Escape from the Space Invaders! :: Emotional and Mental Health

> Emotional and Mental Health > Positive Emotions

Escape from the Space Invaders!
by author Emily Beecher

Every morning and evening, Monday to Friday, I commute–with my face stuffed into someone’s armpit or an elbow jabbing my ribs. I realized very quickly that, with my personal space being compromised this way, the need for a sanctuary at home was crucial for maintaining my sanity.

Creating a space for yourself doesn’t have to be difficult or expensive; a little creativity and these simple steps will soon have you on your way to an oasis of your own.

Be Realistic

Yes, it would be wonderful to have a light-filled, child-free, calm hideaway all of your own, but unless you’re incredibly rich, it’s not going to happen.

So, what do you have that you can make your own? A bedroom? Your home office? That storage room down the hall? Wherever it is, it should be somewhere you feel comfortable and where you know you’ll actually spend time. (The kitchen and laundry room don’t count, so don’t even try it!)

Kick the Clutter to the Curb

You can’t have personal space if there’s no room for the person. Clutter creates a sense of crowding and is reputed to raise blood pressure and stress levels (and that’s even before you’ve tripped over that stray shoe–again).

There are a few things to consider when you’re clearing out the clutter:

Do you need it?
Do you use it?
Do you love it?

If the answer to any of these questions is “no,” then get rid of it.

However, we all have things in our life that we have no real need for or that we don’t really love. For example, my husband and I have a pile of ticket stubs from places we’ve visited. We don’t need them and I’m not in love with them, but I can’t part with them, so these items become a separate category: things you have a true and important emotional connection to. These items should only be kept if they are positive and remind you of positive associations, and they should be reviewed periodically.

Contain It

Many companies specialize in containers of all shapes and sizes that are perfect clutter concealers. Just because you’ve decided to keep something doesn’t mean it has to be on display.

A few magazine folders and an in/out tray could revolutionize your home office or even your telephone table. Underbed storage is the grown-up equivalent of cleaning your room, and a stair basket will make cluttered staircases a thing of the past.

Show It Off

It’s important to make your personal space about you. Do you have photos of family and friends that always make you laugh? Stick them behind a clip-it style frame or, even easier, pick up a multiphoto frame and display an assortment of your favourites.

Do you have shells collected off the beach while on holiday? Put them in a box frame to show them off. Find a way to dot your personal space with whatever reminds you of wonderful, happy times, but remember: this is a gentle reminder–not a drowning tide of knick-knacks.

Having personal space of our own is integral for our sense of well-being and personal calm. In our otherwise hectic life where we switch between each of our selves (mother/daughter/ wife/boss/employee/friend), it’s easy to forget to honour who we really are. Think of your personal space as your own oasis.

Closet Common Sense

I’m sure you’ve all heard the go-through-your-closet-and-get-rid-of-anything-you-haven’t-worn-in-a-year rule. I hate this rule. I have a gorgeous, expensive, floor-length gown in my closet that makes me feel like a movie star on Oscar night. I might not be invited to that kind of occasion every year, so that baby’s staying on the hanger until the next invite comes along!

I go through my wardrobe (as I replace my summer clothes with winter ones and vice versa) and work out what doesn’t fit, needs repairing, or is just plain out of style. I either give it to charity or repair it. If it’s not for a special occasion or I haven’t worn it for a year, I get rid of it.

Emily Beecher is an actress and producer who lives in London with her husband, two cats, and plenty of storage.

Source: alive #295, May 2007

You've Got the Power
For most of us, the obstacles that we struggle to overcome in our lives are very private. We often don't even let our hardships register on our faces as we go about our daily work routines. Most likely they don't get splashed across newspaper headlines or television screens, either.

Laughter: A Priceless Prescription
When Norman Cousins was editor of the Saturday Review, he became seriously ill with a brain tumou.

Celebrate Life
"Life is a great adventure, or it is nothing."--Helen Keller "One of the wonderful things about being alive is that it is never too late.

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall...
Can you stand in front of the mirror and really look at yourself? What about with no clothes on? Do you like and accept what you see? Or do you wince and remind yourself t.

Mind Over Cancer
Examining the biology of beliefNot a day goes by thatthe word "cancer" doesn't scare thousands of Canadians. Like a dreaded scourge, it hovers over us, presumably just waiting to claim its next victim.

The Power Within Illness
The culture we live in most often views illness as a "bad thing. This is no more than an opinion-an opinion that, unfortunately, often leads to a self-fulfilling outcome.

