As a response to recent study showing a high number of college students suffer from anxiety and depression, onlinecolleges.net has published a resource that should prove both valuable and helpful. The onlinecolleges.net mental health guide discusses mental health issues facing students, links to each state’s social and health services site, links to recognized national organizations that sponsor support groups, general online resources, and tips on stress reduction and stress management. In my opinion, it is an excellent resource:

http://www.onlinecolleges.net/for-students/mental-health-resources/

Inspirational humorous speaker Marti MacGibbon delivered the endnote speech at the Association of California Nurse Leaders’ 36th Annual Conference, “Oceans of Opportunity: The Next Wave of Nurse Leadership”. The conference, held at the Portola Hotel and Spa in beautiful Monterey California, addressed the challenges and changes facing nursing teams in the coming year.

Marti’s uplifting, high energy presentation affirmed, encouraged and supported nurse leaders, and provided tips on stress management and building resilience, with plenty of humor. After the session ended, Marti MacGibbon signed copies of her dramatic and humorous memoir, Never Give in to Fear: Laughing All the Way Up from Rock Bottom, which has received recognition from the National Indie Excellence Awards, and praise from Kirkus Reviews, Midwest Book Review, Foreword Clarion Reviews and San Francisco Book Review.

Ms. MacGibbon is an internationally known author and an expert on trauma resolution and addiction. She has survived and triumphed over human trafficking, domestic violence, homelessness and addiction to become the success she is today. Her message is one of hope and humor, and she provides audiences with simple, practical techniques she used to turn her life around.

Staying connected helps you to stay flexible and open minded.

Courage to stand alone. Yes, it’s an admirable character trait, and sometimes life requires it. But don’t slip into a mistaken belief that you have to stand alone through every trial and tribulation. You don’t have to take on life’s challenges all by yourself. Build a support network of positive people, and celebrate staying connected. Mentors, colleagues, friends, loved ones, even pets can help you maintain a positive outlook and upbeat attitude. If you’re struggling, or shouldering a responsibility that is too big to share with friends and family, consult professionals: doctors, therapists, clergy, personal trainers, consultants, coaches and other experts.

Every happy, well-adjusted person stays connected to a positive support network, and functions within that network by both giving to and receiving from others. When you are connected, and taking action to reach your goals and dreams, you experience a sense of fulfillment. Be bold and take action to create change. Our thoughts, words, and emotions are often more powerful than we realize. If you find yourself feeling down or discouraged, you can often trace it back to some kind of negative thought you’ve mistakenly accepted as truth, or some negative statement you’re making to yourself, about yourself. It’s easy to criticize yourself much more harshly than you do others. Resist the urge to beat yourself up. When you’re hard on yourself, you tend to be hard on the people around you, and your behavior drives people away at a time when you need to stay connected to others. Gandhi said, “A man is but a product of his thoughts. What he thinks, he becomes.”

Take action against isolating yourself. When you’re isolated, you become brittle and rigid in your thinking. Staying connected to a variety of positive influences will keep you flexible and open-minded, ready to recognize opportunities to grow and develop new ideas. Never hesitate to reach out to your contacts in personal life or in business, asking them for support, input, advice or referrals.  Always be alert to opportunities to contribute, support, mentor, donate, encourage and recommend others. Another quote from Gandhi: “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” We’re all traveling the road of life together. Great leaders like Martin Luther King, Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela surrounded themselves with like-minded peers: positive thinkers and brave people who took bold action and consistently got back up when they got knocked down. They built a support network, and they interacted with their network, every day. I’m sure that King, Gandhi and Mandela did take time for themselves each day, to meditate, contemplate, and reaffirm their awareness of their authentic selves. They cultivated positive thinking and positive self talk, and they stayed connected. And they changed the world.

“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in service to others.” — Gandhi

We all need quality time to know ourselves and our purpose in life. Solitude sharpens focus. But it’s in the connectedness that we discover ourselves and our purpose.

Marti MacGibbon interviewed Carrie White, hairstylist to the stars and bestselling author of, Upper Cut: Highlights of My Hollywood Life, on her blog talk radio show, Kickass Personal Transformation. Ms. White is the first woman to receive the Experience, Strength and Hope Award. Carrie shared her amazing life story in her memoir, and during the interview she is fabulous, fierce and fun, discussing second chances, tenacity, and “staying sane” in everyday life. Listen to the podcast and be inspired!

About Carrie:

Carrie White was born in Southern California. With a hairdressing career that has spanned more than forty-five years, she’s styled everyone from Elvis Presley and Ann-Margret to Sandra Bullock and Brad Pitt. Her work has appeared in Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, InStyle, Allure, Vanity Fair, Ladies’ Home Journal, Mademoiselle, and Glamour. The mother of five, Carrie today owns and operates Carrie White Hair in Beverly Hills.

