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The Pennsylvania Psychological Association's Public Information Newsletter

 Psychological News You Can Use


March 2013

Christine Carson-SaccoPublic Education Workshops are Coming!

The Pennsylvania Psychological Association will again be sponsoring a series of Psychology for Everyone Workshops for the Public on Thursday, June 20, and Friday, June 21, 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., at the Hilton Harrisburg, One North Second Street, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. These Psychology for Everyone Work- shops will be presented by experts in the field of psychology. All sessions are FREE, and will address topics such as stress, self-esteem, and topics of concern for families. The psychologists will also answer questions from the audience. The brochure will be available at www.papsy.org in May.

Hope to see you there!

 

Christina Carson-Sacco, Psy.D.
Licensed Psychologist
PPA E-newsletter Chair
www.TheCenterInWarrington.com
In This Issue
Parenting Teens Using Drugs
Five Ways to Deal with Difficult People
Workplace Bullying
Improve Brain Power by Using Exercise
 
Quick Links

Barry Lessin

Parenting Teens Using Drugs:
Get Back into the Driver's Seat of Your Family

Barry Lessin, M.Ed., CAADC

 

If your teen is getting high, you're likely to feel like you're in the back seat with regard to control. A harm reduction approach can help you return to the driver's seat where you belong.

 

What Is Harm Reduction?

Harm reduction is a public health approach acknowledging peoples' affinity for engaging in risky behaviors, like using alcohol, other drugs and participating in unsafe sex.

 

Examples include designated driving and safe sex education programs, which focus on alternatives to policies prohibiting risky lifestyle choices. Harm reduction respects peoples' right to make choices, shifting the focus from restricting risky behaviors that your kids are likely to do anyway to reducing the likelihood of harms associated with them.

 

By viewing complications of drug use and addiction as a treatable medical problem instead of a moral failing or crime, harm reduction reduces shame and stigma, can improve relationships with your children, and may increase their willingness to change behaviors.

 

   Continued...  

Michelle Herrigal
Michelle Herrigel, Psy.D.  

 

Maybe you have someone in your life like this: That "friend" who always has to "outdo" you or put you down, the co-worker who always takes credit for your work, that cousin who calls and you feel exhausted when you get off the phone, or that parent who constantly makes comments about your spouse, your life choices, or your home. 

  

Research shows that we all need relationships and that positive ones are good for our mental health. But what about those other people, the ones who, after a long conversation or day at work, leave you feeling depressed, depleted and drained?   

 

Everyday, we encounter difficult people. I will give you some tips to deal with these people and minimize their negative impact on your life. There are many more strategies, but it's a great start. 

  

1. The first, most important thing to do when dealing with a difficult person is to accept them for who they are. Easier said than done, right? For sure. But if you can do this one simple, but extremely difficult step, it will improve your happiness and significantly decrease your frustration. 

 

Understanding that we cannot change people and we can only be responsible for our own behavior can change your life for the better. Trying to change others into what you want them to be will only make you a more difficult person to deal with. 

   

2. See the best in others. If you focus on the negative, you will only see the negative in people. It's like the old saying "If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail." When you only see the negative, all of your interactions become focused on this aspect of the person. If you can see the positive, the person will be more appreciated, your relationship will become deeper and more meaningful, and the level of conflict will decrease. 

 

Continued...

Cabral, Gail

Workplace Bullying:

We're Not in High School Anymore!

Gail Cabral, IHM, Ph.D.

 

No, we're not in high school or middle school. We thought we'd have the freedom to choose the groups we'd belong to in adulthood; we didn't know the issue of bullying could rise again. However, bullying does happen in the workplace, in ways that are similar to what occurs in schools.

 

The Situation

Schools are by their nature constrained social worlds. You don't get to choose who goes to your school. How is this like the workplace? In most workplaces, unlike the friendship circles we choose as adults, we are embedded in a social world we neither created nor populated. For certain hours of the day we work with a set group that we usually cannot change. 

 

We often need to set work goals and plan work strategies within this group. The products of our work are needed by our co-workers, and/or they need the outcomes of our efforts. The interdependence of co-workers can lead to wonderful solidarity and cooperation. However, it can also lead to bullying behaviors in a situation we cannot easily leave or change.