Pessimist or Optimist-Live Long Enough to Find Out
Is your glass half empty or half full? Research suggests that if you are an optimist and judge the glass half full, then you are more likely to live a longer, happier, and more satisfying life.

Joy and Happiness: The Same or Very Different Emotions?
Happiness, according to the Oxford English dictionary, is based on luck or good fortune. Joy on the other hand, is described as a vivid emotion of pleasure. Thus, happiness depends on circumstance; joy, on our emotional well-being.

Health Really Is a Laughing Matter
No matter what you're planning for the year ahead, if health is a priority, then laughing should be one as well. A good guffaw, or even a goofy giggle, is not only your best medicine, but a free, easy, and powerful way to prevent disease, relieve stress, and increase emotional health.

Head Colds
A friend of mine told me recently that her boyfriend had come down with a col.

Stories We Live By
For many people, the word "trauma" triggers images of terrible events afflicting the innocent: abuse, the death of loved ones, war, or natural disasters. The consequences of trauma on emotional health are well known and include mild to severe depression, anxiety, and panic attacks to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Spring Into Your Autumn Years
People with a positive attitude toward aging can adjust very well when individual circumstances change. Their positive outlook allows them to adapt to the inevitable physical and biochemical changes of the body that are associated with the natural processes of aging. With a healthy outlook on the golden years, even unpredictable setbacks and disabilities can be managed successfully.

The Healing Truth
As many people who live with cancer know, the discovery of the disease marks the beginning of a new chapter in life. Researchers and healers continue to discover the role attitudes and emotions play in the healing process.

Laugh and Smile Your Way to Health
Want a totally free, simple way to boost your spirits and your health with no prescription needed? Then you want to laugh and smile as much as possibl.

Finding Joy
I'll never forget the day I discovered the sheer joy that is found within even the saddest of times. It was in Mumbai, India, nearly forty years ago. My father's business had been completely decimated. We'd been living day to day, not knowing how we'd get our next meal..

An Attitude of Gratitude
My favourite holiday is Thanksgiving. I love the fall, the food, and the friends and family that are all associated with Thanksgiving. Every year at our Thanksgiving table we share with each other the things we are most thankful for.

Cancer Diagnosis
A number of years ago one of the most popular songs on the radio instructed us to "don't worry, be happy. It was a nice sentiment-but we understand that life is not that simple. I fear that in writing this month's column on emotional health and breast cancer that it may sound like "don't worry, be happy. I assure you it isn't..

Three Steps to Happiness
Happiness is our natural state of being. It is who we are. Happiness is obvious in little childre.

Love and Health are a Perfect Match
Through self-love we may come to know and accept ourselves in a healthier way. Many women's magazines suggest a warm bubble bath once a week equals self-love. While this perception may leave us a bit cleaner, it does not, in itself, translate to greater health.

Forever Young
All of us want to have longer and healthier lives, and while some of us are dealt a better hand than others in life's genetic lottery, there are many ways we can maximize the potential we are born with.

Locus of Control
We consider many of life's experiences as good, bad, or somewhere in between. We credit our accomplishments in life to luck or personal effort or, again, somewhere in between.

Swallowing Emotions
From the mind/body perspective, physical illnesses may be expressions of basic psychological wounds, developing out of the emotional defences we construct to avoid feeling pain.

Laughing Matters
According to Dr. Billy Strean, professor of physical education at the University of Alberta and certified laughter coach, "When you laugh, your brain chemistry changes and everything starts to work the way it's supposed to.

Saying No to Negativity
Recently, my friend Jim started complaining again about his boss and his job. "If you tried to have a positive attitude for a change, I suggested, "you'd be happier and feel better about life. "Oh, that's a bunch of bull, Jim replied..

Community Connection
Community" was a concept that most people took for granted a few generations.

What Do I Do With All These Feelings?
With Christmas having come and gone, many of us may be suffering from a post-holiday hangover-not just from the drinking, but from the spending, the eating, the partying and the dealings with family, too. So what exactly do we do to not get depressed and discouraged?The key lies in the ability to process our emotions..

Laugh Your Way to Better Health
We've all heard the bromide, "Laughter is the best medicine," but are we getting a regular dose? Besides our positive emotions and the discharge of endorphins, natural pain-killers released by the body when we laugh, there are many physical benefits to be gained by a laughter.

De-Stressing Our Children This Holiday Season
When we think of the holiday season, weconjure up images of beautifully wrappedpresents, out-of-town relatives, and delicious food. Yet, even though the holidayseason can be filled with joy and abundance, this time of year can also bequite stressful for adults and children.

