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Looking at my Past, Present and Future

May 27, 2023

A letter to my past self

To my high-school me version:

I know you can’t answer this letter I have addressed to you, for you are crystallized in the past. However, I will write this in as part of remembering who we were during high school. We were so short-tempered back then. A little teasing from our classmates irritate us. It was difficult for us to express what our true emotions were, since we always bottle them up. It was sad that we didn’t journal those suppressed emotions in our mind, we could’ve understand ourselves better. Sometimes, we put a mask to conceal what we truly feel so we can feel belonged to the people that surround us. However, in the long run, it damaged my sense of self. At the moment, I have crises of what personality do I hold and what traits am I likable. I feel like what we did made me detach from my sense of self. We should’ve done some self-reflection, yet our actions then became my lesson today (Mcleod, 2023). We didn’t want to show our emotional side because we’ll be judged by others. I had so much regret that we didn’t efficiently use our time to better understand who we are and what we’re good at. Although we’ve spent a little time in learning what we are good at, we easily give up on new things because we can’t accept that we were beginners. No matter how uncomfortable we feel, we always escape that unhinged emotion rather than confront it. We could’ve embraced that uncomfortable feeling and fought it, rather than chicken out. Yet, I still admire that after all those blunders we’ve done, you managed to persevere in the very end. Still, you made me more reflective today, and I send my gratitude for that. No matter how different you are to the me today, I still love the way you are. You try your best to cope bad thoughts in your head. You managed to keep up with everyday things and that’s what I love about you. You had a purpose in mind and a very broad purpose, I must say. To achieve wellness in life, that is. I’ll end my letter in this part. Let’s have another reflective session, my high-school persona.

A letter to my present self

To me,

I hope that you’re doing well, amidst the many situations happening around you. Having a sort of identity crisis, losing your motivation in life, feeling stranded in your own world, and feelings of inferiority and downplay yourself. Although you had so much negative thoughts in mind lately, I want you to remember that you’re doing well lately, even if it’s painful to accept because of your perfectionist mindset.

What I noticed in you was the present you is… warm? You were more friendly compared when you were a teenager and you have been more receptive of your negative thoughts. So receptive that at times when you feel it, you journal it. You weren’t like this in the past and it’s a huge development in yourself. You softened your heart at night when you feel it, then shed tears to relieve it. However, because you have been so fixated with bad feelings, you seem to forget the good aspects you hold. but let me tell you about this - sometimes ruminating is a bad thing. The positive traits you possess are overshadowed and you forget what they are. Still, you try to rediscover what they were by learning different hobbies, but withdraw instantly because you easily get demotivated.

You constantly compare yourself with your friends who are sure of what they want to be and what they’re good at. That’s not a good habit, my friend. I know you aspire to be like them - having ambitions, talents, and whatnot but let me tell you this. You have your own journey to follow and they too, as well. So, if you ever find yourself escaping your fears or being demotivated, I want you to confront it, instead of safeguarding yourself. You safeguard because you fear of failing, being embarrassed, and avoid the pain (PsychologyWriting, 2022). If you ever feel you’re stagnant in life, don’t beat yourself up. You have your own pace and that’s fine. I appreciate that your purpose in life today isn’t about money, unlike when you were 13. You dreamed of achieving self-actualization and internal peace within yourself. Day by day, you do your best to know what you felt, how to improve yourself, and understand your capabilities. Underneath that pessimist facade you hold is your desire to know yourself better. So, keep on practicing that habit of reflecting what happened to your day and understand how situations affect your emotions. Lately, you have been under severe stress that you forgot to rest. You noticed that your mind is foggy all the time, you easily forget lessons, and have a hard time processing information. Please, don’t forget to rest at times and while resting, don’t think of schoolworks. Relax your mind and let the comfort feeling get into you. Remember that success comes from a rested soul. So, don’t skip rest as it helps you think properly. Try meditating or deep breathing exercises. Also, it’s good to slow down at times and speak up with your friends about your stress.

I know that you can overcome the hardships you experience today. I really love that in college, you became more receptive to yourself. You are more expressive in your thoughts and feelings and you strive to be the better version of you. I love that no matter how many times you want to give up, you never give up in the end. I love that you acknowledged your negative traits, unlike when in the past. Whenever you find yourself in the verge of pouring tears, don’t be ashamed to cry. It’s a normal and human response to cry due to external factors.

And please, although it’s good to acknowledge your bad side, I want you to explore your good side as well. Create self-positive talk, write things that made you happy, and as I’ve always mentioned, don’t be afraid to learn something new. Being positive increases your management in stress, improve your psychological health, and reduce depression (Cherry, 2023).

May you continue to find ways in loving yourself. Let’s talk again sometime.

A letter to my Future Self

To my future self,

If you’re reading this, then that means that the fabrics of time and space were altered that made my time travel a success. Kidding aside, I hope that when you read this message, the present me who yearns for self-development has made progress. I still cannot fathom what will I look like in the future, how will I look like, how will I behave, what is my status, and many more to ask. Yet, I envision you as a person that has achieved positive view on self, easily gets motivated, isn’t harsh to himself, easily accepts mistakes, and surrounded by positive people.

Lately, I’ve been doing my best to achieve the future self I set on to myself. However, I feel like I’m lost finding that identity. I try not to be harsh to myself sometimes and accept mistakes. I’ve been doing things that improve my emotional awareness through journals. I look at my behavior responses in every situation, like smiling when hearing positive feedback, panicked when things go dire. I even notice physiological responses in my body when I feel this kind of emotion and take note of it (UWA, 2019). Lately, I think I have been improving in identifying my emotions. The only problem I have is mismanaging stress. It feels like I’ve lost touch with managing stress that it fogs my brain from thinking.

As of now, what only runs within me is to achieve happiness and self-actualization, which is what I envision of my future self. Yet, I still have a long way in striving self-actualization. I want to boost first my self-esteem since I’ve felt not confident of myself for a long time and I want to feel for once, that I’m proud.

So just you wait, my future self. I will soon meet you and let’s keep in touch when we met already. I send you my deepest regards in our fateful encounter.

Word Count: 1,364

REFERENCES:

Cherry, K. (2023, May 4). The Power of Positive Thinking. Verywell Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-positive-thinking-2794772

Mcleod, S.(2023, May 10). Carl Jung’s Theories: Archetypes, Personality, & Collective Unconscious. Simply Psychology. https://www.simplypsychology.org/carl-jung.html#Jungian-Archetypes

PsychologyWriting. (2022, January 30). Adler’s Safe Guarding Tendency: Excuses. PsychologyWriting. https://psychologywriting.com/adlers-safe-guarding-tendency-excuses/

UWA. (2019, June 27). The Science of Emotion: Exploring the Basics of Emotional Psychology. UWA Online. https://online.uwa.edu/news/emotional-psychology/

[vargan]

Positive Psychology in Self-development

May 1, 2023

Recently, I read a website about Positive Psychology and at first glance, I take it as an odd name for a branch of psychology. It's a recent discovery and has an interesting perspective in the psychological field, rather than the much older fields. Okay, so what is positive psychology in the first place? I'll go into detail while connecting its concepts to self-improvement.

