This week, the topic is a brief breakdown of why myself and so many other therapists so often and passionately recommend journaling and writing exercises. I apologize for missing last week’s newsletter. I was not able to pull together the content on the topic of writing in the way that I had hoped. How ironic! You might be someone who openly embraces this part of your process, and most likely started journaling long before a mental health professional suggested it. Or, maybe you’re a little ambivalent, unsure of why it’s so popular, but curious. For others, writing is really not your thing and that’s of course okay too. There are so many wonderful mediums of self expression, and writing is only one option. I choose to maintain a journaling practice for myself and recommend it so highly because it’s economically accessible, adaptable to not only different people but also different moods and schedules, and is a tool for expression that also provides physiological benefits. 

The topic of this week’s post is how to discern between feeling a sense of agency versus having a sense of control, with a focus on believing that you are doing enough! I have heard from many of you this past week that so much about life feels out of control right now -- and you are absolutely right. I have heard many of you say you wish you could do more, and I hear you. I’m right there with you in this uncertainty. We cannot control the outcomes of how this global pandemic impacts others or ourselves. We cannot control how we react emotionally. However, we absolutely can work to feel a sense of agency in our daily choices and how we choose to cope with the strong emotions that may be evoked during this time. 

To highlight the essence of this topic, I’m first turning to the film Eat Pray Love. If you’ve been anywhere near social media, you know there are plenty of memes going around about COVID-19, working from home (#WFH), and watching lots of tv and movies. I’m a huge fan of referencing tv and movies in therapy, because oftentimes these fictional narratives allow us a chance to see relationships, emotions, and conflict play out in ways that relate to exactly what we might be talking about that day. Check out this clip (really just the first 30 seconds) and keep reading to unpack my thoughts! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Ojsvc_KsDY

The recent outbreak of COVID-19 has many more people inside and living life differently from their normal routines. This isn’t true for everyone, but it certainly got me thinking about the role of routines in our lives. I am lucky that I already work from a home office and my routines are able to stay relatively normal most days, but even with that being said I have found myself re-examining my routines and putting a greater emphasis on self-care. One way of looking at this global pandemic-- if you are in a position of now being homebound -- is that it is an opportunity to focus inwards and on being instead of doing. Routines focused on self-care, reflection, and connection may aid you in that process.