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13Mar

Are Your Weekends Contributing to SLP Your Stress?

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Burn Out Self Care
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SLP Weekend Stress Pinterest

As a Speech Therapist, not matter how many years you have into the field, you are probably really, really busy. You are either trying to juggle a full caseload, piles of paperwork, productivity standards or trying to keep up with your CEUs and education. This can all lead to a huge, exhausting amount of stress. When you are constantly stressed at work, the weekends can seem like the light at the end of the tunnel.

The weekends are there for you to take a break from work, relax and unwind, and perhaps even dabble in some hobbies or non-work related interests. They are time for you to recharge your brain and take care of your needs. The weekends are a time to decompress and fill up before the week begins again. (more…)

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23Jan

3 Ways to Face Your SLP Stress

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Burn Out Reduce Stress
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Face SLP Stress Pinterest

I recently had a talk with some people about stress. The conversation was about feeling stressed by others stress and walking away from it. It was about how to avoid feeling stressed by work and life. It was about how hearing stories form others about how much they are struggling is too much, and makes you want to turn away. It was a conversation about daily stress. Mostly, about running away from it.

It is a conversation that I have had come up more than once over the last few months.

In the Stressed Out SLPs Facebook group, we often share the things at work that leave us feeling the most stressed. Then other people can comment, give you a boost or help you figure out a solution. I often share some of the tips and tricks that I write about here, as well as do LIVE videos and leave additional information or share articles. It is place that is meant to lift you up, not by constantly making you laugh (which is a good thing at times), but by helping you to really take charge and make changes to your schedule, job, caseload, etc, or at least to let you know that you are not alone in the struggle. (more…)

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17Jan

How To Create A Vision Board

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Goal Setting Reduce Stress Self Care
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Vision Board Pinterest (1)

Each year, I like to set an intention for the year – whether it is something small, like going to the beach more often, or something big, like paying off debt or starting a new training/school. Sometimes it is a simple mantra, like “expand” or “create joy”. This helps me to focus on where I want to go in the year, rather than what let me down or what I need to change from the year before. The intention is to bring in something more positive, so there are more positive shifts happening in my life throughout the year.

Similar to setting a goal, it helps me to make better decisions and gives me something to lean back on. With my intention in mind during decision making, I can make sure I ask myself “Is this moving me towards my intention for the year, or taking me further from it?”.  This strategy can work for new continuing education, certification or degrees; a new job or setting; or perhaps even a change in your lifestyle outside of work.

As January moves ahead, it is a good time to reflect on the goals and intentions you may have set for the year. You can start to see if you have been able to make shifts towards that intention you’ve set, or if that goal isn’t quite what you intended it to be. You can also see if your goals are already pushed back into the far corners of your mind as you make space for all of the “must-do’s” that are part of everyday life.

This happens really easily, and is one of the reasons why most of us either forget our intentions or just give up on them after a month or so. If you are feeling like your goals are already slipping away from you, or you are looking for a way to be more aware of them each day, you can try making them visual.

One way that I like to do this is to create a vision board. A vision board is a visual means of having your goals on display, around you, to see every day. These goals come as pictures, images, quotes, trinkets or anything that is meaningful to you. Having these items on display helps you to remember your intention, connect to it more often and feel as if you are really working towards it each day. It also helps give you more input to use when you ask yourself “Is this bringing me closer to my intention?”.

In the past, my vision boards have represented where I wanted my yoga practice and teaching to lead me, what I wanted to learn, how I wanted to develop my coaching practice and even what I wanted to do with our house once we moved. My boards usually focus on my career and personal goals or hobbies, as these are the areas I need the most clarity in, but they can really represent anything that you wish to work on.

Here are some examples of my boards in the past:

2012 Visions2013 Vision Board

A vision board is very simple to make and can be made for very little expense. It can be a fun project to do as part of your self-care on evening, or could even be a family night activity or part of a date night. If you run a business, this could be part of your business strategy sessions and planning for the year ahead.

How to create a vision board:

  • Grab some magazine or newspapers or flyers
  • Print out images or quotes that are meaningful to you
  • Find photos, pictures or even cards around your home
  • Paste or thumbtack them into your board
  • Place your board somewhere you see every day. If it is focused on your career, place it in your office. If it is focused on personal development, place it somewhere you work or attend to often. If it is relationship focused, or perhaps you made a board with your partner or family, hang it in your room or family space.
  • Each year, look back at your board and swap out things that aren’t meaningful or you have moved beyond with things for the new year.

