rethinking appreciation #18

i know i'm not the only person who starts my day with wordle.

and quordle.

and octordle.

and waffle. 

and blossom. 

when it comes to word games, there's a lot to appreciate, and not just the quantity or variety.

because it's about more than the games. 

even when limited to 5 letters, word nerds (takes one to know one) have a deep and expansive vocabulary. 

from acorn to magic, nymph to zebra, we're housing a lot of information.

there are probably even words you recognize but can't define. 

and when you consider the time it takes to solve the average game, the speed of word recall is astonishing. 

our brain recognizes dozens of letter patterns and files through countless options in less time than it takes to read this sentence.

H    R    C

your brain just did it! 

yes, you're trying to keep your streak alive, but your love of word games also gives you a chance to appreciate the wonder that is your brain. 

it is amazing how much it can do so quickly. 

and by the way, the word is chair.

for information about individual therapy, contact me at bradleyjabel@gmail.com   

rethinking appreciation #17

i appreciate, value, cherish, prize, am grateful for, and treasure the versatility of the English language. 

that being said, sometimes I worry that we get too hung up on words. 

we spend too much time nitpicking, quibbling and splitting hairs. 

my weekly appreciation exercise is about a philosophy, not a word.

i have no proprietary rights to appreciation.

i don't get paid a royalty every time someone expresses their appreciation.

mental health is not about fancy words, jargon, idioms, or vernacular. 

it's about looking at the world in a way that brings you happiness, joy, contentment, gaiety, merriment, or whatever you're looking for.

if you want to appreciate life, that's great. 

maybe gratitude is your jam (or jelly or preserves or marmalade). 

whatever you call it, the most important thing is that you find value in places where others aren't even looking.

find value in your life.

find value in the world around you.

find value in yourself. 

for information on individual therapy, contact me at bradleyjabel@gmail.com

rethinking appreciation #16

I worked in a nursing home for 5 years. even if I have to take the stairs or park in the back of the lot, I will always appreciate being able to walk for as long as I still can. 

for information on individual therapy, contact me at bradleyjabel@gmail.com

self esteem skills

if you want to function better socially, you develop social skills. 

if you want to handle stress more effectively, you develop coping skills.

if you want to manage anger, you develop anger management skills. 

if you want to increase your self esteem, you have to develop your SELF ESTEEM SKILLS. 

we have to start thinking of self esteem as a skill, not as some esoteric emotional wonderland. 

self esteem is the same as every other skill you possess, from coping to cooking, from anger to acting. 

it is not a thing that happens because you compliment yourself once.  

you have to work at it. 

you might not go as fast as you'd like. 

your progress will not be linear. 

there will be setbacks. 

but if you're invested in it, you keep going.

having self esteem takes deliberate and focused effort...just like every other skill you possess.

you will learn from your mistakes...just like every other skill you possess. 

the more you do it, the better you get...just like every other skill you possess.

because having healthy self esteem is a skill.

for information on individual therapy, contact me at bradleyjabel@gmail.com

rethinking appreciation #15

good mental health starts with our ability to see value in places where other people aren't even looking. now through the end of the year, i'm challenging myself to find something new to appreciate every week.

artificial intelligence will take over because we don't appreciate the value of our own species. 

or what we do.

or how hard it is to do what we do.

we're more dazzled when a computer, designed and programmed by humans, does the same stuff we do.

and if we don't appreciate what we do, we can't be surprised when computers take over what were previously human activities. 

there is a fast growing field of music on YouTube that is entirely AI generated.

not gonna lie. some of it sounds good. 

most of the time, it's presented as an obscure artist lost to time.

check out this undiscovered nugget!!! 

and as soon as i learn that it's AI generated, i close it immediately.

i'm not interested in listening to music a computer created with algorithms programmed for optimal audio enjoyment.

there is no soul in that. no humanity. 

how can I connect to a song when the songwriter is a computer???

I appreciate how hard it is to write lyrics that connect with listeners.

I appreciate what it takes for a musician to transform the sound they hear in their head to a sound we can hear in ours. 

there is power in creating music.

there is power in listening to music.

there is power in appreciating the artist and their process.

I don't want musician (or any artist of any medium) to go the way of buggy whip makers and switchboard operators. 

appreciating each other is no longer central to good mental health.

appreciating each other feels like an act of self preservation.

for more information on individual therapy, contact me at bradleyjabel@gmail.com