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21May

How to Prevent Mental Fatigue as an SLP

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Burn Out Career Advice New SLP Reduce Stress Self Care
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Mental Fatigue as an SLP Pinterest

Mental fatigue as an SLP is for real. When it kicks in, it feels like the only thing you can do is stare off into space, binge on a TV show or just take a nap, but instead you are trying to run sessions, see groups of students, and be “on” and happy until the work day ends.

Mental fatigue happens to everyone at some point, when you are trying to juggle a lot of different tasks, when you have something weighing on your mind, when you are feeling anxious, when you are incredibly focused and working on a project for a long time, or even when you just haven;t slept very well. It is the feeling of being totally wiped out and exhausted, even if you haven’t done anything physically exhausting that day and when you have gotten plenty of sleep. It makes it difficult to focus, process and think clearly, and it can be incredibly draining.

Having this happen once in awhile is no fun, but having it happen constantly can make it difficult to get through the week. When this mental fatigue comes from your work, it can make you start to question your career choice or if you are “cut out” to be an SLP.

Being an SLP can be incredibly challenging on a daily basis. Mental fatigue as an SLP can make it difficult to focus on your sessions, make planning them take longer, make it hard to complete your paperwork, and even leave you redoing work or spending hours trying to finish it. All of which leads to even more mental fatigue. It’s no wonder the “self-care” of choice for many is a bottle of wine and a Netflix binge each night.

This mental fatigue can come from a few different places in any job. Mental fatigue as an SLP often comes from the way you set up your day, in order to get the MOST work done in the shortest amount of time, because you are bombarded with a LOT of work each day.

If you are setting up your daily schedule with little breaks, lots of switching from task to task, and constantly combing though emails and reports on your few minutes between sessions, your brain is bound to be overloaded and you are bound to be exhausted. With a few tweaks, you can actually increase your efficiency, improve your focus, and reduce your mental fatigue as an SLP. It takes reworking the way you were often taught to go about your daily work.

To help you reduce your mental fatigue as an SLP, there are a few things you can do:

Reduce Multi-tasking:

Multi-tasking has been shown to be incredibly ineffective. Many studies show that it not only decreases your productivity, but it actually take up MORE time for you to complete tasks and leaves you feeling mentally drained. This happens because multi-tasking is like doing mental jumping jacks. If you are switching from task to task, even after 10-20 minutes, your brain has to start firing in a totally different way to work on that task. If you do this throughout your day, you are likely to feel mentally fatigued and exhausted at the end of the work day. And most of us switch back and forth a lot more frequently than 10-20 minutes at a time. It also takes time, mentally and physically, to switch between tasks (think loading a new webpage, opening your email, finding your materials, etc).

This is why multi-tasking is often referred to as task switching and has been shown to take up nearly 40% of your productivity time each day.

Instead of multi-tasking, map out specific task you can work on, and do this for a set amount of time. Set a timer if needed, so you know when to stop working on the task. You can also limit distractions by turning off phone notifications, blocking social media, not checking email, and even puttying a sign on your door not to disturb.

When you are finished, take a break and then move on to the next task.  It ups your productivity and decreases your mental fatigue.

Take breaks – 90 minutes (not for paperwork or email):

Speaking of breaks, make sure you take them throughout your day. I know it can be really easy to just keep pushing through to the end of the day, or sometimes to the end of the school year, so you feel like you are getting the work finished, so then you can take a break. But breaks actually help you to be more efficient, because they allow your brain to focus more easily and to work more efficiently, so you are more efficient and effective in return. Not taking breaks has been shown to lead to slower processing time and more errors, which end up leading to more work in the long run.

Breaks also give you a shift mentally, so you are not wearing yourself out, leading to exhaustion.

Try aiming for a short break every 90 minutes. Take a 10 minutes stretch or walk, grab a glass of water or a cup of coffee, go chat with a colleague, or get a snack. Do something – not checking emails or social media or switching to a new task – that gives you a true break, so you feel mentally refreshed and ready to work again.