The Power of Love
It's not just an old-fashioned love song. Relationships have the power to nurture our wellness more than any other factor. The added benefit, of course, is that we can literally improve the health of all those involved-including ourselves. Tell the special people in your life that you appreciate them.

Immunity Gets Personal
In The Immune Power Personality (Dutton,1995), Henry Dreher outlined how character traits can build resistance to disease. Since then a range of experts have supported Dreher's conclusions. What are some of these traits and how can we foster them?

Healing with The Mind
In the 17th century the philosopher and scientist Descartes ("I think, therefore I am) proposed the separation of the mind from the body.

Boys will be Boys?
We all know that the average life expectancy of your garden-variety man is about five years less than the female. By being a little more proactive about your health and politely reminding your inner bad boy to grow up, you might be well on your way to outliving us ladies!

What's your expiry date?
To know the date of your death well in advance would be a rare gift. Or would it?

Seven Tips for Deriving Energy from Your Relationships
We all want to be physically healthy, but if our emotional life is unbalanced, efforts to reach our full health potential may be thwarted. Following these simple tips and surrounding yourself with positive relationships will re-energize you and pave the way to achieving your full health potential.

The Zen of Blacktop
How many times have we read articles extolling the soul-soothing attributes of nature? Many of us have come to believe we can only reach inner peace by leaving the city life behind. The sanctimonious gurus saying we can recharge the soul only through nature's retreats can be put to rest. Those living within the vortex of the city can find peace, too.

Happiness Equals Success
Does success bring us happiness or is it the other way around? In this chicken or egg debate, we often hear that success hatches happiness. The research revealed that happy people are more successful in marriage and work and enjoy better mental and physical health.

The Value of Volunteering
When you ask people why they volunteer, they usually tell you that they feel enriched by their activities and that it just feels good to do good. A 1991 report from Volunteer Ontario confirms that volunteer work lowers blood pressure, strengthens the immune system, and enhances self-esteem.

Moving on Up!
Just about everyone goes through an occasional bout of feeling down. Along with a better diet and daily exercise, adding a few tried and true mood boosters to your nutritional and herbal supplement program often makes a noticeable difference in a short period of time.

Why Act Your Age When You're Young at Heart?
The Red Hat Societ is a social group whose main responsibility is to have fun. The group's mission is to gain higher visibility for women aged 50 and older and to reshape the way they are viewed by today's culture.

Laugh and Play-Every Day
Take steps to actively incorporate play into your daily or weekly activities. Start small and work up to something bigger. It will enhance the quality of your life and the lives of those close to you. Plus, you'll be more fun to be around.

Did You Hear the One About...?
Just as many of us have forgotten how to laugh, scientists have begun to study the benefits of laughter. Dr. Lee Berk of Loma Linda University in California has researched laughter extensively and has shown that not only is the immune system boosted, but natural killer cells-which fight certain types of cancer-are increased when we laugh.

Create a Brighter Tomorrow
A positive vision of your future will keep you going and help you to learn, grow, and persevere. It will help you to boost your immunity to short-term failure and find the silver lining in temporary setbacks.

Can-do Attitude

Standards for Supplements

A Month of Awareness and Prevention

Wheeling and Mealing
Volunteering can improve the state of your own health while adding to the quality of the lives of others. In fact, helping others is proven to be one of the healthiest things you can do for yourself. Meals on Wheels provides great opportunities for this kind of exchange.

That's What Friends are For

Pets in Pants

Keeping an Eye on Blood Sugar

Attract a Positive State of Mind
What did you say to yourself the last time you looked in the mirror? Did you think about how wonderful you are and how good you look? Or did you say and think something negative? What you say to yourself can have as much impact on your health as careful eating and proper exercise.

Love's labours tossed
Whee-Valentine's Day. As holidays go, it's not exactly a rip-snorter, is it? But hey, I'm all for breaking out my credit card yet again and supporting the florists and candy-makers.

Deepak Chopra
Deepak Chopra isn't exactly known for being a man of few words. The New Delhi-born, California-based health guru is notorious for giving talks that last three to four hours and for peppering his speeches with personal anecdotes and self-deprecating jokes.

Canine Wisdom
One of my best teachers, Jessie, was also one of my best friends. She was with me right up until her 98th year-dog years, that is.

The Lessons of Spring
Spring is a sensuous teacher. Every year she steps out of the darkness and cold and seductively dances around us. She embraces us with her light and warmth. She intoxicates us with her fragrance. Like a potent elixir, spring revives our hope. She breathes life into death and teaches us the lessons of renewal and rebirth.