That really is all there is to it. Once you create your board you are ready for it to work its “magic” and help you reach your intentions throughout the year.

Have you ever created a vision board before? If so, leave your tips in the comments below or in the FB group. If you want even more useful tools to help combat stress and burn out, make sure to sign up below for the SLP Toolbox.


You can also check out more on goal setting here. If you’d like to dive deeper in setting your goals and decreasing your overall stress, I’d love to work with you this year. You can email me any questions you might have to jessi@jessiandricks.com or schedule a phone/skype chat here. 

Much Love,

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9Jan

8 Pieces of Advice for the New SLP

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Career Advice New SLP Reduce Stress
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8 Pieces of Advice PinterestRecently, I have been seeing tons of questions and posts in FB groups from brand new SLP’s, in their CFY, who are completely overwhelmed. Many of these professionals are lacking the confidence of a seasoned SLP or are just looking for a bit of reassurance on their choice of evaluation tool or therapy materials. But it’s not just because they feel new and aren’t as confident in their skills as a clinician yet. For many more, it is because they feel a lack of support, have way too much work and their caseloads are out of control.

My personal CF story is a little confusing. I had three different jobs between the time I graduated and the time I earned my CCC’s. I left one position a month before my CF was to be completed, because my supervisor had forgotten to renew her license and I was docked 3 months of my CF, plus I had to go to the board to determine my case. I had otherwise felt very supported and that my workload was good, although I often felt I wasn’t really helping anyone or doing enough for my patients. It didn’t give me enough of a challenge or push to do grow as a new SLP. (more…)

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10Dec

Why is Meditation so Important for Decreasing SLP Burn Out?

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Meditation Self Care
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SLP Meditation Pinterest (1)

When I was in Yoga Teacher training, and going through burn out in my Speech Therapy career, I decided I needed to buy a meditation cushion. We were learning about how important meditation was, how we should be doing it on a daily basis and how it could be life changing. So when I saw a beautiful cushion in the store, I decided I needed it. It would be the thing that kick-started my meditation practice.

Instead, it became the place my dog would take naps.

My cushion was used sporadically and was often found stuck under my desk, in a corner or behind my bedroom door under a pile of clothes. It was often covered in dust and was not as worn out as I had hoped it would be. But lately, 7 years after buying it, I have found myself taking a seat on my cushion most days of the week. Some days it is for 20 minutes, and other times ti is just for one or two. Most often, I sit for about 5 minutes at a time. Meditation is slowly becoming part of my daily routine, and one of my main sources of stress-release and ease.

It seems I’m not alone.

Meditation was once something for the woo-woo, hippy-dippy tribe or perhaps the new age. It was something your crunchy aunt used to do in a field or the woods. It was not something for those in a busy, professional career with things like a family, soccer games, minivans, sports cars or a large paycheck. It was for the minimalists and those who turned against modern living. But somewhere along the way, things started to change.

Meditation, and its benefits, are now part of a modern lifestyle. Along with practices like yoga and deep breathing, meditation has gone mainstream. People everywhere, from all walks of life, are being prescribed and practicing it on a regular basis.  There are apps for meditation, books and magazines, and doctors and therapist prescribing it to patients. It is now as much a part of a healthy lifestyle as diet and exercise. Much of this integration is due to the large amounts of research that support meditation as a way to transform your daily habits, by rewiring your brains coping mechanisms and stress patterns.

Here are a few ways meditation can help you:

  • Research has shown that meditation is not only creates a few moments of calm in an otherwise hectic day, but it actually rewires your brain to handle stress better.
    • It also helps decrease activity in the amygdala, the home of our “fight or flight” response. Too much stress an trauma can cause your amygdala to work in overdrive. Meditation has been shown to help decrease that response, so you are better able to work through stressful situations on a daily basis.
    • This means that if you suffer from a lot of anxiety or stress, due to the chaos of your daily life, meditation can help you reduce it and gain some control over your day. Instead of going straight into panic mode when something arises, meditation helps your brain pause and rethink your reactions.
  • Regular meditation can also help to improve your memory and perhaps even prevent or slow the progression of diseases of the mind, such as dementia and Mild Cognitive Impairment.
    • This is because meditating actually helps your brain to function better. According to a study from University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Center for Healthy Minds in Mindful Magazine, regular meditation can increase the gray matter thickness of your brain, which can help you with everyday functions like problem solving, attention and memory.
    • One particular meditation, according to several studies and the AlzheimerPrevention.org, chanting Sa Ta Na Ma, has been shown in studies to help treat and prevent Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.  This is a chanting meditation that you perform for 12 minutes. It has a set rhythm and pattern. You can find the steps here or follow along with this guided meditation.
  • Meditation also helps you to relax more, which can help reduce cortisol in your body. Cortisol is the hormone that releases when you are feeling stressed. It is a natural response to stress, but can go into overdrive when you are constantly stressed, such as when you are burnt out. This constant stream of the hormone can contribute to weight gain around your middle, increased anxiety, decreased digestion, sleep problems, heart issues and memory problems, to name a few. Meditating can help reduce and regulate your cortisol release, to help bring balance back into your body and mind.

