PsicoDanza - Licda. Andrea Cabrera de Lara

Después de una infidelidad, muchas parejas pueden crear una...

Sun, 03 Jun 2012 23:28:25 -0400

Después de una infidelidad, muchas parejas pueden crear una relación totalmente nueva, juntos; pero no pueden volver a su antigua relación. Deben crear una nueva visión del matrimonio, una nueva unión. Para poder pasar a esta nueva vida juntos, se debe fortalecer la fidelidad haciendo sus expectativas explícitas y que se centren en las necesidades de ambos.

Diversión en pareja

Thu, 31 May 2012 23:29:00 -0400

La diversión es lo primero que tendemos a dejar de lado una vez y nos establecemos con nuestra pareja. Dejamos que las actividades del día a día nos abrumen, y consuman la mayor parte de nuestro tiempo, olvidando que “pareja que se divierte, se mantiene unida”.
Se han realizado estudios que demuestran que mientras más se invierte en la diversión y en la amistad, más feliz se es en la relación. Además, se ha encontrado que en los hombres, esta conexión diversión-felicidad es mucho más importante y necesaria. Según este estudio, los hombres son más propensos a considerar a sus esposas/novia su mejor amiga.
Es por eso que es importante realizar actividades en pareja como ir a ver una película, pasar tiempo con amigos o practicar algún deporte. Mientras más risas se acumulen, más fuerte se hará el vínculo entre los dos.

Cómo se relacionan las emociones.

Wed, 30 May 2012 12:14:09 -0400

Cómo se relacionan las emociones.

Psicología y Danza

Wed, 23 May 2012 10:01:05 -0400

Psicología y Danza

Relación madre-bebé

Mon, 14 May 2012 10:03:01 -0400

La maternidad cambia físicamente el cerebro de una mujer. La investigación muestra que los padres tienen diferentes patrones de activación cerebral que aquellos que no lo son en respuesta a los sonidos de los bebés. Las regiones de los cerebros de los padres vinculados a procesamiento emocional, como la amígdala, reaccionan más fuertemente a sonidos de llanto por ejemplo. Otro ejemplo de cómo funciona neuroplasticidad en el cerebro.

Completa!

Mon, 14 May 2012 09:54:25 -0400

Completa!

"El amor de una madre es paz. No tiene que ser adquirido. No tiene que ser merecido. - Erich Fromm"

Thu, 10 May 2012 09:01:51 -0400

“El amor de una madre es paz. No tiene que ser adquirido. No tiene que ser merecido. - Erich Fromm”

Soñar

Tue, 08 May 2012 14:06:20 -0400

Los sueños permiten que información de vital importancia para nuestra sobrevivencia diaria sea reconsiderada y reprocesada mientras dormimos. Se interpreta el sueño como una herencia de nuestros antepasados animales, cuyos pequeños cerebros eran incapaces de examinar suficiente información durante las horas de vigilia. En consecuencia, soñar les ofrecía un mecanismo que hacía posible el procesamiento de información 24 horas al día.

En la perspectiva de esta teoría, los sueños sí tienen significado. Representan preocupaciones respecto a nuestra vida cotidiana, ilustran nuestras incertidumbres, indecisiones, ideas y deseos. En este sentido, se considera que los sueños son congruentes con la vida diaria. En lugar de tratarse de deseos disfrazados, como sugiere Freud, representan preocupaciones centrales surgidas de las experiencias cotidianas.

Comida rápida y depresión

Mon, 07 May 2012 11:53:00 -0400

Ofreciendo más evidencia para el refrán de “eres lo que comes ‘, los científicos han encontrado que una dieta de comida rápida incrementa el riesgo de depresión en más de cincuenta por ciento. Los alimentos que comemos hoy crean la red estructural de la matriz celular que apoya el metabolismo básico, la regeneración celular y la reparación. Esto tiene especial efecto en las neuronas del cerebro, debido a que la materia gris se compone principalmente de las grasas omega-3, DHA y EPA. Cuando no nos proporcionan estos elementos básicos, especialmente en los primeros años de formación, el cuerpo se ve obligado a utilizar las grasas inferiores, tales como las que son producto de la hidrogenación, con mayor frecuencia en las comidas rápidas y procesadas.

