I learned of the importance of self-care when I was a rape victim advocate. There is a protective mechanism that our bodies go through when experiencing trauma (our own or others), but afterwards, when that adrenaline mechanism falters, you are left with a big weight of hard stuff to process through. Self-care is what you do to process. My sister-in-law who works in sexual assault at Michigan State is a big proponent of yoga. For me, sometimes all I need is to sink into Julio and cry a little. Some people talk, some people watch movies that make them laugh, some people exercise, some people meditate or pray. It's different for everyone. The key is to do something healthy. And acknowledge the hard stuff.
Along with that, I am working on my Radical Kindness mission and am trying VERY hard to stay optimistic. There are many things to be depressed about in our own lives and in the world in general. But yesterday, I had a great conversation with my 5th grade Sunday School class about the things we can control and the things we can't. And how even when we are faced with adversity, we can control our reactions to that. That's not to say we can't be bummed out, but in the end, time spent wallowing in SUCK is just time away from promoting AWESOME.
Therefore in an effort towards self-care and promoting awesome, I am going to try my best (ahem) to be positive. Yes, I may still blog about things that drive me crazy ("slut" shaming, etc), but I will also try to come up with a viable solution/positive reaction to said things. I've committed to it. Wish me luck.
10 comments:
Time with your awesome nephew will help :-)
Even harder to go back into a project you know will be difficult.
This story NEEDS to be out in the world. After reading it, I absolutely believe that, and serious karma/kudos/good things to you for being the one brave enough to write it and put yourself in that place deep enough that you can bring the reader there, too.
Glad you have Julio , and glad you're brave enough to tell this story.
I am with Jolene on this - while I have not read the story yet, I am so proud of you and amazed by how brave you are! Take good care of yourself, lean into your hubby and don´t forget you have plenty of friends if you want to vent, laugh, have a glass of wine with and if you want to be alone, take your doggie for a cuddle, they´re also very good at cheering people up! and yay for spreading optimism :D
You're amazing, Christa. I would find that emotionally draining. Give yourself lots of coffee breaks, and don't forget to self-medicate on chocolate. Only when necessary, of course.
Good luck with your revisions!
You go girl. You have what it takes to be a life-changer.
I just saw Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I understand why you say that. When you're working on something emotionally tough and you see those same issues every day, it would be so easy to burn out. It's good that you can recognize that, and keep that from happening, because otherwise your story might not get out.
Good luck.
This is a story that needs telling. And by doing just that, you inspire.
I understand those heavy feelings. I also partake in self-care. It's a must. It's great that you can detect those feelings beforehand. Good luck with edits.
I have days where I feel like anything I do would be a drop in the bucket, not enough to even matter a little. Those days, self-indulgence feels like a disgusting habit. I've come to realize though that taking care of myself is the first step in taking care of others. Sometimes you just gotta do whatever it takes to get you to the place where you can finish what you've started.
My husband ASSURED me that the rape scenes in GWDT weren't graphic (I had already read and hated the book). He's a big fat liar.
(and obviously I'm catching up on blogs this morning!)
erica
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