Saturday, January 19, 2013

Things in simple language

There's a great website - http://splasho.com/upgoer5/halloffame.php - which encourages us to write about complex ideas in simple terms, using the 1000 most common words.
It's great, but challenging.

I put up my ideas about what I do - clinical psychology and mental health - you can read it below, and at  http://tinyurl.com/b3s5lfx

This is what I said:

"I try to help people who are sad or scared.

There are all kinds of reasons why people are sad or scared, but I am interested in the things that have happened to people.

I try to work out how the things that have happened to people might have changed the way they think about themselves, think about other people, think about how the world works or what might happen next.

If some very bad things have happened to you, you will probably think that bad things will happen again. If people have hurt you in the past, you will probably be scared that it might happen again. Some people get so sad or scared that they need help. Some people get so sad or scared that it changes the way their brains work. When people are very sad or scared, they sometimes ask doctors to help them. But this doesn't really work very well, and can cause as many problems as it helps.

I try to help people by understanding why the bad things that happen to us can make us feel sad and scared. I then talk to people to try to help them understand that they can do lots of things to help themselves. Most people can find better ways to help themselves. Usually, that happens when they come to understand that they can think about the world in different ways, and that talking to other people is the best way to learn how to think in new and different ways."


Have a look, look at other people's ideas, and perhaps try your own.

36 comments:

  1. I like how simple this is.
    I have bi polar rapid cycling and I still believe it was brought on by me environmental circumstances, which caused me to become so scared and sad that i experience full manic episode in 2005 after quite a few years of psychological trauma. Being then told who you are by doctors and it doesn’t fit with who you know your self to be causes so many more problems. Hence I took a degree in psychology got a 2.1 honours even though i was very ill for my first 3 modules. This was so challenging at first but it did give me a break in thinking, and I’d always been a pretty determined and forward moving person this is the part of my self that was still there but hiding the key is to not lose your self. And I learnt that thinking is just thinking it doesn’t mean its real and this can be changed, people don’t really understand that they can control their thoughts .. even if its just a little bit at first. The meds dont help like lithium, valproic aci, Depakene oral and Seroquel XR to name a few… all you can do is sit and watch your hands move when you have wanted them too .. and put on a ton of weight … my hair even started falling out at one point.. I told my psychiatrist what was I going to be a fat bald woman .. he said its better than the alternative.. well today I am a testament that I learning as much as you can about nutrition, exercise and your self can really change the situation.

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    1. Top marks for clarity! When I suffered from acute PTSD, having a clinical psychologist administer the CBT therapy was extremely helpful. However, when I read the technical description of a clinical psychologist, it was actually frightening. This description puts clinical psychology in a more accessible light for those who are terrified of what might happen to them in therapy. Thanks!!

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    2. I agree..that this is a much better description. Often all the long words can be so overwhelming.
      Like Tar, I was also diagnosed with bipolar disorder and was told that I had to be on medication for life. After 13 years on the meds and lots of personal research I was able to wean myself off. Learning about changing your thinking, nutrition and exercise are very important. So is increasing self-esteem, releasing trauma, and learning to take responsibility for your own health.

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    3. I found that CBT didn't work for me. I was resistant to the idea that I was misreading situations because then (In my mind) I would have to admit that my bipolar was winning.
      Dialectic behaviour therapy put me back in the drivers seat and it made 100% difference. I now have my life back (with the occasional hiccup and a number of medications), but it is such a relief.

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  2. Interesting piece to see the clarity there when ideas are stripped down to the bare bones. I'm going to try this exercise myself...

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  3. I really enjoyed that. Thanks for the website suggestion. I'm having a great time with your online course, btw. :) Thank you for doing this for us.

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  4. I am all for translating technical language into plain English. However, just because something is in layman's terms, it doesn't mean that it has to be "dumbed down. Unfortunately, I think that parts of the example above could be considered as veering towards being slightly patronising, which ends up putting off the very people that you are trying to engage with.

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  5. Hi Myself,
    I agree that just because using simpler terms doesn't mean that it should be 'dumbed down'.
    But I think that you've missed the point of this blog, it was simply an exercise that Peter did to see if he could express what he did using the simple language suggested on the website.
    I don't think that any of it is patronising and I can be hypercritical in that respect.

    So what do you think he should have written?

    BTW I'm not a professional but write a blog about my OCD recovery and try to keep it simple so that even when distressed people are able to follow it.

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  6. This makes it all seem so simple, gps should be made to follow this blog

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  7. Easy and understandable, thank you

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  8. Very simple and meaningful explanation even my 7 years old can make sense of this. Thank you am loving this course.

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  9. The simplification makes this body of words seem poetic. It must have taken quite some time to clarify your thoughts and yet still retain comprehension. Bravo!

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  10. I like the way you explain something so complicated can be so simple to be accepted :)

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  11. I would add that clients are either Sad, Scared, or CONFUSED. I see a lot of clients who are confused.

