Archive for the ‘ Your Options ’ Category
Living With Illness – Your Options: Emotional Rehabilitation after the Diagnosis of Chronic Kidney Disease
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Introduction |
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Knowing When to Get Help |
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The Role of the Dialysis Social Worker |
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Treatment Options |
Introduction
Adjusting to a diagnosis of chronic kidney disease (CKD) can be an overwhelming experience. Though all people with CKD are certainly not the same, and individuals respond to the diagnosis in different ways, it is common for people to have strong emotions when faced with the reality of needing to start dialysis. You may feel anger, guilt, and shock. You may notice changes in your ability to work, your role in your family or your social life – all of these add to the confusion and upset that most people report feeling as they learn to cope with CKD. For some, both physical and emotional treatment and rehabilitation is necessary.
Most people are able to adjust and return to many of the activities that were present in their lives before CKD, including family, travel, leisure and work. To live well with kidney disease, it is important to care for both the physical and emotional changes that you may experience. Talking with someone about these changes and how they affect you can help you manage your feelings and lower your chances of becoming depressed or anxious, while increasing your chances of making a positive adjustment to living with CKD.
Knowing When to Get Help
Statistics show that up to 40 percent of people with CKD experience depression at some time (1) (2). Signs of depression include trouble enjoying things that used to be fun, staying away from social situations such as time with family and friends, having a hard time concentrating and feeling sad or down most of the time. If you have one or more of these symptoms it does not always mean that you are suffering from depression, but it is important to discuss your symptoms it does not always mean that you are suffering from depression, but it is important to discuss your symptoms with a professional who can help you. Other symptoms commonly experienced by people suffering from depression, such as difficulty sleeping and low appetite, can also be symptoms of uremia.
Usually, depression is easily treated. Many people find that talking about their feelings with the dialysis unit social worker or doctor, taking anti-depressant medication or seeing a counselor on a regular basis can make a big difference. Usually, a combination of counseling and medication is most effective in preventing or managing depression. Some people living with a chronic illness have a great deal of anxiety and nervousness. People who have an anxious emotional response to a diagnosis or treatment of CKD can sometimes have trouble sleeping and feel nervous and worried much of the time, often over things that they normally would not worry about. Anxiety can be quite disruptive to people's lives, making it difficult to relax, concentrate, and become involved in everyday activities. Some symptoms of depression and anxiety are similar, and anxiety itself is sometimes a sign of depression , so a proper evaluation by your medical team is important. Anxiety is also treatable with counseling and medication.
The Role of the Dialysis Social Worker
Every dialysis center has a team on site to handle the range of challenges that people on dialysis or with a transplant face. It is important for you to partner with the members of your dialysis team to make use of the skills that each has to offer. Fortunately, to find out about social support, professional counseling, and to learn about a variety of treatment options for depression, anxiety or difficulty adjusting to dialysis and CKD management, you need look no further than your dialysis social worker. The dialysis social worker is the one member of the health care team with training and experience in dealing with mental health issues. His or her main role is to counsel people with CKD and their family members to help them adjust to the changes and challenges. Social workers can give brief therapy in the dialysis unit to help people better understand and manage some of the feelings and thoughts that can lead to depression or anxiety. The social worker can partner with individuals to identify and solve problems that often come along with the challenges of living with CKD and help them to develop better coping strategies.
Treatment Options
There are a variety of treatment options available to help with the emotional reactions to a CKD diagnosis. First, you should talk to your social worker about how you are feeling. In addition to helping you understand your feelings, your social worker may be able to help you learn the best treatment options for your unique experiences.
Among the treatment options available for depression and anxiety are individual and family counseling, offered through many counseling centers in the community. Social workers can give you resources for group counseling and support groups for people facing similar challenges. There are a growing number of books, magazines, Web sites and other materials from organizations like the National Kidney Foundation (NKF) which offer education and emotional support, inspirational materials and information about living with CKD. Coping Effectively: A Guide for Patients and Their Families is one brochure available through the NKF by calling 800-622-9010 or visiting www.kidney.org.
Dialysis social workers can help you find these resource and taking advantage of them can help you feel less alone and more like an important part of the large network of people living well with CKD.
References:
1. Watnick S., Kirwin P., Mahnenesmith R., et al: The prevalence and treatment of depression among starting dialysis patients. American Journal of Kidney Disease 41 (1): 105-110, 2003
2. Guzman S.J., Nicassio P.M.,: The contribution of negative and positive illness
schemas to depression in patients with end-stage renal disease. J Behav Med. Dec 26 (6):517-34, 2003.
