Problem: Article: You've already narrowed it down to street magic, but think about which props you want to work with. If you have a specific area in mind you'd like to perform in, consider the limitations of space, lighting, and noise. You'll probably want to start out in an area without large crowds or other magicians so you can practice commanding a smaller audience's attention. You'll have a more interesting routine if you learn several different types of tricks, but start by focusing on what drew you to the magic tricks in the first place. There are several suggestions below you can use as a base for your performance. A foundational skill for magicians is the ability to manipulate small objects in unexpected ways. Practice the disappearing coin trick until you can perform it without looking. Continue to practice in front of family and other friendly audiences so you can develop your misdirection skills, directing the audience's attention away from your hands. If you enjoy that coin trick, spice it up with variations such as the coin falling through your head. Expand your coin act with knuckle rolling. Once you're a real expert, try advanced sleight of hand tricks such as putting a coin in an audience member's pocket. A coin is a simple and traditional object to use while practicing sleight of hand, but you move on to all sorts of objects. Make an audience member's watch (briefly) disappear as a simple lead in, or practice other tricks that involve sleight of hand, such as the missing card illusion. Almost everyone is familiar with card tricks, but with hundreds of variations out there, you can still find ways to surprise and delight your audience. The four of a kind card trick involves no sleight of hand and only minimal audience distraction, making it a good first choice. This type of trick involves stacking the deck beforehand, so it won't work on a tough audience that tells you to shuffle the cards. Card control techniques are vital for "guess the card" type tricks. Use sleight of hand to make your card tricks seem more astonishing. For instance, make a card rise to the top of the deck or make a card disappear behind your hand. Add more to your bag of tricks by practicing specific tricks that make ordinary objects seem to do impossible things. Do you want to fool your audience with sleight of hand, or specially prepared objects? Here are several tricks to practice so you can decide which you enjoy: Make two rubber bands pass through each other. Use rubber bands of different colors so the audience can tell which is which. Refill a crushed soda can with your hands. Bend a spoon with your psychic powers. Some types of tricks will get more attention than others. If you're aiming for fame, or if you're not great at attracting people with your announcements alone, consider some of these flashy tricks: Escape from a straitjacket. You can make this more impressive by adding handcuffs as well, but that will take significant practice and sleight of hand ability. Appear to levitate if you have the space to keep distance between you and the audience. There is at least one more variation on this trick. See if you can develop your own alterations to make it more convincing or astonishing! Create smoke from your fingers. Bring along water and soap to wash this off your hands afterward. Create a fire in your hand. Enlist a competent ally to help you practice this trick safely, as you can seriously burn your hand if you perform it incorrectly. Whether you seek out a mentor, or simply watch street magic techniques in slow motion on DVDs, to do street magic effectively you'll need training. Peruse the library for old magic trick books, or surf the Internet for fresh ideas. Learn the basics first, and take the time to develop your skill. Over time, you'll combine the techniques you most enjoy to create your own unique style. Consider using trick cards and coins, which you can buy from a local magic shop or websites devoted to magician supplies. Many cities have magic clubs, where you can meet other amateur magicians and exchange tips and ideas.
Summary: Decide what types of tricks you'll be performing. Practice your sleight of hand. Consider learning a few card tricks. Gather props and practice more tricks. Choose flashy tricks that will get a crowd's attention. Constantly learn and practice new tricks.

Problem: Article: During psychotherapy, you express your thoughts and feelings about the traumatic experience that has caused your PTSD. The most common psychotherapy is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). CBT aims to help you overcome your negative thoughts about your experience and instead turn them into more positive or rational thoughts. Talk therapy usually lasts up to 12 weeks but, in many cases, the therapy continues until you feel like you have overcome your PTSD. Psychotherapy can be done one on one or in a group, and it usually needs the support of the whole family for it to work. Ask your family to go to therapy with you if that is something you think you might benefit from. Psychotherapy, specifically CBT, works because it addresses psychological issues directly and also provides you with practical advice on how to manage your life in the shadow of PTSD. Therapy helps you to process what you are feelingshame, anger, guiltabout the trauma you have experienced. Talk therapy can help you to understand why you feel the way that you do and can give you the tools to overcome those feelings. It will also provide you with ways to react in a healthy way to people, places, and things that remind you of the trauma you have experienced. This type of therapy falls under the category of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and focuses on facing your fears and memories head-on. It facilitates your confrontation with your fear by exposing you to the trauma once again (this time safety is guaranteed). The ultimate goal is to help you deal with your fear and to aid you in coping with the emotional distress you feel when the trauma comes back and haunts you. Through exposure therapy, you will learn how to control your memories and realize that they are nothing to be afraid of. Mental imagery (picturing the trauma in your mind), visiting the place where the traumatic event happened, and encouraging you to write about your ordeal is all common tools of exposure therapy. This is another CBT technique that can help you to find a more rational and logical take on what happened to you during the traumatic event. By doing this, you will be able to come to terms with the reality of what has happened and escape the guilt that people with PTSD commonly feel. People who suffer from PTSD feel shame and think that what happened is their fault; cognitive restructuring will help you to see that it is not your fault at all. There are some cognitive restructuring techniques you can try from home, such as tracking the accuracy of your negative thoughts. For example, if you find yourself ruminating, you can note when you ruminate and then note whether your ruminating helped you solve your problems or not. Or, you could try testing your thoughts through your actual behavior. For example, if you believe that you don't have any time to exercise, you could try exercising for 15 minutes and see whether you have less time for other important parts of your life. This sort of psychotherapy can help you to find closure and overcome negative feelings about yourself that the traumatic event caused. This type of therapy is another type of CBT and will teach you to control your anxiety. It goes a step beyond just restructuring your memories and will you to create a healthier mentality about your traumatic experience. The goal of this sort of therapy is to help you reshape the way you view the trauma you experienced before you developed anxiety or depression because of your PTSD. Group therapy, just like any other approach, works better for some people than for others. However, it may help you to overcome your symptoms because it will give you other people to relate to, who have gone through, or are going through, a situation similar to yours. Talking to others who have gone through a similar experience as you can help you to rationalize how you feel, realize you are not alone and feel more "normal." In group therapy, people talk about their experiences and the way those experiences have affected their lives and emotions. Hearing others tell their stories can help to ease feelings of shame, guilt, and anger that you might be experiencing because of your own traumatic event.
Summary:
Consider treatment through psychotherapy. Understand why psychotherapy works for those suffering from PTSD. Try exposure therapy. Try cognitive restructuring. Go through stress inoculation training. Consider group therapy.