excerpt from Bipolar 101 by Ruth C. White, PhD, MPH, MSW and John D. Preston, PsyD, ABPP

Stress has such an impact on our minds, bodies, and spirits that it exacerbates mental illnesses such as bipolar disorder. Stress is a significant trigger for episodes of bipolar disorder. Obviously, people who don’t have bipolar disorder get irritable, impatient, and short-tempered when faced with chronic stress, but for people with bipolar disorder, uncontrolled stress can lead to dangerous manic or depressive symptoms. The degree of stress we have in response to environmental stressors is partly genetic but can be controlled when we learn behaviors that minimize its impact on our psyches, relationships, and bodies.

Coping with stress has to do with our response to our environments. Having bipolar disorder can be very stressful and creates anxiety that reinforces symptoms. But with psychotherapy and medications that reduce anxiety, those of us who have bipolar disorder can learn how to live in the present moment without worrying as much what might happen if we have an episode. When in the midst of an episode, we may feel anxious that it might result in a hospitalization. Though we may feel we have no control over whether or not that happens, learning to cope with our stress in a healthier way helps us focus more effectively on managing our symptoms, which reduces the likelihood of being hospitalized or having a severe episode.

by guest blogger Bill Knaus, Ed.D., author of The Procrastination Workbook

Rat race can mean a fierce competition by people who plan to get ahead at any cost. The negative influence of this workplace politic group far exceeds their numbers. Open their Pandora's Box and you find betrayals, manipulations, deceptions, and exploitations. If you count yourself among those who would rather get body slammed than politically whipsawed, how do you protect yourself?

Take charge of yourself and you can help yourself avoid many political frays. Follow 10 guidelines to boost your confident composure as you solidify your position in an organization. Use a three-phase radical shift technique to avoid procrastinating and add to your effectiveness.

by guest blogger Ronald Alexander, Ph.D., author of Wise Mind, Open Mind

Today many of us are dealing with devastating losses in our lives, from natural disasters such as the earthquake and tsunami in Japan to losing our homes, jobs and relationships. After the initial shock of any type of trauma, there are, of course, the various stages of grief that everyone goes through, including denial, rationalization, anger and acceptance. For those who are on this journey, it is important to have faith in yourself and the inner compass that guides you. If you do this, you'll understand that opportunities for growth and happiness lie in the most unexpected places, ready to be seized if you're open to recognizing and embracing them. I don't believe we ever get over a significant loss, but we do learn to move through it, live with it, and perhaps even use it creatively to find our life's purpose and harvest its lessons.

by guest blogger Richard Blonna, Ed.D., author of Stress Less, Live More

Because our values are so important to us, stress commonly occurs when our values collide with each other.

This often happens over the holidays when family, friends, and other loved ones come together and visit. Many people value family yet struggle with family-related values conflicts that crop up over the holidays. For example, you might value small intimate dinners with just a few family members but your visiting parents want to bring the whole family together at your house. You might value sharing simple, meaningful yet inexpensive gifts but your siblings like to buy expensive, trendy gifts for you and your children. You value classical music and good conversation but your uncle wants to put the football game on and shut off the music.

To cope with holiday stress, try the following tips:

excerpt from The Stress Reduction Workbook for Teens by Gina M. Biegel MA, LMFT

There are two types of mindfulness practice: formal and informal. In formal practice, you actually set aside an amount of time and dedicate it to being mindful. Informal practice doesn’t require any extra time; the idea is to bring moment-to-moment awareness to everything you already do, to zero in on what you are doing as you are actually doing it.

People often do things without being fully present, as if they were on automatic pilot. Living this way, they cheat themselves out of many moments in their lives. Trying to bring conscious awareness to your body and mind while remaining aware of the task you are engaging in will allow you to experience life more fully. Paying attention to your five senses (sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell) in your daily tasks can help you be aware in the present moment.

excerpt from The Relaxation and Stress Reduction Workbook for Kids

Think back to your own childhood for a moment. What are the five most stressful moments that come to mind? If you are like many adults, family fights are at the top of your list.

All couples argue at some time. All kids lose their tempers, too. It is rare to find siblings who don’t occasionally quarrel or call each other names. But arguing and fighting should be an exception, not a rule. If your family life is tainted by constant bickering, sarcasm, yelling, or other forms of arguing, you should put peacemaking at the top of your stress-reduction to-do list.

Everyone, even children as young as five, can learn peacemaking or conflict-resolution skills. Conflict-resolution programs have been used in schools for more than a decade, and there is one thing we know about them: they work. There are many ways to teach these same skills at home. Here is one activity that can help family members find peaceful ways to resolve their differences.

Excerpt from

At this time in your life you are most likely going through the challenging process of figuring out your identity or who you are while trying to be the person your friends and family want you to be. This is likely to cause you additional stress. The more you learn about who you truly are, who you want to be, and what is most important to you, the better equipped you will be to cope with stress that comes from trying to meet others’ expectations of you.

Excerpt from Going Home without Going Crazy: How to Get Along with Your Parents and Family (Even When They Push Your Buttons)

Flooding occurs when an adrenaline over load over whelms parts of the brain. Have you ever been so upset you can’t think, can’t speak, can barely cope? That’s flooding. You may already know some thing about flooding from the fight-or-flight syndrome, where the more primitive parts of the brain over ride the more advanced parts. The result is knee-jerk fear or aggression and a distinct lack of level headed reason.

You can expect flooding to affect you both physically and mentally. Physical symptoms act like an early warning system.

Your ultimate goal is to control flooding rather than allow it to control you.

by guest blogger Colleen E. Carney, Ph.D., co-author of Quiet Your Mind and Get to Sleep

So you are lying awake and you can’t shut off your thoughts…sound familiar?

You are in good company. Not being able to shut off your mind is one of the most commonly cited troubles in insomnia. But many people do not have effective strategies to deal with this pesky problem.

The most common “strategy” in popular culture is to count sheep. So is it effective? Let’s first consider why someone would recommend that you count sheep to help you set aside your thoughts and go to sleep. While some believe it is an activity that would promote such boredom as to facilitate sleep, there is probably a better explanation.