Carrie White is author of  Upper Cut, Highlights of my Hollywood Life, published by Simon and Schuster/Atria Books, is endorsed by Jackie Collins, Vidal Sassoon,  David Steinberg and Publishers Weekly. Upper Cut debuted at #8 on the Los Angeles Times Best Seller list and is now an International Best Seller from England to Australia.

Leonard Buschel, co-founder of Writers in Treatment (WIT), was a recent guest on Pure Motive Radio Network’s new show, Kickass Personal Transformation™ with Marti MacGibbon. Leonard told host Marti MacGibbon about how his non-profit organization, Writers in Treatment, connects individuals suffering from addiction and other self-destructive behaviors with treatment and recovery solutions. WIT also presents the REEL Recovery Film Festival, an inspiring and relevant event held in 8 cities that showcases both classics and contemporary films about addiction, alcoholism, behavioral disorders, treatment and recovery. Leonard Buschel also produces the Experience, Strength and Hope Awards, a sometimes star-studded celebration of the clean and sober lifestyle, and the value of humor in the recovery process. All proceeds from the event go to WIT’s Jewelle Sturm Scholarship Fund.

A resident of Los Angeles and a former substance abuse counselor, Mr. Buschel created Writers in Treatment with the purpose of supporting and empowering creative, talented individuals who suffer from chemical dependency and are looking for a way to recover and build a new life. His attitude is very positive, and he’s passionate about what he does. In the interview, Leonard shared insights into recovery, quotes from a few of his favorite writers, and uplifting stories about past Reel Recovery Fests and E., S. and H. Awards. Listen to the podcast in Pure Motive Radio archives — Leonard and his projects are both fascinating and inspiring!

This year’s Experience, Strength and Hope Award is scheduled for February 13th, 2014, and the award recipient is author and “hairstylist to the stars” Carrie White. Carrie will be Marti’s guest on Kickass Personal Transformation™ February 3rd, discussing her memoir, Upper Cut.

Bob Tyler, BA, CADC-II, I-CADC, renowned instructor, addiction treatment specialist, award-winning author, and leader in recovery joined Marti MacGibbon, host of Kickass Personal Transformation, a blog talk radio show on Pure Motive Network. Bob discussed the enhanced edition of his EVVY Award-winning book, Enough Already, A Guide to Recovery from Alcohol and Drug Addiction. Tyler also discussed his mission to bring recovery services and referrals to people who lack the financial resources to get into rehab. As Bob says in his Mission Statement, “Given that addiction treatment is a billion-dollar a year issue, (healthcare, incarceration, etc.) and that one in ten alcoholics ever get help, and two in ten alcoholics who seek help ever get it (availability issue), we have a huge problem in this country.”

Bob Tyler is candid, humorous, and highly informative. He shared moving stories of his work in the prison system, training lifers to become addiction-treatment counselors. Listen to the podcast in Pure Motive Radio’s archives.

Mr. Tyler’s accomplishments are remarkable, and his passion for helping people is inspiring. Read his biography here, or learn more about him, his book, instructive DVDs and other news on his website.

Bob’s Bio:

Bob Tyler has been working in the chemical dependence recovery field since 1990.  After beginning his personal recovery from alcohol and drug addiction in December of 1988, he completed the Alcohol and Studies Program at Loyola Marymount University (LMU).  He then worked as a Program Counselor at St. John’s Chemical Dependence Treatment Center in Santa Monica until 1997 when he graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology at LMU. He then served as Program Director at Life Change Residential Treatment Center for two years. For fourteen years, Bob has been Director of Operations and Clinical Services at Twin Town Treatment Centers where he manages six Intensive Outpatient Treatment programs – each serving adults and adolescents.

He served fourteen years on the Board of Directors of the California Association of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counselors (CAADAC). For the first eight years he represented Region 2 South (South Los Angeles Area) and chaired CAADAC’s Quality Assurance and Third Party/Managed Care Committees.  Bob also served as their President for two years ending in January 2009. He is currently the Treasurer of CFAAP (California Foundation for the Advancement of Addiction Professionals).

Bob serves on the Advisory Boards for Alcohol and Drug Studies Programs at InterCoast Colleges, Long Beach City College, Cal State Fullerton, Cal State Dominguez Hills, LA Mission College, and LMU Extension where he is also a member of the faculty.  He is also an accomplished speaker who regularly speaks at Cal State Long Beach, Long Beach City College, InterCoast Colleges, Cal State Fullerton, Training Institute for Addiction Counselors, LMU, and for professional organizations, such as: CAADAC, PALM (Problems of Addiction in Labor Management), and EAPA (Employee Assistance Programs Association).