What is Positive Psychology?

Positive psychology, as mentioned earlier, is relatively new in psychology. It was introduced first by Martin Seligman, wanting to create a different viewpoint in psychology of making life worth living. Positive psychology gives importance to an individual's acknowledgment and development of self-trait, happiness, compassion and wellbeing (Ackerman, 2018). It doesn't replace the traditional perspective of preventing and reducing the negative feelings of people and being positive all time. In fact, based on what I read, some negative emotions can actually lead to meanings in our life, which in turn develop our wellbeing.

From the same article, Roy F. Baumeister's research expanded the thought that feeling positive emotions aren't enough to enjoy life. Sometimes, we have to weigh down our feelings and thoughts to acquire the balance for meaning and experiencing happiness. One of Baumeister's findings that struck within me is acquiring happiness isn't enough to live a desirable life - you have to reinforce it to get a sense of deeper meaning.

About PERMA Model

Seligman created this PERMA model, which defines the importance of the 5 components, namely Positive Emotions (P), Engagement (E), Positive Relationship (R), Meaning (M), and Accomplishment (A), in our wellbeing (Madeson, 2017). It's quite connected with positive psychology, since it deals with creating ways to improve wellbeing within the self.

Feeling happy, intrigued, thankful, loved, and other positive emotions are important in wellbeing. Building these emotions and maintaining it are important as well. From what I read, if I want to feel positive about myself, spending time with my family and friends, which I care for, is a good sign of building positive emotions within the self and the group. Doing hobbies that I enjoy would help as well.

To be engaged is to be focused on one thing while using your character strengths contributes to feelings of happiness. In a way, having this engaging feeling helps consolidate positive emotions within ourselves.

It may sound obvious, but being part of a supportive social group like your friends actually benefit self-development. They become your outlet in sharing recent experiences and achievements that make you feel you are proud of yourself.

Seligman did emphasize the importance of creating a purpose or meaning in living. Finding meaning and purpose may seem daunting, but based on what I read, some tips like exploring foreign things and spending time with who you care for would help.

Some people live because they want to achieve a certain goal, like a promise within themselves. Creating goals and achieving it gives a sense of pride within the self, but goals should be done that are capable within one's capacity.

Improving my Wellbeing

Positive psychology for me seems promising in my self-development. Knowing myself, I downplay myself all the time, to the point that I lose motivation to do things. Recently, I have started creating a journal of what I feel. It helped me assess my needs for a bit, and I would want to continue it.

Apart from writing a personal journal, creating a habit of thanking myself for who I am would seem great, in a way that I would have a positive view of myself. The problem is, how can I thank myself? Maybe reflecting at least 15 minutes per day would help me find something to be gratitude about.

To add on about myself, I am quite afraid of doing new things because of circumstances that it might not be perfect in the first place. It was my mindset that hinders me to explore new things like hobbies. If I become less harsh on myself about small mistakes I make, I can be more comfortable about being prone to mistakes, therefore spending more time in honing myself in new hobbies and skills.

Importantly, surrounding myself with a supportive group will help me a lot. Although I know for myself that I'm already a part of it, the best thing I can do is to strengthen that bond between me and my group.

Finally, what I think is the most important of all, is to create long-term goals and say self-positive things about myself. I believe it's important since it gives me a sense of purpose to enjoy life, as well as a form of motivation to understand more of myself.

WORD COUNT: 766

REFERENCES:

Ackerman, C. (2018, April 20). What Is Positive Psychology & Why Is It Important?. Positive Psychology. https://positivepsychology.com/what-is-positive-psychology-definition/

Madeson, M. (2017, February 24). Seligman’s PERMA+ Model Explained: A Theory of Wellbeing. Positive Psychology. https://positivepsychology.com/perma-model/#emotion

[vargan]

Improving Study Habits for a Better Outcome

March 26, 2023

Every student has their own study habit. Some prefer to study with short breaks in between, some are inclined with straight, long study sessions but ends with a long rest. Others retain what they read by diligently revising their notes, while some create a concept map of what they learned and miss. Assessing your study habit is vital, especially when you're in college like me. Knowing what you should tweak in your habit may benefit you in the long-term because you're appropriating your study sessions with how you want to study. The main thing in this post is how do I study for my subjects?

MY STUDY HABITS

I am a student that prefers reading course materials one or two days before the actual lecture. I prefer to schedule my timeframe of study and play, so I can be organized as possible. That way, balancing personal and academic work can be a win-win situation for me. However, it's best to note that my study habits is erratic, not consistent. Why? It all starts with my mood and motivation to study. If I don't feel reading the material, I would rather do other things or just slack off. Most of the time, it's the energy that I have throughout the day. As a student that commutes to and from school, my energy level is significantly low as I arrive at home, leaving little to no time for studying. So, whenever I force myself to study with small power, little to no memory retention is acquired.

Aside from motivation and mood, I believe that the most influential in my study habit is the technique. Usually, when I read pre-lecture materials, I shift from reading to paraphrasing what I read into notes. It may seem a good habit to write notes while reading, but the problem arises because I rarely go back to the notes I read nor quiz myself of what I learned. Frankly enough, I find it hard to create my own reviewer on a specific subject, so I always look for a study partner to ask me questions about the lesson, but to no avail. Maybe another factor why my study habit isn't effective is because of my mindset. Reflecting on my study sessions, I actually tend to rush the readings and notes since it's quite a headache to read through myriads of texts in an eye-straining laptop. Thus, my quality of learning is reduced because of rushing. I have been searching for study techniques online such as the Pomodoro, Feynman, and SQ3R, in hopes of achieving the perfect retention and gaining focus and concentration. The thing is, I easily quit one of the techniques, and it's either I did it wrong or it doesn't fit for me at all.

CONNECTING MY HABITS TO OTHER METHODS

As you can see, I have a lot of things to work on with my study habit and the factors behind it. For one, my discipline in studying is problematic. Another would be creating a consistency in my mood and motivation, along with a better mindset when approaching studies. Recently, I stumbled into a radio podcast by DZUP featuring Kay Anonuevo about study habits. Upon listening to the podcast, I gained many insights about her self-regulated learning podcast. She mentioned about metacognition, in which you do it by assessing how you think and learn - so it's more on reflecting about yourself in terms of studies. Looking back to myself, I don't reflect much on what I've read nor learned after one study session, and that is a concerning problem for me. Not only do I just force myself into studying, I see myself not enjoying it at all.

