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While burnout isn’t a diagnosable psychological disorder, that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be taken seriously.

Here are some of the most common signs of burnout:

1. Alienation from work-related activities:
   Individuals experiencing burnout view their jobs as increasingly stressful and frustrating. They may grow cynical about their working conditions and the people they work with. They may also emotionally distance themselves and begin to feel numb about their work.
2. Physical symptoms:
   Chronic stress may lead to physical symptoms, like headaches and stomachaches or intestinal issues.
3. Emotional exhaustion:
   Burnout causes people to feel drained, unable to cope, and tired. They often lack the energy to get their work done and express frustration and irritation frequently.
4. Reduced performance:
   Burnout mainly affects everyday tasks at work—or in the home when someone’s main job involves caring for family members. Individuals with burnout feel negative about tasks. They have difficulty concentrating and often lack creativity or motivation to grow in their job.

If you have more than two symptoms, you might consider taking help from professionals. Often, burnout just doesn’t go away from taking a rest or going on vacations. Emotional exhaustion can still be there if emotional burdens and distractions were there. Right coping mechanisms, professional help, sharing and self-care can help you rejuvenate yourself again and regain balance of your life!!

Do you fume when someone cuts you off in traffic? Does your blood pressure rocket when your child refuses to cooperate? Anger is a normal and even healthy emotion — but it’s important to deal with it in a positive way. Uncontrolled anger can take a toll on both your health and your relationships.

Ready to get your anger under control? Start by considering these 10 anger management tips.

1. Think before you speak

In the heat of the moment, it’s easy to say something you’ll later regret. Take a few moments to collect your thoughts before saying anything — and allow others involved in the situation to do the same.

2. Once you’re calm, express your anger

As soon as you’re thinking clearly, express your frustration in an assertive but nonconfrontational way. State your concerns and needs clearly and directly, without hurting others or trying to control them.

3. Get some exercise

4. Take a timeout

Timeouts aren’t just for kids. Give yourself short breaks during times of the day that tend to be stressful. A few moments of quiet time might help you feel better prepared to handle what’s ahead without getting irritated or angry.

5. Identify possible solutions

Instead of focusing on what made you mad, work on resolving the issue at hand. Does your child’s messy room drive you crazy? Close the door. Is your partner late for dinner every night? Schedule meals later in the evening — or agree to eat on your own a few times a week. Remind yourself that anger won’t fix anything and might only make it worse.

6. Stick with ‘I’ statements

To avoid criticizing or placing blame — which might only increase tension — use “I” statements to describe the problem. Be respectful and specific. For example, say, “I’m upset that you left the table without offering to help with the dishes” instead of “You never do any housework.”

7. Don’t hold a grudge

Forgiveness is a powerful tool. If you allow anger and other negative feelings to crowd out positive feelings, you might find yourself swallowed up by your own bitterness or sense of injustice. But if you can forgive someone who angered you, you might both learn from the situation and strengthen your relationship.

8. Use humor to release tension

Lightening up can help diffuse tension. Use humor to help you face what’s making you angry and, possibly, any unrealistic expectations you have for how things should go. Avoid sarcasm, though — it can hurt feelings and make things worse.

9. Practice relaxation skills

When your temper flares, put relaxation skills to work. Practice deep-breathing exercises, imagine a relaxing scene, or repeat a calming word or phrase, such as “Take it easy.” You might also listen to music, write in a journal or do a few yoga poses — whatever it takes to encourage relaxation.

10. Know when to seek help

Learning to control anger is a challenge for everyone at times. Seek help for anger issues if your anger seems out of control, causes you to do things you regret or hurts those around you.

What is depression?

Depression is a medical condition that affects your mood and ability to function.

Depressive symptoms include feeling sad, anxious or hopeless. The condition can also cause difficulty with thinking, memory, eating and sleeping. A diagnosis of major depressive disorder (clinical depression) means you have felt sad, low or worthless most days for at least two weeks while also having other symptoms such as sleep problems, loss of interest in activities, or change in appetite.

Without treatment, depression can get worse and last longer. In severe cases, it can lead to self-harm or death. Fortunately, treatments can be very effective in improving symptoms of depression.

How common is depression?

Depression is common all over the world. Healthcare providers estimate that nearly 7% of American adults have depression every year. More than 16% of U.S. adults — around 1 in 6 — will experience depression in their lifetime.

What are the types of depression?

Healthcare providers name depression types according to symptoms and causes. These episodes often have no obvious cause. In some people, they can linger much longer than in others for no clear reason.

