Environmental Stressors like weather, traffic, and the work environment represent a few examples of things that cannot always be controlled.  The way humans respond to these situations can affect wellbeing.  If there is no way to change one’s reality, there are likely ways to at least balance it.  Consider taking possible measures to balance your own environmental stressors.

1. Scheduling: Traffic, for example, can be a huge environmental stressor. Leaving the house late and speeding regularly adds to stress levels.  Rather than cursing the freeways and inanity of one’s fellow drivers, a person can leave home in the morning 30 minutes early; they could put on their favorite music while sipping a nice hot beverage of their choice.  This might make the commute more tolerable, possibly even enjoyable.

2. Personal space: Another aspect of environment has to do with your physical environment.   When you walk into your house after a long day of work how does it feel?  When you sit at your desk at work all day how does it feel?  What can you do to make your spaces feel better, healthier, and more supportive for you?  Everyone is different. For some, having pictures of loved ones on your desk makes a big difference.  For others, keeping your desk or home uncluttered and clean has a huge effect on their sense of control and wellbeing.  Maybe others like to have lots of live green plants around to liven things up, or like to light incense or a candle to clear the air.  Maybe you don’t have a window in your office, but is it possible to make sure you take a few small breaks during the day and go outside for a couple minutes to keep you grounded and feel some sunshine?  Although these may seem like small efforts, they make a big difference in your emotional health and overall wellbeing.

3. We can limit our exposure to environmental stressors. If you are someone who is agitated by listening to or reading the news, you can choose to limit your time doing that activity.  We all know that the news tends to focus on negative stories and violence, and it may be beneficial to substitute an activity that is more calming.  Limiting our exposure to unrealistic images of beauty that can be found on most magazine covers can lead to higher self-esteem.  Perhaps bypassing the tabloid magazine for the bestseller at Barnes & Noble will give you a necessary break to develop self-compassion and inner peace.  Things like pesticides, toxins, and pollutants are out of our control, but we can limit our exposure by eating more organic foods, drinking filtered water, and filtering our air with a HEPA filter.  Things like noise pollution can be out of our control, but installing a white noise machine can drown out the unpleasant noise.

Social stressors can also weigh heavy in a person’s life.  An ideal social environment would include meaningful relationships, positive support, and mutual respect.  However, sometimes we are forced to learn how to best relate with individuals we encounter who may manipulate, try to exert control over us, or are emotionally or physically abusive.

1. Boundaries: Create and maintain strong boundaries.  It is okay to limit time with a problematic individual.  It is also permissible to say “no” at times.  It often feels difficult to set boundaries because the person may be angry or upset; however, in the long run boundaries actually help build much stronger relationships.

2. Social support system: Although in some cases we don’t have control over the people in our lives, such as family and coworkers, we do have control over who we invite into our lives for a social support network.   A person’s circle of friends has a strong influence on emotional health and overall wellbeing.  If someone wants to think more positively and then they surround themselves with people who think negatively, they are likely not meeting their goal.  Or take for example a person who wants to get healthier both physically and mentally by partying less.  But that person’s friends put pressure on them to drink and go out during the weekends.  The person in search of health might feel “out of control” or destined to constantly party.  This furthers emotional and physical discomfort while simultaneously being held back from evolving and reaching your goals.  You have a choice who to bring into your support system. You can bring people in who lift you up, inspire you, support you, and help you grow.  Intimate relationships are another area you have choices in.  If your partner is always putting you down or is abusive in any way, they may create a toxic environment that negatively influences your physical and emtional wellbeing.

3. EAP and Counseling: Another way to get some support around social and environmental stressors is through counseling or your Employee Assistance Program (EAP). Counseling is a safe, non-judgemental place to get support around things you are struggling with in your life — whether they are related to work or not. Sometimes counseling is helpful just to gain another perspective or to attain some new coping skills.  EAP is completely confidential and provides a great way to access free counseling services through your benefits.  EAPs often offer telephonic or video sessions if you are too busy to go in for an appointment.

