Dr. Kate Marshall

Welcome to the first installment of Dr. Kate’s Blog. As a practicing clinical psychologist, I’m really excited to use this format to share my thoughts and ideas about a variety of topics. Hopefully, my readers will find them interesting and thought provoking. In future columns, areas such as resiliency, eating concerns, self-esteem and teen issues will be discussed.

My posts will in no way be an exhaustive exploration of any of these important issues. Nor will they be a substitute for psychotherapy or counseling if that is necessary. For those who want a more in-depth response to a particular issue, I invite you to consider a confidential consultation that can offer more individualized care.

I welcome your comments and reactions, although I regret that I won’t be able to respond to every individual post.

It’s also important to note that the identities of the people in any of the case examples used have been protected. Their names and identifying features have been masked.

Letter from a Friend

A few months or so ago a friend from another state sent in an email. “Kate, I’m so stressed I can hardly breathe. I’m just maxed out.”

My friend is a competent professional and the mother of several kids, all under the ages of ten, who has coped fairly well in her life. However, she would have scored high on any Life Stressor Inventory. Recently, she’d been overwhelmed by a number of unplanned events and stressors in her life. Her husband had been recently laid off and she had been working extra hours in her home-based business. Her mother had been admitted to a nearby nursing home and my friend has had to deal with her mother’s unhappiness about the placement. If ever a person had to rework her world in a short period of time (some people’s definition of stress) it was my friend.

Stress, short for distress, has been on my mind lately as I gather ideas for my stress busting workshops for the fall. We all face stressors on an everyday basis and a certain degree of challenge is actually helpful for our focus, motivation, inspiration and overall performance. But too much strain or tension on our system all at once can feel overwhelming. The current unstable economic climate has shaken many of our worlds in painful and confusing ways, adding an uncertain edge to our daily lives.

“Enough challenge already.” That phrase might translate into the “shout out” of our physical and mental system as our bodies and minds go into overdrive to handle the added strain. Excessive unfiltered stress is often linked to depression, anxiety and mental decline. When we become chronically stressed, (too many stressors, insufficient coping strategies), the stress hormone switch can become stuck in the “on” position, thus further weakening our resources.

Worry and Blocking Beliefs.

Although worry is often an attempt at strategy development, its crippling effects can be just as negative as the original stressor. Unhelpful worry may interrupt our sleep and lead to more ineffectiveness. We may turn to excessive eating, alcohol use or other unhelpful habits to give our minds a rest. Many of us “know” that it’s important to reset the switch and “refresh” the system with a healthy diet and plenty of physical activity, but may feel like we don’t have the time, resources or energy to accomplish this. The idea of exercise for some of us may even trigger more distress and internal struggle.

We may also think we have to be locked in the “on” position to be ready for whatever comes at us, although this stance can overwhelm us much like a power surge to an already overloaded circuit board. This sort of thinking can interfere with our natural resilience, shrink the prefrontal cortex and make our problem solving efforts less effective.

Changing a Pattern: Twelve Good Breaths.

The impact of stress, no matter what the external events can be successfully navigated. Sometimes, in the heat of tense moments we forgo the basics. Most of us know about the benefits of a good diet and daily physical activity, but we may not know the fact that twelve good breaths can trigger our “relaxation response” and therefore recharge the system, lowering blood pressure and making real problem solving more doable. This simple technique that can be done in the car, on a bus, or in front of the TV, involves slowing the in-breath to four to six one second counts, and extending and slowing the out-breath in a similar rhythm.

Through a variety of other methods that include additional relaxation strategies, meditation, yoga breathing, visualization, pattern interruption such as physical exercise and changes in thinking and behavior, we can tap into our inherent resilience and insulate our system to the impact of chronic tension and change. My upcoming workshops will provide an opportunity to learn and practice more of these strategies.

And so, in conclusion, I offer the same closing that I sent to my friend. “Please remember to breathe, slowly and deeply.”

I welcome your thoughts, strategies and reactions to my first column.