 

 

Christie Sworen-Praise
Improve Brain Power by Using Exercise 

Christie Sworen-Parise, Psy.D.

 

Just as athletes need physical exercise for peak performance, so does the everyday person.  Exercise not only has physical health benefits, but sharpens our mental skills.  Whether you are a student wanting to do better on exams, an adult working in the professional world, or a senior wanting to preserve your cognitive abilities, exercise can help you!

           

Research has shown that exercise contributes to brain development and improves memory in adults and children (Chaddock et al., 2010).  Our brains can adapt to our environments from birth into our senior years.  Let's help our children become cognitively strong individuals, enhance their learning capacity for new information, and improve their overall memory.

  

A recent study done by Chaddock et al. showed that children's brain development is linked to physical fitness. The researchers studied the brains of 9- and 10-year old children and found children who exercise have a bigger hippocampus than their less fit peers. The hippocampus is part of the brain's limbic system and plays an important role in making long-term memories.  

  

Benefits of exercise on brain power:

  • My hippocampus is bigger than yours! Kids who exercise tend to have a bigger hippocampus and perform better on memory tasks.  A physically fit child's hippocampus is about 12 percent larger than their not-as-fit peers'.
  • Sprout new cells. Exercise helps our brain grow new neurons and strengthen cell survival.
  •  Breathe in oxygen. It's free! Oxygen is a necessary component of brain function and development. Physical exercise increases oxygen flow to the brain and reduces the risk of memory loss later in life.  

                                                   Continued...

                              Sign up here to receive PPA's quarterly Newsletter: 

Psychological News You Can Use

 

Written by PPA psychologists for everyone interested in 

how psychology impacts their everyday life.

 

Topics include issues related to business, parenting, education, mental health treatments, forensic information, addictions, prison concerns, legislative events, and much more!

 

 

Basics of Harm Reduction and Effective Parenting

Meet your child "where he or she is." Research shows that change occurs in predictable stages. So rather than forcing change, you're more likely to engage your teen in any process of change by starting where she is currently in her beliefs and attitudes about her drug use.

 

Small positive steps. Any change can be overwhelming and so we resist changing all at once. Taking small positive steps gives us confidence as we go and increases hope.  Hope is healing and provides energy to move forward.

 

People use drugs for reasons. Think of your own substance use, past or present, in terms of your 'relationship' with the substance.  The substance makes us feel a certain way, depending on how, when, and why we use it.

 

Substances themselves are not a problem, but how we choose to use them and the consequences associated with them can be. You're actually doing a great job communicating if your child shares reasons for getting high. Hearing reasons can be scary, but reflects a positive step toward better communication.

 

Acknowledging risks and harms. Demanding zero-tolerance for drug use is a natural protective parental reaction, triggered by fear of your child's risk-taking. Often, we forget that we were once teenagers, struggling with normal teen challenges of establishing independence, testing limits, taking risks, and learning from our failures.

 

Acknowledging that kids may use drugs despite our attempts to restrict them doesn't mean you're condoning their use. They'll be more willing to share with you if you reflect their unique reality, though. The goal is to balance their safety and healthy autonomy, while staying balanced yourself.

 

Compassion. Research shows that kids generally do better throughout life when parents connect with them and lead with a light but stable hand, staying engaged but allowing independence.

 

The emotional and behavioral instability of your teen can push you out of your 'driver's seat,' motivating you to become even more firmly resolved to ensure your child's safety. But setting unrealistic limits can push down your teen further when he's already feeling like a failure and disappointment.

 

Focus on his strengths. He needs a positive connection with you to move forward, because humans respond favorably to compassion and flexibility--characteristics essential to effective parenting.

 

Education. Harm reduction emphasizes providing unbiased information based on good science and research. Teenagers want information given with honesty and faith that they can make their own minds up.

 

Teens prefer to learn from their friends, but whether they admit it or not, the wisdom we share resonates with them because at some level they can appreciate that their parents once faced similar problems, and at some point down the road that wisdom may come in handy.

