| Dr. Susan Bartell |
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Dr. Susan is a nationally recognized psychologist, author and speaker. You can learn more about her
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Greetings!
We're about half-way through the summer and I'm already feeling that I haven't accomplished everything I wanted to by this point. Do you know what I mean?
Do you have an exercise or other 'get healthy' goal that you haven't been motivated yet to work on? Do you have a summer reading assignment that you can't force yourself to start? Do you want to have fun this summer, but it feels like it's slipping away because you haven't planned fun stuff? Or do you want to earn money, but you haven't been able to push yourself to work hard enough?
A lack of motivation can interfere with achieving many different goals and it's important to push through this feeling, even during the lazy days of summer...especially as school creeps closer. Read on for some tips that will carry you into the school year.
Dr. Susan |
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Getting motivated! |
There are a few simple things that you can do to become more motivated! Jump start  yourself and begin getting things done--whether it's to lose a little weight, do extra summer school-work, or simply get yourself up from in front of the TV and be more social!
- Focus on one goal at a time. You may lose your motivation becoming overwhelmed trying to achieve too many things at once.
- Start VERY small! If you can't exercise for 30 minutes, or 20...start with 5, or 2 minutes.
- Break a big goal into small ones. If you have a 300 pg reading assignment, read 20 pgs a day; focus on one day at a time. If your goal is to lose 10 lbs, focus on losing 1 lbs every two weeks.
- Post your goal where you will see it.
- Tell someone your goal--parent, friend, and ask them to check in to make sure you're working on it.
- Visualize yourself as if you've already achieved goal: Do this at least twice a day.
- Stay away from negative people--those who think you can't achieve your goal.
- Don't give up if you lose your motivation for a day or even more. No-one is perfect, not even you! Just start again and keep going--you'll do great!
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Painkillers that can kill! |
I just read a study that said 1 in 10 high school seniors have tried prescription, narcotics like oxycodone, morphene, codeine and hydrocodone, for reasons other than pain relief. Many teens are abusing their own prescriptions! Are you?
These medications are very easily addictive--which means you can get hooked on them quickly. What's more, because they depress your nervous system, when you take them beyond the dose the doctor prescribes, you can end up in a coma or worse. What's more if you mix them with another central nervous system depressant--like alcohol--you could EASILY kill yourself!
My advice--don't use your, or anyone else's painkillers for any other reason than you're prescribed. If you feel tempted, give the bottle to your parent to hold. |
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Ask Dr. Susan! |
Q. Dear Dr. Susan,
I'm worried about going back to school. I keep thinking that none of my friends will be in my classes and I'll have no-one to sit with at lunch!
A. It's normal to be a little worried--this is called 'anticipatory anxiety'. But, picture last year and every other year. I'm sure that even if the beginning was new and a little strange, you always found at least one friendly face in each class--even if it wasn't your best friend. And I bet that you can always find someone to hang out with in the cafeteria. It's important to force yourself to focus on the positive parts on the new school year, rather than dwelling on what's worrying you. If you focus on your worries, they're going to get bigger and bigger in your mind--bigger than reality! So start to think about the fun stuff--seeing your friends, shopping for cool new stuff, getting a fresh start. Everything else will fall into place! | |
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