Types of depression include:

• Major depressive disorder (MDD): Major depression (clinical depression) has intense or overwhelming symptoms that last longer than two weeks. These symptoms interfere with everyday life.
• Bipolar depression: People with bipolar disorder have alternating periods of low mood and extremely high-energy (manic) periods. During the low period, they may have depression symptoms such as feeling sad or hopeless or lacking energy.
• Perinatal and postpartum depression: “Perinatal” means around birth. Many people refer to this type as postpartum depression. Perinatal depression can occur during pregnancy and up to one year after having a baby. Symptoms go beyond “the baby blues,” which causes minor sadness, worry or stress.
• Persistent depressive disorder (PDD): PDD is also known as dysthymia. Symptoms of PDD are less severe than major depression. But people experience PDD symptoms for two years or longer.
• Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD): Premenstrual dysphoric disorder is a severe form of premenstrual disorder (PMS). It affects women in the days or weeks leading up to their menstrual period.
• Psychotic depression: People with psychotic depression have severe depressive symptoms and delusions or hallucinations. Delusions are beliefs in things that are not based in reality, while hallucinations involve seeing, hearing, or feeling touched by things that aren’t actually there.
• Seasonal affective disorder (SAD): Seasonal depression, or seasonal affective disorder, usually starts in late fall and early winter. It often goes away during the spring and summer.

Play therapy is a method of meeting and responding to the mental health needs of children and is extensively acknowledged by experts as an effective intervention in dealing with children’s brain development. It is generally employed with children aged 3 years through 11 and provides a way for them to express their experiences and feelings through a natural, self-guided process. As children’s experiences and knowledge are often communicated through play, it becomes an important vehicle for them to know and accept themselves.

“All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players” – this particular quote by the great English playwright and litterateur William Shakespeare, casually quoted in his pastoral comedy As You Like It, portrays a perfectly practical picture of today’s busy world and the activities of the human race. The lives of people around the world and their unique lifestyles vary from region to region, culture to culture and so on – however, the basic commonality of them all is that everyone is way too much busy and stressed these days. So much so, that sometimes, this overwhelming trend of remaining actively occupied can lead a person into an unhealthy lifestyle – thus comes the discussion of maintaining healthy practices such as ‘Yoga’, a well-respected act and procedure that has proven health benefits and ancient history. The ongoing pandemic has changed the world and its human inhabitants, and a number of people, nowadays, are slowly but surely getting aware of maintaining a healthy and balanced lifestyle, to avoid their health-related tragic and untimely consequences – thus, the practitioners of Yoga are increasing day by day. As per its international acceptance, the United Nations General Assembly established June 21 as “International Day of Yoga”, celebrated annually in India and around the world from 2015. On December 1, 2016, yoga was listed by UNESCO as an intangible cultural heritage. Exploring a successful case study, today’s story covers an inspirational journey of a self-made woman, who not only conquered the obstacles of being shackled by social stereotypes through her dedication and hardship; but also becoming an example for women in society. This is the story of Bishaka Tanchangya, a successful development practitioner and a Certified Yoga Instructor from Swami Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana (SVYASA Yoga University), Bangalore, India.

“Being a country girl, I was born and grew up in a remote village which still does not have electricity. The only way to get there is by the water routes, which takes 6-8 hours by boat from Rangamati city. Coming from an area like this, after losing my father when I was an eight-year-old, never have I ever thought I would be able to pursue higher studies in my life,” Bishaka shared to DC, who has eventually received education from a total of four Universities from home and abroad. At present, Bishaka Tanchangya works as a Monitoring and Evaluation Reporting Manager for the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nation’s Emergency Centre for Transboundary Animal Diseases (ECTAD) project in Bangladesh. Coming from the rural Rangamati, Bishaka has a bachelor’s degree in Sustainable Development and Anthropology and Sociology from Curtin University, Western Australia; a Masters in Disaster Management, from the University of Dhaka and also currently pursuing her Masters in Communication at the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB). As a development professional, Bishaka works with the project’s Country Team Leader as well as the technical team and liaises with the regional office and headquarters. Alongside her many identities being a development professional, Bishaka appeared as a changemaker in society through her Yoga-centric activities as a certified Yoga trainer, providing Yoga sessions to many people including the first responders during the pandemic. With her team’s support, Bishaka incorporated a yoga session to manage stress for clinicians treating COVID-19 patients. Through this initiative, she has been helping medical doctors with self-reflection exercises to find ways to improve themselves, both personally and professionally, as well as teaching methods to reduce stress and anxiety amidst the pandemic.

When asked about her journey to Australia from Rangamati and how she started her life-changing commitment with Yoga, Bishaka said, “I had good friends who provided me with adequate advice and support, introduced me to the Australian Scholarship which I received in 2010. That scholarship supported me to pursue my undergraduate degree from Australia. Back in Australia, I used to go to the Tibetan Buddhist temple with one of my very dear senior Dr Naomi Shahrin, now working as an Assistant Professor at the Asian University of Women, Chittagong. I was inspired and moved by her Yoga-centric lifestyle, thus I became oriented with meditation and Yoga eventually, and I started loving it. Moreover, I went to meet his Holiness Dalai Lama when he came to my city in 2011 and that also moved me more towards Yoga – and that’s how the journey started.”

