5 tips for counseling those with disabilities

This week in class we had do create a presentation about something that we are interested in.
Well of course I decided to do mine on the topic of my blog.
I hope you find this mini lecture helpful!
If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below!
I would love to get feedback!

http://present.me/view/269978-5-tips-for-counseling-those-with 

Positive Peggy

We've finally come to the conclusion of discussing different ways to cope. Now I'm a little biased, but I saved the best for last!

We all have those moments in life where we just can't even.
Things are going wrong and we just want to bask in the moment of it being a crappy day.

And there's nothing wrong with that! We all deserve the chance to have those moments.

There are many research articles that have found positive psychology to be helpful, not only with those who have disabilities, but in general.

By focusing on the positive aspects of the situation, re-framing negative thoughts, and finding outlets that the person enjoys such as dancing, religion, and music it can overall affect the attitude and outlook of the person.

Positivity can lead to a healthier lifestyle, higher self-esteem, and a better chance at overcoming the obstacles in front of you.

Next time something goes wrong, or you just have a bad day, think about what hasn't gone wrong yet.

Oh and check out this awesome blog post about Positive Psychology :)


http://20-somethingcounselor.blogspot.com/2015/03/whos-ready-to-get-positive.html

Top 10 List: Apps

Since nearly everyone in today's world has a smart phone, here are some cool apps that I found that can be helpful!

10. Depression Check

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This is a free app that assesses depression and anxiety in 3 minutes. It’s a neat little checker that can let you know how high your depression and anxiety levels are and then it gives you some ideas of what you can do to lower it.

9. tap to talk

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This was a really cool app for younger kids or those who have developmental disabilities. It’s free too! But what you do is you tap a picture to talk. You can form sentences by tapping on the pictures for the words. It also includes many languages.

8. Simon says

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You’re probably thinking why does she have a game on here….well not only is it free, but it can be used to increase memory. Plus, it’s also fun and who doesn’t love fun things.

7. Mind shift

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This app is free and it has chill out tools for anxiety. It also provides the person with different ways to think in terms of negative/positive self-talk.

6. First then

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It’s a schedule app for 10 dollars to help those who need visual and developmental support to increase independence and lower anxiety during transitions through activities. It’s pretty neat for those who want to work on memory and order techniques

5. ADA 2014 reference

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This app gets for stars because everything you need to know about ADA is at the touch of your fingers. It has resources, guidelines, and basic information about the American Disability Act and it’s only 99 cent!

4. Sound amp lite

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While it’s only 99 cents, this app does have some pretty cool things in it. Sounds are sent to your ear buds in real time and it basically amplifies the sounds when it’s noisy. This is great for someone who has trouble hearing.

3. Self-help for anxiety medication

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This app is free, which is great! It contains customizable anxiety management techniques. It also has scales of how high a person’s anxiety is at the moment, and then provides recommendations on how to lower it.

2. Voice dream reader: text to speech

*****

So this app is the opposite of Dragon Dictation. While it may be 10 dollars, it’s worth every single one. It turns text to speech. It also has tons of languages that it can do too. It can read books to you, or can speak what you write out.  

 1. Dragon Dictation

*****

This app is awesome! I give it 5 stars because not only is it free, but it also does some really cool things. You can speak and it will write for you. It can even post to social media! What’s cool about this is that it’s helpful for those who have problems writing or even hearing in class. You can set the app up to record and basically take notes for you.

Top 10 List: Websites

Here are my top 10 picks for helpful websites for those who have disabilities and their caregivers!

10.  Top Disability Website

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I give this site two stars because there isn’t information on this website. Instead, I’m giving you a bonus and it’s a website that has 10 more websites! It’s a list of disability websites that offer resources, information, and support for those who have disabilities and their caregivers.

http://www.topdisabilitywebsites.com/

9. Cornell University: Disability Statistics

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I give this website two stars because it’s an awesome site put on by Cornell University. It provides stats about disabilities and provides FAQs for those who have them. It’s a great informational website.

http://www.disabilitystatistics.org/faq.cfm

8. Kids Together, Inc.

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This site gets two stars because it’s a neat place for kids and adults who have disabilities to come and find resources, but also blog and talk to others about their experiences. It’s kind of like a group forum and discussion opportunities for those who want information.

http://www.kidstogether.org/

7. Family Resource Center on Disabilities

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Now this is a pretty cool website, however it’s based out of Illinois. It has workshops, resources, and guest speakers all for families who are facing disabilities. They even provide training and assistance to those who need it

http://frcd.org/

6. Support for Families of children with disabilities

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This site, much like #7, provides resources, services, and upcoming events for families of children who have disabilities. I really like this site because it focuses on helping not just the person with the disability, but the family as a whole.  They also put on conferences that you can attend to gain more information and meet others who know what you’re going through.

http://www.supportforfamilies.org/

5. National Organization on Disability

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This website is more of a professional website, but it provides Research, publications, and disability resources. Anybody can access it and anybody can gain information from here. It’s pretty cool in that it gives stats and results from research studies so people can use that knowledge and apply it to their own lives.

http://nod.org/

4. National Disability Rights Network

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This site narrows information down by state, but it also provides really cool videos too! It’s a great advocacy website for those who have disabilities. It lists tons of “issues” that people might face and then gives information on how to handle them. This is a pretty awesome site!

http://www.ndrn.org/index.php

3. The American Association of People with Disabilities

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This site contains resources, podcasts, and events for people who have disabilities. It also has blogs and the latest news on what’s going on in the disability world.

http://www.aapd.com/

2. Psychology Today

*****

I give this site 5 stars because it’s an awesome site for general information regarding counseling and psychology. It gives you tabs to look for therapists, topics, and expert opinions on whatever you happen to be looking for.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/

1. Disability.Gov

*****

This website is the top website for any and all information regarding disabilities. Anything that you want to know can be found here. They have stats, resources, blogs, latest news, and much more.

https://www.disability.gov/

Being Mindful

Mindfulness is something that's still very new to the field of counseling. I'm going to be talking about how mindfulness can be used as a coping mechanism for stress.

