she was putting herself in jeopardy by her crazy sleeping habits and her reliance on sugar to get through the day. I didn't know at the time that she was drinking three huge bottles of soda a day with a high sugar content. After this assessment she made some changes in her eating habits, especially her sugar intake. She became more consciously responsible for her diet, health, and exercise. Exercise is essential for the release of anger, guilt, shame, depression, fear, and stress. How wonderful that she figured out what to do.
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Be Patient with the Mystery of the Process
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One day Rachel received a letter from one of her friends from treatment. She said she had gone back into the hospital. Her letter said that the day before she went in, she didn't have that much to eat, and she and her friends sat around all day smoking, drinking coffee, and talking about suicide. Her physical stress level contributed to her uneasy emotional state. It's surprising how such prevalent and simple substances such as sugar, nicotine, and caffeine can speed our bodies up to the point that we're feeling stressed and anxious.
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Adolescents must learn to monitor the behaviors that contribute to their stress level. This is one area where parents really need to let go; it really is out of our control. If our children are stressed, we
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