Bunny with an axe (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} bunnywithanaxe) wrote,@ 2006-11-20 23:11:00 |
|
My CDEV midterm paper, for your entertainment.
Stress reduction for Childcare Workers
Saturday 9:30-- 12:30
Reflection Paper
For my "reflection day" I decided to travel down south for the weekend, stay somewhere for the night, and find something restorative to do in the morning. The entire trip turned out to be a good overview of things i do to create more stress in my life, and effective ways I have learned to cope.
I left at about 5:00 Friday night, and decided to find a hotel n the Santa Cruz area, figuring there would be plenty of affordable hotels there. I went without a map or a reservation. This kind of thing comes up in my journal a lot- my lack of planning or organization sends me into a fluster sometimes. I ended up lost in Aptos at a bout 8:300 PM.
Another bad habit I have is to blame bad fate instead of resigning myself to the consequences of 9say) not checking a map before a trip.So I was driving around muttering things like,"Why does this always happen to me?" and "It's just my luck!" and hoping if I thought happy thoughts a motel would turn up.
Even as i was calling upon the fates, I was driving past gas station after gas station.I was too shy, embarrassed, proud, whatever to pull over and ask for information about hotels. This is another common roadblock for me-- I worry too much about what other people think of me, and will put myself through a lot of trouble to avoid personal embarrassment.
Finally I had a stern talk with myself and forced myself to pull over at a gas station near a shopping center. I parked the car--and across the street I saw the sign for a Best Western. I ran across the street and reserved a room Until I looked at the bill I didn't realize I was in Aptos.
Largely due to good planning, Saturday turned out to be a much better day.
I had passed through Capitola at sundown on Friday night, and thought the place looked so charming, I decided to spend the next day there. I used a map in my room to plan my route the night before.
Here are the good things I did for myself on Saturday:
I took a nice long bath in the morning, throwing the last of a bottle of champagne I'd had the night before. (It's a spa thing.) Instead of rushing to pack up in the morning like I usually do when I am traveling, I got my bag packed, made some( decaf) coffee, and hung out in the room till about a half hour before check out time. sitting on the balcony and enjoying the breeze. It was hard for me to give myself permission to not to rush, but there was really no reason to rush.
When I did leave, I noted that my preparation the night before helped me find Capitola easily , and I could relax and enjoy the drive. Once I got there, I pretty much spent the day people-watching, sitting on the beach, and window-shopping, but I consciously did several things that relax me:
People watching/ animal watching.
It was nice to get "out of my own head" and be aware of things surrounding me. I watched some toddlers climbing on rocks-- one was really good at it-- and I spent a ridiculous amount of time watching the seagulls and blackbirds collecting by an estuary looking for handouts from the restaurants. They seemed to take any sign of attention as an offer of food. They were hilarious. ANyway, this kind of nature observation is a sort of meditation for me, and it really expands my imagination-- a lot of my personal writing lately has been "travelogues' of different road trips I have taken.
Meditating
I also to do some more internal meditating. I found a spot by the bank of the estuary to soak my feet-- you may recall I have been having foot problems resulting form a heel spur. I just sort of stared down into the clear water at the bottom of the riverbed, and blocked out everything else but the sound of the water rippling and the sight of the shells and pebbles on the bottom. I did that for a long time. It was almost like sleeping.
Foot rubs.
After the foot soak, I tried out some of the foot rubs we learned in class. I have been trying to do those daily, and the effect has been remarkable. I still have some pain, particularly when I overexert myself, but it is nowhere near what it used to be.After walking around all morning,t he combination of the foot soak and the foot rub was really healing.
Singing
Simply as a deep breathing exercise, singing really relaxes me, but it also is a source of deep emotional expression and release. (this also keeps coming up in my journal as a coping strategy.)I am very shy about being caught singing in public. I've been trying to get over that lately and just sing whenever I feel like it (within reason). I reassure myself with the thought that whenever I catch somebody singing, it feels like a grace moment.
And yes, I have a fairly decent voice. Still, most of my singing took place in the privacy of my car.
Driving.
Considering how much of my journal entries are devoted to whining about traffic in the morning, it is surprising that my main method of relaxation---- when I really am having a bad day, or when I have a serious need to recharge-- is taking a long drive. That was my primary for taking the road trip in the first place-- when I heard the direction, "do something you will find relaxing and restorative' I immediately pictured roads winding around Coastside mountains and yearned for travel. There is something about being in my won space, surrounded by my own music(Natalie Merchant this weekend) and driving in a remote area that seems to reset my dials. I told my therapist later that the feeling I get at these times is the way i would like to feel all the time. She said "I want to propose to you that at those time you are experiencing your authentic self."
Cool. Now I just have to figure out how to achieve that feeling without wasting money on gas.
Seriously, it is a goal of mine to work a more regular practice of meditation into my daily life, and calling on those memories might be a good way to start.
My therapist also said she thought it was not a mistake that i was taking this class at this time in my life-- this year has been personally challenging to say the least, with the recent death of my biological father, the serious illness of a friend, and my feet apparently disintegrating form underneath me. I think a lot of my current strategies for coping have been for the most part, tried and found wanting-- that is, I have several habits that increase my stress rather than alleviating it-- and I am at a place to chose differently.