Reprinted with permission from the National Kidney Foundation's Family Focus newsletter.
Healthy Lifestyles – Your Options: Lose Weight and Maintain Health Through Lifestyle Change Counseling
Introduction
Obesity and overweight have become a national epidemic, with over half the country's population struggling with weight and food issues. While Weight Watchers and Overeaters Anonymous have been around a long time and have helped millions, there is clearly a need for more assistance. Some people with weight problems need greater support to focus on the deeper issues that drive overeating and the resulting weight gain and health concerns. This is the purpose of lifestyle change counseling.
Q. What is lifestyle change counseling?
Lifestyle change counseling is supportive counseling that helps clients with weight and health problems improve their wellbeing through behavior change. Supportive counseling means helping a client see not only what they are doing that does not work but why they are doing it. The counselor helps guide the client toward possible changes that can be tried in order to choose more effective behaviors. It also incorporates a focus on the habits, thoughts, motivations, and beliefs of clients to increase their awareness of how they think and act about food and health. There is also lots of feedback to the client, reinforcement for their successes, and a consistent positive approach to all that the client is doing.
Q. How is it different from life coaching?
Lifestyle change counseling goes to a deeper level with clients than coaching. The support of lifestyle change counseling involves defining objectives, setting goals, encouraging action, and evaluating the results. More than that, it examines feelings, thought processes, and possible conflicting motives that contribute to feeling stuck or unable to make a change, then works toward changing the underlying thoughts and emotions.
Q. What are the main concepts of lifestyle change counseling?
Lifestyle change counseling is based on the three primary practices of monitoring, exercise, and support. These are the highest correlated behaviors for long-term success with weight loss and health maintenance. Monitoring is keeping track of behavior with some type of written record, such as food eaten or exercise done. Exercise entails working up to and sustaining a minimum of 30 minutes of exercise 5 days a week (total of 150 minutes per week). Support includes all those people and things that help keep a health program going, such as a personal trainer, self-help books, exercise equipment, grocery lists and food delivery services, medical doctor, counselor, massage therapist, or nutritionist.
These three major practices (monitoring, exercise, support) are tied together by making use of planning, which provides the necessary structure; and stress management, which is essential for anyone going through significant change. Many people with weight issues are suffering from overwork, too many responsibilities, and a sense of ongoing chaos and lack of control in their daily lives. Lifestyle change counseling can address these issues while at the same time dealing with the mechanics of getting an exercise program in place or developing a workable monitoring system.
Q. What are lifestyle change counseling sessions like?
Sessions times can vary depending on a person's preference and needs. First comes a check-in about events since the last contact so successes and problem areas can be explored. Then difficulties are discussed, options are generated and considered, and modifications to goals are made as needed. Throughout this conversation the objective is identifying ways a person can achieve more mastery and direction in his or her life. To do this a lifestyle change counselor will guide the client toward understanding past behavior patterns and creating more positive patterns of behavior. Clients thereby gain a sense of satisfaction and personal accomplishment by managing uncomfortable feelings and letting go of ineffective behaviors, as well as making healthier choices. Functioning is improved through setting goals, creating successes, and experiencing personal empowerment. All these contribute to improved self-esteem and a greater sense of accomplishment.
Q. How long will treatment be necessary?
Some clients find that a few months of supportive counseling is enough to jump start them on the journey of creating a healthy lifestyle for themselves. These are the people who are ready and eager to make the necessary changes. Others may find they need more time, even years, because of underlying beliefs about themselves, low self-esteem, emotional disorders, or a lack of confidence in their ability to be successful. Sometimes clients discover that major parts of their lives, such as a terrible job, an unsupportive spouse, or family demands like caring for elders must be dealt with in order to make room for them to focus on their own life changes. Here too lifestyle change counseling can help guide the client into making choices that will work better for them in the bigger picture of their total life experience.
Q. What kind of progress should clients expect?
Some people make rapid progress, especially at the beginning when they are motivated, ready, and eager to see results. Others can expect to see a slowdown later on in absolute weight lost over time, because the closer one gets to goal weight, the slower it comes off. Some clients also might experience a decline in motivation, when progress seems to be at a standstill. With continued support and diligence, these lulls are temporary and have no lasting effect. Occasionally someone will suffer a setback due to illness or injury, in which case modifications in goals and ways to measure success are called for. Another important aspect of lifestyle change is recognizing that this is for life, that changes need to be permanent, and habits need to be modified for good. These ideas often need to be revisited on a regular basis. It truly is about changing your life.