Kay mentioned how important time management is if you don't want to cram at the last minute. The thought of cramming isn't my best option because when I cram, I tend to panic, create less quality outputs, and even regret - regrets that I could have accomplished it on an early date. She gave techniques on how to deal with cramming - first is to create a time schedule of what subjects to study. I have been creating multiple schedules of when should I study, but I was only able to follow half of those schedules. Part of the problem is the energy and motivation I have left throughout the day, as well as the hectic schedule I create with little to no breaks. So, I think I have to reassess myself before creating my schedule.

Self-regulated learning should come with a mindset, as Kay mentioned. It's equally important to have an end-goal while studying, since this serves as my motivation. Maybe my unmotivated self doesn't have a concrete mindset, since the only thing in mind is to finish this subject, which is a short-term goal. The need to change my mindset is a must.

Kay pointed out that having a supportive environment for your studies by removing distracting objects can help improve concentration. Putting on phones in silent can be a helpful strategy. However, even if I make my study place neat, my brain's tendency to wander around is high, so I think that creating breaks should be done or just listen to my needs, that's all. I don't have to rush things.

When Kay mentioned about exerting more effort in learning, she meant by creating supplementary notes and such. Sometimes, I do find myself creating and revising notes, especially when I enjoy the lesson. The problem is, I only exert it when I like a subject, so it's not consistent. What if I have to try other methods like teaching someone the lessons I've learned? Or maybe create a journal to track the concepts I gained?

HOW HEALTH IS CONNECTED TO MY HABITS

Apart from having the discipline to study, recall information, and learn new things, I see that my health habits are connected with my study habits. For example, my lack of sleep can be associated with my decline in concentration and even wandering mind. Lack of sleep can reduce your attention and concentration, which is actually concerning to me (Harvard Medical School, 2014). Even studies found that the relation of academic performance and sleep are directly proportional. Sleeping with better quality actually creates a better memory consolidation and exam performance (Ahrberg et al., 2012). Sleep isn't the only factor that affects how we learn. Even stress, exercise, and lack of a healthy diet has a role in how we absorb information. In stress, I find myself not able to manage my stress well, and my tendency is to quit when the situation becomes dire for me. Because of which, my study habits can be seen as doing requirements and readings in a slow-paced manner. Most of my diet is mainly eating meat and little veggies, so I believe that the lack of different variety of nutrition for my brain to sustain has a factor, and a sign to eat a more balanced meal. In terms of physical activities, I am quite embarrassed to share that I am a sedentary person, so I don't enjoy physical activities. However, if I really want to excel in my studies and make my study habits effective, maybe moving my limbs and strengthening my muscles can strengthen my brain activity as well.

FUTURE PLANS AND IMPROVEMENT IN MY HABITS

The first thing that I want to change in myself when improving my study habits is to have a mindset - a mindset that isn't for the sake of passing, but a mindset that I'll enjoy and learn things, along with the mindset of accepting mistakes and that it's okay to not understand things. Furthermore, I think that creating a fixed mindset is necessary, as it gives me a sense of purpose on why am I studying, in the first place.

One of the important plans I have is learning how to control myself from using my phone and minimizing other distractions while studying. To be honest, technology made me more distracted than I was before, but technology is inevitable, so I have to adjust. I read an article that distraction is caused by internal triggers and external triggers, which are satisfying our negative feelings and cues from our environment, respectively. What I found interesting in this article's technique (Eyal, 2020) is to identify how do I react when having the urge to satisfy my needs, as it can help me manage these urges. Apart from that, I should make it a habit to create my environment study-friendly, and when I mean study-friendly, I have to shutdown social media, silent my phone, and just open two or three tabs, to which I have to focus on.

What I think I should improve more on is rewarding more and being gentle to myself better. I have to be honest here, I am the type of person who is harsh on the mistakes he made, and would lead to feelings of laziness and unmotivation. Listening to my body a little bit wouldn't hurt at all, like if I should take a break, I must take a break. When I was able to study for 1 hour, I should take a short nap as a reward.

As a person who doesn't like exerting much effort, changing that personality would mean a lot for me. Starting today, I have to create more effort when I want to learn things. Creating visual notes, sharing with my friends what I learned, journalling what I can recall, and testing myself are all good choices that I have in mind. Of course, I should start small first to appreciate the beauty behind it. So, for example, this day, I will create a journal about my learnings, an outline and quiz on the next day, and so on. The point is to reinforce that learning I have by applying it to the things I enjoy, reflecting on myself and point out what parts am I lacking.

Observing my health is equally important to stay motivated and retain information. What I think that I should start doing today is creating a workout plan. Exercising does come with benefits in studying. One, it improves cognitive functioning by improving long-term memory and the neurons to be more receptive in learning. It improves mental health, as it improves mood and reduce anxiety, which are common problems that I faced in my old study habits (Brainscape, n.d.). Being able to sleep 8 hours a day would also drastically improve how I approach the materials and readings bestowed upon me, and be able to manage my time better.

Studying isn't always about how you study. There are a lot of factors to think about when you want to have an effective retention of information. It shouldn't be shunned to think about your daily routine as a factor in your mood. And for me, I hope that I will continue to assess myself and learn more about it, as I seek to improve myself day by day into a better version of myself through studies, physical and mental health, and determination.

REFERENCES

Ahrberg, K., Dresler, M., Niedermaier, S., Steiger, A., & Genzel, L. (2012). The interaction between sleep quality and academic performance. Journal of Psychiatric Research. 46(12). pp. 1618-1622. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022395612002786#sec3

Eyal, N. (2020, May 10). Learn HOw to Avoid Distraction in a World That's Full of It. Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/automatic-you/202005/learn-how-avoid-distraction-in-world-thats-full-it

How regular exercise improves your studying (n.d.). Brainscape. https://www.brainscape.com/academy/exercise-and-studying/

Sharpening thinking skills with a better night's sleep(2014, March 1). Harvard Medical School. https://www.health.harvard.edu/mind-and-mood/sharpen-thinking-skills-with-a-better-nights-sleep#:~:text=When%20people%20don%27t%20get,or%20react%20to%20dangerous%20situations.https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022395612002786#sec3

WORD COUNT: 1822

[vargan]

An Interview of Camarderie

March 27, 2023

I interviewed my friend who I should call Lia for confidentiality reasons about her fond childhood memories, her qualities that shape her, how her health affected her behavior today, and even her values in life. This blog was written in hopes of how much I gain from Lia’s insights and experiences that are connected to psychology, as well as getting to know her more.