I have long called myself a pacifist, but I often wage war on myself. It is time to remedy that.
Stress reduction for Childcare Workers
Saturday 9:30-- 12:30
Reflection Paper
For my "reflection day" I decided to travel down south for the weekend, stay somewhere for the night, and find something restorative to do in the morning. The entire trip turned out to be a good overview of things i do to create more stress in my life, and effective ways I have learned to cope.
I left at about 5:00 Friday night, and decided to find a hotel n the Santa Cruz area, figuring there would be plenty of affordable hotels there. I went without a map or a reservation. This kind of thing comes up in my journal a lot- my lack of planning or organization sends me into a fluster sometimes. I ended up lost in Aptos at a bout 8:300 PM.
Another bad habit I have is to blame bad fate instead of resigning myself to the consequences of 9say) not checking a map before a trip.So I was driving around muttering things like,"Why does this always happen to me?" and "It's just my luck!" and hoping if I thought happy thoughts a motel would turn up.
Even as i was calling upon the fates, I was driving past gas station after gas station.I was too shy, embarrassed, proud, whatever to pull over and ask for information about hotels. This is another common roadblock for me-- I worry too much about what other people think of me, and will put myself through a lot of trouble to avoid personal embarrassment.
Finally I had a stern talk with myself and forced myself to pull over at a gas station near a shopping center. I parked the car--and across the street I saw the sign for a Best Western. I ran across the street and reserved a room Until I looked at the bill I didn't realize I was in Aptos.
Largely due to good planning, Saturday turned out to be a much better day.
I had passed through Capitola at sundown on Friday night, and thought the place looked so charming, I decided to spend the next day there. I used a map in my room to plan my route the night before.
Here are the good things I did for myself on Saturday:
I took a nice long bath in the morning, throwing the last of a bottle of champagne I'd had the night before. (It's a spa thing.) Instead of rushing to pack up in the morning like I usually do when I am traveling, I got my bag packed, made some( decaf) coffee, and hung out in the room till about a half hour before check out time. sitting on the balcony and enjoying the breeze. It was hard for me to give myself permission to not to rush, but there was really no reason to rush.
When I did leave, I noted that my preparation the night before helped me find Capitola easily , and I could relax and enjoy the drive. Once I got there, I pretty much spent the day people-watching, sitting on the beach, and window-shopping, but I consciously did several things that relax me:
People watching/ animal watching.
It was nice to get "out of my own head" and be aware of things surrounding me. I watched some toddlers climbing on rocks-- one was really good at it-- and I spent a ridiculous amount of time watching the seagulls and blackbirds collecting by an estuary looking for handouts from the restaurants. They seemed to take any sign of attention as an offer of food. They were hilarious. ANyway, this kind of nature observation is a sort of meditation for me, and it really expands my imagination-- a lot of my personal writing lately has been "travelogues' of different road trips I have taken.
Meditating
I also to do some more internal meditating. I found a spot by the bank of the estuary to soak my feet-- you may recall I have been having foot problems resulting form a heel spur. I just sort of stared down into the clear water at the bottom of the riverbed, and blocked out everything else but the sound of the water rippling and the sight of the shells and pebbles on the bottom. I did that for a long time. It was almost like sleeping.
Foot rubs.
After the foot soak, I tried out some of the foot rubs we learned in class. I have been trying to do those daily, and the effect has been remarkable. I still have some pain, particularly when I overexert myself, but it is nowhere near what it used to be.After walking around all morning,t he combination of the foot soak and the foot rub was really healing.
Singing
Simply as a deep breathing exercise, singing really relaxes me, but it also is a source of deep emotional expression and release. (this also keeps coming up in my journal as a coping strategy.)I am very shy about being caught singing in public. I've been trying to get over that lately and just sing whenever I feel like it (within reason). I reassure myself with the thought that whenever I catch somebody singing, it feels like a grace moment.
And yes, I have a fairly decent voice. Still, most of my singing took place in the privacy of my car.
Driving.
Considering how much of my journal entries are devoted to whining about traffic in the morning, it is surprising that my main method of relaxation---- when I really am having a bad day, or when I have a serious need to recharge-- is taking a long drive. That was my primary for taking the road trip in the first place-- when I heard the direction, "do something you will find relaxing and restorative' I immediately pictured roads winding around Coastside mountains and yearned for travel. There is something about being in my won space, surrounded by my own music(Natalie Merchant this weekend) and driving in a remote area that seems to reset my dials. I told my therapist later that the feeling I get at these times is the way i would like to feel all the time. She said "I want to propose to you that at those time you are experiencing your authentic self."
Cool. Now I just have to figure out how to achieve that feeling without wasting money on gas.
Seriously, it is a goal of mine to work a more regular practice of meditation into my daily life, and calling on those memories might be a good way to start.
My therapist also said she thought it was not a mistake that i was taking this class at this time in my life-- this year has been personally challenging to say the least, with the recent death of my biological father, the serious illness of a friend, and my feet apparently disintegrating form underneath me. I think a lot of my current strategies for coping have been for the most part, tried and found wanting-- that is, I have several habits that increase my stress rather than alleviating it-- and I am at a place to chose differently.
I have long called myself a pacifist, but I often wage war on myself. It is time to remedy that.