Bob is also the author of the award-winning book, Enough Already!: A Guide to Recovery
from Alcohol and Drug Addiction.  The book is currently being utilized as a textbook for
Alcohol and Drug Studies Programs at InterCoast Colleges (eight campuses), Loyola
Marymount University (LMU) Extension, the U.S. Navy – San Diego Campus, Pierce
College, LA Mission College, Centaur University, L. A. Training Institute for Alcohol &
Drug Counselors, LA Southwest College, and the University of California at San Diego
(UCSD). It is also being utilized as a treatment resource at Twin Town Treatment Centers,
detoxification programs at Los Alamitos Medical Center and Lakewood Regional Medical
Center, and at other programs for patients struggling with specific areas of recovery.

Bob recently produced a DVD of his talk: “Craving and Relapse” which was filmed in front
of a live audience and is currently being utilized in over 500 alcohol and drug treatment
programs across the country.

Both the book and the DVD are available at www.bobtyler.net.

Marti MacGibbon’s new talk radio show, “Kickass Personal Transformation,” features fascinating guests like hilarious comedienne, ghost hunter and paranormal investigator Karen Rontowski. Karen’s interview aired live on January 13th, 2014, but you can listen on demand to her show on Marti’s YouTube channel, and to all archives on Pure Motive Radio network’s site. In 2012, Karen headlined Marti’s annual charity fundraiser, Laff-Aholics Comedy Benefit for Recovery.

Karen’s Bio:
From her network debut on The Late Show with David Letterman to
Comedy Central and Comics Unleashed, Karen’s show is getting great
reviews! David Brenner says, “Even if you can’t spell Karen Rontowski, you’d
better remember it, because she is GREAT!”

Ms. Rontowski describes herself as having an optimistic outlook;
everything is coming up roses when you talk to Karen. So what if her
therapist says she’s in complete denial.  The truth is, when it comes to
her stand up comedy career, everything is coming up roses, or at least
laughter.  She describers herself as completely confident in her
confusion.  She never knows where she’s going but she always gets
there….5 minutes late.

Comedian Karen Rontowski’s  upbeat, optimistic and clean sense of
humor has earned her headlining spots all over the world.  She has also
opened for such show biz legends as Bob Hope, Ray Charles and the
Monkees.  Often described as a “New Age Hippie” Rontowski says “there
is no time like the present to be living in the past.”

Here are some things we talked about on the show:

COMEDY
Get out of fear and have some fun.
Calling 911 during a comedy set at Laff-Aholics 2012 because an audience member laughed so hard he turned blue.
How a terrible event in life will make a great story.
How much time do you waste on worrying.
If entertaining the geriatric crown, hopefully they won’t die laughing.

KICKASS PERSONAL TRANSFORMATION
Traveling with a service dog.
Stress is time consuming, two key lessons:
When we get stressed out and worried, we block the good that’s coming.
You don’t have to be in combat mode and go into battle all the time.
Life is accepting all the good stuff that’s coming even if you can’t see it yet.
Realize that good things are coming.
Meditation, and why it’s so important.
Why a ghost will do the same things over-and-over in life.

ABOUT GHOSTS
Ghosts like to be entertained.
Why ghosts can’t figure out technology.
Some ghosts speak another language.
If you’re going to tell a ghost a joke, make sure it’s from their time era or they won’t get it.
Is the Comedy Store in Los Angeles haunted? And is it Sam Kinison?
What about the Comedy Store in San Diego?
Are the ghosts in the Queen Mary mean or friendly?
Why are entertainment venues haunted?
How do you hunt a ghost?
Do ghosts have vocal chords?

RECOVERY
Comedy for people in recovery.
It’s hard to offend people in recovery, because they’ve been through everything.

Hello 2014. You’re a new year, and since you just arrived three days ago, we’re on our best behavior. Lots of my friends and business associates have written farewell posts to our former year, 2013, sometimes commenting on the good times, occasionally bidding good riddance to the bad, and opening their arms to you, 2014, and all they’ll achieve in your company.

Well, I am also looking forward to working with you, 2014, and to accomplishing great things together with you. You’re bringing a lot of value to this relationship. Twelve months of time, packed with opportunity, a fresh outlook, and a chance at total renewal.