Científicos de la Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria y la Universidad de Granada, publicando en la revista Nutrition Salud Pública han determinado que el consumo de los productos comerciales horneados (tortas, medialunas, rosquillas) y comida rápida (hamburguesas, pizza) está relacionado con un incremento del 51 por ciento en la incidencia de la depresión, en comparación con los que comen poco o nada de estos alimentos.

La depresión entre niños y adultos está creciendo a un ritmo alarmante. Los antidepresivos prescritos para tratar la depresión son en gran medida ineficaces y sólo sirven para enmascarar la causa subyacente de la enfermedad. Una gran cantidad de evidencia científica apunta ahora a una nutrición adecuada como una herramienta efectiva para detener e incluso revertir los episodios depresivos. El equipo de estudio aconsejó que una dieta que incluya alimentos horneados o fritos, e hizo hincapié en la necesidad de que los alimentos integrales, naturales, que contienen gran cantidad de vitaminas B, ácidos grasos omega-3 ácidos grasos, frescos y aceite de oliva virgen ayudan a reducir significativamente el riesgo de depresión.

Juega con un niño

Sun, 06 May 2012 17:07:55 -0400

Juega con un niño. La mayoría de los niños tienen poca capacidad de atención, diez minutos de tiempo de calidad de parte de un adulto pueden hacer su día. También te ayudará a mantenerte en contacto con el niño dentro de ti.

Actividad física y cerebro infantil

Sun, 06 May 2012 16:21:00 -0400

El ejercicio no sólo aumenta la fuerza física, sino que también ayuda a los niños a aumentar su capacidad mental. Los niños que realizan ejercicio de manera regular - con una alta capacidad aeróbica y grasa corporal baja - han mostrado buen desempeño en la escuela y exámenes estandarizados. Además de ejercicio regular, breves períodos de movimiento, como saltar o estirarse, ayudan a mejorar la concentración de los niños. Se ha demostrado que el ejercicio afecta el cerebro recargándolo y eleva los niveles de factores de crecimiento neuronal, lo que fomenta la formación de nuevas conexiones entre las células cerebrales.

Déficit de atención y sueño

Sun, 06 May 2012 15:54:30 -0400

Crees que tu hijo sufre de déficit de atención? No es sólo la cantidad de horas al día lo que afecta a los niños, sino la hora a la que se duermen. Una pista: Mientras más temprano mejor.

Miércoles 9 de Noviembre del 2011, en mi segmento GuíaMente en...

Thu, 10 Nov 2011 11:14:56 -0500

Miércoles 9 de Noviembre del 2011, en mi segmento GuíaMente en Matutino Express por Canal Antigua.

Chart of the Enneagram of Personality

Tue, 25 Oct 2011 15:54:22 -0400

The Enneagram of Personality divides people into nine basic types and is based on a nine-pointed diagram in which the points are connected according to a set pattern (see right). Because of the way the numbers are arranged and grouped, the following chart will start at 5 and continue around the circle to 4.

Personality TypeDescriptionVicewhen
stressedwhen
securePossible
Myers-Briggs
correlationsHead types
use thinking;
tend towards anxiety5The Investigatorintense, cerebral, perceptive, innovative, secretive, isolatedAvarice78ISTP, INTP
(introverted thinking)6The Loyalistcommitted, security-oriented, responsible, anxious, suspiciousFear39ISTJ, ISFJ
(introverted sensing)7The Adventurerbusy, fun-loving, spontaneous, versatile, distractible, scatteredGluttony15ENFP, ENTP
(extroverted intuition)Body/Gut types
use instinct;
tend towards anger8The Leaderpowerful, dominating, self-confident, decisive, willful, confrontationalLust52ESTJ, ENTJ
(extroverted thinking)9The Peacemakereasygoing, self-effacing, receptive, reassuring, agreeable, complacentSloth63—1The Perfectionistrational, idealistic, principled, purposeful, self-controlledAnger47INTJ, INFJ
(introverted intuition)Heart types
use feeling;
tend towards depression2The Helpercaring, demonstrative, generous, people-pleasing, possessivePride84ESFJ, ENFJ
(extroverted feeling)3The Achieversuccess-oriented, pragmatic, adaptive, driven, image-consciousDeceit96ESTP, ESFP
(extroverted sensing)4The Romanticsensitive, withdrawn, self-absorbed, dramatic, temperamentalEnvy21ISFP, INFP
(introverted feeling)