Q. Will health insurance cover the expense of the treatment?
Check approved providers for the mental health portion of your insurance plan. If your plan does not have a mental health benefit, or if a lifestyle change counselor is not on that provider panel, costs would be the responsibility of the client.
Conclusion
When a person struggles with overweight or overeating problems, or has been diagnosed with obesity, lifestyle change counseling can provide some of the answers. With the support of a dedicated counselor, one familiar with the working concepts and effective strategies, and who offers an accepting and positive approach, a person can make the changes to habits and thinking that has him or her to a less than healthy state. Consider what there is to to lose—and gain—by choosing a lifestyle change counselor today.
Related Articles:
Stress Management – Your Options: “Four-Legged Therapy”
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Introduction |
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Abbey and Bode |
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Conclusion |
Introduction
When you get home from a stressful day, what is the first that you think? Do you look forward to "debriefing" with a loved one, calling a friend to vent, or taking a run to let off steam? These are all positive ways to reduce stress. However, for many it is relaxing to come home to a pet that is eagerly waiting at the door for you. Pets love you unconditionally and even more so when they sense discomfort.
Therapeutic animals have been successful in other settings as well. Pets have been used in such facilities as nursing homes, hospice, physical rehabilitation facilities, group homes, and hospitals. They have long been used as companion animals, assisting people with various disabilities, enabling them to lead more independent lives. Therapeutic and companion animals do not have to be dogs, although they are the ones with which we are most familiar. Cats, ferrets, birds, and other animals have also been used with success. Even a fish in a fishbowl placed next to the bed of a person in a hospital has been known to help.
Pets often provide a personal therapist at home, as well as being used in a more formal therapeutic setting. At home pets sit and listen without judgment. They allow you to cry. They console you when you don't really know you need it. Pets are able to read your emotions through your body movements and tone. In a formal setting, pets are beneficial in processing situations that have occurred. At times, the presence of a pet can bring soothing comfort to allow relaxation toward processing.
If pets are being used to help children and teenagers deal with stress, the young people should feel comfortable with the pet,usually a dog, and certainly not be at all afraid of the animal. The size of the dog could be important for some children as they may fear larger dogs. If you are using a therapeutic dog in your home, your dog should be a comfortable and familiar size.
Abbey and Bode
Two professional therapeutic dogs, Abbey , a 20 lb. beagle mix, and Bode, a 110 lb. Great Dane mix have been extremely effective in therapy with children. Choosing which dog "comes to work" is dependent on their mood that day as well as the child scheduled to work with them.
Ms. Moser and Bode and Abbey
Recently, Abbey came into a therapy session with a child who no longer lives with his biological family. With the child and guardian's permission, Abbey came to work with the middle-school-age child. With this particular child, it was important to know about Abbey's history. Abbey was a rescue and was not able to stay with her mother anymore. This child began to identify similarities between the dog's life and his own. The child recognized that they have been through many similar things and are doing well with the love from their new families. Abbey was calm with the child and mostly sat near and nudge for a rub or kiss the child when Abbey felt he needed reassurance that everything is alright.
Bode helped a seven year old with fears after a trauma. At first Bode's size was intimidating to the child; however she soon decided that he looked like "Scooby-Doo". In this case, the name of the dog was not important and the child felt more comfortable referring to him as Scooby-Doo, rather than Bode. The human therapist was replaced by "Scooby-Doo", processing the child's feelings.
The child discussed needing friends and she included the dog in her play. Bode joined her at the play kitchen where they made tea and cookies and sat down to a pretend snack. As the therapist asked questions, the child answered the dog. The child discussed her fears and asked the dog how he was able to overcome his.
When a noise startled the large dog, the girl became empowered and she was able to console him and talked about how she and the therapist would keep him safe. After this processing, the child told the therapist she realized now that she needed to trust her mom and other family members that they would keep her safe from any harm. With Bode's large size, he provided a solid hug for the client during and at the end of session, to which she stated to the mother he was her new friend.
Abbey and Bode have been helpful with children in other ways. They have been able to aid in discussing changes in client's behaviors, such as a child that has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and is cycling through manic and depressive mind frames; to increase positive self-talk to prevent self harm; anger management; and come into sessions as a reward for making counseling goals.