 

There are no 'right' answers. Trust your instincts. You know yourself and your child best. Let your instincts inform the path you take to balance providing a safety net and autonomy.  There are no 'right' answers. Do the best you can; that's often enough. If you find that it's not, consult with a psychologist who specializes in addictions for guidance.

 

Resources: 

Safety First: A reality-based approach to teens and drugs

 

Community Reinforcement and Family Training, by Robert Meyers, Ph.D., and Brenda Wolfe, Ph.D.

 

Barry Lessin's Website

 

Addiction Psychologist Associates

 

Barry Lessin, M.Ed., CAADC is a licensed psychologist and Certified Advanced Drug and Alcohol Counselor in private practice in Fort Washington, PA. 

 

His passion is working with adolescents, young adults, and their families, and as a public health advocate working to change the drug policies in our country that stigmatize and criminalize drug use, thereby creating barriers to accessing care for those seeking treatment.

Article2Workplace Bullying, continued... 

Descriptions and Definitions

Bullying in the workplace is defined as "repeated, health-harming mistreatment." It can include verbal abuse, sabotaging work, or threatening, intimidating behaviors. Workplace bullying shares with schoolyard bullying "the exercise of power through the humiliation of the target" and the fact that the target is unable to get away from the situation. The bully can be a person in authority (the teacher or the supervisor) or a peer or group of peers. In both situations (the school and the office,) it can escalate to include others "who side with the bully, either voluntarily or through coercion."

 

Effects of bullying

Many studies in the U.S. and across the globe have researched the psychological and physical effects of bullying on targets: stress, lowered self-esteem, depression, anxiety, difficulties with eating and sleeping, high blood pressure, trouble with relationships at home, and even post-traumatic stress disorder.  Workplace bullying adds the possibility of job loss, destroyed career advancement, and decline in family income. In addition, the business or workplace itself suffers from lack of energy and attention to the needs of the business or agency. Often the best and most productive workers are targets of bullying because they are perceived as a threat to others. The organization experiences high turnover, decreased productivity, lessened creativity, and poor public relations.

 

How Often Does This Happen?

Some sources find a high prevalence of bullying at work. Studies across several Western nations, including the U.S., found between 35% and 50% of employees report being bullied or harassed at work. A website supported by the Healthy Workplace Campaign estimates that 37% of workers have experienced bullying at work and an additional 12% have witnessed it.

 

Who Bullies?

"School-age bullies, if reinforced by cheering kids, fearful teachers, or ignoring administrators, grow up as dominating type people." Bullies may arrive in the workplace when we hire them. They are dominating, controlling individuals whose aggressive behaviors have been reinforced over time. They may have found bullying useful to gain prestige and power in school situations and may have masked immaturity or a lack of self-confidence by intimidating peers. These behaviors were rewarded and have become habitual. As is the case in school bullying, peers may join the bully, support the bully, admire the bully, or attempt to be completely unengaged.

 

Bullies in the workplace may also be supervisors or managers. Their desire to have control is inappropriate and they use their position to humiliate their employees. Also, they may be overwhelmed with their responsibilities; their management skills may be inadequate for the tasks on their plate. They may feel their positions are threatened by articulate and skilled employees who seem to challenge their authority.

 

In addition, workplace bullying may develop because of conditions at work. Highly competitive work sites, characterized by poor management or unfair labor practices, not only cause stress in the worker but also make workplace bullying more likely.

 

What To Do About Workplace Bullying

Employers need to address situations immediately when bullying is brought to their attention. They also need to be sure job expectations are clear and that appropriate levels of autonomy and challenge are present in their arena. Management needs to have adequate supervision of staff.

 

Employees who are targets need to recognize that they're being bullied and that they did not cause it. The issue is control and it's the bully's issue. This advice is useful for targets, no matter their age or situation. However, principles of good communication, including self-knowledge, listening, honesty, and assertiveness may keep ordinary problems from escalating into bullying. These qualities are important for bystanders, that is, for all participants in the workplace. Stay tuned for workplace bullying to continue to be an interesting topic for businesses, organizations, and for psychology.

 

Sr. Gail Cabral, IHM, Ph.D., professor of psychology, is a developmental psychologist, licensed in Pennsylvania. She teaches at Marywood University. Her research interests include friendship, peer relations, bullying and cyber-bullying behaviors, and the relationship of spirituality and psychology.