The Healing Power of Dance

Tue, 25 Oct 2011 15:48:41 -0400

May 3, 2011
Washington, DC

by Sherry Goodill, President, American Dance Therapy Association

It is an honor to contribute to the blog today, National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day, and to tell you a little bit about dance, dance/movement therapy and children’s mental health needs. Today, SAMHSA—the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration—is bringing national attention to the needs of children and teens who have experienced trauma, communicating about trauma informed care and how to support resilience and recovery for these kids. SAMHSA has called on some of the creative arts therapy organizations, including the American Dance Therapy Association (ADTA) to partner with and help inform about how the arts support resiliency. In my own work as a dance/movement therapist, I’ve seen how this happens many times over. Dance/Movement Therapy is the psychotherapeutic use of dance and movement processes to bring about healing and recovery for individuals of all ages and cultural groups. It is practiced by trained, masters’ level professionals: mental health clinicians who specialize in this creative arts therapy. Since 1966, the ADTA has advanced this mind/body integrated form of psychotherapy, with member services, educational standards, professional credentialing, continuing education and public action to advocate for the needs of those we serve in hospitals, after-school programs, mental health centers, schools, rehabilitation facilities, wellness programs, and other settings. One of the benefits of dancing is an increased sense of vitality—an awakening and renewal of one’s life energy. Studies have shown that dance interventions by trained professionals can decrease depression, improve mood, and strengthen positive feelings about one’s self. Dance/movement therapy (or DMT) harnesses the many elements of dance that have therapeutic potential. DMT does not emphasize dance technique and it is not about the artistic product (a performance). Rather, it is very much about improvisation, the mobilization and exchange of energy, and the creative, expressive process. DMT clients learn to move in ways that are authentic to how they are feeling and experiencing life, in the context of a supportive therapeutic relationship. We dance/movement therapists focus on rhythms and phrases, and on the quality of the movement: space, weight, and time. We rely on Laban Movement Analysis for assessing movement in relation to health and human development. We work with transforming fragmentation into connectedness, and giving the silenced a voice through the medium of dance. Dance forms and structures are modified for release of tension and for helping people become comfortable moving. While the dance/movement experience is the main focus of a DMT session, dance/movement therapists will also use verbalization and discussion in sessions, and sometimes DMT sessions can be noisy with music, rhythm instruments, foot stomping, hand-clapping, or laughter and all kinds of vocalizing. Dance is movement, and movement is essentially a process of ongoing change. Moving with one’s whole body, with and against gravity, one learns to both yield and resist, to feel one’s strength and to feel one’s vulnerability, to try on new qualities of action and behavior. This is what it means to be fully human. DMT can improve body image. Paul Schilder, a developmental neuroscientist, once said that dance is a loosening up of the body schema. He was describing how when we dance, the movement activates a dynamic and constant feedback loop back and forth between our brains and our bodies, so that our experience of our felt and living selves is one of change. It has been reported that children who have been traumatized can live on the alert, anxious and fearful. Dance-based methods for getting grounded, for sensing the body’s energy and position, and for developing breath support can help with learning to pay attention to one’s own needs, and for feeling more in control, and for regulating fearful or angry reactions. As dancers know, dancing and moving rhythmically with other people creates a powerful sense of “with-ness.” This is a basic principle of DMT, as noted by dance therapy pioneer Marian Chace, and group cohesion is formed very quickly through what she called “shared rhythmic action.” Unlike most dance classes, group dance/movement therapy sessions will often start and end in a circle formation. In a circle, everyone can see everyone else; we connect visually with the people across the circle and kinesthetically with the people on either side. Everyone is of equal status: the circle encourages participation by everyone, and invites each person to contribute movement ideas. Here are a couple of examples of DMT in action: My colleague Ellen Schelly-Hill and I were invited to provide a DMT experience as part of a day-long Celebration of Hope in a high school where three students had committed suicide during the previous year. Each teen there had experienced loss and the entire community was grieving. In the group, each person remembered someone who they had lost and then embodied a gesture, posture, or movement pattern that they remembered that person doing. Everyone danced all of the “memorial” movement expressions, and we combined them into a group dance, then videoed and shared it with the whole community present that day. In this way, the memories were given shape, shared through the expression movement form, and the teens felt less alone with their feelings. Children and teens who have experienced trauma can find strength, resilience, and the will to go on through facilitated dance/movement expression. At a psychiatric center in Delaware, in one DMT session I had with teens who had been sexually abused, the group members improvised their journey from “victim to survivor” moving along a linear pathway. They understood the metaphor, and how it is manifest in dance/movement language (like “getting stuck,” “falling and getting up again,” “standing firm,” “going around in circles,” etc.). One boy took a very short journey and then stopped after traveling only a few feet along. The others saw what he was saying without words: that he felt he had so far—too far—to go. I supported him while they gave him their observations: that in fact he had made a lot of progress and in their view had come much further. He tried taking the next few steps and then began to own the progress he had made, toward wholeness and his future. Please visit the ADTA website for more information about dance/movement therapy. And tune in tonight for a LIVE webcast of a very special event tonight—featuring NEA Chair Rocco Landesman, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, and author/actor Jamie Lee Curtis—in celebration of National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day.