Remember:  Our reactions to an environmental or social stressor can determine its impact.  It’s always possible to reduce stress levels by consciously responding to these stressors in a way that can balance their effects.  By practicing this skill often, you will begin to know yourself well enough to tell if an environmental or social stressor is negatively impacting your wellbeing, and you will be able to promptly take steps to improve your emotional and physical health.

To Your Wellbeing,

Alea Makley, MA – Clinical Case Manager

Alex Rothchild, MA, LPC – Clinical Case Manager

The MINES Clinical Case Management Team

The post Environmental and Social Stressors appeared first on MINES and Associates.

What is it? Who has it? How does one get it? How does it relate to mental health and wellness?

I polled a few of my co-workers to get their perspective on definitions of resilience. One person stated that resilience is “the ability to absorb and cope with emotionally trying issues that come up and ‘bounce back’”. Another co-worker stated it is “the structural integrity to be able to withstand stress with minimal negative impact on the self”. Yet another co-worker added, “it’s like a rubber band—you can twist it, tie it, stretch it, throw it, roll it, snap it. When you stop messing with (stressing) it, it goes back to its original shape. The hope is that you can learn a variety of strategies to manage life so you can stay flexible.”

The above definitions of my co-workers are all similar but it is important to note the differences in meaning and perception. Everyone above works at a behavioral psychology firm and all have various understandings of behavioral and wellness issues. One person who provided a definition works in a Marketing department, one works in a front call center and screens all incoming calls and forwards them appropriately, and one works as a case manager, daily screening individuals/couples/families for mental health or substance abuse issues. While all have some knowledge on wellness and resilience, it is interesting to read the differing definitions depending on personal/professional experiences and their role in the company and with clients.

While most people do have some idea of what resilience means, that brings me to the next question: who has resilience? The simple and short answer is everyone; and everyone has different experiences and levels of resilience. However, there are some common characteristics that have been observed in people who seem to bounce back from trauma or even thrive after it while others crumble and really struggle. People can vary in the following qualities and this variation influences whether they have higher or lower levels of resilience.

1. Flexibility – People who are observed as possessing higher levels of resilience are those who are flexible and adapt to new circumstances and thrive with change.
2. Confidence – Going through trauma expecting to bounce back and having the confidence that getting better will happen.
3. Awareness and Acceptance – An understanding that life is full of challenges and awareness of situations and reactions to them.
4. Internal locus of control – Believing everyone has control of their own lives, and while some experiences are out of anyone’s control, knowing the power of choice in how to react to a certain situation lies with-in each individual.

On the other hand, people who tend to have lower levels of resilience tend to be less aware of their circumstances and their emotions and blame others for their challenges. They tend to have weak problem-solving skills and are unable to react beyond emotion to come up with logical, realistic solutions to experiences. These people are also less likely to ask for help when challenges arise and instead choose a “victim stance”.

When thinking about who has resilience, one might ask if people can obtain or even learn it. Given the answer to the previous question, it can be said that practicing these characteristics and developing the skills mentioned above can improve a person’s ability to deal with life challenges. When going through a crisis, people should ask themselves if they are utilizing these characteristics, or are they blaming others or not asking for help? Are they in control and aware of their situation or are they playing victim to life?

One thought that comes up is whether or not people are born with certain levels of resilience. How can two people born to the same parents and raised in the same circumstance grow up with one struggling in life and the other seeming to be completely successful? Researching this question will bring mixed results. There are some that say people are born with higher levels, and others that state resilience can be learned, practiced, and improved.

I think it is important to note that practicing the skills that lead toward higher levels of resilience are useful skills of life in general, and should be what people strive for whether it is for higher resilience or not.

The final question is how levels of resilience relate to mental health and wellness issues. Everyone at some point in life will struggle: with choices, grief, life transitions, emotions, and the list can go on and on. People struggle in life, relationships and in connections with themselves.

