Blog

            Addiction to anything refers to an inability to control one’s impulses and as a result, compulsively indulging in the behavior under question in excessive amounts, to the extent that it causes disruption in one’s daily life functioning. Whether social media addiction can be considered a separate mental disorder, be considered a part of a pre-existing diagnostic category, or not be considered a disorder at all is still debatable.

How many of us check our Facebook or Instagram as the first thing we do in the morning?  Do you feel the urge to keep checking your social media accounts, every few minutes? Do you keep going back to your posts to see how many likes and comments it has received? On the face of it, social media addiction may just seem like a bad habit. However, seeing the rising incidence and intensity with which people engage in this habit is a clear sign that it has become much more than just a bad habit.

It is difficult to determine the point at which likeness for an activity changes into a habit, then to an unhealthy habit, and then crosses over the line to become an addiction that adversely affects a person’s life. Some signs that you may be addicted to social media are as given below:

• Being preoccupied with thoughts about the various social media platforms that you are on. Furthermore, thinking how you will use them to attract people’s attention.

  

• Feeling the urge to share everything happening in your life instantly on social media.
• Feeling the compulsion to keep checking others’ updates and views, likes, and comments on your posts.
• Using social media as a psychological escape from your problems.
• Being physically present but mentally engaged in social media, even when among people.
• Failure to complete the tasks set for the day due to being preoccupied and distracted by social media.
• Preferring online interactions and avoiding or fearing face-to-face interactions. This negatively affects your real life relationships since you spend more time online, rather than face-to-face interactions.

Research has found a link between excessive use of social media and poor mental health.

We all use social media, but what is it that makes some more prone than the rest to become addicted to it?

Risk Factors

• Suffering from anxiety disorder or depression.
• Experiencing too much stress, so using social media to decompress.
• Having poor social skills.
• Feeling you do not fit-in among the people around you.

Managing your Addiction

• Set aside certain times of the day for using social media. Create a schedule; do not use it beyond that.
• Switch off all notifications.
• Engage in alternate forms of communication, such as face-to-face interactions.

Learn more about Dr. Prerna Kohli

Incidents like an older, taller boy troubling the shorter boy of his class or a junior by snatching away his tiffin or tripping him are fairly common.

We have all been a part of bullying at some point in our childhood. Whether it was as a survivor, a perpetrator or a bystander. Although these incidents in retrospect or from a distance may seem very trivial, bullying is a very serious act that can have grave consequences both in the short-term as well as the long-term for the survivor as well as the perpetrator. Possible effects for all three parties involved are mentioned below –

For the Survivor

• Bunking or dropping out of school
• Social and emotional withdrawal
• Loss of self-confidence
• Having nightmares; trouble falling asleep
• Loss of appetite
• Adverse impact on academic performance
• Loss of interest in pleasurable activities
• Anger outbursts
• Developing mental health problems such as anxiety disorders, depression or PTSD as a result of the trauma experienced in extreme cases
• Engaging in self-harm
• Increased risk of committing suicide

Dr Prerna Kohli India’s Top Psychologist Talks about Effects of Childhood Bullying

For the Perpetrator

• Difficulty forming relationships due to lack of empathy or style of relating with others
• Engaging in high-risk behaviors
• Increased risk of substance abuse and also developing an antisocial personality disorder

For the Bystander

• Increased risk of substance abuse
• Constant fear of becoming the target, therefore skipping school
• Increased risk of developing an anxiety disorder or depression

It is important to realize that a bystander makes an active choice when he/she decides not to do anything about witnessing bullying. They then are doing any one of the following three things – 1) they are either choosing to ignore the situation because it does not affect them directly, 2) they are too scared to report the matter, 3) they are actually deriving sadistic pleasure by seeing someone else suffer. Not intervening when one witnesses bullying is a way of encouraging the bully to carry on with his behavior. Whichever be the case, observing and not intervening in such situations is not only the wrong thing to do but also has harmful effects on the bystander.

Learn more about Dr. Prerna Kohli

“One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain!” ~Bob Marley

No matter what your emotional state is, I’m sure you must have observed that there is always some kind of music that just perfectly blends with your mood.

Various researchers too now provide a scientific backing to the positive effects of music on mental health that people claim. Not only does music help ease our pain, it has several other mental and physical health benefits as well. Read on to discover them –

• Music helps reduce the perceived intensity of pain.
• Fast and upbeat music increases your workout motivation and endurance. That is probably why a lot of gyms have music playing in them.

  

• Helps the body recover faster after a session of workout.