About Lia’s Upbringing 

What I learned from Lia's past is she only had two of her brothers to play with when she was a kid. As she grew up, Lia told me that the environment she became accustomed to led to her tomboyish personality such as playing video games that most young boys play like Tekken, her interest in instruments like playing the guitar, and her attraction to streetwear fashion. She noted that her favorite childhood memory was being in the house all time, aside from going to Aklan but still, she spent her time inside her room. Why? Lia mentioned that she had more time to explore about herself that helped shape her today. Additionally, Lia’s affection in her inside world still exists today, as she prefers indoors more than outdoors, and it could be the environment she grew up with. I asked her a situational question about a project and which part does she feel comfortable working on - in front of the scenes or behind the scenes. She answered the latter. In other words, Lia is an introvert who enjoys being with her own and her thoughts. Lia always enjoyed arts back then, but she didn’t have time to join in extra-curricular activities. So, as part of her redemption to rekindle that passion, she invested her time recently in calligraphy, painting, and crochet. There are reasons why Lia is introverted - for one, the environment she grew up in influenced her behavior. It can be explained from Albert Bandura’s social learning theory, that the environment Lia was exposed to can reflect the environment she originated. Lia did mention that her brothers are introverts like her, so maybe her being used with her brothers influenced her behavior. Biologically speaking, there could be a reason why she loves art. One study mentioned that introverts have more gray matter in their brain, which is responsible for abstract thought and decision-making (Granneman, 2019). The biological aspect may be interesting, but should not be supported alone as there are external factors that can affect one’s personality.

Lia disclosed her disdain from her childhood that she grew up in a Catholic school. Although she liked that her school taught her morals and values in developing conscience, she thinks that her over-obedience became a negative part where she thinks that for every one wrong move she did, she will be judged around others. If Lia were to be assessed by Freud’s Id, Ego, and Superego, I think she would have a healthy psyche. Having a healthy psyche means that the Ego (your consciousness) acts upon themself on what is right or what is wrong, meaning they are capable of discerning and knowing how to act in certain situations (Mcleod, 2023). From how Lia expressed her personality due to her upbringing, it brought an unconsciousness in her attitude by being conscientious.

Interestingly, Lia brought up an event wherein she stopped breastfeeding at an earlier time, compared to her peers. It had an impact on her as she grew up - like when she feels tense or anxious, she bites her nail to relieve that negative feeling. This is also related with Sigmund Freud’s psychosexual theory in the oral stage. Lia’s mother might have stopped her from breastfeeding at an earlier age or it could be that she stopped being dependent on her mother. Thus, shaping how she manages her feelings of tensiveness and anxiety (Cherry, 2023). 

In terms of wanting to be independent, Lia was the first among her siblings to bring up that she wants to be on her own. Up until now, she brings this value of independence within her by being in charge of her own expenses, except for school reasons. This can be connected with Lia’s introvertedness and her willingness to do things on her own. She didn’t mention what age she wanted to be independent, but if it were to be connected in the Psychosocial Development by Erikson, Lia had achieved competence in the Industry vs. Inferiority stage. Implications could be why she strives to be independent is that she receives encouragement from her parents that she is capable (Cherry, 2022), even though she stated that it was her own will and attitude of her desire to be independent.

Lia’s Personal Qualities

When I asked Lia about her qualities, she could name more of her negative traits than her positive traits. For one, she admitted that she is a pessimist, which she acquired from school since childhood. Another negative trait she thought is her being an overthinker, and it’s because of her personality that she doesn’t want to look stupid in front of people, thus leading her to be meticulous. Even though being meticulous is a good sign, it actually leads her to be anxious and tense at times, wanting to impress people around her, to the point that she tends to be harsh on herself. It’s good to note that Lia considers her disdain for dependence led to positive outcomes, but still thinks of it as a red flag. Her reasoning is that although she can admit her mistakes without someone’s help, she is confined to her own thoughts. This leads Lia to be sometimes not accepting of others' judgment that she is wrong. When people give her compliments, her tendency is to doubt whether those compliments were truthful or sarcastic, even if she highly regards it as genuine. Moreover, she was having difficulty processing her good traits as she thinks that her good traits always vary from day to day, meaning she has no definite good trait. One thing that could have affected her was her unwillingness to reflect on herself. Lia thinks that reflecting is a waste of time and that her behavior is not static. 

I suspect that Lia experiences low self-esteem, which is quite contradictory to her feeling of competence, which requires one to be confident on their own. Low self-esteem is seen as one being harsh on themselves and having difficulty accepting their positive traits. Most who suffer from low self-esteem were caused by their family, poor academic grades, stressful situations, in need of medical attention, and even anxiety or depression (Department of Health & Human Services, n.d.). Lia doesn’t seem to possess all of these, except for her feeling that she’s always anxious, which I would explain in the latter part. If Lia seems to suffer from low self-esteem, there is probably one event in her life that triggered this hardness on herself but did not opt to disclose it. I want to add that her being an overthinker might have affected her cognitive properties. Because of her want to be meticulous and not wanting to be embarrassed in social situations, it did affect how she view other people, specifically when she gets complimented. 

Lia’s Health Related to her Behavior

Before I have started the interview, I already know that Lia is experiencing anemia and hypoglycemia. When I asked about how it affected her attitude, she thinks that it has no connection with how she acts today. But one thing about her lifestyle is she is sedentary. She doesn’t enjoy physical exercises and it could be related to her introversion. It’s still best to note that she thinks she suffers from OCD and anxiety disorder, but she hasn’t consulted with a doctor. She gave a glimpse of her behavior like being overly worried and constantly rechecking if what she did was right, even if it was correct in the first place. I cannot attest that Lia may be suffering from OCD and anxiety disorder and maybe Lia’s cause of being anxious and overthinking most of the time can be linked to her environment, her values, and even genetics, if it can be applied (Felman, 2021). 

What if Lia’s sedentary lifestyle is the cause of her being anxious and perfectionist at all times? I have found that being sedentary actually contributes to mental disorders like anxiety and depression. This could be seen in a biological perspective in which exercising does release feel-good endorphins, improve confidence, clear doubts, and improve social interaction (Mayo Clinic Staff, n.d.). All of which are barely present on Lia’s behavior, but she does not have any problem when interacting with people. It could be that although her sedentary lifestyle affected how she thinks, maybe the social circle she belongs with does relieve the amount of anxiety she has and that’s where she gets her communication skills.