Conclusion
How can your own pet become more "therapeutic"? Animals respond to tone and thus will not assist you if your tone is angrily directed toward them. Simply talking to your pet about your day will allow you to get out your feelings. Pet them for the physical connection that soothes your body by contact with them. Playing or teaching a new trick with help redirect negative thoughts to more positive thoughts of the pet and turn negative energy into a positive learning experience.
There are many roles for "man's best friend" and being your source of comfort is one. If you do not have a pet or your pet does not provide you with what you need, visit with a friend that has a dog or cat or find another outlet to express yourself in nonjudgemental ways. Remember that you can provide for a pet as much as they can provide for you. There are many local shelters and rescues with amazing animals that need a loving home.
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Ms. Tara Moser, LCSW, is a therapist at Delta Family Counseling, LLC. and can be reached at 239-540-1155 or by email: Tara@deltafamilycounseling.com or her Web site: www.deltafamilycounseling.com
Related Articles:
Lifespan Planning – Your Options: Long-Term Care Insurance – Surely I Don’t Need to Think About This…
Introduction
Who will care for us when we are elderly and frail? This is something most of us in the working world don't want to consider. We are currently busy doing our jobs, being involved in family activities, and possibly worrying about paying for college, retirement or both. But, what about our own long-term care needs?
Long-Term Care (LTC) Insurance now exists privately and through many employers and can help pay all or part of our long-term care needs. Long-term care itself can be quite expensive. The cost depends on the amount and type of care you need and the location in which the care is provided. The average cost of nursing home care is now more than $60,000/year, and in-home care costs about $12 – $20/hour. Long-Term Care Insurance is a program which can pay for many of the costs associated with assisted living, nursing home or in-home care once the physical or cognitive care needs exist. If we look at who currently pays for LTC, we see that Medicare and supplemental health insurance only pay for about 5% of care while private funds are used to pay for about 33% of the Long-Term Care needs. The state Medicaid program pays about 50% of the costs for nursing home care statewide but is only available after all of an individual's private funds have been exhausted.
Who Needs Long-Term Care Insurance?
You should NOT buy Long-Term Care insurance if:
- You can't afford the annual premiums
- You have limited assets
- Your only source of retirement income is through Social Security
- You have trouble paying for food, utilities, medicine or other important needs
You should CONSIDER buying Long-Term Care insurance if:
- You have significant assets and income
- You want to protect some of your assets and income
- You want to pay for your own care
- You want to stay independent of the support of others
What to Look For in a Long-Term Care Insurance Policy?
- The policy should offer you several Daily or Monthly Benefit Amounts from which to choose for Long-Term Care – policies usually have you select the daily limit ranging from about $50 – $250/day.
- It should include in-home care, other community based care and assisted living, not just nursing home care.
- Evaluate the Benefit Triggers such as needing assistance with two out of six Activities of Daily Living (ADL) rather than needing assist in three or more Activitie of Daily Living.
- It should include care for cognitive impairment.
- Inflation protection, depending on the age at which you buy into the policy, can be important.
- Evaluate the length of the Elimination Period before benefits can start to see if it matches well enough with your supplemental health insurance and/or income/assets. Most policies offer 30, 60 or 90 day elimination periods during which you are responsible for the cost of your care.
- Is the parent company for the policy a solid, long standing and financially solvent insurance company?
When Should You Buy Into a Long-Term Care Insurance Policy?
Lon Term Care insurance programs do screen for health concerns and individuals with significant pre-existing health issues may not be eligible for this insurance. It is wise to buy insurance while you are still healthy. The annual premiums are also lower when you are younger. Someone in their 40's should start considering the various polices as part of the financial planning process and most people should buy into a policy by age 55. The upper limit that the insurers will accept is usually around 75-80 years old.
How Do I Find Out More About Long-Term Care Insurance?
- The Federal Government’s Elder Locator program is an excellent resource. Their Web site is http://www.eldercare.gov/Eldercare/Public/Home.asp. Their telephone number is (800) 677-1116.
- The Virginia State Corporation Commission puts out a document called "Facts About LTC Insurance in Virginia" available through their office at (877) 310-6560 or on-line at www.vda.virginia.gov/ltcfacts.pdf
- Our local Jefferson Area Board on Aging has an insurance specialist on staff. Sally Mank with VICAP can be reached by calling at (434) 817-5222x 248.
- www.aetna.com/group/commonwealthva/ provides information on the Aetna policy offered through UVA, or call 877-894-2470.
Always review policies carefully and compare several before deciding on one.
Related Articles:
Lifespan Planning – Your Options: Long Term Care Insurance – Surely I Don’t Need to Think About This. . .
