Life skills - skills that take a back seat !

    

            Students should learn life skill naturally through every day interactions and problem solving. The problem is that as students become busier with athletics, music lessons, and other extracurricular activities, life skills tend to take a back seat. Parents extend their roles as caregivers to support their children’s increasing interests, often cooking, cleaning and scheduling their life far longer than appropriate. As a result, students sometimes graduate high school without an awareness of what it takes to function on their own.

What are Life Skills? 

Life skills are behaviors that enable individuals to adapt and deal effectively with the demands and challenges of life. There are many such skills, but core life skills include the ability to:   

(The Ten core Life Skills as laid down by WHO are:)

1. Self-awareness
2. Empathy 
3. Criticalthinking
4. Creative thinking
5. Decision making
6. Problem Solving
7. Effective communication
8. Interpersonal relationship
9. Coping with stress
10. Coping with emotion

A review by UNICEF found that approaches relying on life skills have been effective in educating youth about health-related issues—such as alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use; nutrition; pregnancy prevention; and preventing HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Life skills education programs can also be effective in preventing school dropout and violence among young people. Finally, these programs can lay the foundation for skills demanded in today's job market.

Mental health is the most important aspect right now due to the kind of lifestyle we all are living right now.

Coping with stress: 

95% of all the diseases are created by stress. 

Wrong beliefs like “I’m not good enough” or "Something is wrong with me" cause up to 95% of all illness and disease. The membrane of the cell is the brain of the cell, not the nucleus. Our beliefs are stored in the membrane of our cells. Unless we are fully aware of what we are doing and why we are doing it at every moment, we are always acting on our unconscious programming stored as beliefs in our cells. Scientific research has established that stress is the core factor in physical, mental, and emotional disease. Discovering how unconscious physical, mental and emotional habits create stress, aging, addiction and disease, through awareness and simple lifestyle changes reclaiming youthful vitality, joy and well being.

Recognizing Mental Stress and Well being

    Mental Stress                                                          Mental Well Being

• Saying ‘No', 'I can't'                                                        Saying ‘Yes’, 'I can!'
• Disapproval Self/Others                                                  Approval Self/Others
• Mental Confusion                                                                Mental Clarity
• Thoughts of Fear, Anger, Grief                                           Courage, Acceptance
• Mental Tension                                                             Relaxed, Creative thinking
• Wanting Control, Approval, Safety                                     Allowing, Being
• Mental Resistance                                                             Allowing, Welcoming
• Judgment, Attacking, Blaming                                          Allowing, Forgiveness
• Constant Thinking                                                             Spacious, Quiet Mind
• Resentments, Grievances                                                  Forgiveness, Freedom
• Bored                                                                                           Curious
• Deadly Serious                                                                        Playful Humor
• Complaining                                                                            Appreciation
• ‘I am Separate’                                                        ‘I am connected with the world’

Balancing Brain Chemistry-  Our thoughts and attitudes alter our brain chemistry. When the body and mind can make its own “feel-good” neurotransmitters again, the craving for sugar and alcohol disappears. True peace, joy, optimism and centeredness replace mental and physical fatigue, anxiety, depression and nervousness.

Serotonin, Dopamine and Endorphins Created Naturally –Lowering Stress
MEDITATION, HEARTMATH produces optimum levels.
POSITIVE THINKINING – raises levels.
DEEP BREATHING is one of the most important ways.
SUNLIGHT bright light increases.
EXERCISE one of the best natural ways.
ELIMINATING SUGAR – Sugar creates imbalance.
SPENDING QUALITY TIME with loved ones.
LAUGHTER and smiling have a positive effect on.
OMEGA 3 and VITIMIN C increase levels.
EAT SPICY FOODS like chilies', peppers and jalapenos.
EAT fruits, vegetables, lean protein, nuts and seeds.

Coping with Emotions: Emotional Factors in Mental well being - our feelings are a wonderful barometer of our well being. When we are not caught up in negative thinking, our feelings remain positive, and we feel joyful, loving and peaceful. When we are feeling fearful, angry, or depressed it is a sure sign that our thoughts have become negative and dysfunctional. Developing this awareness and making the decision to eliminate negative thinking can be dramatically life changing. Alter your own brain chemistry with thoughts of appreciation, gratitude, joy and love.
Emotional signs
Irritability People are low information processors—max out on info processing when stressed b/c constantly thinking of things, More information makes you angry, see everything as serious - Sadness, depression , Apathy ,Anxiety Free-floating anxiety: constantly waiting for the other shoe to drop
Mental fatigue. Forget things, what you meant to do. Overcompensate or live in denial by taking on extra work.

Why teach life skills?
That the life skills are essential for: The promotion of healthy child and adolescent development; primary prevention of some key causes of child and adolescent death, disease and disability; socialization; preparing young people for changing social circumstances
Life skills education contributes to: basic education; gender equality; democracy; good citizenship; child care and protection; quality and efficiency of the education system; the promotion of lifelong learning; quality of life; the promotion of peace.

What is the Life Skills Education Approach? 
life skills approach is an interactive, educational methodology that not only focuses on transmitting knowledge but also aims at shaping attitudes and developing interpersonal skills. The main goal of the life skills approach is to enhance young people's ability to take responsibility for making healthier choices, resisting negative pressures, and avoiding risk behaviors. Teaching methods are youth-centered, gender-sensitive, interactive, and participatory. The most common teaching methods include working in groups, brainstorming, role-playing, storytelling, debating, and participating in discussions and audio visual activities.

What does Research say about the Outcomes of Life Skills-Based Education?
Developing of life skills have produced the following effects: 

lessened violent behaviour; increased pro -social behaviour and decreased negative self-destructive behaviour; increased the ability to plan ahead and choose effective solutions to problems; improved self-image, self-awareness, social and emotional adjustment; increased acquisition of knowledge; improved classroom behaviour; gains in self control and handling of interpersonal problems and coping with anxiety; and improved constructive conflict resolution with peers, impulse control and popularity.