Adolescent Depression

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Adolescent Depression

Adolescent depression or teenage depression is a mental and emotional disorder which is similar to adult depression. As it is not usual for young teens to experience depression but during the duration of adolescence, there is always a time with physical, emotional, psychological and social changes that a teenager becomes vulnerable. Adolescence is that stage of life when a child transitions into an adult. During this transformation period, many teens face many issues of independence and self-identity and face tough choices as they are confused about how they feel which can result in either passive or outrageous way. The adolescent is that stage of life which is full of uncertainties because a teen has to make a lot of choices, take responsibilities and are exposed to peer pressure.
Teen depression or adolescent depression is a serious health problem that can cause loss of interest in activities, anxiety, and sadness. If a teen is depressed then it can affect how he or she thinks, feels, behaves and reacts which causes physical, emotional and mental problems. Depression is a health problem that can affect people of any age and at any time in life; but the symptoms of adult depression and teenage depression may vary. Teenage depression is not caused due to weakness and cannot be overcome by willpower. This health problem can have a serious effect on the teens health and can require a long-term treatment. As during the adolescent period, a teen faces many issues like change in the body, academic pressure, peer pressure which can cause lots of pressure to the teen; that can lead to a persistent feeling of sadness causing teenage depression.

Often teens with depression will have a noticeable change in their behaviour, mood, and thinking. They might become de-motivated and spend hours in their bedroom after school doing nothing. Their daily habits will change such as sleeping more, eating habits and loss of interest in activities they once enjoyed. Teens suffering from depression may also indulge in criminal activities or substance abuse. Depression in teenage is dangerous because teens with depression will have different levels of hormone and neurotransmitters than adults. Neurotransmitters are the chemicals in the brain which are responsible for how brain cells communicate with one another which is important in regulating ones behavior, mood and reaction.

As teenage depression is caused due to multiple pressure and events, there is no single treatment for it. It can take time to identify the right treatment for it. To avoid depression in teens you should often talk to your child about their feelings, school life, and personal life. Depression can have a negative impact on your child but with proper treatment, your child can get the help that he or she requires.

One of the challenges that teenagers face is being able to perform well academically. House Tutors, a leading house tutoring agency based in Singapore helps students alleviate the stress of academics by providing quality tuitions.

Teacher Conferences and School Progress - Important for Divorced or Divorcing Parents

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Teacher Conferences and School Progress - Important for Divorced or Divorcing Parents

In many parts of the country, the school year has just started. If you are going through a divorce or are already divorced, have you talked about or planned how you and the other parent are going to communicate about your childs school activities?

Sadly, when parents are going through a divorce or are divorced, one of them will more than likely have little to no knowledge about what is happening in their childrens classroom. Most parents know that parent/teacher conferences are a great way for them to learn about their childs daily activities in school, whether they are doing well or if they need help at home. Yet, many parents dont communicate with the teacher during this trying time in their lives or just simply turn over this responsibility to the other parent and dont get involved anymore.

However, if you are divorcing or divorced from your spouse, not being part of your childrens educational responsibilities is not in their best interests. So, what can you do to avoid conflict with your spouse or ex, yet remain actively involved in your childs education?

Brian James, president of C.E.L. & Associates, Inc., an Illinois-based divorce mediator specializing in pre and post divorce issues, has some advice for parents that can be beneficial to their child:

1. Make sure your childs teacher is the first one informed that there is a pending divorce or if a divorce has just occurred. Your child spends more time in school than anywhere else, and this situation might have a negative effect on your child, he says. At this time of year, scheduling school conferences has already begun. If the two of you cant be in the same room for a conference, most teachers are willing to schedule individual conferences with each of you at your request.

2. If the parents are cordial to each other, they can attend the parent/teacher conference together. That way, both parents have the same information and can ask the same questions regarding their childs education.

3. More often than not, sitting together with a teacher is virtually impossible due to the antagonistic and negative vibes radiating from each parent. This makes the teacher uncomfortable-and in this hostile atmosphere-you may not receive all the information you need to know about your childs academic achievements or non-achievements. If only one parent attends, the other one is left in the dark. Unfortunately, in most divorce situations, this is exactly what happens.

With the above being said, Mr. James as some advice on how divorcing or divorced parents should handle teacher/parent conferences:

Ask the teacher to notify both parents what days and times are available for in-person or phone conferences. Some teachers may not be willing to accomidate such requests, but a majority of them will based on the situation. However, it is ultimately the parents responsibility to stay informed, not the teachers.

When necessary, schedule individual in-person or phone conference time with the teacher. This will alleviate divorced parents from having to be together, but at the same time, allow them equal time with the teacher. This results in each parent learning the same information about his or her child.