Lia’s Views and Values in LIfe and Interaction with People

This section could be more philosophical, in a sense that I ask Lia about her beliefs in life such as life beyond death, what do people desire, and how she acquires information.

One’s view of a relationship can mean something about a person. When I asked Lia if being single results to solitude, she believed that it doesn’t equate to being alone for a lifetime. Instead, Lia’s perspective is that one doesn’t need to be in an intimate relationship. For her, what most people in relationships do can also be done to their friends, minus the intimacy part. In terms of the afterlife, although she was raised in a Catholic environment, where the concept of afterlife is believed, she didn’t believe that there will be a stage beyond death. It wasn’t about someone influencing her to believe a secular approach. Rather, it was her who contemplated the thought and accepted it as her new belief. 

I asked Lia about her belief on what is the ultimate goal of every person in a society. She answered that there is no definite answer for what every people want, for she thinks that all have different goals from one another, and it’s caused by stratification in society. For the rich, their goal could be to be richer and to possess more luxurious items while for the poor, she believed that attaining physiological needs is their main goal. 

In terms of approaching people, it is still evident that Lia’s introversion is present until now. She told me that although social interaction is fine with her, there are times that she has to practice being comfortable around people. When learning about people, she is more of an observer, rather than an interactor. 

From what can be deduced here, Lia is able to think abstractly in philosophical and societal questions with ease. I also noticed during the interview that Lia often uses deductive reasoning to explain her thoughts on certain matters. This could imply that Lia has already achieved Piaget’s Formal Operational Stage (Nortje, 2021). Moreover, there are factors that can be listed on how it affected Lia’s thoughts. The most notable would be one, the environment she grew up with affected her thoughts. It can be that her parents influenced her views and values, which led her to believe it. Another would be education. Just like her parents, it could be an unconscious thought of hers that she acknowledged her peer’s thoughts into herself. But it’s not limited to peer pressure and external factors. Lia might have acquired her thoughts due to personal growth and overall growth. As a person grows, so is the wisdom it has. So, there are instances that Lia’s beliefs could be contrasting to the environment she grew up with.

The Conclusion

Lia does exhibit a great understanding of how her childhood and external factors affected the way she is today. However, there are still instances that Lia still don’t recognize about her, especially the positive aspects of hers. Moreover, it is still best to look at a more deeper context with the help of theories on Lia’s qualities and troubles - such as a biological context, a social context, and a cognitive context. At the end, it was a substantial interview in which I got to know Lia more as a friend. 

References:

Granneman, J. (2019, June 27). Introvert’s and Extroverts’  Brains are Really Different, According to Science. Introvert, Dear. https://introvertdear.com/news/introverts-and-extroverts-brains-really-are-different-according-to-science/#:~:text=Finally%2C%20a%20study%20published%20in,abstract%20thought%20and%20decision-making.

Mcleod, S. (2023, March 8). Freud’s Id, Ego, and Superego: Definition and Examples. Simply Psychology. https://simplypsychology.org/psyche.html

Cherry, K. (2023, March 13).  Freud’s Stage of Human Development. Very Well Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/freuds-stages-of-psychosexual-development-2795962

Cherry, K. (2022, August 3). Erikson’s Stages of Development. Very Well Mind.  https://www.verywellmind.com/erik-eriksons-stages-of-psychosocial-development-2795740#toc-stage-4-industry-vs-inferiority

Department of Health & Human Services. (n.d.). Self esteem. Better Health Channel. https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/self-esteem

Felman, A. (2021, March 23). What causes anxiety?. Medical News Today. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/323456

Mayo Clinic Staff (n.d.). Depression and anxiety: Exercise eases symptoms. Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/depression/in-depth/depression-and-exercise/art-20046495#:~:text=Regular%20exercise%20may%20help%20ease,your%20sense%20of%20well-being

Nortje, A. (2021, May 3). Piaget’s Stages: 4 Stages of Cognitive Development & Theory. Positive Psychology.https://positivepsychology.com/piaget-stages-theory/#formal

WORD COUNT: 1993

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About Sex Work and Removing Stigma

March 25, 2023

During my free time, I stumbled upon a GMA documentary named: Sexpectation vs. Reality. From the title already, I know that it will be about sex, but as soon as I watched the entire documentary, it was all about sex work in the Philippines and how it is viewed and stigmatized in our country. I expected that I won’t have anyone be related with the documentary, but I chose to watch it because the title’s captivating and the thought of sex being seen as a topic of taboo in the Philippines made me more intrigued, especially that it's presented on public TV.

People in Sex Industry

While watching, Atom Araullo, the one who made this documentary successful, he started interviewing with Salome Salvi. That is not her real name, rather it is her stage name. Who is she? She's a sex worker who creates adult content for a living. Salome started doing this work when the pandemic started, as a way to find money because jobs were on hiatus. Eventually, she enjoyed her 'blue' job and it became her avenue to express herself (GMA Public Affairs, 2022).

I find it surprising that Salome did find some part of herself in her current work, even though her family were against the idea. Because whenever I think about sex work, they are only after there for the opulent amount it gives. Of course, the documentary highlighted that.

Mervin, a sex worker doesn't have to post about himself, rather he only has to act as an adult model via chat. What he does is to entice the fans of the model into luring them to send money. He mentioned that his chatters give him 15 dollars or even 200 dollars, if their libido is high already. From what I can tell, when a person is sexually aroused, I think that it is difficult to control their thinking. Interestingly, this anonymous sex worker does this as a part-time job.

Reasons for Working Blue

After I watched the end of the documentary, I actually think that there are genuine people who do adult content for a living - yet not everyone wants to open up about their story. People like Salome Salvi did give me enlightenment about what is her profession all about - a profession that is prohibited to talk about in dinner tables as it is seen as vulgar.

Not all sex workers like Salome share the same story. Some people do work unusual jobs such as being someone's sugar baby or act as a sexter (one who sends sex messages) because of their personal needs such as money. Even though they do that for money, we still have to remember that thay are humans who do their best to survive in this capitalistic world.

Sexual Topics for Personal and Social Growth

As what the documentary said, we cannot avoid sex work because it's already a part of reality. What should be done is for us to know why such phenomenon happens. Definitely, maybe it is high time that we should remove this stigma about sex as a topic and should be taught to children, namely sex education. Maybe how we approach sex would be different if we established it earlier, but it's still best to seek proper sex education to be informed properly and remove this 'hiya' when speaking of sex.

I wanted to make this topic in my blog because sex and sex work is a very controversial and one of the most stereotyped topics here in the Philippines. Due to these stereotypes, some of us get teased or even get misinformed about topics in sex that eventually, we don't open up about it. So, this blog's purpose is to assuage the stigmas of sex, in a way that it can create an open and safe space for everyone to talk about it, without malice.