• Playing soft music in the background while having a meal reduces your speed of eating.

• Consequently, this reduces the amount of food you consume. This can probably be attribued to the fact that when eating slow, one is more mindful of what and how much they eat.

• It makes you feel happier by enhancing the blood flow in your vessels.

• It improves your sleep quality and helps reduce symptoms of insomnia.
• By releasing biochemicals that are meant for stress reduction, music helps you relieve your stress and also deal with symptoms of anxiety.
• Slow rhythmic music can alter brainwave patterns in a manner that produces a state similar to that while meditating.
• While heavy metal music might have an adverse effect on your depression, the right kind of music can uplift your mood and reduce symptoms of depression.
• Not only does listening to music make you more aware and in touch with your feelings, but it also promotes mood regulation.
• It helps improve your performance on cognitive tasks by increasing your ability to concentrate.
• Music helps you stay cool in high-pressure situations by decreasing your respiratory and heart rate. Thus, when stuck in traffic, or when going to play a game under a lot of pressure, turn up the music to calm yourself down.
• Music therapy is used to treat a lot of mental disorders such as Schizophrenia, Alzheimer, Dementia, Autism, Depression, Anxiety etc.

Learn more about Dr. Prerna Kohli

What is an eating disorder?

Unlike the popular notion, eating disorders are not a form of extreme dieting or a lifestyle choice. Instead, they are a serious mental disorder which often has fatalistic consequences (mental disorder with highest mortality rate). An eating disorder is characterized by unhealthy and abnormal eating practices that as a result have an adverse impact on one’s mental and physical health. Over 70 million people worldwide suffer from some form of eating disorder during their lifetime. With its onset usually during adolescence, the disorder is found to be more prevalent among women than men.

Types of eating disorders

There are three types of eating disorders:

1. Anorexia nervosa – this disorder is characterized by extreme restriction of one’s food intake, often to the extent of starving oneself. Symptoms include:

• Extremely restricted eating
• Emaciation due to an unwillingness to maintain a normal body weight
• Distorted body image
• Intense fear of weight gain

  

2. Bulimia nervosa – people suffering from this order engage in regular episodes of binge eating, which they follow up with compensatory behaviors. Binge eating involves consuming large quantities of food in a short span due to a loss of self-control. Compensatory behaviors include actions taken to control one’s weight after binge eating, such as self-induced vomiting, use of laxatives or diuretics, fasting, excessive exercising, and use of other drugs. Symptoms include:

• Recurrent episodes of binge eating and consequently engaging compensatory behaviors
• Distorted body image and preoccupation with eating and body weight

  

3. Binge eating disorder – people suffering from this disorder engage in recurrent episodes of binge eating. However, unlike bulimia nervosa, people suffering from this disorder do not engage in compensatory behaviors. Thus, people with this disorder are often found to be obese. Symptoms include:

• Eating large amounts of food in a short span of time
• Consuming food in spite of feeling full
• Eating even when you are not feeling hungry
• Eating secretly in order to avoid the embarrassment of people noticing how much one is eating
• Feeling depressed, guilty, and disgusted with oneself after eating

Causes

Eating disorders can be a result of temperamental, genetic, physiological, and environmental factors. Risk factors thus include:

• Individuals suffering from depression, anxiety disorders or obsessional traits
• Individuals with low self-esteem
• Body image dissatisfaction
• Cultures, or professions that value thinness
• A first-degree biological relative suffering from the disorder
• Childhood sexual or physical abuse
• Internalization of an ideal appearance
• Childhood obesity
• Early pubertal maturation

Treatment

Based on an individual’s need, treatment plans can be tailored using any one or a combination of the following methods:

• Psychotherapy
• Medication
• Nutritional counseling and monitoring

Learn more about Dr. Prerna Kohli

Panic attacks are common when someone has anxiety issues. When a panic attack happens, the person starts to feel that he/she is having a heart attack. The heart starts beating rapidly and there is a sense of fear that they are going to die. There is also a sensation where they feel like they cannot breathe and loosing all of the body controls. Thus, making it a terrifying experience for the person.

But, all these things can be stopped in the first three minutes of the attack. The glands which are secreting the chemicals, inducing the panic attack could be stopped within three minutes.

Thus, below are the steps to stop a Panic Attack:

Relaxing:

Firstly, it’s important to relax when you are going to have a panic attack. You can relax by taking deep breaths, slowly. When having a panic attack the first thought is of a heart attack. You need to calm your self by knowing that it is not a heart attack but a panic attack. Thus, it doesn’t have any threat to your life. During this, keep taking slow and deep breaths.

