Share with a Counsellor has a team of specialized counsellors to help you any time you when experiencing difficulty coping with a life transition
Introduction on the Website- Many people struggling with stress and anxiety issues do not know the cause, to most, it is attributed to their inflexible style of interacting with change. Difficulty in coping with change sometimes is linked to resistance and poor adaptability to the same change. Some of us are wired to resist change and need support and guidance; on the way to identify psychological issues caused by resistance, learn of coping mechanism and prevention measures.
A Change can occur any time - We experience transitions in work and relationships, changes in our physical and mental health, and new events in our local communities and our world. Sometimes we know a change will occur, while other times it comes suddenly and unexpectedly. Maybe it’s a disappointment, or maybe it’s a wonderful surprise. Many people spend a great deal of time and energy trying to avoid change, but it will inevitably catch up to them. If you can learn to cope with change, you’ll lower your risk for anxiety and depression, (Psycho Net Website).
What is Change? (Source- Good Therapy Website)
Adjusting to change- This can be difficult, as even positive life transitions tend to cause some stress. Over the course of a lifetime, a person can expect to experience a significant amount of change. Some of these changes, such as entering school, graduating, starting family/ marriage, childbirth/ raising children, new jobs, and are generally positive, although they may be accompanied by their own unique stressors. Other major life transitions, such as moving, retirement, or entering the “empty nest” phase of life may cause a significant amount of stress.
Effects of change- It can influence personal growth, and dealing with a change successfully may leave one stronger, more confident, and better prepared for what comes next in life. In other words, even those changes that are neither expected nor wanted might still produce some beneficial outcome.
The benefit of change- Change can encourage the development of skills or knowledge, and might also bring about greater awareness of a condition or group. For example, the family of a person diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PSTD) might become more aware of severe mental health conditions and their effects. Change can also make clear what is important in one's life and allow for greater self-discovery and self-awareness. Retrenchment/ job loss produced great entrepreneurs and innovative manufactures or traders.
Symptoms of challenging transition during a Change - (Source - Good Therapy Website) Because change can cause stress, it can have an effect on one's daily life. A person facing a big change might, for example, experience depression, anxiety, fatigue; headaches; insomnia; change in eating habits; abuse of drugs and alcohol. Persistent symptoms of stress might improve with treatment in therapy (Counselling), but an individual may also be able to prevent some of these symptoms by researching an upcoming change; attending to one's physical and mental health; taking time to relax; limiting change and discussing any difficulties adapting with another person. The team of professionals at Share with a Counsellor will help to explore prevention measures in reference to the coping mechanisms.
How to Cope with Change (Source-Psycho Net Website)
If you are able to cope with change, then your relationships will flourish, and your body will feel healthier. But if you can’t cope with change, only a minor amount of stress can make you feel overwhelmed by life. You might also struggle to set and meet the goals you have for yourself. Being able to cope with change is sometimes called resilience. Share with a Counsellor Agency will provide you with information on how to evaluate your level of control; practice self-care after a loss; check your thought patterns; revisit history for reference; be in the present; find your priorities; maintaining a sense of balance in life; consistency between your values and behaviors.
Adaptation to Change (Source Very Well Mind Website)
Adaptation as a way to cope with change- Adaptation refers to the ability to adjust to new information and experiences. Learning is essentially adapting to our constantly changing environment. Through adaptation, we are able to espouse new behaviors that allow us to cope with change. According to Jean Piaget’s Theory, adaptation was one of the important processes that guide cognitive development.
The adaptation process- is a critical part of cognitive development. Through the adaptive processes of assimilation and accommodation, people are able to take in new information, form new ideas or change existing ones, and adopt new behaviors that make them better prepared to deal with the world around them. The adaptation process itself can occur in two ways: through assimilation and accommodation.
- Assimilation - Here people take in information from the outside world and convert it to fit in with their existing ideas and concepts. People possess mental categories for information, known as schemas, which are used to understand the world around them. When encountering new information, it can sometimes be readily assimilated into an existing schema. Think of this as much as having a mental database. When information fits easily into an existing category, it can be quickly and easily assimilated into the database.
- Accommodation - people also accommodate new information by changing their mental representations to fit the new information. When people encounter information that is completely new or that challenges their existing ideas, they often have to form a new schema to accommodate the information or alter their existing mental categories. The accommodation process tends to be much more difficult than the assimilation process. People are often resistant to changing their schemas, particularly if it involves changing a deeply held belief. Possibly the reason change is not easy.
Psychology of Flexibility (Source -Excel at Life Website-Article by Monica on Coping with Change –Psychology of Flexibility)
Psychological flexibility- this is the ability to adapt easily to change using the Cognitive Behavioral Techniques (CBT). It is related to how people think, process irrational thoughts and their ability to tolerate the discomfort of change. This primarily refers to the ability to adapt to change, it encompasses a number of different aspects as outline by shared Kashdan, (2010): recognizing and adapting to the demands of different situations; the ability to change behaviors that interfere with successful functioning; the inability to tolerate discomfort; psychological flexibility in pain management; responsiveness to situations; delayed gratification; and adaptability and success. At Share with a Counsellor, you will be supported to understand these aspects and adopt them for happy transitions.
How to Become More Flexible-CBT recommends some methods when addressing psychological flexibility, in order to increase a person’s ability to cope with change. At Share with a Counsellor, you will be provided with psycho-education on the following CBT techniques: cognitive restructuring, mindfulness training, exposure therapy, negative evaluation, catastrophic thinking, generalization tendency, internal control, emotional reasoning, and ways of keeping a cognitive diary.
Share with a Counsellor has a team of specialized counsellors to help you any time you when experiencing difficulty coping with a life transition. When life changes prove difficult and lead to stress, anxiety, or depression, our counsellors will help you to manage/ treat those issues by exploring coping strategies. When you know that you do not cope well with changing, it’s advisable to speak to a counsellor before a significant change in life occurs. These approaches help you to prepare for change and become better able to face similar charges in a future event, without prior knowledge or potential change. Through Share with a Counsellor Mobile Phone App, a counselor will always be available anytime definite and/ or unpredicted change happens.