What is mindfulness?

Well, it simply is the act of being mindful.
Our lives can be filled with stress and pressures of trying to do our best, be our best, and make people happy. With that comes overwhelming feelings and thoughts.

In order to help with those, we practice mindfulness.
If intrusive thoughts enter our mind, we simply notice them, then blow them away.
We focus on the task at hand.
Now I know that sounds hard because there are so many things to worry about. But that's the point of mindfulness. You focus on one thing. When you drive, you drive. When you need to breathe, you simply breathe.

By focusing on one thing, it alleviates the stress of the rest of your worries.

Below I've listed some blog posts that I've found helpful. They both include some mindfulness exercises and I encourage you to try them!

Take a deep breath, let it out, and start your journey on becoming more mindful :)


http://pacifyingthepanic.blogspot.com/2015/01/mindfulness.html


http://mentalhealthsmm.blogspot.com/2015/01/stress-and-deep-breathing-exercises.html

Top 10 List: Twitter

Since we just talked about social media and keeping up with my top 10 lists, here are my top 10 picks  for twitter :)

Check them out!

1. Disability.Gov

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https://twitter.com/Disabilitygov

This twitter site gets 5 stars because this is the U.S. federal government website for information on disability policies, programs & services nationwide. This is extremely helpful for those who want information on what’s going on in the disability world.

2. Disability Now

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https://twitter.com/DisabilityNow

This twitter site is interesting because it’s a UK site. It has all of the opinions, information, and articles that come out of the UK. While this may not apply to clients here in the US, it’s nice to know that others feel and think the same way.

3. Disabled World

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https://twitter.com/DisabledWorld

This is the twitter site of worldwide disability news and information. It contains health news, events, and even includes some pinterest ideas! It’s a helpful site for no matter where you live!

4. Disability Scoop

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https://twitter.com/disabilityscoop

This is the Premier Source for Developmental Disability News. I thought this was really cool because it had entertainment news that related to disabilities. It’s always interesting hearing about disabilities in the world of movies, music, and tv!

5. Disability Website

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https://twitter.com/Disaboom

This site provides disability information and resources for people with disabilities and their caregivers. On twitter, one of the best things to do is share resources. I found this cool because it not only included things for those with disabilities, but also their caregivers.

6. Disability Advocates

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https://twitter.com/AdvocateAbility

This is an awesome twitter site! It’s for advocates of disabilities and a place for them to share their thoughts and findings! They state, “We advocate and facilitate action by persons with disabilities and the community to achieve equal access for all”. If that’s not awesome, then I just don’t know.

7. AbleSea Disability Community

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https://twitter.com/AbleSea

AbleSea is a Disability Community with over 15,000 members providing information, resources, help, advice and support to everyone worldwide. It contains fun facts, resources, and articles all involving the disability community. It’s pretty neat to check out!

8. Disability Today

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https://twitter.com/DisabilityToday

This site is kind of neat because it combines information on people, product, and places in the disability community. It also contains personal stories and opinions!

9. AAPD

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https://twitter.com/AAPD

AAPD is America's largest disability rights organization. This twitter link provides information on internships, organizations, and workshops all in the disability realm. It’s a pretty cool site if you’re looking to get involved.

10. Disability Rights

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https://twitter.com/CDRNYS

A center for advocacy and services for people of all types of disability, it includes blogs and opportunities for those who have disabilities. It’s a decent twitter site, but there are some better ones listed above. 

Tweet, Friend, and Pin: Counseling with Social Media

So I know we were on a roll with coping skills and how they can apply in the mental health and medical realms, but this week I want to talk about something that we've been discussing in class.

This week we are going to talk about how social media can be used in helping those with disabilities in the counseling setting.

Now you might be thinking:

1. What types of social media?
2. Are you asking to be my Facebook friend?
3. How can you be personal hiding behind a technological device?
4. Does that mean I need to be using social media to communicate with a counselor?


Social media can be used in many different ways when it comes to counseling. There are so many tools in technology that can be used as well, but that's a story for another time!

Now, to answer those great thoughts you must be having!

1. Twitter, Facebook, email, linkedIn, blogs, and even pinterest can all be used. Not all of them can used to counsel directly, but they can be used in one way or another. With linkedIn and facebook you can boost your business and clientele. With email you can counsel directly. With twitter, not only can you spread the word and post daily tips, but you can also allow clients to ask you questions. Kind of like a Q&A! Blogs are kind of obvious lol! With Pinterest, it can be used to add boards of things that clients can use outside of sessions.

2. Yes I want to be your facebook friend, but only in a professional way (if I ever have a professional counselor facebook page that is)! The thing with friending is that you want it to be professional and you want to set boundaries right off the bat. That all falls into the informed consent that you and your counselor will be discussing whenever the time arises.

3. Here's the tricky part. It can be done, but the rules for this might need to be discussed beforehand! For example, we had to do email counseling in class and it was great....with the exception that you can't read people through technology like you can if you're sitting with them. One of the suggestions that was given was to put in parentheses feeling words or to even use emoticons. So yes, it can be done!

4. No, you don't have to use social media with your counselor. It's just one of the many aspects of counseling! Nobody is going to make you do anything, I mean, we are a field of helpers....not pushers! It's just something cool that if you find helpful, it can be done :)

I hope this helps and is somewhat interesting! Tune in next week where we will pick back up with our coping skills!