Navigating The Post Lockdown Life With Therapist, Rebecca Harrison – Podcast Episode 22
This week I had the pleasure of chatting with Gold Coast Therapist, Rebecca Harrison to help navigate myself and my listeners on how we will adapt to change and nurture ourselves in the process.
Going through all of these changes when just coming out of a pandemic is super mentally and sometimes physically draining, and sometimes you just need that little bit of guidance to let you know that you aren’t alone.
Rebecca is an accredited mental health social worker, and she helps people deal with grief, relationships, and trauma.
Rebecca explained how the biggest change in clients had been that underlying issues rose to the surface, which is what happens when emotions under pressure. People have triggers, and especially during this time, it can really act to revert some people back to their old ways, or slowly undo the work that they have made. When we are put in situations without our desire, we often become very intolerant, we can be super short-tempered and snappy which can certainly put a strain on your family, work, and friend relationships. To help you get out of this phunk a recommendation that often works for Rebecca’s clients is to create your own ritual.
Get out of bed in the morning and have a 5-step routine that you know and love to help you feel nourished and refreshed for a new day.
TRY THE BELOW 5-MORNING RITUALS:
- 3-deep & slow breaths;
- A 20-minute walk in nature listening to a motivational podcast;
- Take an extra few minutes on your skincare regime;
- Put some happy music on in the morning; and
- Create a space where you will happy to be home, try to clean up your space before leaving home.
This will create a baseline that is even and that way when you enter your workplace and get bombarded with stresses, tasks and busy energy you aren’t at your highest frequency straight away. When you are dealing with something at your workplace when you feel sensitive or if you feel overwhelmed try to take a few deep breaths and then that way you can center yourself before jumping at someone or perhaps saying something you may regret. This will help you feel stronger and more resilient in your day.
If you work in a fast-paced environment, it is important to thoroughly practice self-care. It can be super easy to let work take over yourself and it can move your mind away from looking after your well-being so once in a while, try a few of these thorough self-care actions to really take some time out.
- Get your hair done, even if it is just a blow-dry; there is nothing better than a hairdressers head massage..;
- Go for a facial, treat yo self!;
- Get your nails done, even if you feel like just doing them yourself;
- Take a Yoga class; and
- Get a massage!
This will prevent you from burning out and refresh your sense of self-worth.
APPROACHING THE NEW NORMAL – WORKPLACE STYLE
As we enter the new normal, we have learned a lot in this COVID period and we have learned a lot about ourselves, and how we might want to run our lives differently, so as we return to work you may feel resentment or unhappy about the change. For example: In my team, I have given the option to my staff to work remotely permanently. However, many work-places are just returning back to normal, so if this is relevant to you and you don’t feel like going back to the old way of living, perhaps as a manager perspective or an employee perspective try to gain awareness around the topic that you aren’t satisfied with. It is super important that we recognize the feelings and be aware of. Another idea may be that you can treat this time as a transition period. You may want to think about what you feel works best for you and approach your manager/team and develop a conflict-resolution process that you may be able to meet at. This is a time for creativity and opportunity, give it a go!
HOW TO COPE WITH THE LOSS OF PLANS AND LIVING IN A DIFFERENT COUNTRY TO YOUR FAMILY
Having plans and looking forward to them for months, even years is absolutely a form of grief, your feelings are relevant and you are allowed to be sad over materialistic issues per say. Holidays can represent a sense of vitality, a family bonding trip, a self-renewal trip, or even just a really deserved break. This is a huge loss and it is so okay to feel really emotional as we don’t know dates as to when we can re-book these trips.
In regards to living overseas from your family, it can be especially difficult on relationships and it can really be scary if your family members are older and may not be able to use social media etc. In these situations, it is so important to gain focus and stay calm as although we don’t have a date when we can see our loved ones again, you will see them again. If the grief becomes too much there is absolutely no shame in reaching out to professional help and speak to Rebecca yourself by clicking here.
DEALING WITH EMOTIONS TOWARD THE GOVERNMENT
During COVID, one of the things that have been evident and very prominent in society are government packages, designed to assist in finances for businesses and employees; however, there are a lot of people who have fallen through the cracks just missing out on payments which can be very hard to deal with. When dealing with this emotion it is important to optimize your situation in the best way you can. This is highlighting what we can control and what we can’t control is super vital. Returning to your skill base and what you are capable of can really help you during lockdown to help you optimize your opportunities.
Connecting with like-minded people who are in a similar situation can really benefit your mindset as well, in order to collaborate with you in terms of managing your resentment. Again, this can be something that you can discuss with professional advice at The Axis Clinic.
HOW TO RETURN TO BASELINE
Everyone is really different, so when you can feel your emotions are quite heightened you need to become aware of it. Don’t bottle it down, because this is when you can explode. Become aware of your emotions and then take some space away from anyone and everyone. Then in order to return to baseline and descent your emotions back to baseline, it is super important to be kind, support yourself and talk about it!
To find out a little bit more about Rebecca her Instagram is @Rebecca_Harrison_ and you can also find her at The Axis Clinic for a chat!
To listen to the full podcast for this week- Click here to listen and subscribe.
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