Introduction
Who will care for us when we are elderly and frail? This is something most of us in the working world don't want to consider. We are currently busy doing our jobs, being involved in family activities, and possibly worrying about paying for college, retirement or both. But, what about our own long-term care needs?
Long Term Care (LTC) Insurance now exists privately and through many employers and can help pay all or part of our long-term care needs. Long-term care itself can be quite expensive. The cost depends on the amount and type of care you need and the location in which the care is provided. The average cost of nursing home care is now more than $60,000/year, and in-home care costs about $12 – $20/hour. Long Term Care Insurance is a program which can pay for many of the costs associated with assisted living, nursing home or in-home care once the physical or cognitive care needs exist. If we look at who currently pays for LTC, we see that Medicare and supplemental health insurance only pay for about 5% of care while private funds are used to pay for about 33% of the Long Term Care needs. The state Medicaid program pays about 50% of the costs for nursing home care statewide but is only available after all of an individual's private funds have been exhausted.
Who Needs Long Term Care Insurance?
You should NOT buy Long Term Care insurance if:
- You can't afford the annual premiums
- You can’t afford the annual premiums
- You have limited assets
- Your only source of retirement income is through Social Security
- You have trouble paying for food, utilities, medicine or other important needs
You should CONSIDER buying Long Term Care insurance if:
- You have significant assets and income
- You want to protect some of your assets and income
- You want to pay for your own care
- You want to stay independent of the support of others
What to Look For in a LTC Insurance Policy?
- The policy should offer you several Daily or Monthly Benefit Amounts from which to choose for Long Term Care – policies usually have you select the daily limit ranging from about $50 – $250/day.
- It should include in-home care, other community based care and assisted living, not just nursing home care.
- Evaluate the Benefit Triggers such as needing assistance with two out of six Activities of Daily Living (ADL) rather than needing assist in three or more Activitie of Daily Living.
- It should include care for cognitive impairment.
- Inflation protection, depending on the age at which you buy into the policy, can be important.
- Evaluate the length of the Elimination Period before benefits can start to see if it matches well enough with your supplemental health insurance and/or income/assets. Most policies offer 30, 60 or 90 day elimination periods during which you are responsible for the cost of your care.
- Is the parent company for the policy a solid, long standing and financially solvent insurance company?
When Should You Buy Into a Long Term Care Insurance Policy?
LTC insurance programs do screen for health concerns and individuals with significant pre-existing health issues may not be eligible for this insurance. It is wise to buy insurance while you are still healthy. The annual premiums are also lower when you are younger. Someone in their 40's should start considering the various polices as part of the financial planning process and most people should buy into a policy by age 55. The upper limit that the insurers will accept is usually around 75-80 years old.
How Do I Find Out More About LTC Insurance?
- The Virginia State Corporation Commission puts out a document called "Facts About LTC Insurance in Virginia" available through their office at (877) 310-6560 or on-line at www.vda.virginia.gov/ltcfacts.pdf
- Our local Jefferson Area Board on Aging has an insurance specialist on staff. Sally Mank with VICAP can be reached by calling at (434) 817-5222x 248.
- www.aetna.com/group/commonwealthva/ provides information on the Aetna policy offered through UVA, or call 877-894-2470.
Always review policies carefully and compare several before deciding on one.
Youth Development – Your Options: Nine Steps to Success
Success is the result of perfection, hard work, learning from failure, loyalty and persistence.
Ret. U.S. Gen. Colin Powell
The Success Process
Let’s begin with a tale of two teenagers.
Heather, seventeen, seems to be always in control, always confident. She has dreams and she pursues them. When she was in seventh grade, an acquaintance of her family became junior class president. Heather thought that was great, and she resolved to become a class president herself some day, which she did as a senior. Now she’s considering which college to attend. She wants to be a physical therapist to help people.
Nick, sixteen, has always been interested in computers and has a great eye for design. He also has an entrepreneurial spirit-that is, he’s always liked thinking of ways that he could put his talents to use and make money. In the past year he has spent his free time designing Web pages for various organizations and companies-at first, small organizations and companies within his town, and then larger corporations in other cities. In fact, he just agreed to design a Web site for a major retailer in the Midwest and will make $10,000 doing so. He wants to own his own multimedia business one day.
Heather and Nick are doing different things and have different career paths in front of them, but they have one important thing in common: They are following their dreams. They have visions for their lives, and they are not afraid to pursue those visions. Are you like Heather-confident, pursuing goals, going toward a bright future? Are you like Nick – using your strengths and abilities in ways that not only benefit you today but that can open up even greater possibilities for tomorrow?
