When you show affection to your significant other, do you know if it’s the way that they like to receive it? Love can get lost in translation when two people have different types of love languages. The five love languages are different ways of expressing and receiving love. The concept of love languages was developed by Gary Chapman, Ph.D., in his book The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love That Lasts, where he describes these styles of communicating love.

Grapes are nutritious and delicious, however we are referring to the acronym G.R.A.P.E.S. commonly used to address and combat depression. Symptoms of depression often include having feelings of sadness, even hopelessness, and lack of motivation. During times of depression, it can be helpful to follow these guidelines with the help of the following acronym, and to practice these regularly to reduce the possibility of experiencing depressive symptoms.

During a therapy session you have the space to talk about your emotions and stressors, confront your problems, and be provided with helpful feedback to support positive changes. The time spent in a therapy session can feel empowering, but this is only a small portion of your week. There are 168 hours in a week, less than one of those hours are spent in therapy. A common misconception is that attending your weekly therapy sessions is all that is needed, but the time in between therapy sessions also holds an important space to continue to progress. So the real question is, what do you do in the time in between therapy sessions? While there is not an exact science or formula that is guaranteed to work, the following are helpful tips and ideas to help you in between sessions.

Symptoms of anxiety consist of both physical and mental symptoms, which oftentimes can feel incredibly overwhelming and difficult to manage in the moment. While there are many different techniques and tricks to combat these symptoms, a helpful group of skills fall under grounding techniques. Grounding techniques work to bring awareness to the present moment and what is happening in the world around you. These help to distract from anxious thoughts and symptoms. In bringing awareness to the present moment, it can provide feelings of safety and create a space between you and your feelings of anxiety. Grounding techniques can include both physical and mental techniques to provide distractions. The following are examples of grounding techniques that you can begin to use and practice.

Being mindful is about remaining in the present moment and being aware of your current surroundings, thoughts, emotions and feelings. It is a practice often used in Dialectical Behavioral Therapy but also across different types of therapies. Read on for ways that mindfulness can support your overall wellbeing, particularly when it comes to managing stress.

Emotional experiences can feel so overwhelming. So much so that they can make us convinced that they are insurmountable, like a large wave coming over you as you stand in the shallow waters. It turns out that this is a very fitting metaphor for emotional spikes. Just as one can be overtaken and overwhelmed by a large wave, so too can one learn the skills needed to read the onset of the wave, position themselves effectively with it, and surf the wave which allows one to experience emotions with mastery and confidence. Additionally, because we experience emotions everyday of our lives, learning to surf your emotional waves can be practiced every day. This starts with seeing your feelings as a wave; strong, influential, and temporary… yes… temporary. Many cognitive patterns that lead to mental health disorders are habits that take single-emotion events and reinforce them again and again until they feel chronic. The emotion typically only lasted a few seconds or a few minutes at most and any secondary or lingering feelings are being upheld by what your thoughts, beliefs, and responses create. With this understanding, one can experience the emotional wave effectively in the moment before allowing that wave to return to the ocean never to come back in that exact form ever again.

Depression is one of the most commonly reported mental health challenges. The need for coping skills to help manage depressive spikes, as well as chronic depression, remains important whether you are in treatment for depression or not. There are many skills that can help battle depression that use multiple methods. However, depression is also one of the most debilitating mental health challenges, as it is effective at significantly reducing motivation across many areas of life. This can include activities and/or hobbies that you once enjoyed and took pride in. This lack of motivation can also lead to a feeling of helplessness when you have the opportunity to use coping skills and other interventions. Many strategies for this include using behavioral change to help facilitate mood and thought changes. Others use cognitive approaches to help build a more factual perception of one’s self and the world. Whether you seek out supportive relationships, get back into jogging again, or reflect on the steps needed to go back to school and get that degree you want, all of these steps require a version of movement. Depression is easily reinforced by stagnation therefore movement is one of the strongest tools in your toolbox.

As the holiday season approaches, there is often talk of it being “the most wonderful time of the year” with increased emphasis on joy and celebration. However, the topic of stress and/or increased sadness related to holiday functions are often overlooked. Whether it may be feeling increased pressure, toxic family dynamics, financial difficulties, or any other concern; the holidays can negatively impact our own mental health if we are not taking care of ourselves. In gearing up for the holidays, it is important to develop and be aware of our own personal, healthy boundaries.

Talking to your child about any topic can be difficult at times, however, the discussion of mental health can be particularly tricky. There could be many reasons why this topic is tip-toed around, but it is important to address if you are worried about your child, so you can assist them in receiving proper mental health treatment.

When one is feeling depressed and anxious, the G.L.A.D. technique is a grounding skill one can use to be more mindful in the moment and to experience positive distraction until strong negative emotions pass, as to reduce the possibility of impulsive reactions as impulsive reactions may not be an effective response in the moment. Try this practice out daily in order to notice positive shifts daily.