Benefits of Learning Sex

Learning about sex shouldn't be something to be feared. Rather, it must be seen as a fulfilling experience as it provides benefits of having healthier relationships, forming better self-identity, and establishing proper knowledge about anything sex-related.

We know that many of us in puberty stage develop feelings to a significant other, like having crushes and wanting to form romantic relationships with them. The importance of learning sex-related topics is that we orient ourselves into sexual behavior that may seem weird for us in the first time, but is actually normal. Such sexual acts like masturbation is part of an adolescent's behavior and is normal for everyone to do it, since it's caused by biological factors. When we learn about sex, we tend to be sexually matured, form a positive sexual identity, and sense of sexual well-being (Lumen Learning, n.d.).

Thus, sex shouldn't be a taboo topic and society must practice not only tolerate, but accept that learning sex is a significant part of growing up.

References: GMA Public Officials (2022, December 15). Sexpectation vs Reality (Full Episode) | The Atom Araullo Specials [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIgsDba1w1A&t=1318s

Sexual Development (n.d.). Lumen Learning. https://courses.lumenlearning.com/adolescent/chapter/sexual-development/

WORD COUNT: 790

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Building Blocks of the Mind

March 20, 2023

I had this hunch in my mind that how we act today, back then, and in the future is affected by our environment, such as the culture we grew up, our economic status, and societal norms. In terms of action, I mean how we behave, how we react towards different set of views, and it can be how we think and the wellness of our mind.

About Gender

I remember one lecture about gender roles, gender identity, sexual orientation, and social learning theory. It did serve a refresher for me about these social constructs and concepts that can be connected to psychology in a way. When I was a kid, most adults would separate boys in playing toy guns and lego blocks while girls will play house with their dolls. Back then, I didn’t care about playing with dolls with my little sister, nor she would hesitate to play with toy blocks, as long as both of us were having fun. Today, I still find it bothersome that a handful of people think that there are specific roles for males and females, like males should create income while females stay in the house, doing household chores. As a guy, I hated that there is a silent voice stringing into my head when I was a kid that we should not show emotions because I’ll get picked on, and it still persists now, that sometime I have this urge to cry but I can’t. What do I think of gender roles? They are stereotypical and inhibits our selves to promote expression. What if I’m a guy and I would like to take care of the house? What if I want to cook then? I believe that they should be universal, not specific.

These days, people, like my generation, have grown to be cognizant about gender identity and sexual orientation. If I would look back in time, today’s era would be more accepting of who we are, yet there are still hostilities about our gender identity and sexual orientation. I believe that suppressing our society from being cisgender and straights would only lead to people being dissociated with us. Perhaps it’s because the fear of opening up would result into a negative feedback, which may belittle them or worse, never share about their true selves. Some people find gender identity and sexual orientation are useless, but expanding our view on why some people don’t see themselves in their biological sex can help us understand the diversity of people. There are men or women that view themselves as gay, lesbian, queer, or transexual, and learning why these concepts exist can also be the key to the depths of our human mind. I read an article from APA (2008) about understanding sexual orientation and pointed that the prejudice and discrimination currently experiencing by the LGBTQ+ community had its roots on stereotypes. Yes, stereotypes. This leads to negatively affect their mental health and prevent people from coming out of who they express as. As a whole, we prevent ourselves from being close-minded of diversities in society, for I think that being unaware or diverting ourselves from the things we deem unlikable would not make us antifragile and holistic. It's like telling us that Psychology should be studied through a holistic manner that considers all kinds of cases, in order to widen our knowledge on the human mind.

Environment as a Factor in Behavior

Interestingly, the environment that we were situated during our childhood actually affects how we think today, more specifically how noise affects children. A Cornell University researcher found that children situated near noisy environments affect their long-term memory. In order to negate the noise, children try to ignore the noise, but the consequence is their reading abilities and speech perception are degraded. Noise isn't the only factor of children's mental health and cognitive functions. A crowded situation would cause a child to have withdrawal behavior as their means of management. The research found that children living in crowded places actually have difficulties in managing their behavior (Kopko, 2007). I believe that this finding can be connected with Albert Bandura's social learning theory, in a way. Both actually tell that our upbringing is based on the environment we grew up. But for Bandura, it is more of our authoritative figures that give rise to our behavior. During childhood, we have this tendency to mimic what we see in our parent's actions. Some have positive attributes, some have negative attributes as we move on in life. It can be connected here some factors like the parent's socio-economic status and relation to their child like if they interact with their ward in a positive manner. I stumbled upon a website that parents with problems in interacting with their child makes the child more susceptible to stress and at risk of behavioral problems. The environment that you situate in which includes political, social, and access to basic needs affect how you and your family interact that affects your well-being (Rieck & Lundin, 2021). In short, what you are surrounded with can affect how you and your immediate persons behave.

Biological Factors

It's also good to learn that there are uncontrollable factors that mold our behavior today, which is neurobiological basis. The chemicals in our body called hormones affect how we act today, which is also the reason why we are happy for no reason or just sad for no reason, and it's because of these hormones. How our brain is developed do play a huge factor in our mental processes. That's why it is beneficial for a child to have good nutrition and health as their brains are in the stages of development. It is sad to think that not everyone will acquire proper brain function because of there are still children that lack access to basic needs like food, water, healthcare, and education. Children with fewer access are prone to experience mental disorder and cognitive dysfunction.

Ending Statement

As for me, these concepts are important in the field of psychology. It's like they are the foundation of learning the field as a whole and how we behave. A person's biological makeup isn't only the sole basis of why they think and act in a certain manner, but I'll also include the social constructs such as gender identity and sexual orientation that nowadays became a relevant expression of ourselves.