This journey eventually led Bishaka not only to follow and maintain a healthy lifestyle for her own self but also to change others. “In 2014, I came back to Bangladesh, worked in my indigenous community in Rangamati for over a year, and resumed my yoga learning in 2016, when I got my current job and shifted to Dhaka. After a while, I went to Patanjali Yoga Centre in Gulshan and took lessons which I continued for a long time, then I started practising yoga through the Indian High Commission in Dhaka – and finally, in 2019, I received a scholarship from the Indian government to take 300 hours of Yoga Instructor Course from Swami Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana (SVYASA Yoga University), Bangalore, India, with a special focus on Yoga for Diabetes Management,” Bishaka shared her inspirational story with DC.

When asked about how Yoga has changed her life and how it can change others, Bishaka, who is now providing professional Yoga training with her fitness entrepreneurship ‘Bend with B’, said:  “First of all, Yoga helps me to stay mentally and physically healthy, and it also helps me to recognize and address my anxiety faster. I explored the changes such as being less-irritated, disturbed and overwhelmed. On how it can help others, I can say that Yoga is a tool, convenient and easy to rely on – that anyone can use in their way to address their individual requirements. Through yoga, people can explore the magic of mindful living, one of the best ways to deal with stress and anxiety or mental health issues that all go through. The Yoga postures (asanas) may improve physical flexibility, coordination, and strength, while breathing practices and meditation may quiet and focus the mind, resulting in increased awareness and less anxiety, and therefore a better quality of life. Reductions in distress, blood pressure, and gains in resilience, mood, and improved metabolism – these are the health benefits of Yoga, to name a few.”

That is understandable, but when asked about how Yoga can help people in the current pandemic-affected circumstances and the normalcy of home-quarantining, she shared her expert opinion with DC: “Regarding the current scenario based on the COVID-19 global pandemic, the mental health of people is getting impacted a lot these days. People have been following difficulties in coping up with the new normalcies based on their regular lifestyles, and in this case, I have observed that many of them have started using different techniques and mechanisms for their mental well-being, and one of these is the popular practice of Yoga. Although Yoga is a human-to-human practice that needs proper lessons and guidelines, the pandemic has created opportunities for more people to learn and practice Yoga from professionals through online sessions. And the good thing is, people are becoming much aware regarding their wellbeing, thus practising Yoga as a method of being healthy, both physically and mentally.”

“And that comes with a dedication towards maintaining a balanced and routined, disciplined lifestyle. I am an early bird and I go to bed very early in the night, because sleep is extremely important, I believe as a Sleep Advocate. For achieving the benefit of Yoga as an effective way to change unhealthy lifestyles, I advocate for people to have 8 hours of sleep per day and follow a healthy and clean diet according to the need of one’s own body,” she added.

Despite being a successful example in society, Bishaka does not consider herself successful. “I do not want to call myself successful, in fact, I do not have much of what so-called people considered to have in order to be successful. I suggest people choose happiness over success. So my advice would be, if anyone wants to be happy – the process is actually simple: to consume less, take actions to support and help others through being compassionate. I am happy and content with whatever I have or achieved so far through my works, and that keeps me going for a new day every morning.”

Accomplished in her academic and professional career, Bishaka Tanchangya believes that being happy and content is all about the passion, hard work and support from dear ones that led to the place where she is now, and she also believes that happiness is a choice that one needs to rely on, which Yoga can certainly add some much-needed mental and physical strength.

As a Life Coach, my goal is to empower and help others with techniques and tools that have helped me and many others to bring out positive and sustainable changes. In my dealing with clients and from my own personal growth journey, I have come to know 4 basic pillars for a happy balanced life, that I would like to share with you, as it is share-worthy!!So join me Live in our second episode of Lifestyle guide with Nirvana this 20th May, Thursday to have a conversation with me!!Details of the participation link are here- https://www.facebook.com/nirvanawellness.org/

and

https://www.facebook.com/4MTVUSA/Stay safe and connect with you all soon!!

What Counselling is not!!
-Giving advice.
-Being judgmental.
-Expecting or encouraging a client to behave as the counselor would behave if confronted with a similar problem in their own life.
-Getting emotionally involved with the client.
-Looking at a client’s problems from their own perspective, based on their own value system.
-Advising them to do certain religious rituals as a solution.
At some point in their lives, many people will find themselves in the role of a counselor without having a true understanding of the concept of counseling or what the role of the professional counselor entails. There is a big difference between a professional counselor and a person who uses some counseling skills as part of their role, for example as a friend or colleague. A professional counselor is a highly-trained individual who is able to use a different range of counseling approaches with their clients.
To know more about the Counseling process, how to understand you are seeing the right counselor, and what should you expect, join us in our Live program on Thursday, 6th May, at 8.30 pm here- our Facebook LINK and on https://www.facebook.com/4MTVUSA/
With Sumaia Azmi!!
Stay blessed and connect with you all soon!!

Throughout our Nirvana journey, we connected to various talented souls who have created beautiful original masterpieces, and were kind enough to share those with us!! Nirvana celebrates our uniqueness as well our connections to each other and to all of us!!

Check: https://nirvanawellness.org/570-2/