Flourish Counseling
  • Home
  • Services
    • Depression
    • Anxiety
    • Bipolar Disorder
    • Psychosis
    • Addiction
    • Grief
    • Trauma
    • Individual Counseling
    • Group Counseling
    • Couples Counseling
    • Yoga and Counseling
  • Contact
    • Schedule Your Session
    • Our Location
    • Our Counselors >
      • Kambria Kennedy-Dominguez
      • Megan Kennedy-Kotalik
      • Rosanna L. Santiago
      • Dr. Yu-Fen Lin
      • Danielle Adams
      • Nancy Sperry
      • Stacy Marshall
      • Melissa Fowler
      • Ariella Rodriguez
      • Malarie Kennedy
      • Jasmine Herrera-Martinez
      • Jason Anderson
  • FAQs
    • Fees and Insurance
    • Privacy Policy
    • LPC Supervision
    • Careers
  • Blog

Healing in Motion

6/16/2014

 
I have moments of clarity while I’m exercising that really are unlike any others. I love yoga of course, and have had many epiphanies on my mat over the years,  leaving a studio breaking down in tears or walking on air. But my most crisply creative moments come particularly when I run. Despite the fact that I dislike running quite a lot, I do it for the cardiovascular benefits and because of these unique joyful moments. I’ll be trudging along in a slow jog and suddenly have the proverbial light bulb illuminate above me. I’ll find a new way to think about a problem, or a new way to explain a metaphor that might help a client, or an idea about how to collaborate with other professionals. Almost spontaneously these new and refreshing thoughts come to me, and I know there’s power in movement.

There’s lots of research backing this up. Check out this article from the American Psychological Association. http://www.apa.org/monitor/2011/12/exercise.aspx. It’s a great overview of the mental health benefits of exercise and why therapists should be encouraging it more frequently. And this article from the Cooper Clinic echoes the same ideas, http://www.cooperaerobics.com/Health-Tips/Stress-Less/Research-on-the-Benefits-of-Exercise-and-Mental-He.aspx, reinforcing that getting moving has a tremendous positive effect on how we feel. In fact, there’s research to show that exercise, much like cognitive behavioral therapy, can be as effective as anti-depressants. That is pretty impressive, given the sometimes high costs and negative side effects of medication.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m NOT advocating that everyone should discontinue mental health medications and exercise instead. We should always clear an exercise regimen with our healthcare providers first to ensure it's safe, and discontinue any medications only under the supervision of a physician.  Some mental health conditions can make even small tasks very difficult, and in these cases medication is the best option. But for mild cases of depression or anxiety, and to help treat common health concerns like borderline diabetes and mild hypertension, there’s just so many benefits of exercise that we simply have to take notice. And for more complex conditions, using exercise in conjunction with other therapies can be very helpful.  

So why then do we so often not want to exercise, and feel resistant even to the idea of it even though we're well aware of the payoff? I think the turning away from movement is related to the well-known law of physics…”a body in motion stays in motion and a body at rest stays at rest.” Whatever is still is just harder to get going.

What’s been your experience with running, or other forms of exercise? Why do you think it’s so hard to stay active sometimes? I’d love to hear comments and opinions! Thanks for reading. Go and be…and flourish.

    Authors

    Kambria Kennedy-Dominguez, Counselor and yoga teacher specializing in mental health, substance abuse and wellness.

    Megan Kennedy, Counselor specializing in adolescents and families.

    Archives

    January 2019
    October 2018
    July 2018
    April 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    August 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    August 2016
    June 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014

    Categories

    All
    Addiction
    Anxiety
    Art Therapy
    Bipolar
    Busy
    Depression
    Grief
    Health
    Healthcare
    Hospice
    Illness
    Marriage
    Meditation
    Positive Change
    Psychosis
    PTSD
    Relationships
    Relaxation
    Schizophrenia
    Self Compassion
    Self-Compassion
    Stages Of Change
    Substance Use
    Trauma
    Work Life
    Yoga

    RSS Feed

    View my profile on LinkedIn
Schedule Your Session
Phone: 972.755.9120 | Fax: 214.723.5345
office@wecanflourish.com
​533 W. 12th Street​
Dallas, TX 75208
​
Photos used under Creative Commons from mat_walker, Kool Cats Photography over 5 Million Views, Maria Eklind, ForbesOste, professor.jruiz, thedailyenglishshow, justbeaphotographycompany, ToGa Wanderings, andropic257, bochalla, Dean Hochman, Kitty Terwolbeck, Alyssa L. Miller, MarcieLew, anokarina, Giorgio Galeotti, Randy Heinitz, quinn.anya, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/U.S. Fifth Fleet, Hoshi_sae, TheGufotography, WeGotKidz, stallio, Julien.Belli, gagilas, astrologyphotographywesildssharon, atomicShed, Marlton Trainer, Pai Shih
  • Home
  • Services
    • Depression
    • Anxiety
    • Bipolar Disorder
    • Psychosis
    • Addiction
    • Grief
    • Trauma
    • Individual Counseling
    • Group Counseling
    • Couples Counseling
    • Yoga and Counseling
  • Contact
    • Schedule Your Session
    • Our Location
    • Our Counselors >
      • Kambria Kennedy-Dominguez
      • Megan Kennedy-Kotalik
      • Rosanna L. Santiago
      • Dr. Yu-Fen Lin
      • Danielle Adams
      • Nancy Sperry
      • Stacy Marshall
      • Melissa Fowler
      • Ariella Rodriguez
      • Malarie Kennedy
      • Jasmine Herrera-Martinez
      • Jason Anderson
  • FAQs
    • Fees and Insurance
    • Privacy Policy
    • LPC Supervision
    • Careers
  • Blog