Boost Your Immunity, Beat Stress and Support Your Team!

Everything's a whirlwind right now.

My email and social media inboxes have never been so busy. I am getting request after request to support clients, families, support groups and entire teams. 

Everyone is just doing their best to find some BALANCE — or a quick way to regain it if they find themselves wobbling. 

I want to encourage you to continue to express and move through your emotions in as many HEALTHY ways as possible. 

This will help you RELEASE and INTEGRATE and RESET to a new peace in your body, and new energy to begin again. 

If you are also looking for practical DAILY steps to BOOST your IMMUNITY and TACKLE STRESS from the time you wake up to bedtime, please download the following guide from our "Hero of the Week" Dr Adeeti Gupta! 

Dr. Gupta, an OBGYN in the NY area, founded the First-Ever Walk IN GYN center after witnessing the deficiencies in Women’s health care. Education, caring for all women with compassion and women’s empowerment through preventative holistic health care are some of the core values that she promulgates. 

And WHY is Dr Gupta Counseling Space's hero of the week? 

This past week, Dr Gupta contacted Counseling Space to request that we offer our Virtual Wellness Services to her team during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

As she encourages at the close of the IMMUNITY BOOSTER AND STRESS BUSTER Checklist, she wants her team to be SAFE, STRONG, and READY in ALL WAYS. 

We admire that she recognizes mental preparation as a major component for coping during this current crisis. 

If you are a small business owner who is seeking similar support for your team  or needing support yourself, you can email us at info@counselingpc.com or BOOK BELOW. 

At Counseling Space, we are here to support teams like yours and Dr Gupta's so YOU can continue supporting others during this time. 

Let's help each other help others. 

And, in the meantime, please, take care of yourself.

With Wellness, 

Leslie M. Garcia 

5 Mental Health Questions for Your Job Interview

The three top factors we often use to rank the quality of a job are financial compensation, job security, and the prestige of the company. 

But how about the mental health culture of the employer? 

According to the Institute of Stress, work stress is ranked the third cause of stress in our population! And according to a series of on-the-job happiness surveys consulted in this Forbes article, the following are the top ten factors for job satisfaction: 

1. Appreciation for your work

2. Good relationships with colleagues

3. Good work-life balance

4. Good relationships with superiors

5. Company's financial stability

6. Learning and career development

7. Job security

8. Attractive fixed salary

9. Interesting job content

10. Company values

ONLY THREE out of the ten reference finances and security and SEVEN are focused on relationships and the quality of the emotional-mental environment and company social culture! 

Therefore, mental health CULTURE should be more important than financial CURRENCY when evaluating the quality of a job!

Below, are FIVE questions to help you explore a potential employer's views on mental health: 

1. Name three things that the company has done to promote the well-being of employees.

2. Can you describe the work culture?

3. What recent changes took place or will take place to improve the work culture?

4. What is the leadership style of the direct supervisor?

5. Does the company participate in any social responsibility activities?

BONUS QUESTION: How does the employer support an employee who has experienced a sudden life transition? (You can add your own life transition experiences, such as illness, loss, or accidents.)

These questions are to encourage employers to no longer ignore how work impacts mental health. 

Mental health conditions are rising at a rapid rate and it’s imperative that we carefully assess the environments in which we offer a huge portion of our time and expertise to determine if it’s a good “mental fit” for us.  

Mental Health Preparation and the Coronavirus

With the alarming news about the upcoming elections, fluctuating stock market, and the coronavirus, you may find yourself asking, "What’s next?"

We are ONLY in the third month of the year. Basically, it's still the beginning of the year and the first quarter, but it feels like so much time has passed as it's difficult to keep up with all the events. 

In the news, we are seeing so many deaths including those we have followed in the media for years. 

There's political unrest.

And the latest is the newest pandemic scare.

All of the above can affect our mental health as we are constantly reminded that there is only so much we can control. 

Now, the latest coronavirus is causing panic due to the unknown effects, the sudden deaths, and the economic impact.

Here are 10 things to do to help your mental health: 

1. Ask your providers about the option of virtual visits 

2. Consider mail-in prescriptions for you and your loved one's medicine 

3. Ask your employer about work-from-home options 

4. Contact your local elected official's office to know about updates in your community

5. Contact your or your child’s school about future planning procedures 

6. Ask your medical providers if scheduled procedures should be changed

7. Boost your immune system with healthy food and necessary rest

8. Remember where the important health documents are placed

9. Stock your home with nutritional necessities

10. Check on loved ones who are in health and correctional facilities and seek information about updates on future planning for their healthcare

The list above is to help transform panic into preparation. 

Lastly, be mindful of where and how much information you consume in the news as it can trigger and re-trigger your anxiety.  

Do your best to be proactive versus reactive.