Let’s examine levels of resilience with the specific issue of grief. Whether it is due to the loss of a loved one, pet, job, or relationship, humans experience grief at some point in life. And while grief is a universal process, it is very individualistic. No two people experience grief in exactly the same way. Most have heard of the five stages of grief: denial, anger, depression, bargaining and acceptance. No one goes through them in a linear process; instead, it’s often related to a roller coaster. Emotions go up and down and back and forth and the only real way to heal is to go through them all and accept the emotions as they come.

Resilience is an important part of the grief process as well. In applying the skills listed above for resilience, we can see that it helps people accept that grief happens in life and helps them make the choice to ask for help, either from family and friends, or from a professional. Having resilience means grievers have control over how they react to grief and they know they will be okay; that right now is hard but it will get better with time.

Resilience can be applied to mental health and wellness issues in how people are able to go through some sort of challenge or struggle and know they will be okay as long as they can accept that struggle is part of life and learn to accept their emotions as they come without judgment.

Resilience means knowing that life changes and is hard at times, and being able to make healthy choices in the effort to “bounce back” and still be okay. Everyone has this ability and it can be learned and practiced and improved. It is a very important part of mental health and wellness, and making the choice to improve resilience skills can improve one’s quality of life.

The Case Management Team

The post Resilience: The Ability to Come Back appeared first on MINES and Associates.

Siegel &  Hartzell, M.Ed., (2003, p.102-112) in their book, Parenting from the Inside Out, describe four patterns of attachment derived from the work of researchers such as Mary Ainsworth, Mary Main, and Erik Hesse, among others. As infants we most likely have one of the following patterns (which can vary by caregiver): Secure, Insecure-Avoidant, Insecure-Anxious/Ambivalent, or Insecure-Disorganized.

Secure attachments are described as having a parental interactive pattern characterized by the parent being emotionally available, perceptive, and responsive. The child sees the parent as being a source of comfort during times of distress, a safe haven, being available, and a secure base. This creates a sense of well being from which the child can go into the world to “explore and make new connections with others” (p.104).

Insecure-Avoidant patterns are associated with parents who are emotionally unavailable, imperceptive, unresponsive, and rejecting. These children avoid closeness and emotional connections to the parent (p.104).

Insecure-Ambivalent patterns are described as having parents who are inconsistently available, perceptive, and responsive and intrusive. The child cannot depend on the parent for attunement and connection. The child develops a sense of anxiety and uncertainty about whether they can depend on their parents (p.105).

Insecure-Disorganization patterns are created by parents who are frightening, frightened, chaotic, disorienting, and alarming to the child. This pattern is often associated with abuse. This creates a situation in which abuse is incompatible with a sense of security. The child develops coping responses that lead to difficulties in regulating emotions, trouble in social communication, difficulties with academic reasoning tasks, a tendency toward interpersonal violence, and a predisposition to dissociation – a process in which normally integrated cognition becomes fragmented (p. 106).

The good news is that for those with insecure attachments there are mindfulness techniques described in Siegel’s book, Mindsight, that can help the individual integrate the insecure attachment memories, patterns, and information in a manner that frees them up from “automatically or habitually” engaging in the pattern in their adult relationships.

The implications of early attachment for the psychology of performance are significant. Secure attachments allow for a base of security which in adulthood can manifest in collaborative interactions in the business environment, for example. The social psychology of group performance is enhanced when members can communicate directly and problem solve from a position of trust. Contrast this with an avoidant attachment pattern in which a team member has a fundamental approach to relationships that is one of distrust and self-reliance. This team member is there in name only and will be perceived as not cooperating, being a maverick, and “not playing well in the sand box.” The anxious attachment style may show up as an accommodating or pleasing style. This person sacrifices their own opinions so as to fit in, may frequently be checking in with the “boss” for approval and reassurance. The group loses this person’s gifts as the person may give in rather than be proactive on a decision point. The disorganized attachment style may contribute to significant disruption in a work group or team’s performance because the person will become overwhelmed during a conflict with either a chaotic or rigid response, either of which can disrupt the flow of energy and information needed for higher performance.

