Self-Care. A concept that has been around for generations, yet it seemed to have gotten a new label sometime during our pandemic years. Defined as the practice of taking care of yourself to promote your health, wellbeing, and to manage illness when it occurs, it became part of our common language when we realized that the stress of isolation and lock down was taking its toll on our mental and emotional health.
The term came up when I was recently attending a virtual conference for women. The She’s Unstoppable Summit was an inspiring collection of interviews and presentations from very successful women in a variety of fields and careers. While specific questions varied depending on the woman being interviewed, the question of- what things do you rely on for self-care and emotional grounding, was asked of nearly all the guests.
For some of us, the term self-care conjures up images of spa days, massages, and elaborate vacations. Activities that for most of us, are not things we can routinely do. They require resources and time that the average person simply does not have.
What I noticed was that when most of these women were asked what they did to ground themselves, or take care of their own needs, most shared things that took just minutes and had minimal cost.
A few minutes of deep breathing and visualization.
Finding a quiet spot to simply sit.
Taking a five-minute walk.
A phone conversation with a trusted friend.
Some shared that they meditated, and some said they prayed. Some practiced gratitude, while others said they worked on being present in the moment.
Yes, they also shared some of the bigger picture activities that they tried to routinely schedule, like lunch with a friend, a monthly pedicure, or a movie night with their kids.
What I realized was that all of these were strategies for quieting the noise, filtering the negative, and reclaiming focus. Reminding us of our priorities.
I have pondered this a lot this week, as stress levels among my teacher friends and colleagues has jumped. Parent Open House and Progress Reports both fell this past week. Our district decided it would begin unannounced classroom walk-throughs to determine compliance with instructional scope and sequence calendars. And we have been caught in a strong storm center in which almost daily our dismissal procedures and timing are being impacted by thunder storms. Add to all of that, the recent school shooting.
It is no wonder teachers are feeling overwhelmed, stressed, and just generally thrown off their game. Shouldering the herculean tasks being hoisted onto them, teachers are just trying to survive the days and weeks.
While there is clearly little time for lunch dates or even phone conversations, I am once again reminded that there is always time for a few deep breathes. Time to reset our focus and be grateful. Time to quiet the noise.
While these quick grounding techniques will do nothing to solve the greater issues that clearly must be eventually dealt with, they can help us to survive the moment.
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