Batch your day:

Batching your day goes right along with reducing multi-tasking. Batching refers to grouping like things together, so you aren’t mentally switching from task to task, but also so you have set times to get things accomplished, and then move on.

Batching looks like this:

  • Checking emails at specific times during the day and responding right away (maybe first thing, midday and end of day…or even less), instead of checking them every time you have a free moment throughout the day (which leads to task-switching and more exhaustion).
  • Setting up times to work on reports and other “writing” tasks, instead of squeezing them in between therapy sessions
  • Planning sessions at a set time each day (end of day always works great to prepare for the next day), instead of planning throughout the day.
  • Scheduling therapy sessions for a certain part of the day, maybe all in the morning or all in the afternoon, or for specific chunks of each time block, so you are able to be in a therapy mindset and not thinking about the other work you were wanting to finish before the session started.

Transition at end of work day:

One of the best things you can do to help fight mental fatigue as an SLP and be more present at work and at home, is to create some kind of transition at the end of your day. This will help you shift out of work mode and into being at home, rather than still feeling like you should be doing work or thinking about the day and the work you still need to do.

A transition can help you to mentally leave work at work and instead be more present at home, which leads you to being more well-rested, and really feel like you get a break form your work day.

You can create a transition by doing some sort of routine or ritual at the end of the day that mentally lets you know it is time to be finished with work. It could be big or small. Here are some examples:

  • Stretch or take a walk at the end of the day
  • Stop for coffee or tea on the way home
  • Head to the gym or a yoga class
  • Go for a hike
  • Call a friend
  • Listen to your favorite song or podcast
  • Read a book, blog, or magazine

The transition helps you to mentally prepare for work to end, leaving you to feel more relaxed and present at home, so you can really soak up that time off.

If you are looking for ways to improve mental fatigue as an SLP, give these a try. For even more, make sure to check out my Professional Development Courses (CEUs available) that dive even deeper into managing your overall stress and reducing fatigue and burn out.

Plus, if you are ready to finally be DONE with the constant battle of stress as an SLP, check out the SLP Stress Management Online Course, an 8-week online course designed to help you manage stress, reduce burnout and find more balance in your life, no matter what gets thrown at you (teletherapy, pandemic, paperwork x 1000, you name it).

You can also get some free resources by signing up for the #SLPToolbox, that will help you start implementing some of these practices today, Sign up below for access:

Much Love,

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15Dec

Should You do SLP Work on Your Holiday Break?

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Burn Out New SLP Reduce Stress Self Care
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SLP Work on Your Holiday Break (1)It’s the holiday season! Many SLPs are either about to be on a Winter Break for a few weeks, or are perhaps taking a few days off, finding the work load to be less, or having to juggle shorter days of work when their kids are off from school. For these SLPs, the lighter and often shorter schedule can be like a light at the end of the tunnel, especially if you schedule was a little hectic with meetings, make-up sessions, and getting it “all” done right before the break.

While this is a time to sit back and relax for a few weeks, perhaps traveling or spending time with your loved ones (or just a good book), a lot of SLPs find it hard to turn off their productive side and spend a lot of the time off catching up on work, and not finding much time to relax at all. Or, you might find that your burn out is full-blown and you spend the break denying (to yourself that you even have a job you have to go back to in a few weeks. Either way, it does not bring about much balance in your life, and will often lead to more anxiety and stress once you head back into work after your break.

So the question is, should you do SLP work on your Holiday Break?

The answer is dual-sided, and comes back to this –  You have to find (the seemingly mythical) balance. When you are on your break, there are times that doing work will be extremely beneficial for you, but too much of it means you don’t get a break at all.

