1. Information as a coping mechanism for chaos
This month turned out to be more anxiety-ridden than usual. A bit of this was to be expected with class demands ramping up, an exam, etc. But this was compounded for me by the winter freeze that knocked out much of the Texas power grid, which has historically been a problem in Texas. I was incredibly lucky not to lose power for an extended period, but most of my neighborhood did. I found it incredibly hard to focus on work during this time, but not because I couldn’t focus at all–instead I was focused deeply on trying to understand what went wrong. I steeped myself in news articles, twitter feeds of energy experts, and policy recommendation documents. I’m sure this isn’t everyone’s coping strategy, but there’s a degree of calm I get from understanding an issue as much as I possibly can. This understanding, coupled with the action needed to address this issue were helpful for me this past month.
2. The training I received as a clinician to learn how to be a counselor
Counseling has not been my strong suit as a speech-language pathologist. But I worked hard to be a better counselor over the years that I worked as a clinician making home visits, being with parents struggling with their child’s new diagnoses, and learning from amazing mentors. In addition to information gathering–to deal with the stress of the storm–I made calls to senior citizens around the state, making sure their needs were taken care of as much as they could be, and then staying on the line to just listen and be there with them through the phone. Many of them were distraught and likely with mental, physical, emotional, and cognitive disability. I know I wouldn’t have been able to talk to them without the amazing training and mentorship I received as a clinician, and I’m grateful for how that helped me stay calm and help them as much as I could.
3. Going back to a familiar podcast about something I love
When I’m deep in an episode of worry, even if I’ve come up with strategies for how to cope, it’s sometimes hard to get to those strategies. Yesterday, for example, was a hard day, but I was able to get myself outside for a walk. While I usually try to listen to a new podcast on my walks, I couldn’t quite handle processing the new information. It took a bit of time to realize what would help, but finally, I got to it–I realized should re-listen to something I know I love, and that’s this podcast about language development. It’s not without it’s faults, but the overall message about how children develop language is one that grounds me in why I love what I do as a student studying how children develop language.
The Lazy PhD 