I invite you, new year, to join me in building on the foundation I established while working with your predecessor, 2013. We got a lot done. Here are some details:

I Learned How to Break the Chronic Pain Cycle. This is really cool. In late 2012, I studied Addiction Free Pain Management, a course taught by Dr. Steve Grinstead, as part of my Continuing Education Units for my addiction treatment certifications. I learned about the pain cycle, what pain is, and how a chronic pain cycle establishes itself. I learned that Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) can help to lessen anticipatory pain. I used mindfulness meditation, and visualized myself pain-free, with fantastic results in my own life. I also engaged in occupational and physical therapy. Now I am able to travel more, work longer, and play harder, because I have gained pain management skills.

Exploded Longstanding Fears and Reveled in New Experiences. I went ziplining in the redwood canopy, hundreds of feet in the air, walked two skinny little Indiana Jones-type sky bridges made of rope, and rappelled to earth from high up in a redwood tree. This is incredibly fun, and also helped me to smash through my life-long fear of heights. I also traveled 3,000 + miles by car, cross country, something I mistakenly thought was no longer possible for me after a back injury sustained several years ago. But guess what? Anything is possible, if you have a sense of purpose and study and employ the pain management know-how. (See above.) Oh yeah, and I talked with my doctor about all of this!

Won Recognition as an Author. My book, Never Give in to Fear: Laughing All the Way Up from Rock Bottom, was chosen finalist out of thousands of entries in the National Indie Excellence Awards. The award comes out of Beverly Hills, California.

Eliminated Negative Statements from My Conversation. This was a game changer for me. I recognized that everything I say is an affirmation. Words are very powerful, and anything you say aloud has even greater impact. I have known this for several years, and have practiced it, but last year I took an in depth look at my conversations and realized I’d been allowing a lot of negatives to slip in and wreak havoc. Complaining is a negative affirmation, so even if you are not consciously complaining, but only think you are talking about something that is wrong, or a problem you have, it sends negative messages to your unconscious mind that you experience on a cellular level. Even if you’re not actively complaining, but are listening to someone else who is negative, and you are not counteracting the negatives, it works against you. By discussing only positive outcomes, and presenting challenges in the most optimistic way possible, I lifted my mood, increased my motivation, and experienced higher energy levels. The effects kick almost instantaneously when you are relentless about this principle.

Embraced Opportunity. I speak on overcoming adversity, addiction and recovery, and inspiration. I also speak as a survivor of human trafficking, to raise awareness about this issue. Generally, I limit my survivor talks to one or two a year, but in 2013 I decided to embrace as many opportunities as possible to speak as a survivor, and that led to a number of very interesting experiences. I met some amazing people who are also dedicated to social justice, and connected with victims of trafficking and other survivors.
It’s not easy to talk about a traumatic experience, but when you speak as an empowered survivor, it’s very healing. I joined an anti-trafficking task force, the Indiana Protection for Abused and Trafficked Persons, IPATH, where I now combine my efforts with those of legislators, attorneys, social workers, and people of faith. It’s wonderful to be part of a team and a coalition.

Carried the Message. I taught a life skills class to women inmates at the Marion County Jail in Indianapolis, and also spoke to groups of women at risk of being trafficked, prostituted or abused, at community centers and outreach points. I use humor and laughter as part of every presentation, and the healing power of laughter and humor cannot be over-emphasized. And Laff-Aholics 2013, our third annual Standup Comedy Benefit for Recovery, knocked it out of the park, with comedians Kevin McPeek, Dr. Bill Miller. Oh yeah, and I emceed. We raised nearly 12,000 dollars for our beneficiaries, Lucille Raines Residence and Talbot House. Both recipients are non-profits, transitional housing facilities that provide access to addiction treatment and mental health services for people with no income or very low income. And the 550-seat auditorium was packed with laughing people who know the power of fun.

Those are some of the highlights. I also did tons of radio interviews to promote the book, and some television. On December 30, 2013, I launched my radio show, Kickass Personal Transformation, on blog talk radio.

Okay 2014, now it’s our turn to work together. I welcome you, and am optimistic about all we can accomplish in the coming months. But most of all, I realize the value and importance of the present moment, and the present day. When I meet life’s challenges one day at a time, I have the right focus to hang on, to be tenacious, and to pack as much as I can into the stream of life. This year, I want to build my consciousness of the present moment, and to be more aware of the love, peace, opportunity, prosperity, and good will that is available in each moment. May we move forward in gratitude and joyous anticipation. Ready, set, go!

When you’re presented with a setback on the way to your destination, does your brain scream out, “Game over!” ? Or are you energized and spurred on to innovation and expanded creativity? Attitude is everything, and perception is reality. When you allow yourself to perceive setbacks and challenges as opportunities in disguise, you are rocketed into the realm of new possibility. But how do you maintain an attitude that welcomes challenges and obstacles?