Here is how you can break down what type of work is best for you, and when to do it (or not):

  • Beneficial to Work:
    • Completing a Project: If you have something that you don’t usually have time to complete, and it is not just paperwork, this might be a good time to work on it. make sure it is something that you enjoy doing, so it doesn’t feel like a lot of work, and that you set a time limit to when you will begin and end working on it.
    • Something Stressing You Out: If not planning for the month/week.year ahead stresses you out, go ahead and take some time to plan out your next month or so, but limit the amount of time you have by setting a timer. This way, you work on it, but you do what is most important and within a given time frame.
    • Passion: If you have something that you are passionate about and want to learn more about, create or launch, this is a great time to dedicate some of your time to work on it. Again, make sure to set up some specific days or hours, so you aren’t working your entire break, even if it is something you enjoy doing.
  • NOT Beneficial to Work:
    • Family Time: If you find you are spending more time working than with your loved ones, you might need to take a step back and re-evaluate. Go ahead and make a plan for when you will work, and when you won’t. Mark it on your calendar, along with any other family events that you have going on during your break (school plays, dinners, recitals, parties, etc), so you are giving yourself plenty of time and space to enjoy both things.
    • Vacation: If you have planned a vacation somewhere, whether a cruise, road trip, or visiting family and friends, give yourself some time to unplug from work. Allow yourself to be present during this time, so you can enjoy and benefit from it fully. Then, when it is over to before you go, carve out some time to take care of the work related tasks you have or would like to do.
    • The Entire Break: It might sounds silly, but if you don’t watch out, you might spend your entire break doing work, or thinking and ruminating on the work you need/should be doing. If you find this happening, get your calendar and mark down some specific times you will do work, along with what you will work on. The rest of the time, try to focus on what you are doing in that moment – whether it is a trip with family or sitting down to a cup of hot cocoa. This will give your brain some much needed rest and help you to feel less stressed and overwhelmed, during break and after.

Of course, this might be a bit different for you and your circumstances, but use this as a guide to help you decide if working during your break is something that will help reduce your stress and bring back some passion for your work, or if it is something that you are doing in order to feel productive and could cause burn out to flare up.

For more resources, make sure to sign up for the SLP Toolbox below. You’ll get free meditations to help you release stress and unwind, templates for your “Must-Do” lists, and even some journals and Self-Care guides.


Much Love,

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11Nov

How to Feel Less Drained and Exhausted as an SLP

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Gratitude Journal Techniques for SLPs Reduce Stress
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Feel Less Drained PinterestIf you are an SLP, you might feel like the good parts of your day are far and few between, and that they are outweighed heavily by the harder, draining, and “bad” parts of your daily work. It has nothing to do with patients or students (usually), and often has more to do with the stress that comes from the other aspects of your work – more emphasis on direct vs indirect therapy services, ever-changing paperwork and protocols for billing, less and less control over your caseload and schedule, and being “on” for 40 hours a week.

These things can often leave you feeling drained, exhausted (mentally and physically), and sometimes you might even feel anxious about the week ahead or dread going to work the next day. They also often have nothing to do with why you became an SLP in the first place, or the joy and passion you once had for your career.

When you start to feel this way, you are often overloaded with stressors that pile up each day, either because there are so many or because you have no way to manage them properly. This can lead to chronic stress and burn out. Your brain gets stuck in a pattern of being on the lookout for stress and then creating more stress because of it. It keeps you focused on what is not working each day, rather than noticing the things that are working. This is what you need to switch to feel less drained and exhausted as an SLP.

To create a shift in your brains patterns, and start routinely noticing things that are working and going well, you can do practices that create and cultivate more positivity in your day. This doesn’t mean you have to change jobs to one with less demands or overhaul your daily schedule – these things often can’t be changed and would come with a new set of stress if you did. Instead, you practice looking for the positive, and noticing moments that otherwise might go unnoticed, so you shift your attention to what is working for you, putting your energy, time, and thoughts into those things.

One simple way to do this is to create more gratitude through a journaling practice. Gratitude journaling helps you to shift out of the negative stress cycle in your brain and into a place where you are cultivating more positivity.