If only one parent is meeting the teacher in person or having a telephone conference, take notes. Even if you and your ex arent on speaking terms, sending him or her notes about the conference is in the best interest of your child. Both of you need to have the same philosophy and goals regarding your childs education.

No matter how much you and your ex dislike each other and want nothing to do with one another, you still have a child you need to parent together, states Mr. James. School is where children learn. If the two of you arent on the same page regarding the childs current education, then you are both unnecessarily harming your childs future education and well being.

For more information, phone Brian James at (312) 524-5829 or visit www.yourdivorce.org.

The History Of The Wiccan Religion

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The History Of The Wiccan Religion

Before you begin any life changing adventure, it is important to know the history of what you are going into (especially if it is a belief system/religion such as Wicca).

Most people know that modern day Wicca was born in 1954 by Gerald Gardner (who had an extensive background in the occult). His writings were influenced by Aleister Crowley, Theosophy, Freemasonry, and various other occult sources. All of this gave birth to modern day Wicca.

Currently, it is one of the fastest growing religions in North America.

In reality, Wicca is a more common and much older name for "Witchcraft".

Contrary to what many religious groups would have you believe, Witchcraft is not synonymous with Satanism... in fact, it is quite the opposite.

It was during the middle ages that Witchcraft gained momentum - superstition gave way to the supernatural - and there was a "hodge podge" of Witchcraft practitioners in the world (especially Europe - but of course even older forms of Witchcraft - like Shamanism - were rampant in other areas of the world as well)

The Wiccans of today typically distance themselves from Christianity. They see it as a male dominated religion, and feel there is a lack of balance. The belief is there must be balance in all aspects of life and the world. The duality is worshipped in most branches... both God and Goddess.

Archaeologists discovered a cache of Papyri in Egypt which also added to the knowledge that had collected over the ages.

Fragmented pieces of the sacred teachings have formed the basis for many different branches of the Magick path. In fact, you will not find a discipline of Witchcraft that does not harness the power of a core Magick principle found in the original Magick Papyri.

The Full Power Of Magick Is At Your Feet

You've got to understand that because of the amazing discovery of the Magick Papyri - the full knowledge to control Magick energy is at your feet.

The right teacher - combined with the secrets of ancient Magick - will unlock your ability to change the world around you (including your own life) in ways you have never dreamed.

I know the secrets of controlling Magick energy - and I want to show you exactly how to create miracles with Magick. I want to be your teacher.

So enough of the history lesson, let's dive in to the good stuff. The secret of controlling Magick - and how you can use it to create miracles in your life. Keep an eye out for future articles...

Activities that you can host for kids in a school or home

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Activities that you can host for kids in a school or home

There are several activities that a teacher can employ in a Montessori school. They can also guide the parents of what to do in a school. But to know what types of activities are good for children, one must study them. Today there are a lot of schools which teach candidates wanting to teach in Montessori schools and preschools about how to teach and manage children.

To be a Montessori teacher one must pursue the certificate course in montessori teachers training to gain knowledge about how to manage kids. Some of the practical activities in the classroom include activities such as hand washing, arranging flowers, watering of plants etc. For home, teachers can guide the parents of the children to involve them in activities such as watering plants, arranging items in their bedrooms etc.

The classroom programs generally contain activities which enhance the cognitive skills of the children such as jigsaw puzzles, understanding the solar system, drawing or colouring etc. Below we will discuss some more activities in details. As a teacher, you can start with

a)Letting the children play with real-world objects to help them practice real-life skills which will make it easier for them when they enter the big world outside! For example, by letting them play with a lock and a key, they will get an idea of unlocking the door or a gate. The teacher must also let them explore and think about how they should work on their own. However, as a teacher, you should make sure that none of these activities is hazardous for the child. Adult supervision is necessary for all these activities.

b)Some of the other activities which the parents can create at home or can make by buying some of the supplies from stores are puzzles as we have already discussed. Some of them are building blocks, making models with clay which helps in strengthening finger muscles. Since these can be moulded into several shapes, children can devote a lot of time creating something new with these.

c)Since children love subtle movements, teachers can provide some fun and easy activities at home, which are slightly challenging but keep the children engaged while providing good exercise for their muscles development as well. These practical life activities are great for building fine motor skills. Some of these activities are making stacking toys with the help of bangles as rings or getting kids to drop coins in a box to help them in aiming more precisely. The development of motor skills can be found in details in a certificate course in montessori teachers training.

d)Language is another sector which requires utmost importance! Since a child is generally inclined to learning newer words at a young age, hence pronunciation has to be taught extensively.

There are more things that need to be discussed regarding the Montessori stage and for this reason, it is best to pursue the certificate course in montessori teachers training for an aspirant seeking to make a profession to in the education sector.