 
Article3

Difficult People, continued...    

 

3. Keep it simple, silly (KISS them)! Keep conversations simple and neutral in topic. If you have that one uncle who always tries to bait you into a debate about politics or that friend who always talks about her personal problems and won't take any advice, change the subject to something more immediate, such as what they are doing for the weekend or how their family is doing. Changing the pattern of communication can go a long way to making improvements in relationships.

4. Own your part of the negativity. Most relationships are created through a dynamic between two people. "It takes two" could not be more true. But don't beat yourself up, nobody is perfect and we can all find room for growth and improvement. Just be aware that when you own, and consequently change, your end of the dynamic, the other person may respond with increased negativity and try to push your limits.

5. There is a Zen proverb that says, "Let go or be dragged." Occasionally, there comes a time that you need some space, time or distance; when relationships become too intense, draining or negative. If you can't be around the person without them baiting or bullying you, it may be time to move on. It's perfectly fine to cut ties and to let them know why without any expectation of understanding or change on their part. If this is your co-worker or supervisor, you may actually need to switch jobs. It's okay to move on and it's not a sign of failure.    

 

These are just quick tips for handing difficult relationships. Couples or family therapy can be a great way to gain assistance in changing relationships for the better. If you are having difficulty in your relationships, it may be helpful to consult a psychologist.

 

Michelle Herrigel, Psy.D., is the Clinical Director for the Devereux Foundation, Pocono Programs and Services, in Newfoundland, Pennsylvania. A Pennsylvania licensed psychologist since 2009, Dr. Herrigel has spent 21 years in the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities. She has served in direct service, administrative and clinical roles, serving children and adults across the lifespan with autism spectrum disorder and other intellectual and behavioral challenges. 

 

Dr. Herrigel is an adjunct faculty at Marywood University in Scranton, Pennsylvania, and is an active member of the Pennsylvania Psychological Association. She has conducted continuing education offerings on professional issues in psychology, autism spectrum disorders, suicide prevention and intervention, as well as social media use in school-age children.

Article4
Improving Brain Power, continued...

Bonus tips to building brain power!

  • Get Physical. Exercise can also foster good brain chemicals, which protect and enhance brain cells.
  • Sleep. Sleep keeps our brain sharp.  Sleep helps our brain consolidate memories throughout the day. 
  • Relationships. Get together and laugh with family and friends. Interacting with others may be the best exercise you can give your brain!
  • Laugh. Laugh...a lot!  Laughter activates several parts of the brain.  It truly is the best medicine!
  • Nutrition + Exercise = a Happy Brain. Your brain needs fuel, just as your body does. Eat a balanced diet including healthy proteins, fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and healthy fats. Speak with your doctor or a nutritionist for balanced meal plans.

Remember, the decisions you make today will affect you and your children's futures.  Help your children help themselves.  Go for a walk, play the Wii, get involved with sports. Whatever you do....get up and move and build your children's brain power!

 

Journal Reference: 

Chaddock et al. (2010). A neuroimaging investigation of the association between aerobic fitness, hippocampal volume and memory performance in preadolescent children. Brain Research. DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2010.08.049

 

Christie Sworen-Parise, Psy.D., is the assistant director of psychological services at Allied Services in Scranton, PA.  She is a licensed psychologist and specializes in the areas of autism spectrum disorders, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, cognitive evaluations, and learning evaluations. 

 

She developed and co-facilitates a social skills group called "Connections" in Luzerne County for adolescents diagnosed with asperger's disorder. She is an active member of the Pennsylvania Psychological Association and a member of the National Register of Health Service Psychologists in the state of Pennsylvania. 

About Us

The Pennsylvania Psychological Association's purpose is to advance psychology in Pennsylvania as a means of promoting human welfare, and to educate, update and inform the public and our membership on current psychological theory and ethical practice through training activities and public policy initiatives.

 

Pennsylvania Psychological Association   

 

416 Forster St.

Harrisburg, PA 17102 Dorothy Ashman

 

Phone: 717-232-3817 

Fax: 717-232-7294

email:  [email protected] 

 

 

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