Sometimes I Get Overwhelmed
This is one of those times. Be prepared.
(NOTE: I am going to start this post with the paragraph that I wrote towards the end of today's thoughts. I think that it is the meat of this post, so if you don't want to go into my situations, you can still see what I think is the most important thought for today.)
Self-care is not just the cool stuff; the vacations, the self-care challenges made by others, the appointments to have a pedicure. It is also the day-to-day patterns that we incorporate into our lives. It is the getting up, taking a shower, dressing for work (thinking about the weather possibilities), the blogging about things that are interesting to only us (sorry about this), and the getting out of our house when we would much rather stay at home, sleeping. Self-care is eating food that has a good balance of nutrition and taste. Self-care is drinking water instead of something else, because we know that water is essential to health. When I get overwhelmed, I find that it is time to engage in active self-care strategies.
(Want to know what's going on in my life? Read on. Don't want to? Then make sure that you are practicing healthy self-care strategies, please!)
The second day of the last half of our extended school year session was much more difficult than the first day. This is to be expected. For some reason, my clients are always happy to be back at school on day one, but no one is happy to be back on day two. We were able to remain consistent during one urinary accident, two major behavioral incidences, and a couple of minor (in comparison) tantrums. My last group was 5 minutes late, so I went and found them in their classroom, struggling with safety. We did music therapy in their darkened room.
We are in the middle of a heat advisory, so all of the classrooms are hot and humid, kids are swimming out in the heat, and everyone is simply pooped! This is one of the reasons that the Carnival of the Animals has been something good for my music therapy structure this summer - we are all VERY tired! The focus on a specific piece of music has been good for me to have some sort of structure, but to offer lots of non-directive music therapy interventions and choices.
For me, the heat makes me crabby. I don't like feeling too hot. The cooling system in my music therapy room is turning out to be completely inconsistent. One day, the temperature is 78 degrees Fahrenheit with a humidity that turns the air into soup, and the next day, the temperature is 62 degrees Fahrenheit. I can't predict what the weather will be like in my room, so I never know if I need layers or shorts. I would much rather be cold than hot, so I like the days when things get cold in my room.
In addition to the setting event of the heat advisory, I am also dealing with a person who is acting in a manner that feels like a personal attack on me. I will not go into details, but I think there is something else going on in this person's life, and for some reason, I am being attacked in order for the other person to feel like he is in control of something in his life. I was reminded of this situation yesterday when I got home.
The problem is that this situation hit me, again, when I am at my most emotional - summer, hormones, exhaustion all occurring simultaneously. This time, though, I did not get hysterical - I got angry! I am hoping that this anger will allow me to be rational and cold when it comes to confronting this person. Fortunately, I have some time before I have to engage that particular person in this debate, and I know where I will go if things do not go my way. Onward.
So, long story short, I am feeling pretty overwhelmed right now by things that are going on around me. Usually, when these feelings happen, I start to struggle with basic self-care. I don't eat well, I get overemotional about the stupid things that happen, and my sleep patterns change for the worse. I end up waking up REALLY early and think about things I cannot change (constantly review all the situations I have EVER been through) from the past, present, and imagine unreal possibilities for the future.
Now, I do have strategies for changing these patterns, and I do (eventually) engage in those strategies. I don't always do a good job of doing these things quickly - I often have to hit bottom - HARD - before I start to take care of myself. Not this time!! My current feelings really just started yesterday afternoon, so I have time to use my strategies before things get really bad. I did NOT eat a good dinner last night (I finished off a peach dump cake instead of eating something with protein), but I will have a cabbage and meat roll for breakfast, an apple and cheese for lunch, and I will make an effort to drink as much water as possible during the day. (There is a bathroom break trade-off for the drinking water thing, but water is essential to my brain health and emotional state!) I will not let this take over my life completely at this moment - it is time for some active self-care.
Step One? Take that shower that I need to take. After that? Breakfast and then moving into the work part of the day.