Teach Your Dog to Walk and Dance

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Teach Your Dog to Walk and Dance

Standing and walking on the hind legs are tricks that put an abnormal strain upon the muscles of the back and hind legs and most dogs require considerable practice before they gain sufficient control of those muscles to balance themselves in this unnatural position.

Before you rush into teaching this trick, bear in mind that not all dogs can do this trick, especially the big dogs such as St. Bernard or Great Dane as it is almost physically impossible for them to perform such trick. Sorry. This trick is not for you - Big dog owners!

A dog should first be taught to sit up and after he will do this well, hold a small piece of treat just above his nose and say "Up," when he will elevate himself just a trifle to get it, and should be allowed to eat it. Give him daily practice at this, making him reach a little higher from day to day until he can balance himself on his hind feet.

Do not keep him at these lessons too long at any one time, as they are very fatiguing, and you must give the muscles plenty of time in which to grow strong, so that he can sustain himself more easily. After he can stand up he should be taught to walk by slowly moving the treat from him, and he will be induced to take first one step and then another toward it. Reward him frequently by letting him have the treat and be careful not to tire him.

Dancing Dog
After a dog can stand erect and walk on his hind legs he can be taught to dance, which consists simply in hopping around on the hind legs and at short intervals turning around.

The simplest method of teaching this trick is to attach a piece of treat to a string, four or five feet long; hold the treat in tempting proximity to the dog's nose, and so high that he will stand on his hind legs to get to it, and then slowly move it around and he will follow after it any way that you may select. Give a command such as "Dance" to associate this trick with. Say the command when you tempt him with the treat.

Do not keep him at it too long and reward him frequently, so as to keep up his enthusiasm. In the early lessons, your dog simply follows the treat because he wants the reward attached to the end of it, nevertheless with regular practice, your dog will still dance for you even without the reward treat. Over time, he should be able to dance at command and for an occasional reward. Till then, he can be accustomed to dancing when dressed up in fantastic apparel.

Standing On Forelegs
This is one of the most difficult tricks to teach, and you most probably see this trick only in a circus as the position of standing on the front feet alone with the head down and the hind legs elevated is an unnatural one. It will be a long time before your dog learns to balance himself.

However, it is not totally impossible to teach your dog such trick, provided that you put in consistent amount of effort and time to teach and train him. (This trick is mainly for smaller and toy breed dogs only, most big dogs are physically incapable of doing this trick)

To teach this trick, provide yourself with a light cane or a stick, about two feet long. Hold the stick in your right hand and place it under the dog's stomach, raising his hindquarters with the stick and at the same time placing your left hand on his head, so as to prevent his moving away, thereby forcing him to retain his reversed position; as the dog rises into position the stick should be gradually moved back from his belly until it supports only his hind feet.

Use a command such as "On your head" to associate this trick with and repeat it distinctively during training and remember don't save on your praises and treats when your dog is progressing and learning. He need plentiful of them to further encourage him to learn the trick.

Repeat this operation at successive lessons until the dog understands what is expected of him and learns to balance himself with but very little assistance or support from the stick, and finally with none at all. Eventually he will learn to take the position at the order, "on your head," without assistance from the hand or switch.

After a dog can balance himself on his forefeet he can be taught easily to take a few steps by standing in front and calling him to you, and as he gains confidence and experience can be made to walk quite a distance.

Your dog may or may not master any of these tricks mention above. For all you might know, he could be a lazy dog, or maybe you are a lousy teacher. In any case, tricks are still tricks; you shouldn't be bothered if your buddy can't perform them because I know you will still love him for what he is, and not performing tricks to entertain friends or yourself.

The Father of Muay Thai

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The Father of Muay Thai

Siam, Ayutthaya Kingdom 1774. The Burmese invasion brought destruction and the consequent fall of the Siamese capital. Thousands of prisoners were brought to Burma as slaves for work and entertainment.

Among the large number of kick boxers within the prisoners there was a man named Nai Khanomtom. Son of the chief of his village, he saw his family get slaughtered by the burmese when he was just a little boy and grew up in his life in a hardened way, always with the shadow of fear from the Burmese troops.

Nai Khanomtom, like any other Thai prisoner, was deeply rooted into Thai culture and values. Proud of his own country and people, he would never give up easily nor accept to be defeated.

That year the Burmese king wanted to organize a 7 days long religious festival with many forms of entertainment and for the occasion he wanted to compare the Burmese boxing with the Muay Boran. Nai Khanomtom was selected to fight against the Burmese boxing champion.

On the ring placed in from of the king throne Nai Khanomthom begun the Wai Kru to pay respect to his teachers and ancestors dancing around his opponent. While the dance is a traditional ritual for the Siamese also to respect the spectators, the Burmese were surprised and perplexed by the dance and believed that was some sort of thai black magic.

