Amy White Psychology in Gympie, Queensland | Doctor

Amy White Psychology

Locality: Gympie, Queensland

Phone: +61 438 267 779

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• Doctor
• Medical and health
• Psychologist

25.01.2022 Anxiety can mean we believe the worst case scenario and we believe we won't be able to cope. Often, the situation is not as difficult as we imagine and no matter what, we can always get through it!

24.01.2022 In working with clients, the most common diagnosis people came to me with was social anxiety disorder. They felt anxious around new people, completely pre-occ...upied around what they said or how others were perceiving them. They described feeling awkward in their own skin + many coped with these feelings by drinking. Drinking that sometimes became an issue because they felt like they couldn’t control it or often drank way more than they had planned. Social anxiety is misunderstood. It’s not a disorder, it’s a nervous system response. When the nervous system is in a hyper vigilant state, our body feels as though there is a threat in our environment. Objectively, a threat to our safety isn’t there (we are simply in a room of new people) but the body sends feedback to the mind which then creates cyclical thoughts of not being liked, that we are being judged, or false beliefs of low self worth. Our trauma brain is back in our past. Where we learned hypervigilance to keep us safe in our earliest environments. Binge drinking or coping with alcohol is actually a very common attempt to regulate the nervous system. It’s why so many feel they just need to grab a drink before even engaging with people. Ways to Heal: 1. Mind body movement: yoga, Thai chi, kickboxing. 2. EFT (tapping): I have a video on how to on my YouTube channel 3. Meditation: with committed practice, meditation has been scientifically proven to expand grey matter of the brain within the pre-frontal cortex. Expanding this area of the brain allows for quicker problem solving + wider range of emotional regulation 4. Grounding techniques: using sight, sound, smell to ground into the present moment. With practice, the body + mind re-learn safety/security + can recover from hypervigilance more quickly #selfhealers

23.01.2022 Take a step back from your thoughts. They are just thoughts, not facts.

23.01.2022 R U OK? R U OK day is a day to check in on friends, family and others around us. Engage in a conversation with someone, listen to concerns and if you or someone needs extra support, you can reach out to agencies such as Beyond Blue or Lifeline or talk to your GP about getting a referral to see a Psychologist.

21.01.2022 Offer compassion to yourself, especially on those hard days.

21.01.2022 Because you matter!

21.01.2022 https://www.facebook.com/121587069578/posts/10159709365624579/

20.01.2022 Ever avoid a situation you didn't want to face to find it caused more problems in the long term? When we feel anxious, it can activate our fight/flight response so it makes sense that we feel the urge to run away, escape or avoid the feared situation to reduce our anxiety. If we choose to avoid altogether, this instantly decreases the anxiety because you have not put yourself in a distressing situation. This may be things like avoiding going to a party because you don't know ...anyone, avoid having a difficult conversation with a colleague or getting drunk to escape the emotions from a stressful day. However, while avoidance may decrease anxiety in the short term, the perceived fear may increase the longer we avoid and the actions we took to avoid the person/place/things that feel scary, can make things worse. For example, you may end up feeling alone and sad for choosing to not go to the party. There may be continued negative behaviours from your work colleague due to not discussing the issues with them. Or you may feel embarrassed the next day due to your drunk and reckless behaviour the night before and you still have to face the painful emotions that led to drinking in the first place. Alternatively, when we confront the feared situation, we can often disconfirm our negative thoughts and build confidence in our ability to cope with difficult situations. If you go to that party, it may not be as scary as you thought and you may even have a good time. If you have that difficult conversation, it may resolve the issue or at least be the first step to workplace change. If you choose to not use drugs or alcohol to avoid difficult emotions, acknowledging the feelings may help to process the situation in a healthy way. If taking that first step to confronting your fears feels too overwhelming, don't be afraid to ask for help.

19.01.2022 Emotions are your bodys reaction to what you are thinking. When our thoughts are irrational and unhealthy, we are more likely to feel anxious, depressed and stressed. It's not realistic to simply change or stop our thoughts but we can start to pay more attention to what we are thinking. We can learn to identify patterns of unhelpful thoughts, challenge them and replace with more helpful thoughts that are rational and compassionate.

19.01.2022 Exercise is one of the best things we can do to improve both physical and mental health. It's also a common habit that people find difficult to incorporate into their daily routine. The key is to gradually introduce exercise into your life, making it fun and achievable. Even if you start by moving your body for a few minutes per day and increase the duration and intensity of the exercise at a rate that is comfortable for you.

16.01.2022 Being able to acknowledge the part we play in our relationship issues is a great place to start healing together.

15.01.2022 Do you care so much for others that you forget to take care of yourself? Having empathy for others and wanting to help others are wonderful qualities to have. However Empathy burnout is common when we spend so much of our emotional strength and energy relating deeply to the problems and stress of others and taking on too much, that we have no energy left for ourselves.