Stay centered in your self-care routines, folks.
(NOTE: I am going to start this post with the paragraph that I wrote towards the end of today's thoughts. I think that it is the meat of this post, so if you don't want to go into my situations, you can still see what I think is the most important thought for today.)
Self-care is not just the cool stuff; the vacations, the self-care challenges made by others, the appointments to have a pedicure. It is also the day-to-day patterns that we incorporate into our lives. It is the getting up, taking a shower, dressing for work (thinking about the weather possibilities), the blogging about things that are interesting to only us (sorry about this), and the getting out of our house when we would much rather stay at home, sleeping. Self-care is eating food that has a good balance of nutrition and taste. Self-care is drinking water instead of something else, because we know that water is essential to health. When I get overwhelmed, I find that it is time to engage in active self-care strategies.
(Want to know what's going on in my life? Read on. Don't want to? Then make sure that you are practicing healthy self-care strategies, please!)
The second day of the last half of our extended school year session was much more difficult than the first day. This is to be expected. For some reason, my clients are always happy to be back at school on day one, but no one is happy to be back on day two. We were able to remain consistent during one urinary accident, two major behavioral incidences, and a couple of minor (in comparison) tantrums. My last group was 5 minutes late, so I went and found them in their classroom, struggling with safety. We did music therapy in their darkened room.
We are in the middle of a heat advisory, so all of the classrooms are hot and humid, kids are swimming out in the heat, and everyone is simply pooped! This is one of the reasons that the Carnival of the Animals has been something good for my music therapy structure this summer - we are all VERY tired! The focus on a specific piece of music has been good for me to have some sort of structure, but to offer lots of non-directive music therapy interventions and choices.
For me, the heat makes me crabby. I don't like feeling too hot. The cooling system in my music therapy room is turning out to be completely inconsistent. One day, the temperature is 78 degrees Fahrenheit with a humidity that turns the air into soup, and the next day, the temperature is 62 degrees Fahrenheit. I can't predict what the weather will be like in my room, so I never know if I need layers or shorts. I would much rather be cold than hot, so I like the days when things get cold in my room.
In addition to the setting event of the heat advisory, I am also dealing with a person who is acting in a manner that feels like a personal attack on me. I will not go into details, but I think there is something else going on in this person's life, and for some reason, I am being attacked in order for the other person to feel like he is in control of something in his life. I was reminded of this situation yesterday when I got home.
The problem is that this situation hit me, again, when I am at my most emotional - summer, hormones, exhaustion all occurring simultaneously. This time, though, I did not get hysterical - I got angry! I am hoping that this anger will allow me to be rational and cold when it comes to confronting this person. Fortunately, I have some time before I have to engage that particular person in this debate, and I know where I will go if things do not go my way. Onward.
So, long story short, I am feeling pretty overwhelmed right now by things that are going on around me. Usually, when these feelings happen, I start to struggle with basic self-care. I don't eat well, I get overemotional about the stupid things that happen, and my sleep patterns change for the worse. I end up waking up REALLY early and think about things I cannot change (constantly review all the situations I have EVER been through) from the past, present, and imagine unreal possibilities for the future.
Now, I do have strategies for changing these patterns, and I do (eventually) engage in those strategies. I don't always do a good job of doing these things quickly - I often have to hit bottom - HARD - before I start to take care of myself. Not this time!! My current feelings really just started yesterday afternoon, so I have time to use my strategies before things get really bad. I did NOT eat a good dinner last night (I finished off a peach dump cake instead of eating something with protein), but I will have a cabbage and meat roll for breakfast, an apple and cheese for lunch, and I will make an effort to drink as much water as possible during the day. (There is a bathroom break trade-off for the drinking water thing, but water is essential to my brain health and emotional state!) I will not let this take over my life completely at this moment - it is time for some active self-care.
Step One? Take that shower that I need to take. After that? Breakfast and then moving into the work part of the day.
Stay centered in your self-care routines, folks.
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