References:

Kopko, K. (2007, August 21). Child Development and the Physical Environment. Human Development College of Human Ecology. https://hdtoday.human.cornell.edu/2007/08/21/child-development-and-the-physical-environment/

Rieck, G. & Lundin, J. (2021, May 1). Factors That Influence Psychological Well-Being. LibreTexts Medicine. https://med.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Health_and_Fitness/Book%3A_Health_Education_(Rienk_and_Lundin)/02%3A_Psychological_Health/2.03%3A_2.11_Factors_That_Influence_Psychological_Well-Being

Understanding sexual orientation and homosexuality. (2008, October 29). American Psychological Association.  https://www.apa.org/topics/lgbtq/orientation

INITIAL DRAFT

Naalala ko yung concept tungkol sa gender roles, gender expression, sexual orientation, at social learning theory. 'Yung gender roles, parang ito ay isa sa mga nagkakaroon ng misconception satin - tulad na ang lalaki ay hindi pwede magpakita ng emosyon at sila lang ang pwedeng kumayod para sa pamilya, samantalang mga babae naman ay sa gawaing-bahay lang at dapat mala-Maria Clara gumalaw. Sa palagay ko, ang mga ganitong stereotypes ay nagpapa-restrict sa atin na maging sarili nating version, at ito ay dapat maiwasan. Lalo na at kailangan natin malaman ang gender expression at sexual orientation, na parang iniisip ng karamihan ay walang kuwenta. Pero ito ay importante na bigyan pansin, dahil nagpapalaki ito ng ating tingin sa tao ang mga uri ng pag-express nila. Hindi lahat ng biological males ay tingin sa sarili ay lalaki sila, bagama't naidentify nila sarili nila na non-binary, gay, bisexual, queer, o kaya transexual. Mga ganitong konsepto kasi ang nagbibridge sa ating komunidad na makakapagsugpo ng mga stereotypes.

Huwag rin tayo maging judgmental kaagad sa ugali ng isang tao, kung gayon mako-connect ang konsepto ni Albert Bandura na social learning theory. Ang pag-unawa ko sa teorya ay kung ano man ang nakikita natin sa napapaligid natin noong bata pa, ay 'yun ang nagagaya natin at nagagamit habang lumalaki tayo. Halimbawa siguro ay kapag tinuruan tayo ng mga magulang na huwag magsinungaling dahil ito ay masama, nagiging parte natin ito sa buhay natin at mas inaapplyan natin. Pero hindi lahat ng tao ay ganito. Kaya ko sinabi na huwag maging judgmental sa ugali ng tao kasi iba-iba ang ating upbringing. Karagdagan ding kaisipan, ang teoryang ito para sakin ay mas maiintindihan natin ang pag-iisip ng tao batay sa kanilang kinalakihan na paligid.

Gusto ko rin imungkahi na bukod sa societal aspect ay nakakaapekto sa pag-iisip ng tao, mayroon ding neurobiological basis na nakakaapekto kung paano tayo nakakaisip. Ito ay sa paraan ng ating hormones at structure ng utak natin. Batay sa mga nabasa ko, napakaimportante ng malusog na kalusugan simula bata palang dahil nagde-develop palang ang utak. Nakakalungkot isipin na dahil sa mga inequality na nararanasan natin ay hindi lahat makakamit ang maayos na brain development. Kung gayon, mas nagiging prone sila sa mga mental disorders at cognitive dysfunction.

Mga ganitong konsepto ay tanglay sa sikolohiya, para sakin. Parang ito ay isa sa mga foundation ng pagkatuto ng sikolohiya sa kabuuan. Hindi lang tayo nakabatay sa mismong pag-iisip ng tao sa kaniyang biological makeup, kundi pati na rin ang mga social construct tulad ng gender at sexual orientation na naging parte sa ating ekspresyon bilang sarili.

WORD COUNT (Excluding references): 1478

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The World in Electromagnetism

Science made many theories and concepts that revolutionized how we view the world, to the extent that our lives became convenient from the daily objects we use, thanks to scientific knowledge.

Look around your house and try to figure out how your electric fan cools your room, how your kitchen lights make it easier for you to slice vegetables, how your microwave works, and how your phones transmit information to other phones. The answer? Electromagnetism! But first, what is electromagnetism and how it existed?

Maybe learning the history of electromagnetism would give you much appreciation of the subject. It was discovered by Danish physicist Hans Christian Oersted during his lecture in 1820, when he connected the wires to a battery to put in an electric current, while a nearby compass needle slightly deflected away from magnetic north. Although the observation was minimal, Oersted knew that there is a relation. He experimented with his battery of 20 copper rectangles that produces about 15-20 volts and tested carious wire. One discovery in his experiment found that the needle points in the opposite direction when the current is reversed, while noticing that placing wood or glass in between the compass and current to cancel the effect doesn't help [1].

Electromagnetism, in its essence, is the interaction among all electrically charged objects, objects with magnetic moments, and the electromagnetic field. Moreover, electromagnetism gave rise to concepts such as electric charge, electromagnetic field, and electromagnetic spectrum (EM waves). An Electric charge can determine how an object is positively or negatively charged. For example, a statically charged balloon lacks electrons or has more electrons than protons. Electromagnetic field, on the other hand, is created by charged particles with a magnetic moment [2].

If you have heard of the electromagnetic spectrum or EM waves, it is a range of waves from very long radio waves to short gamma rays, to which our eyes can only detect visible light [3]. To put appreciation in this concept, the EM waves we know today are used in communications, microwaves, night vision, and even cancer therapy.

Because of Oersted's discovery of electromagnetism, it gave rise to intriguing scientific laws that pave progress to how we understand the world, and I can name three of them according to what I found. First, Oersted gave French Physicist Andre Ampere a glimpse of how electricity and magnetism carry waves, thus resulting into Ampere's law, where it is used to calculate the flux of the electric field through a closed surface This law has been used in creating electromagnets, motors, generators, and transformers that our modern world uses today [4].

Michael Faraday discovered electromagnetic induction, which describes how a magnetic field can generate an electric field that occurs in an electric conductor. Today, it has been used by electric generators and electric transformers that convert kinetic energy to electrical energy and change electric current, respectively [5].

Even James Maxwell was influenced by Oersted's discovery in 1820. Maxwell created a series of equations on the behavior and interaction of electric and magnetic fields. Plus, it integrated past findings by physicists in electromagnetism like Gauss Law, Ampere's Law, and even Faraday's Law. Maxwell's equations led us to apply it electric circuits, by finding the static electric and magnetic field of a vacuum [6].

To add on about EM waves, we thank electromagnetism for introducing us about EM waves because it gave us a wider view of the universe. How? Telescopes utilize EM waves in exploring the universe by focusing and collecting waves, be it radio waves, infrared, visible light, x-ray, and gamma ray. Moreover, the diverseness of telescopes such as radio telescopes that utilize radio waves in space proves the point that EM waves are responsible for detecting celestial objects [7].

Those electric fans, microwave ovens, electric speakers, generators, communication devices, and even MRI scans in medicine were brought to light and been useful to our society today thanks to the concepts and methods of electromagnetism [8].

Although we are not that cognizant of how our daily objects and knowledge came to be, it is best to write this blog about electromagnetism as a precursor and introduction in studying concepts in electromagnetism. But the main goal is I want people to raise awareness about science in everyday lives and pique their interest to learn and question about what they observe, rather than despising science as an arduous subject. Science does wonders in daily life that we have been over-dependent on its knowledge, but I would classify it as a good asset.

