{"id":38784,"date":"2017-08-04T07:27:44","date_gmt":"2017-08-04T07:27:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/?p=38784"},"modified":"2017-08-04T07:27:44","modified_gmt":"2017-08-04T07:27:44","slug":"is-your-chronic-procrastination-actually-a-matter-of-mental-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/health\/is-your-chronic-procrastination-actually-a-matter-of-mental-health.html","title":{"rendered":"Is Your Chronic Procrastination Actually a Matter of Mental Health"},"content":{"rendered":"

Is Your Chronic Procrastination Actually a Matter of Mental Health<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Is Your Chronic Procrastination Actually a Matter of Mental Health:-\u00a0<\/strong>Perhaps you\u2019re checking Facebook \u2013 you know, just one more time before you get started with your work. Then it\u2019s email. Then it\u2019s some other obscure to-do that suddenly seems pressing (and isn\u2019t); or perhaps you\u2019re not doing anything at all. And you know you should get going on that project with a deadline looming, but you just can\u2019t seem to help putting it off.<\/span><\/p>\n

You\u2019re procrastinating.<\/span><\/p>\n

Essentially you\u2019re putting stuff off despite expecting to be worse off as a result, explains Piers Steel, a professor of psychology at the University of Calgary in Alberta, and author of \u201cThe Procrastination Equation.\u201d That\u2019s what makes procrastination different from, say, simply planning or scheduling. There\u2019s nothing wrong with delaying completion of a task \u2013 in due time \u2013 to do it properly. But compulsively putting things off is a different story.<\/span><\/p>\n

Most people procrastinate at some time or another. Frequently it\u2019s situational \u2013 limited to certain circumstances \u2013 or something a person may do only on occasion. It may be shrugged off as a common part of the human experience or even good for a laugh. \u201cLike not taking down the Christmas lights,\u201d Steel says \u2013 by the summer. \u201cThen you\u2019re halfway there to next Christmas. You might as well just say I\u2019m early for next year.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

However, procrastination can be deadly serious, too. \u201cYou can die from it, of course. I know lots of people who have died from it,\u201d Steel says. \u201cIt can be something like finding a lump in your breast and then not treating it.\u201d Unnecessarily delaying medical tests or treatment \u2013 a common concern \u2013 can certainly put a person in harm\u2019s way.<\/span><\/p>\n

What\u2019s more, ignoring the problem of chronic procrastination itself \u2013 and what\u2019s causing it \u2013 can have a significant impact, from affecting job or school performance to straining relationships (like when expectations aren\u2019t met) to diminishing quality of life for the individual. Procrastination becomes a serious problem when it affects all aspects of a person\u2019s life, says Robert Schachter, a psychologist and an assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City. Schachter, who has extensively studied procrastination and has broad clinical experience in areas ranging from mood disorders to stress management, founded the Procrastination Centers of America, which offer programs to deal with procrastination for individuals, corporations and colleges.<\/span><\/p>\n

Schachter says there are numerous causes of procrastination including, in some cases, mental health issues. One of those is depression, symptoms of which include hopelessness, helplessness and a lack of energy that result in difficulty starting or finishing a task. He describes this and other causes in a written list of 20 types of procrastination he\u2019s identified.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you\u2019re depressed, you\u2019re more likely to put stuff off,\u201d Steel says. \u201cMany people who are depressed procrastinate.\u201d But where procrastination \u2013 to a degree \u2013 is nearly universal, most people who put things off aren\u2019t depressed, he notes. One marked difference among people who are depressed and procrastinating is that they may put off even the simplest tasks \u2013 like writing a check when the checkbook and pen are already out on the counter (and the money is in the bank). \u201cSo even when it\u2019s right there in front of you, you still don\u2019t feel like doing it,\u201d he says. For some, depression and procrastination both work against seeking treatment. The propensity to compulsively put things off is also an impediment to getting the help one needs, Steel points out.<\/span><\/p>\n

While depression may be more obvious, in some cases procrastination may be a tip off to an underlying issue. \u201cProcrastination is one of the symptoms that we look for when we\u2019re assessing attention deficit disorder,\u201d Schachter says. If someone is easily distracted, or has difficulty staying with a task, they may naturally be more likely to procrastinate. As with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, certain traits such as impulsivity and being easily distracted and poorly organized that all contribute to procrastination seem to cluster together, Steel says.<\/span><\/p>\n

Separately, obsessive-compulsive disorder can also cause a person to procrastinate. If you\u2019re washing your hands again and again or tied up with other compulsions, that\u2019s going to keep you from something else you know you need to do, Steel says.<\/span><\/p>\n