Now that you know why meditation can be so important to reduce stress and burn out, try to make it part of your daily routine. It doesn’t have to be stressful or even take much time or effort. Try to take 5-10 minutes most days to meditate. Find a quiet place where you can sit comfortably, without distractions. If you are comfortable with it, close your eyes. Take a few deep breaths and repeat a mantra (quote or saying), count down from 50 or 100, or pay attention to your inhales and exhales. For guidance, you can try one of these downloadable meditation practices from UVA, apps like Pacifica or Headspace or even a Youtube video. If you want a live class or session, many yoga studios and retreat centers offer weekly meditation classes. You can also try one of these downloadable meditations from the Meditation and Audio Library or sign up for the “SLP ToolBox” which features even more free meditations and resources to reduce stress and burn out.

For even more, insight sand practices to use to reduce your burn out and manage stress as an SLP, check out one of these Continuing Education webinars (you’ll earn hours towards your certification!):

3 Common SLP Stressors and How to Manage Them  on Xceptional ED (1.5 CMH Hours)

Managing Common SLP Stressors before Burn Out Occurs on Northern Speech Services (2.5 ASHA CEU hours .025 units)

3 Biggest Stressors for SLPs and What to Do About Them on Speechpathology.com (1.5 hours ASHA CEU .15 units)

It doesn’t matter what you try or how you decide to meditate, just find the one that feels right for you and that you can make into a regular practice. Then let me know how it goes! Leave a comment below if you have given it a try or already have a meditation practice. Which works for you and why?  If you have a regular meditation practice that has helped you, please share with others to help them see the benefits and get started.

Much Love,

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5Dec

Burn Out and What to Do About It

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Burn Out Career Advice
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Burn Out Webinar PinterestAs Helping Professionals, especially Speech Language Pathologists, we are no stranger to feeling stressed, overwhelmed and exhausted. But did you know that these can lead to a condition called Burn Out?

Most SLPs love their work and are passionate about helping people, young and old, to communicate, grow and thrive to the best of their abilities, but at some point this passion starts to fade. The stress of paperwork, productivity and managing a caseload can start to make it hard to really enjoy the work, continue to learn and grow as a therapist or to even feel supported and respected by your co-workers. As this stress and dispassion builds, it can become chronic and lead to exhaustion, overwhelm, and burn out. (more…)

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28Nov

4 Ways for SLPs to Increase Your Energy at Work

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Burn Out Well-Being
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SLP Work Energy Pinterest (1)

Have you ever had one of those days where you didn’t do anything physically, or even mentally, exhausting, but you feel completely drained and exhausted by the end of the day. These are the days that can easily make you feel like you are in the wrong job, aren’t good enough or are completely out of balance. I had one of these days recently, and just felt so exhausted by the end of the day. My caseload had been pretty easy, I had plenty of sleep the night before and I didn’t do any extra work that day. By the end of the day, though, I was too exhausted to make dinner, go for a walk or really be of much company to anyone.

It kind of sucked.

I often find that the days I sit at my computer, typing, for hours at a time are the most exhausting ones. The days where I am up and moving, or in and out of my office, are the days when I feel energized and ready to do more after work. Sometimes, it can also be a really tough caseload or overbooking my students. But other times, it has nothing to do with the work itself.

You might find that it’s not the work you are doing, but the way you are experiencing your work day that is taking a toll on you, physically and mentally. Your posture, the meals you are or aren’t eating, and what you are drinking might all be things that can zap or give you energy. If you often feel exhausted at the end of the day, try these 4 tips for more energy.