Don’t feel bad if you don’t have a clear idea about what you want to do after you’ve graduated, or if you’re not making $10,000 in your spare time. Many teenagers don’t have a clear idea about what they want to do with their lives, and very few make that kind of money. In fact, the money that Nick is making through his entrepreneurial ideas is not the point. That’s a result-and a very nice one ¬of his having a clear vision and not being afraid to follow it. That’s the point-not only of Nick’s story, but of this book. I want to help you create a vision for your life and a plan to make that vision happen.
I told you one thing that Heather and Nick have in common: their ability to pursue their dreams. Now I’ll tell you one more thing they have in common. They don’t worry about what others think about them or their plans. They’re not spending time trying to impress others or wondering what other people think they should do. To spend time this way clouds your vision; you get too many conflicting thoughts, and ideas that don’t match. If you can relate to that, you’re not alone. In fact, for a long time I was right there with you.
Like many people, I wasted a great deal of my life worrying about what others thought of me. I still struggle with that, even though I now realize that it doesn’t matter what others may think of me; what matters most is how I feel about myself, and that I believe in the possibilities for my life. When you have a sense of your own identity and a vision of where you want to go in your life, you can go after your dreams for a fulfilling life. And that’s what this book is all about.
In this chapter we’ll begin to explore what it means to live a successful life. We’ll help you understand:
- What it means to develop a vision and act on that vision;
- How you can use a tool called “Success Circles” to help you focus on a fulfilling life; and
- How to begin taking the nine steps toward living that successful life.
The average person generally develops only about two percent of his or her potential. That leaves plenty of room for bettering yourselfl In order to do so, though, you need vision. You can’t go anywhere if you can’t see where you’re going.
Developing a Vision
Vision, simply stated, is seeing your purpose in life. It’s tied in to knowing who you are and what you can mvision yourself doing with your talents and desires. We all have talents and we all have desires. What we need to learn is how to use those talents and desires in living fulfilling lives. Opportunities are there for all of us, but we have to seize the right ones for us based on our own visions for our lives.
Creating a vision and making that vision happen take what I call an “active optimism”: You have to believe in yourself and in your future, and then you have to actively p’ursue your plans. Most teenagers have great optimism for the future. The 1999-2000 State of Our Nation’s Youth report by the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans gave voice to teens across our nation on a variety of issues. Based on that report, about seven out of ten teens believe two things about opportunities:
1. The harder they work, the more opportunities will be available to them.
2. They will have many opportunities available to them after they graduate from high school.
Hopefully you’re one of those seven in ten who see many opportunities
before you. It’s hard to develop a vision for bettering your life if you don’t believe m you have many opportunities for doing so.
We can’t all be professional athletes or movie stars, of course. And we can’t all get the lead in the school play, be class president, be the star on the basketball team, or be in the National Honor Society. But we all have the ability to lead dynamic lives by pursuing our own unique goals and dreams. The poorest, the weakest, or the least popular of us has the power within to pursue a fulfilling life. We must believe that it is possible to achieve our dreams and then commit to achieving those dreams. Without that belief, every dream will turn to dust.
Do you believe that you can take control of your own life? Are you pursuing goals? Are you trying to better yourself, to learn, to grow, to make good choices?
Heather is confident about who she is, about her value, and she focuses on her goals. She is actively controlling her own life, driven by her goals and principles. People like Heather understand that what happens to them is not nearly as important as how they choose to respond to it. People like Nick see how they can use their talents and are not afraid to take risks. They see the positive side of taking risks and see potential in a variety of opportunities.
It’s not easy to change your life. You need to build strong and supportive relationships as you follow the Success Process. Take control and focus on pursuing a good life, but don’t isolate yourself in the process. Isolating yourself is not healthy spiritually, mentally, or physically, and it certainly is not the way to achieve your dreams. Nobody makes it alone. You need friends-friends who believe in you.
As you follow the steps in this book, build solid relationships and lean on them when you need to. Don’t be afraid to ask for help or encouragement along the way. And look to provide that helping hand or word of encouragement to others, too.
We must believe that it is possible to achieve our dreams and then commit to achieving those dreams.
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Reprinted with the approval of S. Graham & Associates, www.stedmangraham.com .
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Nine Steps to Success: Teens Can Make It Happen published by Simon & Shuster and is available at bookstores and online. |
