In primary school we played a very popular game that we called ‘open the gate.’  Everyone who played along would stand in a row at the end of the field except for one person who would stand in the middle of the field.  If this person called your name, it was up to you to ‘open the gate’. You had to run past him without being caught to the other side of the field. Once you were past him, you had opened the gate for all the others to also run to the other field.  But if you were caught, you also stood in the middle to help catch the others as they ran to join the group in the middle.

Continue “Why are you backing down?”

It is the beginning of the year and, for most people, their motivation is still sky high. You probably have big plans for 2017 and have set New Year’s resolutions up to the kazoo. There is nothing wrong with this, but if the ‘beginning of the year feel’ is the only thing that you are counting on to help you achieve all those goals, well… Then your tank is going to run empty pretty soon, as we are already entering February! So, let’s take the time to look at some ways in which we can keep ourselves motivated, at least for a bit longer than the end of January!

1. Stay healthy

Something most important to stay motivated is ENERGY, there is no way you will be able to determine your goals when you are always tired or sick. Therefore, make sure that you get your 8 hours of Z’s, drink enough water, keep active, and maintain a healthy diet and lifestyle. Cut down on those energy drinks, sugars, alcohol, caffeine and cigarettes, as all of these are major energy takers.

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“Quit smoking” is probably the number one new year’s resolution across the world.  A survey has found that 80% of smokers would like to quit the bad habit, but less than 5% are able to quit on their own. So if the desire is there, then why is it so difficult to stop? Here are a few reasons why so many people find it hard to kick their smoking habit.

1. Discomfort

Because nicotine hi-jacks the dopamine system, it is highly addictive. However, the greater problem with the addiction is the withdrawal. Typical nicotine withdrawal symptoms include: flu-like aches and discomfort, irritability, sleep problems, fatigue, and cravings. It is these uncomfortable feelings which deter people from wanting to actually stop smoking. Most people would rather keep smoking than experience these uncomfortable feelings.

Continue “5 Reasons it is so hard to quit smoking!”

Miekie, a friend of mine is a true athlete.  During his school career he was always  one of the top athletes in the school.  He is always on the lookout for a new sport to practice.  Triathlons and races like the 94.7 is old news to him.

Currently, he participates in ‘warrior races’.  Naturally, he falls in die epic category, which is for the strongest warriors.  The track is only 20 kilometers long, but has obstacles like swinging across a monkey bar, climbing up with a rope over a frame and down again, and dragging tyres around his waist across a field.

Continue “The mudslide that is depression.”

Three of the most common new year’s resolutions are losing weight/being healthier, quitting smoking (don’t worry, we will tackle this one a bit later!) and achieving financial goals. These financial goals may vary from paying off debt, saving for that dream vacation or just being more in control of your finances. If achieving financial goals is your 2017 new year’s resolution, then it is time to put your money where your mouth is. It is nearing the end of the month and your first paycheque for 2017 is in your near future. This means that there is no more hiding – it is time to act! So today we are going to talk about how to create a budget.

Continue “How to create a budget!”

It is a new year and the perfect opportunity to get your finances in order. Research has found that up to 70% of individuals stress about money on a regular basis. Furthermore, these studies have shown that 20% of people think about their financial status from time to time and only 10% never think about their finances. However, debt is a huge stress factor in our social functioning and when left unaddressed, it can lead to some serious health problems, such as anxiety and depressive disorders, as well as cardiovascular disease, diabetes and high blood pressure. But before we can just jump in and start saving (I know it is probably one of your New Year’s resolutions) we first need to identify where we stand and what the indicators of debt are.

So here are the 10 signs that you have too much debt:

Continue “10 Signs that you have too much debt”

The other day I visited one of my colleagues in hospital. It was so strange sitting in a visitor’s chair and not being the one in the hospital bed.  While I was there the nurses and doctors did their rounds and I noticed the difference between the nurses who were just doing their job and those who have a passion for their job. Over the years, I had noticed this with some of the doctors as well.

Two years ago my legs went numb and I needed to see a doctor as soon as possible, but my general practitioner was booked two weeks in advance, so I searched for a doctor that could help me.  I found a doctor in Vaalpark. He was really worried and thought I had Guillain-Barré syndrome.  At that time the hospitals in VanderbijlPark were all full, but he told his personal assistant, ‘I don’t care where you get a bed for this man! Whether it’s in the children’s ward or maternity ward, he needs to be admitted today!’ Luckily, she found a bed in the surgical ward.

Continue “Passion that touches lives.”

It is a New Year and you have all probably already made (and broken!) your New Year’s resolutions. Don’t worry though – keeping to New Year’s resolutions is easier said than done! Some even stop making them all together, in an effort to avoid the heartbreaking experience of not keeping them.

However, the real reason we make New Year’s resolutions is because we have this thing in us called “hope” that makes us aspire to be more than what we are, or were. We want to be better, we want to have and be more – and what better time to start something new, than a new year, which is filled with hope and the promise of something new?

So today we will be talking about how people keep their New Year’s resolutions (at least until June)…

Continue “New Year, New Me – How to do it right.”

When life turn left where we wanted it to continue straight, when things go wrong, when we lose a loved one, when our Christmas bonus has to spent on debt instead of niceties, we find something or someone to blame. We blame everyone around us or the government or many times we blame God.

We are angry because we wanted it to be different, we wanted God to intervene. When that does not happen, we get angry.

We know that God promises us that He will never leave us and will always be there for us and we take that to mean that no nastiness will befall us. What it actually means, and the Bible tells us this very clearly, is that He will help us. God is not our personal rose petal bearer, He is our savior. He promises us eternal life, not life eternally. This means that we will one day be without pain and suffering in heaven. While we are on earth we have free will. When we choose right, usually the consequences are good or at least bearable, when we choose bad there are consequences, many a time, they are of the undesirable variety. We make that choice though. Continue “What or Who am I angry at?”

Is a bigger, better and faster world really good for our brains and mental health?

On a regular basis I am confronted with people facing burnout and anxiety, all attributing it to the same cause: the inability to ‘switch off’. This is no surprise, as in today’s day and age our brains are busier than ever. We are bombarded with what is presented as information, but are sometimes no more than rumors and sensations. The task of trying to figure out what are useful, true facts and what is pure trash becomes a daunting and exhausting endeavor.

Our world is developing at 300km an hour and we need to keep up. Three decades ago we had travel agents booking our flights, library assistants helping us find information in books, and professional typists or secretaries helping corporate moguls with their workload. Now we do most of these things ourselves. We are doing the jobs of 10 different people while still trying to keep up with our busy lives.

Continue “is faster better for our mental health?”