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  12. Quite articulate, simple and easy to assimilate. I've been there before. To be sad or scared is part of human nature that can be triggered by nurture. The complexity of twixt and turns of everyday life can change the way we approach issues. Getting suitable help early is the best solution we need to remain positive and focused.

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  13. I am liking this. And it basically does come down to these ideals, ideas and support. I experienced a series of traumatic events in close succession and these had a negative effect on my mental health, although thinking back my predisposition was always there. Recovery has been slow and consists of peeling back layers of my self, my formative years, my experiences, my values, beliefs and prejudices even. Real change occurred for me when I turned distressing situations on their head and looked at the flip side, what did I learn, how does that person feel, what answer could I have given instead, how could I have acted differently. There was a psychological lightness as a result and the feelings were soothing. So for today it's good and I'm still here, still breathing, still smiling with people and friends who love me. I don't have everything but I have more than enough. Let's see where I go next

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  14. this is a more understandable conscript, I thank you for the link on the course page, and i can get my head araound this easier .

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  15. I would like to thank you.This article is very helpful and it was very easy to understand. While we are writing article it must be understandable. Thank you.

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  16. this comment has made it easy to understand, i will try to use this in my work

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  17. this comment has made it easy to understand, i will try to use this in my work

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  18. Very good, agree that the simplicity could come across as patronising but only if you hadn't read the way the site works. Also agree with the confused. Might also add another word - angry. I have spent a lot of my life frustrated, I have only recently learned this is a form of anger. I am personally scared of being angry because of levels of anger I have seen when growing up, so I just got frustrated instead.

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  19. Yes, your blog is on point Peter. Nothing beats old communication. One day I waiting for a bus and this woman got off the bus and stood next to me. Our conversation started with the weather and she ended up telling me her problems. It was quite serious stuff but it left me thinking that I may have been the only person she was able to speak to that day. Some people live isolated lives and can go for days without conversing with another individual.

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  20. Pretty much spot on and (hopefully) explains what a good therapist will be doing in their practice, there is so much science in psychology and psychiatry and with the training the disciplines require, it can become easy to sound complicated.

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  21. Pretty much spot on and (hopefully) explains what a good therapist will be doing in their practice, there is so much science in psychology and psychiatry and with the training the disciplines require, it can become easy to sound complicated.

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  22. Simply explained, easy to understand. It is exactly that 'scared and sad'. Helping to understand why they feel the way they do and change the thought process.

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  23. Simply explained, easy to understand. It is exactly that 'scared and sad'. Helping to understand why they feel the way they do and change the thought process.

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  24. I like the simplicity of words used.As a counsellor one of the major points facing me are how to explain counselling to a client who is clueless in an acceptable way."Scared and sad" are easy to understand, even to a child.

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  25. Waoow marvellous piece of article.Thanks for the insight

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  26. This i am becoming more aware of by the minute, i have been practising positive thinking for around 6 years fully, and as Tar says.....thinking is just thinking it doesn’t mean its real and this can be changed, people don’t really understand that they can control their thoughts .. even if its just a little bit at first. Making the decision to think positively and sticking to it makes all the difference, i would go as far as to say we are able to talk to our bodies to help heal orselves.

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  27. I really love this course its never ending the things I have learnt are amazing everyday life in some cases are a real struggle bipolar is something they really want to over come but they need help the more research the more support they will receive, across the nation mental health is a big issue lack of integrity, compassion, self love ect.. is due to mental health unfortunately.

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  28. it is very important to understand 'why' life experiences are making us sad or scared. And it is very important to go into deep inside with a Professional guide and see the source of our individual sadness and scares..than we could 'understand' why our life experiences are birnging us to sadness.Once we start to feel the reason then we could look at the life from different point of view and understanding ourself could make us more open to accept the sad experiences of life..as long as we see the dark side of us it gives us also to see the light sides of us and life too. so, it is really importand key words 'why' and 'understand'.
    Thank for this simple but very important article..ruhane kosar

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  29. it is very important to understand 'why' life experiences are making us sad or scared. And it is very important to go into deep inside with a Professional guide and see the source of our individual sadness and scares..than we could 'understand' why our life experiences are birnging us to sadness.Once we start to feel the reason then we could look at the life from different point of view and understanding ourself could make us more open to accept the sad experiences of life..as long as we see the dark side of us it gives us also to see the light sides of us and life too. so, it is really importand key words 'why' and 'understand'.
    Thank for this simple but very important article..ruhane kosar

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  30. Interesting piece and made me liken it to response to a physical illness. After life threatening illness people often say I've changed the way I look at things,my lifestyle diet and support. Is that because it feels more tangible

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  31. Professor Kinderman, i really like the simplicity. It combines authenticity and empathy expressed in a genuine language and yet, has a healing effect. Thank you for sharing.

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