Gratitude Journaling Benefits:

  • Notice what is working each day
  • Shifts your brain patterns to notice more good moments
  • End/Begin the day on a positive note
  • Gives you a break in the day

Research in the field of Positive Psychology has shown that it takes 3 positive moments to make up for 1 negative interaction, and that if we end a moment or event on a positive note, the entire thing seems more positive. This is how your brain starts to shift and more “good” moments start to happen in your day, reducing your overall feelings of stress. This can be key to helping you feel less drained and exhausted as an SLP.

How to Gratitude Journal:

  • Write down 3 good things from your day
    • They can be small or big
  • Do this at a set times each day
    • Morning to set your intention for the day
    • After work to transition from work to home
    • Evening to end the day on a positive note
  • Aim for 5-7 days a week

Once you get started, you can do this most days each week, either in the morning, end of your work day or right before bed, to help you train your brain to notice what works, not just what doesn’t. When things do feel stressful, you’ll also have a journal full of good things that have happened on a daily bass, to help you shift back into a more positive state. It doesn’t mean you ignore the hard times, but that you are able to rebound from them easier and are less affected by them.

If you are looking for more ways to start a Gratitude Practice, make sure to join the SLP Toolbox, a free resource center for SLPs, where you’ll find printable Gratitude Journal templates, as well as meditation, self-care checklists and other stress-reducing resources designed specifically for SLPs.

You can access them by signing up below (plus you’ll get a free 7-day Stress Less Challenge sent straight to your inbox).


Much Love,

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10Oct

Big Announcement: I’m Presenting at ASHA Convention 2018!

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Burn Out Career Advice Goal Setting
2 Comments

SLP Burn Out ASHA Pinterest
For many years, I wasn’t sure what my purpose was for my work. It was a constant battle in my head to figure out what work I was “meant” to be doing, and how that would balance with the est of my life (schedules, finances, career paths, relationships, etc). I spent a lot of time and a lot of money training and trying to figure it all out, and moved around to many different settings, classes, studios and paths.

But it always felt like there was a piece missing:

  • I didn’t feel like I fit in as an SLP
  • Yoga and fitness were fun but I wasn’t sure if they were sustainable
  • Health Coaching just wasn’t picking up
  • I wanted to help others but I didn’t know exactly how or what that looked like

The main part for me was that I didn’t know how to put everything that I had done and learned together, or see that it could all fit together. It wasn’t until I came back to the SLP field after a very long hiatus (almost 5 years) that I realized the people I wanted to help and reach out to the most were the SLPs.

I always knew that I wanted to help people to feel better in their lives. To me, that meant showing them that they could have more freedom in their daily life and wellness, feel less stressed and stuck, have more energy throughout the day, and feel as if they were doing meaningful work that was sustainable. I wanted to help people have more balance in their lives overall.

Most SLPs I knew go into the field to do all of that and to help others, but were doing it at the cost of their own health and wellness, both physical and mental, and were really struggling with their career choice.  Some were even, much like me, debating if they had made the wrong choice. This was mostly due to the constant stress and demands of the field, but also to the general giving nature of the work, built into a society and culture that doesn’t pride itself on taking care of yourself. The problem for SLPs is that when you give so much, and never give back to yourself, you burn out really hard and really fast.

I started working with SLPs, reaching out for coaching, FB groups and writing blogs. I had done this in the past, with no real audience to work with, and I usually heard crickets. But this time was different because I was different. I knew who I wanted to talk to and what I wanted to share with them – ways to reduce stress and prevent burn out. I wanted to share how to find more balance in their live and passion for their careers.

I would hear back from people in groups, via email and on social media. Eventually, I decided to offer coaching programs and help others more directly. And then I decided that maybe, just maybe, I could take this to a bigger stage, to reach more people who were feeling the stress and overwhelm of being an SLP.

So I put it all together and replied to the ASHA Convention Call for Papers.

  • I thought they would laugh
  • I thought they would think it was silly
  • I thought they would say “No, that’s not what out convention is about”

But instead, they accepted my application and I will be presenting a poster presentation at this years 2018 ASHA convention!