REFERENCE:

[1] This Month in Physics History (July 2008). APS News. https://www.aps.org/publications/apsnews/200807/physicshistory.cfm

[2] Baird, C. (May 2019). Electromagnetism. McGrawHill Access Science. https://www.accessscience.com/content/article/a223000

[3] Introduction to the Electromagnetic Spectrum (n.d). NASA. https://science.nasa.gov/ems/01_intro

[4] Ampere's Law (n.d). Science Facts.net. https://www.sciencefacts.net/amperes-law.html

[5] Electromagnetic Induction (n.d). Ck-12. https://flexbooks.ck12.org/cbook/ck-12-middle-school-physical-science-flexbook-2.0/section/22.6/primary/lesson/electromagnetic-induction-ms-ps/

[6] Maxwell Equations (n.d). Toppr. https://www.toppr.com/guides/physics/electromagnetic-waves/maxwell-equations/

[7] Electromagnetic Spectrum and Components of the Universe (n.d). Texas Gateway. https://www.texasgateway.org/resource/electromagnetic-spectrum-and-components-universe

[8] Administrator (2015, September 19). Applications of Electromagnetism. Electronics Hub. https://www.electronicshub.org/applications-of-electromagnetism/

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Beginning a Journey of Minds

March 2, 2023

2nd semester has begun and it’s the start of me taking my studies for Psych 101 and other majors. What I can say is that I am not yet prepared to be back to studying after a long vacation, but I need to be back from reality. To be frank, I don’t know if I can survive this subject and if I will ever like it until the end of the semester, but I hold this desire in me to learn the components of this subject. However, I have this part of me that feels unmotivated to learn and whose only goal is to pass Psych 101. With this feeling, I aim to avoid this kind of attitude during the formal start of lectures in Psych 101. I also want to share to the readers of my blog what is my knowledge about psychology before classes begin.

If you were to ask me what does psychology mean when Psych 101 hasn’t formally started, my answer is that it studies how we humans think. It’s actually true and that’s what psychology is all about in a general perspective, but if you would ask one who is an expert in psychology, they might give me a deeper answer compared to mine, who is just a mere student. In fact, what I know about psychology is like a mere fraction of the entire field, like I only know that Sigmund Freud is one of the main contributors of psychology and that exposure therapy is a form of therapy to overcome your phobias by facing them.

Clearly, what I want to tell is that psychology for me is an untapped field of vast knowledge and it’s because that I have fixed my interest mainly on natural sciences. I was not fond of subjects where interaction is maximized. My introverted personality was more inclined with nature. Still, it’s not enough to judge whether I like the subject or not. Maybe I would grow fond of it once I have learned the basics of it.

I want to share what are my goals and expectations in Psych 101. First, I want to enjoy this subject. It may sound personal but it’s hard to learn things without you enjoying the context of it. How can I learn if I don’t like the subject in the first place? Second, I plan to use the learnings I will gain in real life. Just as what they said, what information you get should be relevant in practical use. Even though the subject will teach me the basics, I hope that I can pick up some practical concepts to be used in real life. Last, I expect that I will learn a lot from this subject and not be lazy because I don’t want to waste this opportunity of learning psychology. Starting today, I need to device a plan on how can I attain the set of goals and expectations I listed.

______________________________________________________________

1st Draft

Simula na ng 2nd semester at dito na magsisimula ang aking pag-aaral sa Psych 101 at ang iba ko pang mga majors. Masasabi ko lang ay hindi pa ako handa na bumalik sa pag-aaral galing sa mahabang bakasyon, pero kailangan ng bumalik sa realidad. Sa totoo lang, hindi ko alam kung kakayanin ko ba itong asignaturang ito at kung magugustuhan ko ba hanggang sa dulo ng semester, pero mayroon akong pagnanasa na matuto ang laman ng asignaturang ito. Mayroon akong isang parte sa sarili na tinatamad na matuto at ang tanging layunin lamang ay makapasa sa Psych 101. Nais kong maiwasan ang ganitong ugali habang nagsisimula na ang pormal na talakayan sa Psych 101. Gusto ko rin ibahagi sa mambabasa nito ang aking kalagayan sa kaalaman ko tungkol sa Psychology.

Kung tatanungin mo ako ngayon ano ang psychology na hindi pa nagsisimula ang Psych 101, ang sasagutin ko diyan ay pag-aaral sa pag-iisip ng tao. Tama nga naman kung titignan mo sa malawakan, pero kung tatanungin mo ang mga dalubhasa sa larang ng psychology, eh mas makakapagbigay pa sila ng mas malalim na sagot kumpara sa’kin na estudyante pa lang. Bukod diyan, ang tanging sikat na tao na kilala ko lang ay si Sigmund Freud, dahil kadalasan siya ang naririnig ko kapag ang usapan ay psychology. Lumalabas din sa isip ko ang exposure therapy na ang ginagawa ay ineexpose ka sa ano man ang kinatatakutan mo, pero hindi lang ‘yan ang mayroon sa psychology.

Halata naman sa sinabi ko na kakaunti lamang ang alam ko sa psychology at siguro dahil sa aking walang interes sa larang noong una. Mas interesado pa ako dati sa larang ng natural sciences hanggang ngayon.Ngunit hindi naman masama na matutunan ko ang mga basics ng psychology. Baka nga pag natutunan ko na ‘yung basics ay mas maakit ko pa ang subject na ito.

Nais kong ibahagi rin ang mga layunin at mga inaasahan ko sa Psych 101 na makakamit ko sa dulo ng semestre. Una, nais kong maenjoy ang mga matutunan at natutunan ko sa asignaturang ito. Personal nga siya pakinggan dahil damdamin ang gustong makamit dahil mag-aaral ako ng asignatura na malayo sa gusto ko. Paano nga naman ako matututo kung hindi ko maeenjoy ang subject sa una palang? Pangalawa ay balak kong magamit ang matututunan ko sa subject na ito sa totoong buhay. Ika nga nila, dapat may saysay ang mga nakukuha nating impormasyon sa praktikal na gamit. Kahit ang ituturo palang sa akin ay mga basics, sana ay may mapulot ako na prakitkal na konsepto sa totoong buhay. Huli sa lahat, inaasahan ko na marami akong matutunan sa asignaturang ito at hindi ako masanib ng katamaran, lalo na’t hindi lang ito ang aking majors, kundi ayoko isayang ang oportunidad na ito na matuto ng psychology kahit malayo ito sa gusto ko. Simula palang ngayon, kailangan ko nang magplano sa ano ang dapat kong gawin para makamit ang aking mga layunin at inaasahan.

Word Count: 985