The culture of an organization often is set by the leader of the organization. Part of the definition of culture is the shared set of assumptions as to how we do business. From this, it is possible to see how the impact of the leader’s attachment could influence the culture of the organization. For example, if the leader has an anxious attachment, the organization may have a strong press to accommodate customers, resulting in a high emphasis on customer service which could range from being useful to problematic if taken to a dysfunctional level.

Have a day filled with mindful integration,

Robert A. Mines, Ph.D.
CEO & Psychologist

The post Psychology of Performance – 20 – Early Attachment and Adult Performance Implications appeared first on MINES and Associates.

Associations are typically nationally run, some by outside organizations, with their members  located throughout the country and sometimes Canada and Mexico. Some associations have sub-segments that create even more special or focused associations, such as a health association that also has heart and prenatal sub-associations. Associations provide companies with the opportunity to talk and meet on various topics and issues that they run into, helping them grow their business by better understanding opportunities.

MINES and Associates is a business psychology firm that specializes in behavioral health care– or more specifically mental health, substance abuse, and psychotropic drug usage. I just attended the annual Self Insurance Institute of America’s Annual Conference in Chicago where companies come together to talk about health insurance benefits.  Participating in these associations and conferences is extremely beneficial as we are able to learn about and determine the types of products and services that employers need for their employees.

While  employee deductibles and copayments have increased consistently over the last couple of years, the services provided are improving. Employees are getting more for their money. Specialty health care is able to focus on a specific health issue and address it with unique drugs and care. What this means to the employee is quicker recovery and less time spent in doctor’s offices.

MINES Behavioral Health Case Management is a perfect example. Behavioral health issues are typically treated by health care workers who spend up to 90% of their time on medical and surgical issues. They don’t have the experience and knowledge of mental health issues to effectively provide the best treatment possible. We are seeing our business grow as employers add MINES’ behavioral health care expertise and network of qualified providers to their benefit plans.

With 30 years of experience and over 50,000 providers in our network, MINES knows Behavioral Health. We are constantly learning and improving our offerings to our clients. If your company doesn’t offer you some of the behavioral benefits noted above, ask your HR Department to look into MINES & Associates.

Allan Benson

Senior Sales Executive

720-979-8046

The post Industry Associations Help Companies Grow appeared first on MINES and Associates.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/19/health/nutrition/19best.html?_r=2&th=&emc

Have a day filled with equanimity

Robert A. Mines, Ph.D.

CEO and Psychologist

The post Psychology of Performance – 18 appeared first on MINES and Associates.

The implications of this line of research are significant for performance. For example, if you watch a movie with alcohol being consumed and you are in recovery, now you have internal neuronal firing similar to drinking the alcohol yourself. Now you have to override the neuronal firing with “white-knuckling it,” or better yet with mindful awareness, or you will increase your probabilities of a relapse.

The upside of this research is that seeing others perform a behavior successfully – mentally rehearsing the image – would theoretically strengthen the neuronal firing and increase the probabilities that you will execute the behavior successfully. This concept is foundational to performance coaching. As coaches, therapists, and bosses we need to think about our current training techniques and how they incorporate watching, rehearsing, and doing as part of the sequence.

Have a day filled with Mindfulness,

Robert A. Mines, Ph.D.

CEO & Psychologist

MINES and Associates

The post Psychology of Performance – 17 Mirror Neurons appeared first on MINES and Associates.

Although this was a major victory, its taken a backseat to the healthcare reform and the economic stimulus package.  The act, which self-funded organizations of 50 or more were required to comply as of Oct 1 2009 or any renewal date following, officially went into effect on January 1, 2010.

So how does this all fit into Health Care Reform?  First, Mental Health Parity and its regulations are still in full effect.  Second, Health Care Reform has expanded the reach of Parity.  It’s now expanded to cover dependents until the age of 26.  It has also expanded to fall under the section of “essential health benefit” which means treatment can’t be denied for pre-existing conditions.  This means that insurance companies are required to provide coverage and that coverage must be equal to coverage provided for any other medical ailment.  Behavioral Health benefits are now a mandatory part of basic care as well as certain psychotropic medications which are required under insurance formularies.