Dealing with Negative Thoughts:

A panic attack occurs due to negative thoughts. Thus, the next step is to stop the negative thoughts. You can stop this by saying very loudly in your head, “STOP”. By saying this you will interrupt the process of thinking. Once the thought process is interrupted you will be able to replace the thoughts.

Replacing the Negative Thoughts:

Thirdly, after there is an interruption of the negative thoughts it is important to replace them with the positive ones. You can do this by saying to your self that it is going to be fine, and it is just because of your anxiety your heart is beating very fast. Thus, by saying nothing is going to happen to you, you will start becoming calm.

Accepting the Feelings:

Lastly, you should accept your feelings. Usually, people get panic attack because they are afraid, scared. You should understand this feeling of fear and validate them. Thus, you should accept the feeling of fear and the reason for the fear. It is ok to be afraid, it tells you that you need to be safe. Listening to yourself and your feelings will actually validate them.

The above steps can stop a panic attack from happening. But, stopping them doesn’t mean curing them. Hence, if you or someone you know is suffering from anxiety and panic attacks, it is recommended that you visit a mental health professional immediately.

To know more about Dr Prerna Kohli

It is okay to be anxious sometimes when things get out of control. A certain level of stress and anxiety actually helps us achieve our goals. But, when the anxiety and thought patterns start getting out of control it becomes difficult to manage the anxiety. Sometimes, it even leads to a panic attack, where the person starts to palpitate and feels like they are going to have a heart attack. Thus, controlling your anxiety becomes the top priority. Here is some tips to how reduce anxiety.

Hence, below are few tips for controlling your anxiety:

Accept Everything Cannot be Controlled:

Everything is not in our hand; hence we can’t control what is happening in our surrounding. It’s ok to let go sometimes. Most of the time, the things making you feel stressed aren’t actually going to happen. It is just the thought.

Don’t aim for Perfection:

One of the biggest factor adding to our stress and then leading to anxiety is perfection. We can’t always achieve perfection in everything. It is ok to be happy with what you get and what you achieve. It’s the effort which matters.

Replace Negative Thoughts:

Anxiety increases because of the negative thoughts. It is important to replace these negative thoughts with the positive ones. The best way to do this is to keep a diary with you. In this diary, you should start writing all the positive thoughts. Thus, when the negative thoughts start to come, you can look at the diary and remember the positive thoughts. Positive thoughts is very helpful to reduce anxiety.

Relaxation Exercise:

If you have constant anxiety issues, it is important that you start practising deep breathing exercise once a day. Along with deep breathing the person should also practice counting 1-10 (if necessary 20) slowly. So, when the actual anxiety will occur and you start relaxation techniques the body will automatically go to rest and calm state.

Exercise:

It is important to keep your body engaged through various exercises. One can go to the gym, or for a walk, or running or even practice yoga. This will help in keeping the mind at peace and keep the negative thoughts at bay.

Eat Healthily:

A panic attack or an anxiety attack weakens the body. It is important to eat a well maintained healthy diet to keep the energy flowing inside your body. You can also keep energy-boosting snacks with you. This way you will be able to decrease the weakness and actually be able to have positive thoughts.

Limit Alcohol:

It’s very easy to start an addictive behaviour to control your anxieties. Hence, it is important to keep away from alcohol and other substances. In reality, these substances actually increase the chances of a panic attack. Also, they start a dependency behaviour.

Get Proper Rest:

Lastly, it is important to get proper sleep and rest. Daily 8 hours of sleep is mandatory when you are stressed. Getting rest is important to replenish yourself, your mind and body.

The above tips can help you control your anxiety. But, alongside it is necessary to visit a professional also. Thus, if you or someone you know is suffering from anxiety or panic attacks, please visit a mental health professional immediately.

To know more about Dr Prerna Kohli

As the board exams, the competitive exams come close, the level of stress increases. Students try to sleep but, there is a lack of sleep. Sometimes, the stress becomes too much which causes a lot of anxiety. Even though there is a need for certain levels of stress, too much or too low of anything is bad. here we talk about some tips to Handle Pre Exam Stress.

Hence, below are few tips on how to handle Pre-Exam- Stress:

Start Early:

The early bird gets the worm. Similarly, starting to study early reduces the level of stress. Even though it is a difficult task for many students to start early, but it is one of the best ways to beat the stress.

