High School REACT

  Grief is a process of healing from loss : Be open to feeling what we feel rather than trying to shut out our feelings.   Being open to feeling what we feel is an exercise of self- empathy and putting our lesson on Feelings 101 into practice . When we try to shut out your feelings, they don't necessarily go away and we merely are prolonging our pain when we do this. Accept what is within our control and what is not in our control. Acceptance is not about "moving on." It is about acknowledging that the loss has occurred, acknowledging what is beyond our control. Adapt to reality, make necessary adjustments to manage day-to-day life. Adapting is not about "moving on."  Adapting is about making sure the bills are being paid on time, dinner is on the table, dishes are being washed, bathrooms are being cleaned, and having the courage to ask for help with getting things done, and help with self-care . Remember / Memorialize / Honor who or what was lost. This ...

REACT As Assessment How are we to have a constructive conversation about our mental health? To put this in context - we are so adept in having constructive conversations about our physical health in describing our physical pain as to where it is located and what we feel when the pain is agitated, the frequency of such, the intensity of the distress. Yet, when speaking of mental health , self-assessment, and the assessment of others, far too often takes on a different tack and an altogether different dimension, which is that of diagnosis – for example, “I’m feeling paranoid,” “I’m depressed,” “I’m having anxiety,” “he’s being OCD,” “he’s being bipolar”. Conversations about mental health somehow oftentimes takes on clinical language, packed with presumption, yet lacking in precision and relatability. It could be a helpful starting point, but only if the conversation goes anywhere beyond labeling and nomenclature. A simple way to define mental health is to say it's pretty much...

Uses of mini-journal 1. mindfulness 2. creating space for self- and social- awareness 3. providing context for dialogue with others including Christ