change can be scary. when dealing with change, whether that be a lifestyle change, or a personal change we are actively working towards, the discomfort may still remain. when we learn to see and accept change as a constant presence in our lives, we can learn to work through the difficult feelings that may arise with change & let them pass. in this episode, I reflect on my encounters with change, how we can reframe our perspective on change, and on learning to accept the constant nature of change.

socials! ⭐️

youtube/spotify: my reflective space

insta/tiktok: myreflectivespace

substack: myreflective space (coming soon)

resources i’ve used to make this episode:https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.3109/10826084.2015.1042338https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/understanding-addiction/202110/understanding-the-process-changehttps://www.nhs.uk/every-mind-matters/mental-wellbeing-tips/how-to-deal-with-changehttps://talkingtherapies.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/therapy-in-focus-blogs/tips-for-dealing-with-change/

we’re often told to strive for success, and with so much pressure on constant achievement, we can come to fear failure of any kind. while this fear may exist to protect us from the disappointment and shame that comes with failure, it ultimately prevents us from engaging with life to the fullest. in this episode, I reflect on my relationship to failure, how this fear of failure can arise, and steps to take to challenge your fear.

resources:

https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2013-14500-00

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00050060310001706997

https://www.bps.org.uk/psychologist/overcoming-fear-failure-university

https://www.bps.org.uk/psychologist/thinking-more-positively-about-failure

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35kY-dpafXs&ab_channel=MichelleGia

socials! ⭐️youtube/spotify: my reflective spaceinsta: myreflectivespacetiktok: myreflectivespacesubstack: myreflective space (coming soon)

rest is something we typically associated with sleeping or inactivity, but a lot of the time this form of rest doesn't help us to recharge and recover in the way that we need. in this episode, I reflect on the 7 types of rest everyone needs (introduced by Dr Saundra Dalton-Smith), the purpose of each form of rest, and how to work towards understanding the kind of rest you need.

resources used to make this episode: https://ideas.ted.com/the-7-types-of-rest-that-every-person-needs/

https://www.calm.com/blog/7-types-of-rest

socials! ⭐️

youtube & spotify: my reflective spaceinsta & tiktok: myreflectivespacesubstack: myreflective space (coming soon)

how often do you take time to think about what you’re grateful for? gratitude is often an aspect of wellbeing that can get overlooked, yet an effective way to reconnect with ourselves and our lives. in this episode, I reflect on my challenging relationship with gratitude, how i’ve been making progress towards developing a gratitude practice, and the power of gratitude for our mental health.

resources used to make this episode:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0272735810000450

https://www.academia.edu/127075958/The_Association_between_Gratitude_and_Depression_A_Meta_Analysis

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4873114/#sec12

socials! ⭐️

youtube: my reflective space

insta: myreflectivespace

tiktok: myreflectivespace

substack: myreflective space (coming soon)

many of us have probably experienced some feeling of low mood throughout our lives – whether that be because of school, work, friendships, or just challenging periods of life. it is difficult to know what to do when you’re feeling low, and so many of us may feel stuck and not know how to feel better. in this episode, I reflect on my experience with low mood, how we may unintentionally be maintaining our low mood, and how to work towards feeling better.

mental health resources:https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/feelings-symptoms-behaviours/feelings-and-symptoms/low-mood-sadness-depression/https://www.nhs.uk/every-mind-matters/mental-health-issues/low-mood/#top-tips

helplines: https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/guides-to-support-and-services/seeking-help-for-a-mental-health-problem/mental-health-helplines/

I wanted to take some time to reflect on what it is I want to create and what my purpose is in making these episodes, and giving myself this fresh start has made me feel a lot clearer about my vision for this space! I hope to share my reflections and encourage reflection in every episode, whilst touching on topics related to mental health, psychology, culture, and more. in this episode, I discuss some of my reflections around having a fresh start, and how to go about creating fresh starts for yourself.

insta: myreflectivespace

it’s likely we’ve all found ourselves in a situation where we are struggling to deal with certain emotions, thoughts, and experiences, and our natural response is often to resist and avoid. the reality is that this is counterintuitive – it only increases our struggle. the better, albeit more challenging, solution is to accept our present circumstances for what they are. but how do we actually learn to reach acceptance? in this episode, I explore the idea of acceptance, and how we can go about working towards it more practically, extracting ideas from Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT) in doing so. I hope to illustrate that in spite of the challenges in pursuit, acceptance is the key tool that we need to develop in order to continue moving forward in our lives and working towards allowing ourselves to be, exactly as we are.

⭐️insta: @differentisnormal

I’m sure we’ve all experienced some sense of perfectionism in our lives, whether that be academics, work, or personal lives. perfectionism can often be seen as a negative trait, but what if perfectionism isn’t completely maladaptive? in this episode, I explore the different dimensions of perfectionism, and reflect on how we can learn to exist in tandem with our perfectionism.

⭐️insta: @differentisnormal; @neihasagar

it’s well known that spending too much time on screens appears to have harmful impacts for our health. it may seem like to obvious solution is to completely switch off from all devices, yet for many of us this is not realistic or easy to implement fully. perhaps there’s a way for us to shift our attitude towards screens and take a more intentional approach to screen time. in this episode, I dissect the relationship between screen time and mental health based on research, and discuss an alternative perspective towards screen time that is centred around mindfulness.

⭐️insta: @differentisnormal; @neihasagar

what does it mean to be compassionate? the theme of compassion has come up in many areas of my life, so I wanted to explore this idea further and reflect on how we can seek compassion in our own lives, both towards others and ourselves. finding compassion can be difficult, especially when we may not have a clear understanding of what compassion actually is. in this episode, I discuss my relationship with compassion, how compassion can manifest in our lives, and how we can go about cultivating a better sense of self-compassion.

⭐️insta: @differentisnormal; @neihasagar