As most of you gathered from my last post— and newsletter subscribers have been getting even more content on this– I’m been having a tough winter. I’m burned out, occasionally anxious, often depressed. I’m still functioning, but struggling. Why? Well, because I’m a public school teacher and a mother of two young children, both of […]
depression
My Dumb Anxious Brain
My dumb anxious brain wakes me at 4AM worrying about the schedule for a school event that will take place three weeks from now. I tell my brain to go back to sleep. Instead, it drafts an email to the person in charge of the event, wanting details. I tell my brain that I do […]
End of 2020: How I’m Healing
I haven’t written much lately– not here, not anywhere except my journal. In the spirit of complete transparency, and the knowledge that many of you out there feel the same, I’ve struggled lately. I’ve struggled with stressful situations and changes at work and connecting with my students virtually. I’ve struggled to contain my work and […]
Grief and Creativity
A writing friend of mine asked me why productivity and creativity seem so hard right now. I, too, have noticed that many of my most creative friends are feeling blocked. Unsurprisingly, my answer to my friend had to do with the grief process, which I’ve been writing about a lot lately. Since mid-March I’ve been […]
But First, Grief
I had planned to write a post today about the death of George Floyd, Black Lives Matter, and the crackdown on protestors this past weekend. In my usual way, I had hoped to find perspective through my own writing, give my readers hope, and prompt action. But I woke up this morning, and I didn’t […]
Super-Anxiety Deflector Girl!
There are anxious people in my life. This wouldn’t be a problem, except that I’m also a naturally anxious person who has worked very very hard to be less anxious, and I’m also a naturally empathetic person who easily absorbs emotions coming from others– including anxiety. When I’m with anxious people, no matter how much […]