

1. Set manageable boundaries. Blocking your calendar for lunch or focus time and not responding to emails after hours are great ways to protect your “downtime”. Last-minute meetings, impossible deadlines, and covering staffing shortages are all common occurrences in today’s world but reducing as many of them as you can and setting clear boundaries for your valuable time can help give you some sense of control over your day.
2. Take regular “brain breaks”. While our smartphones are often dubbed “tools of mass distraction”, they can be an invaluable means of temporary escape. Taking short, regular breaks can help reset your brain, increasing your overall productivity. Download a few quick games that interest you or keep a light read loaded on an e-reader app and allow yourself a few minutes to decompress when the opportunity strikes.
3. Tackle one thing at a time. If your to-do list should be relabeled as a “must-do-NOW" list, remember that the best way to eat an elephant is one bite at a time. Prioritizing your tasks, writing them down, and crossing them off in order of importance can give you some sense of control over your day and keep you focused.
4. Help your neighbor. While this advice may seem counterintuitive to #1, taking some time to voluntarily help a coworker — instead of being “voluntold” to do so — feels good! If you see someone struggling under the weight of their obligations, ask if there’s anything you can do to help them. Even if you simply shine a little light on a task that seems overwhelming to them, the resulting sense of community will brighten the day for both of you!
5. Keep your visual spaces clear. Much like the chair full of clean laundry mocking us from the corner of our bedroom, we’ve all got “that pile” of paperwork on our desk that’s begging to be dealt with. Just looking at it probably makes you stressed! Schedule 15 to 30 minutes every day to tackle that pesky pile, and (if possible) keep it out of sight.

If you find these tips to be helpful, check out our previous Five tips for improving your mental health post!  

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After decades of battling the stigma associated with mental health and anxiety, we are finally seeing a change in the tide. Every day, more people than ever are seeking help and support for these concerns, and those who once suffered in silence are finding their voice and advocating for themselves and their loved ones. Many others are experiencing “situational anxiety” due to increased stressors at home and work. It can be difficult to eliminate these stressors completely, but there are some ways to reduce their effects, beginning with our daily habits. Here are five tried-and-true daily habits that can help.

1. Dream on. An agile, resilient mind needs its rest. Creating a bedtime ritual (e.g., turn off devices, have a cup of herbal tea, journal, and read a book) can help you “power down” and relax before your head ever hits the pillow. Not everyone requires the same amount of sleep — you might need slightly more or less than eight hours — but ensuring you’re getting enough sleep helps your brain “reset” and prepare for a new day.
2. Gonna get physical! Well, now that you’ll be singing that song all day, let it inspire you! An exercise routine you can stick to will not only help maintain your physical health, it will also prompt your body to increase endorphins, your brain's feel-good neurotransmitters.
3. I feel the Earth move... under my feet. If you work at a desk, get up and move as often as you can. If you’re already on your feet, a quick walk is a great way to take a brain break, even if it’s to the parking lot and back. Sometimes a change of scenery is all you need to gain a fresh perspective!
4. All I can do is write about it. Journaling is a great way to process the events of your day. Find one with some inspirational quotes and prompts to help you get started and keep it on your nightstand and at the ready! Getting your thoughts and feelings out on paper helps to purge the negative and reinforce the positive.
5. On the radio... According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), music’s rhythmic and repetitive aspects engage the neocortex of your brain, calming you and reducing impulsivity. Lyrics can also affect your mood, so choosing familiar songs with a positive angle can help propel you to a more positive frame of mind. Create a positive mindset playlist and press “Play” whenever you need to change your perspective. Singing along is optional, but definitely adds to the fun!

We hope this musically inspired list helps you find and maintain your positive headspace. If you find yourself in need of mental health support, please contact a provider in your area. We wish you all the best!

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Our entire Pearson Assessment team upholds a commitment to ensuring our portfolio of assessments is aligned with the needs of our customers. To that end, we are happy to announce that Pearson and Multi-Health Systems, Inc. (MHS) have entered into an agreement to transfer ownership and distribution of a few select products. 

Effective immediately, MHS will transfer ownership of their “Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale” (PANSS) and “Profile of Mood States” (POMS) products to Pearson. In exchange, Pearson will transfer ownership to MHS of the Stanford Achievement Test, 10th Edition (SAT10), Otis-Lennon School Ability Test, 8th Edition (OLSAT-8) and Aprenda® La Prueba de Logros en Español Tercera edición (APR3). Pearson will continue to distribute and provide customer support for these products.

This partnership ensures the continuity of support for these measures and paves the way for future enhancements while enabling us to continue building a well-rounded family of assessments. We are grateful for the trust you place in us to provide the relevant products and support you rely on as you help those in your care achieve their goals.
 

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“Making someone’s life easier starts with a smile.”

Rashonda Harris doesn’t view her customers as “just another voice on the phone”. She sees each interaction as a chance to connect with her customers, discover their needs, and find the best way to help them — all with a smile. In her opinion, “When you’re the first person a customer speaks to, you’re the ‘face’ of the company and it’s important to make them feel welcome. A smile is contagious; people can’t help but smile back. Even in a remote environment, people can feel a smile... they can hear it in your voice.” Rashonda is the kind of person you want to work with, bringing excellent customer service, tenacity, courtesy, poise, friendliness, and boundless energy to our clients as well as her teammates.

With that being said, she brings more than a smile to her role. Focusing on her customers’ satisfaction brings out the best in Rashonda, highlighting her resourcefulness, humility, and perpetual willingness to listen and research in order to find the best possible solution for each of the customers she interacts with. Rashonda brings out the best in other people as well, and never hesitates to put the customer’s needs and feelings before her own.  

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