14.01.2022 Happy International Dog Day! Did you know that research indicates pets can benefit the lives of their owners, both psychologically and physically due to numerous factors such as serving as an important source of social support and encouraging movement and exercise.

14.01.2022 I'm excited to announce that Amy White Psychology is moving into a new office next month! A huge thankyou to Em's Art from the Heart for creating this amazing piece of artwork for my new office space.

13.01.2022 Nothing changes unless we make changes. Is there one small, realistic change that you could make today that would make your life easier for tomorrow? It's ok not to know which changes might lead to positive progress. Therapy can be helpful to guide us in making these decisions and supporting us to take the first steps.

12.01.2022 How often are you within your 'window of tolerance?' 'Window of tolerance' is a term used to describe the zone of arousal in which a person is able to function most effectively. That is, we are able to reflect, think rationally, and make decisions calmly without feeling either overwhelmed or withdrawn. During times of extreme stress, people often experience periods of either hyper- or hypo-arousal and can be said to be outside the window of tolerance. Hyper-arousal, otherwise... known as the fight/flight response, is often characterized by hypervigilance, feelings of anxiety and/or panic, and racing thoughts. Hypo-arousal, or a freeze response, may cause feelings of emotional numbness, emptiness, or paralysis. People that have experienced trauma may often find themselves in a constant state of fight/flight or shut down mode. It is never too late to learn how to self sooth and regulate our emotions. These skills not only help us to feel safe and connected, they assist us in handling intense emotions and situations as they arise.

12.01.2022 We often try to do too much at once and have unrealistic expectations of ourselves. Try taking small, manageable steps towards your goals.

11.01.2022 Some days are easier than others. On difficult days, treat yourself with some extra compassion and try again tomorrow.

10.01.2022 Skills such as controlled breathing, mindfulness and relaxation are examples of how the body can learn to feel safer following trauma.

09.01.2022 Expressing gratitude can be a great way to start the day with a positive mindset. What are you grateful for today?

09.01.2022 Often when we feel emotionally triggered, a subconscious negative belief about ourselves may be being triggered. For example, for some people, we can feel particularly triggered and reactive to our children displaying inappropriate behaviour. Whilst this can be frustrating, children are not perfect. It is common that for some, this may be triggering a negative (and irrational) belief that they are "a bad parent" or "a failure" because their child is misbehaving. In fact, we may know that we are doing the best job we can but certain situations will trigger these feelings about ourselves. It can be helpful to identify which situations trigger you the most and explore what thoughts or beliefs you are having about yourself in that moment.

08.01.2022 It's not the mistakes we make, but our response to our mistakes that defines us. Something difficult happens or we make a mistake and we can often beat ourselves up which leads us into a unhelpful thinking spiral which can negatively impact our day, week or even our month. My daughter recently recited something she had learnt at school "mistakes are part of learning". Such an important lesson for children and adults alike, for without going through tough times or making mistakes, we often miss the valuable learnings to take with us for next time.

04.01.2022 One question I often get asked in my private practice is "does slowing down my breathing really make a difference?" The short answer is Yes! Slowing our breathing stimulates our vagus nerve which, in turn, activates the parasympathetic nervous system. This system is responsible to restore the body to a calm and composed state and prevents it from overworking. The sympathetic nervous system, on the other hand, prepares the body for fight and flight response and is stimulated ...when we are under stress. Vagus nerve stimulation occurs when the breath is slowed from our typical 10-14 breaths per minute to 5-7 breaths per minute. To begin, place one hand on your upper chest and the other just below your rib cage. This will allow you to feel your diaphragm move as you breathe. Breathe in slowly through your nose so that your stomach moves out against your hand. The hand on your chest should remain as still as possible. Inhale through the nose to the count of 5, hold briefly, and release the breath from your mouth to a count of 10. By repeatedly stimulating the vagus nerve during those long exhalations, slow breathing can shift the nervous system towards that more restful state, resulting in positive changes like a lower heart rate and lower blood pressure.

03.01.2022 A great free resource for those parents who may be struggling with this issue.

01.01.2022 Take a step back from your thoughts. We all have unhelpful thoughts or inner voices. Whilst for some, these voices only pop up sometimes and are easy to dismiss, for others, it may be the only voice that is heard. Consider how believing your inner voice that says "I'm worthless, I'm a failure, I don't fit in, I'm not good enough, I can't do this" is linked to the choices you make each day. If we believe we are a failure, we may not take risks and as a result, don't achieve our goals. If we believe we don't fit in, we withdraw from others and feel even more isolated. You are not your inner voice. These thoughts are not facts, you decide if you believe it or not.