At MINES, while we’ve been working to help groups become compliant with Parity and gain an understanding of how Health Care Reform is impacting Parity and behavioral health overall, we’ve also been helping to put some measures in place to contain the potential cost increases of these massive reforms.

If your organization is in need of some consulting around this topic or any other behavioral health topic we urge you to contact us.   We’d also be glad to show you some easy ways to contain costs under the new health care regulations.

Posted by Ian Holtz

Manager, Business Development

The post What about Mental Health Care? appeared first on MINES and Associates.

Elliot Jacques, in his numerous publications defined accountability and authority for management at all levels. Accountability and authority establishes where people stand with each other.  They determine who is able to say what to whom, and who under given circumstances must say what to whom.  They establish who can tell who to do what, especially, in the managerial hierarchy, if one person is being held accountable for what another person does or for the results of what the other person does.

Accountability and authority define the behaviors that are appropriate and necessary in the vertical relationships between managers and their subordinates, and in the horizontal, cross-functional relationships between people.  The vertical relationships are the means by which the work that needs to get done is assigned, resourced, and evaluated; cross-functional relationships are the means by which the flow of work across functions gets processed and improved through time.

He noted that it is absolutely imperative that organizational leaders be clear not only about their own decision-making accountability, but they must also make it equally clear for each and every manager below them in the organization.  All of these managers must also meet regularly in two-way discussions about major issues with their immediate subordinates, in order to get their help in making decisions for which the manager alone must be accountable.  In discussions between managers and subordinates, it is always the manager that is ultimately accountable for decisions.  Even when the subordinate has more knowledge than his or her manager on a given matter and tells the manager what he or she thinks should be done; if the manager accepts the subordinate’s view then it becomes the manager’s decision. There will be times in an organization’s growth or life span when a manager may have multiple roles/levels that they are accountable for. The manager may be a manager, a supervisor and a front line producer on a given day if the department or work group is small enough or does not have the resources to accommodate separate levels and roles. This is a situation referred to as “down in the weeds”, “wearing many hats”, or “collapsed strata (time span).” This is not ideal; however, at times it may be the best we can do.

How does your organization define accountability and authority at each role? What impact has the clarity or lack of clarity had on your organizations effectiveness and performance?

Have a day filled with equanimity,

Robert A. Mines, Ph.D.

CEO & Psychologist

Mines and Associates

The post Psychology of Performance – 16 Accountability and Authority appeared first on MINES and Associates.

We’ve begun to hear the impact of Parity from our clients and partners who’ve expressed their satisfaction in knowing that we’ve got them covered with a robust national network of the top providers allowing their members to get the appropriate level of care at a rate that makes sense for everyone.

If you are a self-funded group and you don’t have a specialty network, MINES can help by analyzing past behavioral health and substance abuse claims to determine what impact our discounts would have on your bottom line.

We’ve been working with groups of all sizes, industries, and locations to provide appropriate levels of care at in-network rates.

If this is something your team would like to explore, we’d be grateful for a chance to help.

Posted by Ian Holtz
Manager, Business Development

ipholtz@minesandassociates.com (303) 953-4083

The post MINES Specialty Behavioral Health Network appeared first on MINES and Associates.

My name is Ryan and I joined the MINES team 1 year ago.  I’ve had the pleasure of working with every department in this company learning and working with the vast services that MINES provides for companies all over the United States.  From EAP to Managed Behavioral Health, MINES provides workplace solutions and cost-containment strategies for organizations that are truly dedicated to the well-being of their employees and members.  It has been exciting to work with so many great people and with a company that cares about the development and success of its staff.

I have recently moved into the Marketing department here at MINES to help expand our opportunities to serve more people and in this new role I am actively seeking input from the readers of this blog as to what would be most helpful to you.  Do you benefit from the articles that are posted regarding stress management?  Are you looking for more information on the services that we provide?  How can we continue to serve you as a reader of this blog?

I look forward to your comments!

Ryan
Marketing Coordinator

The post This blog appeared first on MINES and Associates.