Time-Table:

Organizing yourself is one of the best things one can do. Thus, maintaining a timetable will help you to be focused. Also, it will help you determine your long-term and short-term goals. It gives you an overview on how to do things while helping you focus.

Talking About it:

Sometimes, the stress and anxiety get out of hand. In this situation, it is best to talk to someone. Talking about it not only reduces stress but, it also helps you distinguish between rational and irrational thoughts.

Visualization:

The power of visualization helps. If you focus and visualize towards your success, it will help you relax. Visualization helps in boosting one’s confidence. Also, it helps in reducing stress. If you are focused on your vision, it boosts your confidence.

Don’t Forget to Relax:

It’s very important to keep relaxation in your time-table. Relaxing techniques and proper sleep helps the mind to remove the extra stress. It reduces the levels of anxiety and helps the person to focus. Relaxation works as a rejuvenating agent.

Don’t Depend on Caffeine:

Many students and even adults rely on caffeine too much. They actually take a lot of caffeine too keep themselves awake. But, in reality, the caffeine doesn’t help them in remembering. It increases the mental stimulus which then can result in extreme levels of anxiety.

Practice:

Lastly, as the old saying goes, ‘practice makes a man perfect’. Similarly, it’s very important to practice every day. Practicing everyday will help you remember, as well as relax. So, when you sit for your paper, you are actually focused and relaxed.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the stress created by exams is more external than internal. But, if you follow these tips, they can actually help you fight pre-exam stress. But, if you or someone you know is showing extreme amounts of stress or anxiety, then please visit a professional near you.

To Learn more about Dr. Prerna Kohli

Losing someone who is dear to you, be it a friend or family member, is a very traumatizing experience. People suffering from depression, leave all hope in their life and find suicide the last option. But, the problem arises when they express this to their family member or friend. The person who is approached doesn’t actually know how to address this situation. There is a genuine worry in them but, they can’t address the worry.

A mental health professional or volunteers at suicide helpline knows what to say or do. But, they are not available for them 24 hours.

Hence, below are few things you can do to help them:

Show Concern:

It’s very important to show genuine concern for their situation. But, in these cases, you need to show and express your concern about them. Expressing your concern to them will let them know that you are there for them.

Ask them:

Many people don’t ask the person because they think they will instigate the situation. But, it’s very important to ask them. One should ask how they have planned to do it, or how they are thinking about it or what time, etc. Asking them about it, will not instigate the situation, rather will give them an outlet to speak.

Don’t Argue:

Usually, the first instinct of ours is an argument. We tell them that “there is so many good” or “think about your family” etc. But, these things are perceived as an attack. Instead of arguing or giving reasons to them, be with them and care for them. Let them know, that they are not alone.

Take Professional Help:

In these cases, professional help is very important. If the person is going to a psychiatrist or a psychologist, then urge them to contact them. If not, then take them to a mental health professional. It’s very important for them to know that they have different kinds of support.

Don’t Leave Them Alone:

Most importantly, don’t leave them alone. This is the time they are feeling lonely and vulnerable. In their time of need, you should not leave them alone.

Listen to them:

Lastly, it’s very important for you to listen to them. Just listening to them empathetically and without judgment helps them a lot. Hence, patiently listen to them and understand their feelings and emotions.

It becomes a matter of great grief if we lose someone like this. Hence, if you or someone you know is suicidal; then please visit a psychologist nearby. Also, please share this blog as it can help a friend or family member helping their loved ones.

If you need Psychologist help click here

To Learn more about Dr. Prerna Kohli

More than 60% people in India suffer from depression. Depression is a very common disease among all the age groups. Empathetically speaking, a person suffering from depression feels very lonely and sad. But, the illness itself doesn’t live in the vacuum. It creates an effect which affects all the people who are near and dear them. How to overcome Depression?

The fear of judgment makes them feel closed up. It leaves the family members in a confusion and they don’t actually understand what is happening. Communication with the person who is suffering from depression becomes very difficult.

Ways to Help Your Friend or Family Member

Thus, the question arises, how can we help our friend or family member. Below are few ways to help them:

Educate Yourself:

It’s very important to educate yourself about the illness your friend is suffering from. It might be very difficult for you to cure them, but it will be easier if you understand their situation. Educating yourself on their situation will help you cope up with their moods, and generate patience within you.

Ask Questions:

Most of the times, a person suffering from depression will never come and tell you what they are feeling. They always have a fear of being judged or criticised for their emotions. To know and understand their position, it’s better to ask them. But, remember to ask the questions empathetically. Below are few questions you can ask them:

• When did it start?
• Do you think there is a situation which triggered it? What was the situation?
• Are you having suicidal thoughts?
• What is it that still makes you feel happy?
• Is there a situation where you feel worse?