However, as soon as they start the fight, Nai Khanomtom charged his opponent with every weapon Muay Boran can offer. They call it "the martial art of the 8 limbs" because it uses hands, feet, knees and elbows.

The Burmese champion was knocked out pretty quickly but the referee declared the fight invalid as the Burmese were too distracted by the way kru dance.

In this moment of perplexion the king sent other 9 men to fight against Nai Khanomtom who defeated all of them, one by one without taking any time break.

The last opponent was a famous Burmese kick boxing teacher and Nai Khanomtom managed to defeat him with his kicks. After that, no one dared to fight against Nai Khanomtom.

The king was very impressed by the skills of Thai people and he remarked: "Every part of the Thai is blessed with venom. Even with his bare hands, he can fell nine or ten opponents. But his Lord was incompetent and lost the country to the enemy. If he had been any good, there was no way the City of Ayutthaya would ever have fallen."

After this event, freedom was granted to Nai Khanomtom and his fellow thai prisoners.

Since then, every year on March 17 in Thailand is celebrated the National Muay Boran Day to honor Nai Khanomtom and all Muay Boran ancient teachers whom developed this martial art to the well known Muay Thai of today.

Activities For The Elderly Focus on International Day of Older Persons

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Activities For The Elderly Focus on International Day of Older Persons

Activities for the elderly got a sharper focus on October 1, 2007 - because it was International Day of Older Persons. The World Health Organization (www.who.int) offers some startling statistics on the aging population, offered through the Voluntary Arts Network (www.voluntaryarts.org)

"In the next 50 years, the number of older persons will nearly quadruple, growing from about 600 million to almost 2 billion senior citizens. Today, one in every ten is 60 years and older. By 2050, one out of every five will be an older person, and by 2150, one third of the people in the world are expected to be 60 years of age or older".

That's an awful lot of people classified as 'elderly' and being in their 60's!

I was at a seminar at the weekend where the audience were asked to suggest what 'middle-aged' might mean and the majority suggested that 50+ was considered more appropriate than the 35+ often referred to some years back.

Increasingly - and rightly so, able individuals are 'miffed' to find that 'elderly' in some medical circles falls into the 60+ age range. Subsequently, the activities being offered to these groups mirror our institutions' view of what is traditionally seen as appropriate for 'the older person'.

There have been many comments in the news recently of archaic images associated with this section of our population. Road safety signs of physically infirm elderly persons being used to allocate parking places for the over 60's. The majority of this age group would be happy to run a mile (if they were able) from such stereotypes, but may well favor the opportunity of a free parking space!

That aside, International Day of Older Persons is, for me, an opportunity to focus on the creative activities I offer and to question my own approach to why, and how I offer recreational activities. Entering a search term into Google shows that the majority of searches for activities for an aging population still incorporate the words 'elderly', along with 'recreational', 'therapy', and 'benefits'.

These terms alone signify that arts and crafts in particular fall into separate categories:

1. Activities that might be appropriate for older persons - whatever stereo-typical bracket society deems it.
2. Activities that are seen to offer individual and group benefits - such as the 70s buzz word of spices - social, physical, intellectual cultural and emotional.

Those searching for activities of this nature are more than likely institution-based and require arts and crafts activities that will engage both mind and body. My experience however has been that such places are often looking for 'things to do', rather than search out challenging, stretching and engaging activities that will specifically suit individuals in their group.

Perhaps the challenge here is in training our carers in such places into what exactly constitutes recreation and therapy and what's just as important as What to do, is Why do it in the first place?

What's important to those of us who work with older people - however they, the Government of the day or we ourselves categorize it is to think about 3 basic issues for EACH individual that we are working with:

1. Why should we offer arts and crafts - or any nature in the first place?
2. What type of activity would suit the individual and the group?
3. How can we structure it so that it gives maximum benefit - on all fronts, to those involved?

When I was training as a primary school teacher, later specializing in teaching the older person and those with physical challenges, there was never any focus on Why crafts. That was up to me, in my role as a wandering trainer to establish.

These days there are many excellent activity organizer programs to undertake, and sadly even more less than helpful courses, workshops and books offered by those who may have done some training, but sadly haven't walked the walk.

I urge you, in whatever level of activity you are involved, to really take this opportunity to question how you see your role, what you do, and why you do it. Whatever part you play in teaching, managing or assisting in activities, it is your role to make whatever you do as valuable as possible.

Creative activities aren't all paste and paper. There are some wonderful projects to try and great results to be gained from those who are prepared to be reflective in their practice and to question their work a la Rudyard Kipling's famous maxim - I keep six honest serving-men (They taught me all I knew); Their names are What and why and When And How and Where and Who.

As you plan your creative program, consider how you might serve those you work with. It'll put a different slant on what you do and question the part 'activities for the elderly' plays in your place or work, and your personal mindset.