Thoughtful Thursday: Mindfulness

There are all sorts of negative things happening around the world. I am trying really hard to remain positive in my small corner of the world but it is difficult when every single thing that you encounter is just plain old horrible. So, I am searching for the positives that are still happening but are overshadowed by the negative. 

I read a post yesterday about mindfulness and it reminded me of the focus that we had about 10-15 years ago when "mindfulness" was all the rage! Every single conference focused on specific techniques that we music therapists could do to help us with the rigors of being helpers. That terminology has gone by the wayside in recent years, but this point of view is one that is valuable for me. It was nice to be reminded during my morning habits.

So, I spent some time with my journal being specifically mindful.

This is not a habit with me at this point, but I want it to become more natural to engage in this type of thinking. Since it helps me figure out my feelings about things, it is a practice that has value to me. Since it has value, it is something that I can devote time to developing.

I skipped a meeting yesterday to help my attitude and to keep me focused on what I needed in the moment. I have some appointments in the next several days to get done, so positivity is something that will help me get through those things. One of the appointments is something completely new to me, but the other is something unexpected but familiar. I do not do medical appointments well, so it is important to have some positive outlooks when I am going to doctors' offices and for tests.

How do you combat the negativity that is out in the larger world? I focus on the people that are in front of me. I try to be a positive part of their lives through our interactions, but there are times when I just can't do it. When I get to that point, I take some personal time to find my center again. There are times when I need to be selfish with my positivity and energy, and that is something really important to acknowledge in the music therapy world - we cannot give more than we have so there are times when we have to fill our own cups. It is important to remember this fact - we have to be our own caregivers.

I am not in a place where I feel like I am needing some time away from my clients, but I think it might be approaching. One of the compounding issues for me with trying to fill my cup is that I no longer feel like music therapy conferences are important for my self-care routine. I used to have a really good break in November for traveling to AMTA conferences followed by our Thanksgiving break, so November was a great month for finding things to fill my cup. That no longer happens. I may figure out a personal day for some time in November to help me refill. I did some professional time last year, but I've used all my professional time for this year because I went to Vancouver for the World Congress.

It is time to go get my mail (my sister's b-day present arrived at my house before her b-day, but I haven't sent it to her yet...) and head to work. Four groups and three individual sessions today. We are almost done with the week's responsibility. My intern will be gone tomorrow, so I will be able to do work in the morning before my two afternoon groups and then get ready for an appointment up in the city. I might even get a restaurant dinner while I am in the city, but we will see if I have any motivation after the appointment.

How will you be mindful?

I am going to sit with my feelings and allow them to be. I will acknowledge them and allow them to move on.

See you tomorrow? I hope so.