Helping them Identify the Stressor:

Depression will always be accompanied by stress. Hence, identifying the stressor will help them and you understand their situation very well. When a person is suffering from stress, they are not able to think very well. Hence, the situation seems more complex to them. Thus, by identifying the stressor you can help them try and reduce them.

Taking Outside Help:

No matter what illness someone is suffering from professional help is always required. You should encourage your friend or family member to take professional help in curing their illness. It’s the stigma and the fear of judgment which stops someone from taking professional help. Hence, you should encourage them to break the stigma and take the help required.

Enhance their Strengths:

A person who is suffering from depression will always feel that they are not worthy. They feel like they have lost all their strength and hope in their life. Hence, it becomes your responsibility to remind them of their strengths. You need to remind them that they are incredibly strong while facing this situation. It’s always good to boost their confidence by showing them their achievements.

Be with them and Let them know it will go away:

One of the basic things you can do is to be with them. Hence, by being with them you can make them laugh. And as we all know, laughter is the best medicine. No matter what joke, or stand-up comedy, or funny movie you watch together, it’s always good to laugh. By doing this, they will know that you are there for them and are trying to make them feel better.

Also, a person suffering from depression feels like they can never get out of it. Hence, only one sentence can give them a lot of strength. All you have to say and remind them is, “it will pass away, and you won’t always feel the same way”.

Listen to them:

Most importantly, just listen to them. Listening to them without any judgment or criticism will help them a long way. Empathetic listening is one of the most important ways to let them know you are there for them. Also, it is the most important way to help your friend or family member.

Conclusion

Remember, a professional will only spend a bit of time with the person. But, no one knows them better than you. Hence, supporting them in their time of need is very important. It’s you who spends the maximum amount of time with them.

If you Need Psychologist click here

To Learn more about Dr. Prerna Kohli

Depersonalization is a very uncommon disorder which happens to a very few people. Hence, many psychologists don’t understand or even know about this disorder. It becomes a very difficult experience for the person because the connection with reality becomes distorted. The person feels detached from the surroundings and the self, and it becomes a harrowing experience.

What Is Depersonalization Disorder?

Depersonalization disorder is a dissociative disorder. Firstly, dissociative, the word itself means detachment. Hence, it is a disorder which suffices on detachment. Even though this disorder lies on the lower end of the spectrum of dissociative disorders, it is still a very serious condition. Depersonalization consists of two parts; first dissociative identity disorder, and second dissociative amnesia.

Dissociative identity disorder, also famously known as, multiple personality disorder. In this, a person starts to show different types of personalities. One of the best examples is seen in the movies, “Bhool-Bhulaiya”, “Aparichit”. Also, the person isn’t aware of the other personalities present within them. Which makes it difficult to treat.

Dissociative amnesia is a condition where there is a mental gap. By mental gap, it means that for certain periods the person forgets their identity. Also, the person can even forget what happened within a period in the day or else start experiencing blackouts.

Thus, below are some symptoms of this disorder:

• Feeling of being Un-real: There is a persistent feeling in the person that nothing is real. Even their self-identity and the world around them is not real. Also, the places and friends, who used to be familiar starts to feel like “fake”.
• No Connection with Others: The person starts feeling detached from the loved ones. There is a constant feeling that the person you loved, or who loves you are unfamiliar. The person does remember them but doesn’t feel any connection with them. The person feels detached.
• Increased levels of Anxiety: If earlier the person used to feel anxious at a very low level, the intensity of the anxiety increases ten folds. Even the smallest of the situations starts feeling overwhelming. The person is gripped by constant fear.
• Suicidal Thoughts: There becomes an increase in the suicidal thoughts. The person starts wondering whether even the life is real or not. There is a constant disconnect between reality. Thus, death seems a close connection. Hence, there is an increase in suicidal thoughts.
• Can’t Focus: Due to overwhelming thoughts and worries, the person couldn’t focus. The work which seemed a lot easy, because very difficult. The person couldn’t even focus on a sentence and there is no recollection power.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Depersonalization disorder is a very serious condition. The best step to address the issue is to visit a professional immediately. Many forms of psychotherapy, like psychodynamic, cognitive behavioural has proven to cure this illness.

Hence, when addressed in time, it can be cured. So, please visit a professional if you think you are showing these problems.

To Learn more about Dr. Prerna Kohli