Balance - Sarah Barr

Social anxiety, put simply, is the fear of social situations.

Living with social anxiety can be frustrating and overwhelming. Your mind is constantly jumping to the worst case scenario. …
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Negative thoughts can spontaneously pop into our heads, sometimes in an intrusive and critical way.

It can happen whilst you’re having a coffee with a friend. When suddenly a negative …
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Why is it so difficult to say “no”?

Having people think negatively of you is the ultimate rejection. This is a reason many people find it difficult to say “no”. …
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If you received your Leaving Cert results today, please do not let them dictate your future and the person who you are.

I cried when I received mine, and not …
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The benefits of a tidy and organised home are obvious.

Cleaning can be an outlet for energy and negative emotions. Removing dust, dirt and clutter from our environment provides you …
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Life can be hectic, chaotic, noisy…

It is so easy to feel overwhelmed by it all, no matter who you are or what your social media feed or stories say.

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Social anxiety can impact on people in different ways. Some people will find that all social situations are stressful, while others will only feel the fear when they have to …
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Statistics often say one thing about postpartum mood disorders and social media says another. Many new mums feel like they can’t identify with the happy messages being shared on social …
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Your self-talk is one of the major factors in helping to shape your identity.

Studies show that self-talk can improve your memory, confidence and focus.

Show yourself some kindness

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Maternal Mental Health Awareness Week starts April 29th – May 3rd. Maternal Mental Health Day is May 1st.

As many as 1 in 5 mothers experience some type of perinatal …
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Visiting a counsellor for the first time is incredibly daunting and it can be really difficult. Many people will often think about making that first appointment for months before they …
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Confidence is something that (mostly) everyone will struggle with, at least once in their lives. Whether it is your confidence in work, in college, as a mum, as a …
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‘Minding Me’ is all about minding yourself.

The 5 week wellness workshop will focus on learning and developing self-care practices and CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy) techniques. This workshop is delivered …
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Positive affirmations release you from anxiety, negativity, guilt, fear and pain. Here are some examples:

Affirmations are simple messages. Repeated over-and-over, they begin to worm their way into your mind. Slowly changing …
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Social anxiety is more than just being shy.

• Social anxiety is all-consuming, slowly stealing your confidence and identity.

It is making you feel lost, unsure of …
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Valentine’s Day puts the emphasis on love for someone special in your life.

Yet YOU are the most important person in your life.

Why not make this day about loving yourself?

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Whether you get physical panic attacks or mental mayhem, heart palpitations or cognitive chaos. If you feel isolated or watched,  terrified of a crowd or of interacting with one person …
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Living with a mental illness this time of year can be hard. There is so much pressure pouring in from social media, society etc to “start over” or change how …
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Habits, we all have them, good ones and bad ones.

Firstly let’s define habits. Habits are the small decisions you make and actions you perform every day. According to research …
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Being a mum in today’s world is no easy task, as amazing as it is, it is hard. With all the ‘normal’ duties of motherhood, mums today also have to …
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Anxiety is a part of everyday life for many people. Yet you may be completely unaware, as so many people put in a lot of energy and time in hiding …
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It can be so hard to practice any type of self-care when you’re not feeling yourself. Yet this is exactly when you need it the most.

On days …
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What is OCD?

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is a mental illness that creates negative thoughts. These thoughts lead you to believe that if you do not carry out a certain …
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Working in a stressful, high-pressured or demanding job can negatively impact on your mental health. This, coupled with issues at home, arranging child care throughout the summer holidays …
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Researchers found that most mums experience a significant dip in self-esteem after having a baby that can last up to three years.

This is regardless of the mother’s relationship …
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We all know how important self-care is for our mind and body. However it is very difficult to practice self-care if we are stressed and do not recognise that we …
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We all have anxious thoughts from time to time but sometimes these thoughts can be all we think about. They are intrusive, frightening, repetitive and hard to stop.

It …
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Today is World Maternal Mental Health Day, May is Maternal Mental Health Month.

This is a serious health matter, that needs more awareness and acceptance. We need to be …
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By personalising other people’s negative thoughts or opinions we are allowing them to control how we feel.

Q. So how can we stop this?

A. By changing the way we …
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We grow up with labels that are used to define us. These labels can be attached by other people and even by ourself at times. Society, family, social media, work …
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Rejection is hard for most people. Since childhood, we have looked for acceptance from our friends in school to our parents at home. Sometimes doing whatever we can and …
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“You will never speak to anyone more than you speak to yourself in your head, be kind to yourself”

When we are living with low self-esteem, it …
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Let’s do a thought experiment:

• Close your eyes.
• Imagine a pink elephant
• What shade of pink is it?
• Is it happy/sad/indifferent?
• Think about the pink elephant for 60 …
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Weekend Depression: It can start to sneak up on you without you knowing it. During the week you’re busy with work, children, schedules and activities. Yet when Friday or Saturday …
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So yesterday was ‘Blue Monday’ supposedly the most depressing day of the year.

We look forward to winter, the cosy nights and the lead up to Christmas. The parties, the …
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• What are worries?

Worries are just thoughts and thoughts are not fact. They have no reality. Worries begin when we ask, “What if…” then the mental …
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As we all know from experience, making a New Year’s resolution is easy. Sticking with it and actually achieving your goal is not so easy.

New Year’s resolutions is …
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Any special occasion, like Christmas or any ‘first’ can be so difficult when you are bereaved, with each occasion such as a birthday, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day or Christmas bringing …
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With Christmas getting closer, many of us will feel a mixture of excitement and worry. However, for those of you who live with social anxiety, Christmas can be a very …
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How many times a day do you allow yourself to stop, take stock and breathe?

Or do you carry on, listening to all those ‘mustabations’ (I should be doing this, …
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“There once was a girl whose happiness was tied to the sun. As it rose, so did she, and her smile was like beams of light. As it …
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“Fear is nothing more than an obstacle that stands in the way of progress. In overcoming our fears we can move forward, stronger and wiser within ourselves.”

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How are you?

“I’m grand, yeah fine, I’m good”.

How many times a day do we tell ourselves this, do we tell other people this?

Have you perfected your mask?

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“Mindfulness, being present in each moment, without judgement”

So mindfulness is quite the buzz word at the minute, but what exactly is mindfulness?

It is defined as being …
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Today is World Mental Health Day. The 10th of October each year is dedicated to raising awareness of mental health issues around the world and bringing together efforts which support …
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“October is about trees revealing colours they’ve hidden all year. People have an October as well” – Jm Storm.

Autumn is the season of letting go. I absolutely …
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Positive thinking focuses on the positive side of life.

To use positive thinking in your life, it is more than being aware of it, it is about adopting it …
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We live in a social media frenzied world.

So creating and maintaining an online presence is now a priority for many of us, whether it is for social or …
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In last week’s article I focused on students moving to university and dealing with homesickness.

This week my focus is on the parents/guardians who are left behind. As a mother …
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Moving away for university is a big transition, whether you’ve come from the other side of the world or down the road.

If you’re suffering from homesickness, just remember you’re not the …
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