The Science of Feeling Great
Most people think of their metabolism as affecting their ability to gain or lose weight. But our metabolism also affects mood and the way we feel. The truth of the matter is that we feel our best when we maintain the production and function of neurotransmitters-essential elements of brain metabolism.

The Upside of Ulcerative Colitis
Some health conditions are a little classier than others. My friend has a plastic leg called Ursula, which she's removed and chastised for not performing well in Pilates-now that's classy. My disease involves gurgly guts, painful gas, bloody toilet tissue, and diarrhea-that's not classy.

Look on the Bright Side
Recall a day when you woke up in the morning feeling positive? I bet you had a great day. Want more of that?

Celebrate Life
Oscar Wilde once said, "To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all. The question is, are you merely surviving from day to day, or are you grasping everything you can from life?

Living an Authentic Life
In a world where success is defined by money, and happiness is just a weight-loss plan away, many of us have lost sight of our most valuable asset: our true selves. By living authentically, however, we can reach our potential and experience true happiness.

The Power of a Positive Mindset
I'm often asked for simple tips for achieving optimal health. Here are my three top tips: 1. Make the decision to change; 2. believe in yourself; and 3. apply the necessary strategies to get you there!

Helper's High
Is it good to be good? People express their compassion in different ways. Some volunteer with people. Others volunteer with animals. Although all good works produce health benefits, including improved immunity and reduced anxiety and depression, different activities have different ripple effects.

Volunteering - If It Feels Good, Do It!
Now that January's out of the way - the bills are paid, my sanity's relatively intact, the gift wrap's finally put away - I'm ready to tackle one of my goals for the year, which is to take on some kind of volunteer work.

A Conversation with k.d. lang
k.d. lang has sung with the best-Tony Bennett, Roy Orbison, Loretta Lynn-not bad for a girl from Consort, Alberta, population 739.

Worrying Ourselves to Death
Have you ever tried counting your worries? While drafting this article I managed to squeeze in worries about my gobbled-down breakfast, my half-baked plans for the rest of the day, and what I can do to ease pain in various aching body parts-to name but a few ever-nagging worries.

Sunday Dinner
In the many years that have elapsed since moving out of my childhood home, Sunday dinner held about as much meaning as dinner any other day of the week. I ate whatever I could scrounge up, or went to a restaurant, or, for a rather debauched period, just ate chips in front of the TV until it was time to go to the nightclub again.

Building a Health Reserve
Hoping to be a healthy elder? Then stock your health bank as faithfully as your financial one. Healthy aging requires preparation. This month's Research Watch discusses what you need to know to build up your health reserves for a long and healthy life.

Imagine Your Way to Better Health
In my darker moments-when bills, work, and deadlines all conspire against me-I have a fantasy. In it, I return to a remote spot on the Mediterranean coast where gentle waves lap against a sleepy shoreline and vast, open skies arch overhead. Everything is blue, sensual, and calm.

What is Gratitude?
"Dear God, we paid for all this stuff ourselves, so thanks for nothing. Television character Bart Simpson's dinner table blessing is inappropriate, but we relate to it. Like Bart, we are often ungrateful because we feel a sense of entitlement. This Thanksgiving let's put gratitude on the menu.

Sampling the Fountain of Youth
I caught the end of a stand-up comedian's routine the other night while channel surfing. He joked that plastic surgery "makes you look young in the same way that a drag queen looks like a woman. There's just something a little off...

All I Want for Christmas
When I asked my daughter about what to write for December's column, her immediate reply was "snowmen. While that's probably not the ideal basis for an entire article, it did get me thinking.

Tune into Your body's Rhythm
What images come to mind when you hear or see the word meditation? How many of those images include movement? For the average person, not many.

Volunteers for the Environment
We are so closely connected to other forms of life on our planet that survival without them is unthinkable. And although we have the power of intellect, we can never consider ourselves as superior. On the contrary, we need these species in order to survive.

Empowering the Feminine
Although its origins are uncertain, one theory is that belly dancing was performed to strengthen women’s abdominal muscles for childbirth.

Take time for yourself during the holidays
Many people either choose to spend the holidays alone or end up that way as a matter of circumstance. A solitary celebration is a great opportunity to create the holiday of your dreams. Here are a few ways to make the holidays a special time for you alone.

Every season has its purpose
The calm, still beauty of the winter months offers quiet downtime for personal reflection and healing meditation.

Cultivating romance
Ah, romantic love. When we’re in it, nothing could be more fulfilling. But when we can’t find it or there’s trouble in paradise, it can seem like a lot more trouble than it’s worth.

Social connections
There’s a sense of freedom that comes with being independent. However, as self-sufficient as we feel, at points along the way most of us need support.