Summer is here, and it's the perfect time to enjoy the sunshine and have fun with friends and family. If you're in recovery and looking for fun and creative activities that don't involve alcohol or drugs, there are plenty of exciting things to do. Here are 10 fun ideas to make your summer memorable.

Sometimes, what we need a break from is our own thoughts or feelings. When our emotions feel overwhelming, they can also be harmful to our self-esteem, or, in more severe cases, to our physical or emotional safety. Positive distraction has a place in mental health, and, when used with other ways of coping, can be very healthy.

A study of 20,000 people in 2019 found that those who spent at lease 2 hours total per week outside in green spaces reported feeling healthy and a strong sense of well-being, across ethnicity, class, age, and abilities. Looking at nature or listening to natural sounds can help energize a tired brain in the middle of repetitive tasks.

The fear of missing out has predated social media, but not by much. Social media has thrown FOMO into the spotlight since everyone can experience a daily dose of seeing the highlights of someone else’s day. In fact, the more that people use social media like Facebook morning, noon, and night, the more they tend to experience FOMO. But FOMO doesn’t originate from social media use alone. It also comes from general unhappiness and life dissatisfaction.

Therapists can at times be viewed through an “all-knowing” lens, but the reality is that we very rarely have “the answer”. Your therapist cannot “just tell you what to do” because answering that question for you takes away an opportunity for growth and self-determination.

A coping kit is simply a list of skills and strategies a child can use when feeling anxious. It helps to practice these strategies when the child is already calm. Sometimes children can memorize their list of strategies but others may need to have them written down.

Autism not being considered as a diagnosis in childhood will have a negative impact on the child, and the consequences will continue into adulthood. Self-diagnosis is more accepted today, though it is not a replacement for a formal diagnosis, especially if accommodations are needed for work or school. Many self-diagnosed adults are choosing not to get a formal diagnosis for many reasons.

Anxiousness is part of the normal and healthy range of human emotion, and having a fear response is designed to keep us safe. It becomes a problem when it starts to affect your daily life, such as your health, relationships, work, or school.

You may find that you feel lonely even when in a group of people, around family or friends, or in a familiar social environment. This may mean that – for one reason or another – you don’t feel as connected to those you are around as you would like to, you don’t feel a true sense of belonging in a certain social environment, or you may feel misunderstood by the people you are with.

Collaborative care is more than sharing views; it’s about improving the treatment process by including several different diverse insights and expertise. It’s a team and collective effort where, for example, a therapist’s understanding can broaden a psychiatrist’s view and vice versa.