Honestly, I have felt a lot of heartbreak over the years in my career choices and path, but there has always been another voice that guided me to keep going and trust my instincts and intuition. This is what led me to teach yoga and meditation, to get back into speech, to do this work and to apply to ASHA. It’s moments like this that make it all worth it and keep me doing this work.

On Thursday, November 15th from 1:30-3pm, I will be giving 15 minute talks on Balanced Living for the SLP: Burn Out & Stress Management Using Mindfulness & Self-Care 

Poster presentations give you the opportunity to hear form a LOT of people on various subjects, but to also be more engaged with them. If you attend the session, you get to ask questions, share your experience and learn how to work through your challenges. And after the sessions end, the posters remain up throughout the day.

As you start to fill out your schedule for the long weekend, make sure to leave a few minutes to come see me. And if you can’t make it during the session scheduled time, send me an email and we can meet up or I can answer any questions you have.

I can’t wait to continue this journey, so that more SLPs can learn how to manage the stress that they struggle with each day. Together we can work through this and find more balance in our SLP life.

Thank you all for supporting my dreams and work, and for working so hard to find your own as well.

I’ll see you at ASHA.

Much Love,

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10Oct

Meditation to Help SLPs Fight the “Sunday Blues”

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Meditation
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SLP Sunday Blues Meditation Pinterest
This meditation is to help you reduce the anxiety and overwhelm that can come from “future-tripping” or the “Sunday Blues”. If you are feeling dread before work each week, often feel your thoughts are racing and spiraling to the future, or feel stuck in the “Sunday Blues” or “Scaries”, this meditation can help you to feel more present in your body and in the moment, so you can take action and reduce stress.

Want more meditations? Make sure to check out the Meditation and Audio library, and subscribe to the monthly newsletter for a free meditation practice straight to your inbox, as well as access to the SLP Toolbox, where you’ll find more meditation audios, journal templates and more.

Much Love,

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9Oct

How to Create and Evening Routine

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Burn Out Meditation Reduce Stress Self Care
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Evening Routine Pinterest (1)

Stress. Overwhelm. Exhaustion.

If you are an SLP, you are probably familiar with these, and have felt them off and on throughout your career. As Helping Professionals, it is our job to care, completely, for our patients/clients/students, and when we give so much to them each day, and then add on the administrative (aka paperwork and billing) side of things, we are usually left feeling drained, overwhelmed and stressed.

When you are feeling stressed, one of the best ways to start to feel less stressed and overwhelmed is to start to create routines, habits, or rituals that help you to feel more calm, centered and in control of your daily life. These help to bring about balance, while also giving you the routine you need to know what is coming each day, within both your work and home lives.

Morning rituals are very common, since they help you to start your day on the “right” foot. They usually entail waking up a little early, having a movement and/or meditation practice, taking time for yourself and making sure you fuel with breakfast and coffee.

Evening routines and rituals, however, are a little less talked about but can have a HUGE impact on your daily life satisfaction.

When taking time to create a routine of some kind in the evening, you take the time to  let the tension of your day go, while creating new ways to reduce stress and help you relax before you drift off to sleep. It can help you to feel more relaxed and restored when you wake up, and also to get deeper sleep or to get to sleep more easily.

How to Create an Evening Routine:Copy of Ep 20 Graphic A

  • Carve out dedicated time each evening, perhaps right before bed or right when you get home/end work.  5-10 minutes can be enough to help you transition, by letting work thoughts stay at work (or let your mind relax before slumber) and releasing some of the tension you might be carrying form the day.
  • Find something that both relaxes you and helps you feel less drained and depleted. Try a Self-care practice that allows you to unwind form your day, but also nourished you on a deeper level. Bubble baths can be great, but deeper practices, such as journaling and meditation, can help you get even more out of your time.
  • Make sure you choose something that allows you to check in, rather than check out. Binge watching your favorite show might be all you feel like you have the energy for at the end of a stressful day. Go ahead and try it – but notice if it becomes routine. If you are doing this every night, just to make it through, you are likely to be checking out instead of checking in.  This will create more stress overtime and won;t really help you to destress. Instead, choose a self-care activity that helps you to face and let go of some of the stress.

