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Dr. Pat

About Dr. Patrick Keelan

Feeling Challenged? Work with a psychologist who knows how to overcome challenges… Depression, anxiety, stress & other psychological issues may seem as daunting as completing a marathon. My approach to “Plan, Take Action & Track Progress”, has helped 100s of clients and is the same approach I used to succeed in the Boston Marathon & Ironman Canada.
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Affective forecasting: Challenges in predicting the intensity and durability of emotions

In this article, I discuss the poor track record people have in predicting how strong and long-lasting their emotional reactions will be to activities in which they participate. We often decide whether to participate in activities based on affective forecasting. This entails predicting the emotions we are likely to experience by engaging in activities. For example, you would be more likely to participate in an activity which you predict will lead you to experience happiness and excitement compared to an activity which you predict will lead you to experience frustration and anger. But just how accurate is this affective forecasting which guides our decisions whether to participate in activities? In the following sections, I will answer this question and discuss the implications for deciding whether to participate in activities...[more]

2025-04-13T19:49:47-06:00By |Categories: Anxiety, Sport & Performance|
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How to feel energized to take action on tasks and goals

In this article, I discuss how various factors affect how much energy you can channel into taking action on a task or a goal. Doing the hard work necessary to pursue a goal or accomplish a task is much easier if you are feeling energized. In turn, there are several factors which you can target to feel energized in relation to a goal or a task. I will discuss these factors in the following sections...[more]

2025-03-26T20:14:58-06:00By |Categories: Depression, Sport & Performance|
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Visualizing for success: Focus on processes more than outcomes

In this article, I discuss what you should focus on in your visualizations when your goal is to succeed at an endeavour. Visualization is a widely used strategy for people whose goal is to achieve success in an endeavour. Sports, finances, career, and relationships are just a few of the domains in which this strategy has been used to facilitate success. Although visualizing has been found to facilitate success in achieving goals, it is important to spend most of the time visualizing in a manner which is most conducive to success and spend less time visualizing in a manner which is less conducive to success. In the following sections, I will explore this topic...[more]

2025-03-17T14:37:01-06:00By |Categories: Psychology, Sport & Performance|
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Self-efficacy: The engine which drives motivation

In this article, I discuss why believing you can succeed facilitates motivation to participate in challenging activities. Participating in challenging activities and pursuing goals related to these activities is for many people a fulfilling part of life. Having said that, trying out activities and engaging in them in the pursuit of goals requires motivation. This is the energy, interest and excitement which leads a person to initiate and persist at these activities. A key factor which facilitates motivation is self-efficacy. In the following sections, I will discuss this concept and how you can use it to spur motivation in yourself and in others...[more]

2025-03-02T20:00:36-07:00By |Categories: Depression, Sport & Performance|
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Self-regulation: The complement to motivation when striving for success

In this article, I discuss why motivation combined with self-regulation is necessary to achieve your goals. Recent research indicated that only nine percent of the population who make New Year’s resolutions stick to them throughout the year. Given that many people who make such resolutions begin with high levels of motivation, the statistic indicates that motivation by itself is typically insufficient for people to achieve their goals. The missing ingredient to success in achieving goals is often self-regulation. The importance of this factor in goal achievement is discussed in Motivation Myth Busters by Drs. Wendy Grolnick, Benjamin Heddy and Frank Worrell. In the following sections, I will discuss how you can use self-regulation to complement motivation to achieve your goals...[more]

2025-02-16T21:24:42-07:00By |Categories: Psychology, Sport & Performance|
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How to address the fear of making mistakes

In this article, I discuss psychological strategies you can use to address the fear of making mistakes in various endeavours. As someone who is learning to play the piano, I attend a monthly adult music performance class where I and the other students play our instruments and/or sing in front of an audience. A teacher provides us with helpful feedback. At the most recent class, one of the students expressed fear of making a mistake each time he performed a song with his guitar. He said that the fear was so strong that he could not help but think about the part of the song where his mistake occurs. In turn, he said that this fear made it more likely that he would make the mistake. In effect, the mistake occurred because of a self-fulfilling prophecy. After the teacher had offered her advice, she invited me to contribute to the discussion from a psychological perspective. Following the class, I thought that the ideas we discussed would make for a good blog article. In the following sections, I will discuss psychological strategies to deal with a fear of making mistakes, in music, sports, work, school and other activities...[more]

2025-02-02T20:37:14-07:00By |Categories: Anxiety, Sport & Performance|
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Problem-focused coping: An often-overlooked key to managing stress

In this article, I discuss how acting to address problems can go a long way in helping you to manage stress. A common issue for which clients seek help in therapy is managing stress. Among the clients whose goal is to manage stress, many want strategies to help them improve their emotional reactions to problems and stressful situations. Although I offer such strategies to clients, I also help them to implement an often-overlooked part of the stress management equation. This involves helping them act to address problems and stressful situations.’ In the following sections, I will discuss why this ‘problem-focused coping’ is a key to managing stress and how it is done...[more]

2025-01-19T18:01:29-07:00By |Categories: Stress|
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Habit tracking: A simple but effective technique

In this article, I discuss how recording details of incidents involving behaviours can help you to cultivate good habits and break bad habits. There are many tools which I offer my clients when their goal is to cultivate good habits and break bad habits. Although I encourage my clients to use as many such tools as possible, one tool is so simple and effective that I typically offer it early in therapy. I have also used this tool successfully when my goal has been to cultivate good habits and break bad habits such as practicing piano for 75 minutes each day. The tool is called habit tracking and it is discussed in Atomic Habits by James Clear. In the following sections, I will discuss how you can use habit tracking to your advantage...[more]

2025-01-05T19:55:20-07:00By |Categories: Psychology, Sport & Performance|
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My favourite movies and television specials for the holiday season

In this article, I discuss the movies and television specials which I make a point to watch during the Christmas holidays and why I enjoy them. Among the enjoyable activities of the Christmas holiday season is watching my favourite holiday movies and television shows. In the following sections, I will discuss my go-to holiday specials and why I enjoy them so much...[more]

2024-12-15T21:01:01-07:00By |Categories: Relationships|
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Managing conflict at holiday gatherings: Follow basic principles

In this article, I discuss how you can use basic principles for managing conflict to manage conflict at holiday gatherings. This Christmas holiday session often features gatherings among family, friends, co-workers and others. Although many of these gatherings are enjoyable, some of them are stressful. These unpleasant gatherings often involve conflict resulting from people with different attitudes on issues ranging from politics to religion interacting with each other. Managing this conflict effectively can make these unpleasant gatherings less unpleasant and even enjoyable in some circumstances. Following basic principles for managing conflict can help you to achieve this goal. I will discuss how you can do this in the following sections...[more]

2024-12-01T18:02:34-07:00By |Categories: Relationships, Stress|
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