Photo

Tue, 12 Apr 2011 15:14:51 -0400

15 Styles of Distorted Thinking

Tue, 12 Apr 2011 15:12:27 -0400

1. Filtering: You take the negative details and magnify them, while filtering out all positive aspects of a situation. A single detail may be picked out, and the whole event becomes colored by this detail. When you pull negative things out of context, isolated from all the good experiences around you, you make them larger and more awful than they really are.

2. Polarized Thinking: The hallmark of this distortion is an insistence on dichotomous choices. Things are black or white, good or bad. You tend to perceive everything at the extremes, with very little room for a middle ground. The greatest danger in polarized thinking is its impact on how you judge yourself. For example-You have to be perfect or you’re a failure.
3. Overgeneralization: You come to a general conclusion based on a single incident or piece of evidence. If something bad happens once, you expect it to happen over and over again. ‘Always’ and ‘never’ are cues that this style of thinking is being utilized. This distortion can lead to a restricted life, as you avoid future failures based on the single incident or event.
4. Mind Reading: Without their saying so, you know what people are feeling and why they act the way they do. In particular, you are able to divine how people are feeling toward you. Mind reading depends on a process called projection. You imagine that people feel the same way you do and react to things the same way you do. Therefore, you don’t watch or listen carefully enough to notice that they are actually different. Mind readers jump to conclusions that are true for them, without checking whether they are true for the other person.
5. Catastrophizing: You expect disaster. You notice or hear about a problem and start “what if’s.” What if that happens to me? What if tragedy strikes? There are no limits to a really fertile catastrophic imagination. An underlying catalyst for this style of thinking is that you do not trust in yourself and your capacity to adapt to change.
6. Personalization: This is the tendency to relate everything around you to yourself. For example, thinking that everything people do or say is some kind of reaction to you. You also compare yourself to others, trying to determine who’s smarter, better looking, etc. The underlying assumption is that your worth is in question. You are therefore continually forced to test your value as a person by measuring yourself against others. If you come out better, you get a moment’s relief. If you come up short, you feel diminished. The basic thinking error is that you interpret each experience, each conversation, each look as a clue to your worth and value.
7. Control Fallacies: There are two ways you can distort your sense of power and control. If you feel externally controlled, you see yourself as helpless, a victim of fate. The fallacy of internal control has you responsible for the pain and happiness of everyone around you. Feeling externally controlled keeps you stuck. You don’t believe you can really affect the basic shape of your life, let alone make any difference in the world. The truth of the matter is that we are constantly making decisions, and that every decision affects our lives. On the other hand, the fallacy of internal control leaves you exhausted as you attempt to fill the needs of everyone around you, and feel responsible in doing so (and guilty when you cannot).
8. Fallacy of Fairness: You feel resentful because you think you know what’s fair, but other people won’t agree with you. Fairness is so conveniently defined, so temptingly self-serving, that each person gets locked into his or her own point of view. It is tempting to make assumptions about how things would change if people were only fair or really valued you. But the other person hardly ever sees it that way, and you end up causing yourself a lot of pain and an ever-growing resentment.