And example of an evening routine to help you transition from work to home might look something like:

  • At the end of the work day, take a few minutes to write down 3 things you need to do tomorrow. If there is anything on your ind form work, go ahead and write about it to get it out of our head. Maybe even write down 3 good things from your day.
  • Meditate, stretch or deep breath for 5 minutes. If you have more time, go for a walk or try an energizing workout.
  • Grab some water, tea, coffee and a healthy snack for your commute home, so you are energized and nourished as you head to your duties at home.

For an evening routine closer to bed time it might look something like this:

  • Grab an herbal tea or water to hydrate for tomorrow (not right before bed though).
  • Take 5-10 minutes to meditate or deep breathe. If you have the time, take longer and add in some movement such as deep stretches and folds to help release tension from your day and prepare you for sleep.
  • Write down your top moment from the day, as well as 3 other small but positive moments that occurred.

When you carve out sometime for yourself, it helps you to check in with what you are feeling and needing, mentally, emotionally and physically, so you are more aware of how to move through in that moment and as you move into the next day. It also helps you to refuel and give back to yourself after spending the day giving back to so many others. When you do this, you are less drained and exhausted, which means you are of better service to others (and yourself as you move about the world.

What can you do today to create more routine? Leave a comment below and make sure to check out my recent interview over on SLP Happy Hour podcast, where we discuss Self-Care and creating an Evening Routine as an SLP.

You can also find more resources, such as meditations and stress relieving webinars, over on my education page. You can also subscribe to the “Balanced SLP” newsletter/magazine for monthly-themed self-care video tips, fresh blog posts, new meditation audios, recipes to-go and more.  You can subscribe below.

Much Love,

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3Sep

3 Ways for SLPs to Stress Less this School Year

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Burn Out Career Advice Reduce Stress Self Care
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SLP Stress Less Pinterest

With a new school year here and many of us already back at school and (yikes!) even seeing students already, you are bound to start having those dreaded, stressful thoughts that you left on your desk at the end of the year, start to find their way back to you.

Even if you are excited and feeling recharged form the summer break, you might find your thoughts starting to flicker back an forth between excitement and anxiety, the familiar pull that you know will eventually take over by the end of the year. I don’t mean to paint a dark and dreary picture for you, but to show that you are not alone in this. If you have ever felt the exhaustion of chronic stress or burn out, you know that it can slowly creep in and take over before you realize what has happened.

That is the bad news.

The good news is that this usually only happens because we go through the same cycle each year or excitement about the start of the new year and all that it could bring right on to the reality of the work it entails and then the sheer exhaustion it brings by Summertime. For most, this cycle gets slightly more difficult each passing school year, because the few months in the summer, where you could really take time to recharge and create some changes in your work-life balance, are spent ignoring the feelings while you relax for a few months, or you work like crazy in a PRN job or running errands all summer. (more…)

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10Jul

What to Ask Yourself Before You Quit Your SLP Job or Career

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Burn Out Career Advice Goal Setting New SLP Reduce Stress
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quit your SLP job

Quit SLP Job Pinterest

Being an SLP can be incredibly wonderful at times, and at other times incredibly stressful. A great deal of this stress comes from the parts of the job that are outside of the therapy realm and often seem to have more and more rules around them, such as paperwork and productivity rates. Some of the stress, though, comes from the nature of the job itself. As SLPs, it is our job and our mission to help people communicate, nourish and thrive, as best they can with the situation they are in. Our schooling and career are set up around us being able to give our tine and energy to these, sometimes without a break during the day. It is highly rewarding at times, and also highly frustrating and draining. It can be enough to make you want to quit your SLP job at times.  (more…)

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