  1. Swap coffee for water, or at the least, tea.
    • Caffeine can be just what you need at certain times of the day. It provides a little invigoration, helps wake you up, and studies even show it helps to give you more mental clarity and focus. But overdoing caffeine can do the exact opposite. You might find your energy plummets, you feel jittery and nervous, and you suddenly feel scatter-brained.The best thing to do is to drink more water, whether or not you cut back on coffee. This will help you to stay hydrated and flush out any symptoms you might accidentally have from over-caffeinating. Try swapping out coffee for some caffeine-free or low-caffeine drinks instead. Tea is also a great option, hot or cold, if you need a little boost or flavor, without the huge crash from coffee. Go for a cup of coffee in the morning and a chai or green tea latte in the afternoons.
  2. Find some down time. 
    • Work can be all about productivity. If you aren’t helping clients and making money for the facility (or yourself), it might not seem like time well spent. Unfortunately, this type of go-go-go attitude can lead you to burn out, quickly. If you don’t have time to recharge at work, you won’t be able to keep up the pace, stay focused and get done what needs to get done, as efficiently.Have you ever had a day with no breaks and a million things to do, only to find yourself staring blankly at your computer screen, not focusing during your sessions and feeling completely disorganized with your paperwork? Instead of rushing around and doing a million things at once, take 5 minutes to grab a cup of tea, stretch, go for a walk, etc. You’ll be a little more clear headed, have more energy flowing through your body and be more ready to tackle the tasks at hand.
  3. Get up and move during the day. 
    • Sitting at a desk, in one spot during the day can really start to wear on you. NPR recently released an article showcasing just how many hours we sit during a day, and how it can affect your overall health more and more as you age. It’s not just your risk of heart disease, diabetes or weight gain, but also your body actually starting to age and tighten into a “sitting” stance. In yoga, sitting is done during meditation, with a tall spine, so energy and breath can travel through the body as you sit, and your digestive system is uncompromised and able to do its job. This is rarely the way we sit during the day at work. We tend to slump, slouch and cave in a bit. If you find it hard to sit with good posture, or find yourself sitting all day, you might notice your energy levels slump, you breath is more shallow and you feel sluggish and tired.To help combat this, take 5 minutes after every few sessions to get up and move. Walk to grab more water or tea or a bathroom break, do some push-ups and squats at your work station with your desk and chair or even just get up and stretch. You’ll release tension, lengthen your spine and breath deeper, so you start to feel more energized, focused and ready for the next patient or student to walk through your door.
  4. Eat Something.
    • When you are busy and stressed, one of the easiest things to forget is to take a break and eat. When I was working in the schools, I would often have just a few moments to grab my lunch, or eat a snack during my morning and afternoon. I was constantly hungry and has a stomach ache every day.  I also felt exhausted and foggy-headed on a regular basis. Most teachers and health care workers I know ate even less than that. Many would wait until the end of work to eat, or just drink coffee all day and have a really big dinner at night. Coincidentally, these were some of the people who were either super stressed or in really poor health.
    • Without nourishment from food, your body and brain are not able to maintain the energy and focus needed to get you through your work day. You r body needs the carbs and protein to maintain the proper energy levels throughout the day. Your brain needs healthy fats (like those in nuts) to function properly. All of these help to combat the feelings of mental fatigue and physical exhaustion we experience throughout the day. Not eating during the day, or not getting enough calories, can also send your metabolism into “starvation mode”. This means your body thinks you are trying to fast for the long winter, so it slows down and hold on to everything it can. It can cause you to gain weight or have a difficult time maintaining your weight, even though you feel like you never eat.  Make sure you have scheduled breaks for meals and snacks, even just a few minutes, so you are able to make a proper meal or snack to fuel you through your day. Have fresh fruits, nuts and whole grains nearby, so you’ll have something even on the shortest of breaks.

If you are feeling drained by the end of the day, give these a try. See which one might be affecting you the most and try to make a small change each day to increase your energy level. Leave a comment and share what works for you. You can help keep track of your energy levels with the “Daily Check-in” journal page found in the SLP Toolbox (subscribe below).

If you are still feeling exhausted and want to dig deeper into it, make sure to check out these webinars (certification hours and CEUs!) to reduce your stress, and increase your energy.

3 Common SLP Stressors and How to Manage Them  on Xceptional ED (1.5 CMH Hours)

Managing Common SLP Stressors before Burn Out Occurs on Northern Speech Services (2.5 ASHA CEU hours .025 units)

3 Biggest Stressors for SLPs and What to do About Them on SpeechPathology.com (1.5 ASHA CEU hours .15 units

The more awake and alive you feel at the end of a work day, the better you will feel after work and looking ahead to the next day.

Much Love,

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9Oct

Are you at Risk for SLP Burn Out?

