Sligo
Libraries, as part of the Healthy Ireland at Your Libraries programme, are delighted to
present a Free Online Webinar series with Shane Martin, Psychologist C.Psychol.Ps.S.I. beginning
tomorrow and every Thursday in January.
7:00pm Thursday 7th, 14th, 21st and 28th
January 2021, via Zoom
Simply
click on the link on the evening to join. Links can also be found on our
Facebook and Instagram pages. No registration needed.
Week 1
Your
Precious Life – How to Live it Well with Shane Martin
7th
January 2021 7:00 pm
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83738197871?pwd=Rzk3U3o2Nk1wQXA1U2UwUHl5TVhxUT09
This
seminar will outline simple, practical, and most importantly, evidence-based
strategies linked to a better quality of life. The hope is that it will uplift
and inspire change in the lives of those who attend but even more importantly
inspire participants to incorporate it into their homes, workplaces and
communities.
Over many
decades science has made a wonderful contribution in helping us understand
negative emotion. The emphasis on deficits, disorders and disease has allowed
for effective interventions to be developed in order to help and support people
who are unwell or unhappy.
But why
wait until we are unwell to learn about becoming healthier? Why wait until we
are unhappy to explore happiness?
In recent
years psychologists have started to examine positive emotion. This research has
focused on what makes people happier, what gives them more meaning and purpose
in life, and what measures they can take to lead to overall greater health.
Week 2
Minding Ourselves with Shane Martin
14th January 2021 7:00 pm
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85187387229?pwd=OU1qdUlSbjBNNUQ3U0FMVVdHWE8wdz09
At the root
to a lot of unhealthy stress is irrational thinking. We are all thinking beings
and we have an ‘internal dialogue’ going on in our minds, almost as if we are
talking to ourselves. However, we only ever express a fraction of this
thinking. These private thoughts directly impact on our feelings and
consequently how we interact with others. When emotionally distressed we can
make conclusions about ourselves, others and the world without recourse to the
‘voice’ of reason. This is why we do not all make the same sense of the same
things. The very best of us are vulnerable to illogical, irrational and
unhelpful thinking, particularly when emotional or under pressure. In a climate
of increasing stress due to changes within the work environment we need to make
the best possible sense of changes and challenges.
How
thinking affects how we feel and behave will be demonstrated. Staff will learn
about unhelpful thinking and belief systems. They will learn how to become more
rational and compassionate in their approach to work and life in general.
Evidence- based strategies that are linked to positive mental health and help
keep us positive during challenging times will be taught.
Week 3
The Science of ‘Bouncibility’ (Resilience) with Shane Martin
21st January 7:00 pm
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82862078256?pwd=dkZQWG1ZbFl1M05oazNUWVlVck1TQT09
Life is an
imperfect journey and crisis is guaranteed. There will always be setbacks and
misfortunes. Resilience is the ability to adapt to the challenges of life. It’s
about bouncing back rather than falling apart. If you are strong in resilience
you have this ‘bouncibility’ and can harness your inner strengths and coping
mechanisms. Others need to learn the skills at the heart of resiliency. If life
is full of challenges then we need to know how to not only withstand the
pressure but to thrive in adversity.
If you are
low in resilience, you will focus too much on your problems and deficits and be
overwhelmed during challenges. You will be drawn towards unhealthy conclusions
and become more vulnerable instead of stronger. Becoming more resilient will
not mean that problems disappear. It does not mean that you have to become ‘as
hard as nails’. Resilience is more about learning how to cope – tapping into
our own resources and fostering inner-strengths in order to stay ‘standing’
during and after crisis.
Science has
uncovered specific traits/factors that can be utilised at work and in our lives
in general. This seminar outlines evidence-based strategies linked to greater
outcomes during challenge and change.
Week 4
Fostering Creativity for the sake of our health and happiness with Shane
Martin
28th January 7:00 pm
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82191336024?pwd=RVBVVHhsdXZZb0pxMm55Wjdkak1kZz09
Many people assume that creativity is something we had as a child but
lost, or something gifted to specific individuals that are naturally
‘talented’. But science has shown that, in many ways, we are all wired to
create. Creativity is multifaceted—on the level of the brain, personality, and
the creative process. It can be displayed in many different ways. New studies
suggests that small acts of creativity in everyday life increase our overall
sense of well-being. By cultivating some creativity in our lives we can
potentially reduce our vulnerability to stress and enhance our levels of life
satisfaction.