9. Blaming: You hold other people responsible for your pain, or take the other tack and blame yourself for every problem. Blaming often involves making someone else responsible for choices and decisions that are actually our own responsibility. In blame systems, you deny your right (and responsibility) to assert your needs, say no, or go elsewhere for what you want.
10. Shoulds: You have a list of ironclad rules about how you and other people should act. People who break the rules anger you, and you feel guilty if you violate the rules. The rules are right and indisputable and, as a result, you are often in the position of judging and finding fault (in yourself and in others). Cue words indicating the presence of this distortion are should, ought, and must.
11. Emotional Reasoning: You believe that what you feel must be true-automatically. If you feel stupid or boring, then you must be stupid and boring. If you feel guilty, then you must have done something wrong. The problem with emotional reasoning is that our emotions interact and correlate with our thinking process. Therefore, if you have distorted thoughts and beliefs, your emotions will reflect these distortions.
12. Fallacy of Change: You expect that other people will change to suit you if you just pressure or cajole them enough. You need to change people because your hopes for happiness seem to depend entirely on them. The truth is the only person you can really control or have much hope of changing is yourself. The underlying assumption of this thinking style is that your happiness depends on the actions of others. Your happiness actually depends on the thousands of large and small choices you make in your life.
13. Global Labeling: You generalize one or two qualities (in yourself or others) into a negative global judgment. Global labeling ignores all contrary evidence, creating a view of the world that can be stereotyped and one-dimensional. Labeling yourself can have a negative and insidious impact upon your self-esteem; while labeling others can lead to snap-judgments, relationship problems, and prejudice.
14. Being Right: You feel continually on trial to prove that your opinions and actions are correct. Being wrong is unthinkable and you will go to any length to demonstrate your rightness. Having to be ‘right’ often makes you hard of hearing. You aren’t interested in the possible veracity of a differing opinion, only in defending your own. Being right becomes more important than an honest and caring relationship.
15. Heaven’s Reward Fallacy: You expect all your sacrifice and self-denial to pay off, as if there were someone keeping score. You fell bitter when the reward doesn’t come as expected. The problem is that while you are always doing the ‘right thing,’ if your heart really isn’t in it, you are physically and emotionally depleting yourself.

"By closing your eyes and listening to your body—as you listen to your body with this inward focus,..."

Tue, 29 Mar 2011 09:59:43 -0400

“By closing your eyes and listening to your body—as you listen to your body with this inward focus, you will find a natural state—through an unfolding process that can be active, taking you through the room, or deeply internal, where you may not be moving in any perceivable way to your outside observer … the witness never assumes s/he knows what your experience is for you, but rather explains the images and sensations that have come up for her or him. As you listen, you attend to your reactions, to see if any of these images resonate with your experience”

Photo

Fri, 18 Feb 2011 10:42:18 -0500

Photo

Fri, 18 Feb 2011 10:42:06 -0500