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Burn Out
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SLP Burn Out Risk Pinterest

When I was at the height of my burn out, I was working in the school system at a fairly standard caseload, had fantastic support from the principal and assistant principal, and worked with great teachers. I had taken over mid-school year for someone who had quit and it left me with an extremely difficult schedule, difficult therapy sessions and a lack of community. I had also been laid off, then fired, from previous jobs, so I was feeling bitter towards the profession in general. This was a great job, but the only one I could find and it was a huge pay cut. I had also just finished my yoga teacher training and wanted nothing more than to teach yoga full-time.

Despite my training in a holistic practice, I was in a constant state of stress, anxiety and exhaustion.

As SLPs, we are considered to be in a “helping” profession, which puts us at a greater risk for burn out than most others. And, I believe, that we might be in one of the highest positions, since we fall under both healthcare workers and education professionals. As an SLP, you are constantly having to work with patients/students, families, and the school or care team, as well as organize your therapy materials and keep up with your continuing education and professional licenses. You are also sometimes the sole person who understands how your client needs and wants to communicate their desires and needs, which, at times can seem like the weight of the world on your shoulders. And while there are plenty of rewarding moments in your career, most of the time you may find you feel underappreciated and misunderstood as a professional.

While all of this can lead to a cycle of burn out, there are a few more factors that make us prone to burn out. The main 4 factors for burn out are:

  • Perfectionism:
    • When I was an SLP graduate student, I felt a constant pressure to do more and do better. There was a competitive mindset to the class, which was often fostered by the professors of the classes themselves. It was very rare to have an instructor praise us for something other than receiving top marks, and most of the time, we were told what we were doing wrong. This really wore me down and made me feel as if I was never doing enough.
    • As an SLP, you might always feel like someone out there is doing more, doing better and doing it the “right” way. There are pinterest boards dedicated to the latest and greatest DIY therapy tools, FB groups full of people spending their weekends working on SLP lesson plans and loads more trainings to take. It makes it easy to seem like what you are doing, especially if you are a type “b”, is not enough or not worthwhile. (These are all lovely things and can be super helpful, but can also be super overwhelming).
  • Pessimism
    • This can also lead to a bit of pessimism. When our patients don’t get better, or our students just don;t grasp that /r/, we can start to feel cynical about our profession. When I was going through burnout, I often stated that I felt like I was baby-sitting my students or just a glorified “snack lady” in the SNF setting. I would say that I didn’t think the profession mattered as much as we were trained to think. I was bitter, pessimistic and ready to quit. If you have a high caseload, no respect from co-workers, or patients/students that just don;t seem to be improving, it can be easy to slip into this mode of thinking.
  • High Achiever
    • I am not a Type “A” personality. I am a Type “B” with “A” tendencies, or a Type “A-“. Many SLPs, however, are Type A. They like to plan, be organized and have everything in order for each therapy session and each client. They want to know that they are doing everything exactly how it should be, with no mistakes. With such high caseloads and demands each day, this can be nearly impossible to achieve. When it doesn’t happen, it can make it seem as if you are not doing enough, not serving your clients as they need to be and not doing a “good job” as an SLP, even though you are doing fantastic.
  • High Need for Control:
    • It can also be extremely difficult to delegate as an SLP, if possible at all. In some places, there is no one else there to help you take on new clients, copy paperwork or organize therapy tools. You may be the sole SLP in your facility and the go-to person for everything from articulation to swallowing to cognitive and memory deficits. When you are able to delegate, it can be difficult to communicate the way you would be doing the therapy, what your client is capable of and what risks the client is facing. Taking on every task, every work day, can really start to wear on you and make you feel as if you can;t have a break or have time to take care of yourself (or work on any of your passions for the field).

Take a moment to see if you relate to any of these 4 factors. Be honest with yourself, as these are not negative traits, just realities of being an SLP and a human being. If you do relate to any of the factors, you might be heading towards burn out in the future. Burn out is no joke and can lead to more health issues and a total disengagement from your work and career. Try taking charge of burn out before it begins with a few simple daily practices, such as self-care, exercise and eating well, or try one of these 3 practices.


Do you relate to any of these? If so, which one has the biggest impact on your work life and what is your plan for working through it? Leave a comment below to share and help inspire another SLP. If you want additional help towards preventing burn out, check out these webinars and earn some credit towards your certification:

3 Common SLP Stressors and How to Manage Them  on Xceptional ED (1.5 CMH Hours)

Managing Common SLP Stressors before Burn Out Occurs on Northern Speech Services (2.5 ASHA CEU hours .025 units)

3 Biggest Stressors for SLPs and What to do About Them on SpeechPathology.com (1.5 ASHA CEU hours .15 units)

Much Love,

1741931346171517140715

 

 

 

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