Though procrastination is not listed among mental health disorders included in the American Psychiatric Association\u2019s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or the DSM-5, experts who study it say it can be a consuming problem. And solving the problem isn\u2019t so simple as it might seem: \u201cWhen people tell procrastinators, \u2018You should just do it now,\u2019 it\u2019s pretty much the same as when they tell people who are depressed, \u2018Be happy,\u2019\u201d Steel says. \u201cIt\u2019s ineffective, and actually kind of more than annoying. It\u2019s almost disrespectful of the seriousness of the underlying condition.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Advice on dealing with procrastination tends to focus on time management and organization skills; and that\u2019s fine for people who have deficits in those areas, Schachter says. But it doesn\u2019t help a person who procrastinates for other reasons. Whether that\u2019s a mental health issue, like depression, or perhaps having a fear of failure (another reason, Schachter notes, that some people procrastinate) \u2013 the cause must be addressed, rather than trying to apply a one-size-fits all model to solve persistent procrastination.<\/span><\/p>\n

Linda Sapadin, a psychologist, success coach and author of “How to Beat Procrastination in the Digital Age: 6 Change Programs for 6 Personality Styles,\u201d focuses on how different personality types can contribute to making procrastination a serious issue. Among those is \u201cthe worrier.\u201d \u201cThe worrier personality is somebody who tends to be anxious,\u201d says Sapadin, of Long Island, New York. \u201c[They] tend to worry about things, tend to hesitate to leave their comfort zone. They paralyze themselves before working on a project by thinking about what ifs.\u201d Like, she says, \u201cwhat if\u201d they can\u2019t do the task.<\/span><\/p>\n

Schachter also lists anxiety as a cause for procrastination. But the role anxiety may play in procrastination is complex \u2013 and the subject of debate among experts. \u201cSome people that are anxious don\u2019t procrastinate,\u201d Sapadin notes. Instead, anxiety about not getting something done may drive some to be even more dutiful in completing tasks.<\/span><\/p>\n

Steel is circumspect about the role of anxiety as it relates to procrastination. He says that a closer examination reveals many who are anxious don\u2019t procrastinate, though some do, and that another factor is usually at play: impulsiveness. \u201cSo when you\u2019re an impulsive person, and you\u2019re anxious, you tend to [use] emotional coping techniques,\u201d he says. \u201cInstead of dealing with the problem you try and drown out your awareness of a problem.\u201d You might instead turn on the TV, go party or do other things or rationalize in ways that make you feel better about not doing what you\u2019re putting off, he says.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cProcrastinators tend to be their own worst enemy,\u201d Sapadin says. So it\u2019s important to drill down to understand why you\u2019re putting things off. Taking even seemingly basic steps may help reduce procrastination, once you work that out. \u201cI\u2019m a firm believer in listening to your language, because that\u2019s the easiest way to change behavior,\u201d she says. \u201cThe worrier in particular says, \u2018I can\u2019t.\u2019 So I tell them to say \u2026 \u2018I can\u2019t do this, but one thing I can do is that.\u2019 And that makes a world of difference.\u201d She also says that it’s important to tackle those “what if” questions that may arise. “Don’t just leave the question hanging in the air to create anxiety and stop you from taking action,” she says. “Answer the question; figure out your options; get inspired.”<\/span><\/p>\n

What’s more for the worrier, she advises, “Don’t make challenges more intimidating than they are. They are a part of life; don’t view them as potential disasters. Guard against your natural tendency to overestimate the time you’ll need to devote to a task, the energy you’ll need to expend on a task or unexpected problems that may arise.”<\/span><\/p>\n

On the other hand, tackling procrastination might mean unraveling layers of complexity \u2013 and in some cases, dealing with more significant psychological concerns. In the latter case, experts say it\u2019s critical to seek professional help. Schachter recommends starting by talking with a primary care provider about concerns and asking for a referral to a mental health provider if needed.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cCognitive behavior therapy \u2013 CBT \u2013 works really well for this type of thing for the most part,\u201d Steel says. It helps people understand unhelpful ways of thinking and behaviors that may contribute to underlying issues like depression. And the therapy\u2019s practical, structured approach that uses goal-setting makes it a natural fit to take on procrastination, Steel says.<\/span><\/p>\n

Source:-\u00a0http:\/\/health.usnews.com\/wellness\/mind\/articles\/2017-08-03\/is-your-chronic-procrastination-actually-a-matter-of-mental-health<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t <\/div><\/div>\n\t\t