The key is cognitive, it’s in your thoughts. Everything you think, say and do creates a physiological and psychological reaction…at a cellular level. Let’s say you’re working toward a deadline, and all of a sudden you’re presented with a problem, and you think, “Oh no, I’m screwed. I’ll never get this project finished on time.” If you accept that thought as truth,  you feel frustration, or anger or even self-pity. The negative thought has become an affirmation, a statement of being.

If you embrace the negative thought/affirmation with its resulting negative emotion, and you roll with it, you will at some point take action — negative action that gets you deeper into the emotional quagmire. The negative increases exponentially. That’s the bad news.

But the good news is that the positive also increases exponentially, and it’s a lot more fun! The practice of consciously thinking upbeat, self-enhancing thoughts is so powerful that it actually creates increased levels of “feel good” neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin, which results in elevated mood, reduced stress, and a feeling of well-being. When you accept and embrace the upbeat thoughts, you generate positive emotions that spur you on toward positive, productive action.

The average person experiences about 60,000 thoughts per day, and a great deal of them are unconscious thoughts, so you can’t police your thoughts to control the negatives. The most practical way to counteract negative thoughts is to create a flow of super-positive thoughts, empowering emotions and self-enhancing statements throughout the day. You can accomplish this by employing techniques:

Positive self-talk…give yourself encouraging pep talks, like a coach or best friend might do, but do them for yourself, and listen!

Affirmations…create a list of self-enhancing statements to read or recite to yourself daily. These are best if read or recited aloud, just before you lie down to sleep.

Mindfulness meditation…build your present-moment consciousness, one day at a time. Experience the present moment, employing all your senses, and observing thoughts, emotions and physical sensations. Simply allow yourself to “be” in the moment.

When you maintain your positive attitude using the above strategies, you are ready for anything. I recently made a 3,000 mile, east to west trek across the U.S. in my Honda Civic, and while journeying through Texas, an ice storm blew in, causing the authorities to close I-10 at El Paso.

I didn’t freak out…instead, I made adjustments to my plans. Weather is a game changer, but needn’t be a game ender. Fortunately for me, I found myself in the Austin area when the storm hit, stayed in a motel there till the road cleared. During the setback, I made contact with former colleagues, did research on my next book, did a couple of radio interviews, and enjoyed the opportunity to meditate and visualize. I love the Lone Star State, its people, culture and scenery, and the stopover energized me. The setback morphed into a creative jackpot. When I reached California, I wrote a different version of this post on WordPress, but accidentally deleted it after completion. Setback? No, only an opportunity to write a tighter, bouncier second version.

I made it to the West Coast!

We are starting a new tradition here in Indianapolis: an annual show called Laff-Aholics Comedy Benefit for Recovery. Some people erroneously think that they can’t experience laughter and having fun without drinking and/or using other substances. We have proved these people wrong! Likewise, some new in recovery people think that they could only have fun with their drinking/using friends that they left behind in bars and clubs. Wrong again. Our Laff-Aholics shows are held in a clean and sober, restorative environment, where unlike comedy clubs, alcohol is not pushed on the customers. Our people have a great time. So sit newcomers and veterans: laughing hard and sharing the moment with hundreds of similarly minded people — a pool of potential new friends. This experience creates a sense of fellowship and promotes recovery. Since our first show, we have heard from audience members how much the event inspired them. Some of our 2011 neophytes in recovery have evolved into mentors for today’s newcomers.

We producers have been fortunate to book outstanding comedians- veterans of Late Show with David Letterman and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson as well as its successor The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, HBO and Showtime. We have even had a winner from the show Last Comic Standing. In addition to performing stand-up, some of our comics have written for television series and other comedians. So we bring a wealth of experience and expertise to our productions.

This year’s performers included headliners Dr. Bill Miller, of Showtime and the hit solo show, Dr. Bill’s Bad Bedside Manner, and hilarious headliner Kevin McPeek, writer for Everybody Loves Raymond and Will & Grace.

Marti MacGibbon, Laff-Aholics founder, producer, host and emcee kicked off the show. She is a standup comic, certified addiction treatment professional and author of Never Give in to Fear: Laughing All the Way Up from Rock Bottom.

Like its predecessors, Laff-Aholics 2013 was a complete success. Everybody involved with the show had a wonderful time! The audience of more than 550 people roared with laughter. The comedians enjoyed working in an exceptional environment for such appreciative, responsive listeners. The producers relished seeing everything come off without a hitch. In addition to raising $5660 in profits from ticket sales, the event received a matching $5660 from The Lawrence W. Inlow Foundation to achieve a grand total of $11,320!!!