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18Aug

Small Changes to Create Big Shifts

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Stress Management
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small changes to create big shifts

Recently (solidly over the last 6 months) I started running again. A few times a week, I lug my 2 kids to a nearby trail, load up with snacks (them, not me), and plop them into the running stroller. I put on some music and we start down the trail, 2 miles in a loop. By the end, I am sweaty (even in 30 something degree F weather, and definitely when it’s 90+F) and feel tired but energized. 

It might sound not so fun, but we all really do have a fun time on our runs. 

The thing is, when I started, it was really, really hard to do. 

  • My knee hurt for a month or so the first time I started running again (back in March 2020, so I took a break until the Fall).
  • My feet hurt.
  • I had shin splints for a few weeks. 
  • My legs would ache when I started to run.
  • I would barely get through 2 miles.

Eventually, it started to get a little better – with the help of some new shoes and building up some strength. But, it could have also been really easy for me to feel defeated and not continue. I was running 2 miles, and feeling like I couldn’t go any further, when I used to be able to run half marathons. What was taking me nearly 30 minutes, and a lot of breaks, was something I used to be able to do in 20 minutes or less. 

It was incredibly frustrating at times, but it also gave me a place to work from. 

I could have been mad about a lot of things:

  • My pace was slower
  • My body felt heavier
  • My legs were achy
  • I couldn’t sprint without my legs hurting (and I LOVE sprinting right at the end)
  • I was taking breaks. So many breaks in so short of a time.
  • I was pushing nearly 70-80 lbs of kids and stroller

But I also remembered a few things:

  • It had been 6 years since I had a steady running practice
  • I had 2 kids since then
  • I lived in a place with hills, not Florida or the South Carolina Lowcountry
  • My shoes were really old, and my new shoes need to be broken in
  • I was, well, older…

If I expected myself to be able to get out and run 13.1 miles, or even 4 or 6 miles, then, yes, I was going to be disappointed. It was unrealistic. And, if I set my expectations, or goals, to reach this really big amount of mileage, say in the next month or even year, I might also be really disappointed, or, more likely, I would feel defeated and probably want to give up.

But…if I set my goal at the smaller point, and kept reassessing it as I progressed, I would not only have a lot of wins along the way, I would also increase the chances that I would in fact reach that goal and more.

And that changes EVERYTHING.

Now, I notice how much stronger I feel and how I can really push it to go further or faster. Some days I’m slow and some days I’m fast – especially with the stroller 80 lbs now). But I know that I am always, steadily and slowly, creating small changes and they have led to big shifts.

What does this mean for you? It’s not really about “running” at all. It’s about the goals. 

Setting a monstrous goal does not always work, even if that is where you want to go. It is better to set a small goal, or make a small shift, and continue to make small shifts on top of those, if you want to stay active in reaching those bigger goals. It’s what we do for our students and clients, but we forget to do for ourselves. The simpler the goal, and sometimes more scaled back, the easier it will be to reach and then keep building from there. You can aim for the big goal (say, “r” at the conversational level or running another half marathon), but you don’t reach for that yet. You start with the first steps (“r” in isolation, or running 1-2 miles without stopping), and then work towards mastering those. 

Instead of focusing on the big goal of being able to run the way I used to or to run another Half Marathon, I focused on increasing where I was. I could work towards 2 miles with no breaks, then maybe 3 or 4 miles, eventually 6, and continuing from there. 

This way, I am making realistic goals (like the ones we set for our own students and clients) and creating big shifts from there, instead of looking at where I am and where I wish I was, and not feeling like it could ever be possible.

When you are looking at your own goals, especially towards stress management, incorporating mindfulness, and/or personal development, you might be expecting it to be “fixed” and no longer an issuerightnow. Or at least within the next week or month, and then not have to worry about it anymore. Or not have stress still be prevalent. But it takes small changes first, built up over time, to create those big shifts, and to help those big shifts not be an overhaul that fails after a few weeks, but become a gradual part of your lifestyle. 

You need to find your starting point. Then, you move forward from there. 

Take a moment right now to work through some of these questions/prompts and create your starting point:

  • What is your main goal with your daily stress?
  • Where are you with it right now?
  • Is your main goal achievable and realistic for right now?
  • If not, how can you break it down to the smaller, but very important, starting place? Example: You want to meditate to manage your stress for 30 minutes a day. You currently have tried meditation once for 3 minutes on an app. Jumping into that HUGE goal would be a lot right now, and, most likely, not feasible. How can you break it down? Start with meditating for 3-5 minutes 3-5 days a week. Once that is solid and not even something you think much about, build it up (if you even need to or still want to).
  • What is your action step or plan to make it happen? From The example above: download a meditation app and figure out what time during the day will be consistent and easiest to start doing. 

You can go through these on your own in a journal or notebook, or you can download the guided “Small Changes to Create Big Shifts Workbook” available in the SLP Stress Management Shop.

For more resources, like FREE meditations and movement audios as well as exclusive discounts on courses, make sure to sign up for the FREE SLP Toolbox. A resource library full of tools to help you, as an SLP and human, reduce and manage your stress better. You can subscribe below.

What is your small shift? Leave it in the comments below to help share and solidify it!

Much Love, 

Jessi

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9Aug

5 Myths About Gratitude and Positivity

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Gratitude Stress Management Uncategorized
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myths about gratitude

Gratitude is not for the faint of heart, overly bubbly, or ignorers of the reality of life. Positivity, especially when there is a pandemic and a lot of resistance to cultural diversity and a ton of changes going on, can seem like a bit of a fluffy, syrupy, overly sweet and sentimental way to not validate someone, dismiss feelings, and ignore what is really going on. It can seem toxic, but it isn’t always so.

Gratitude, true gratitude and positivity, do not ignore the feelings and reality of the situation at hand. They accept it, without trying to change it. They also look at the bigger picture and pull in the pieces of the day, and your life, that are working, that are good and thriving (or simply surviving), and that shine a little brighter. They validate some of the good and positive feelings you are also experiencing, or may be missing from your day.

Here are some common myths and misconceptions that you might have, or may have heard, about gratitude and positivity.

5 Myths About Gratitude:

  • It is weak
    • Heck no. Having gratitude is hard. When your brain is reminding you of how much everything sucks, and you feel that there is nothing good or noteworthy from your day, and that the world is unfair and against you, it can be really, really difficult to shift into a mindset of gratitude. 
    • It is also not just some generational nonsense. Studies have shown that gratitude helps to build resiliency and strengthen your brain, which is tough stuff. So if anything, gratitude is strong and empowering, not weak. 
  • It is toxic
    • Not actual gratitude. Toxic Positivity (and Gratitude) is when you start to ignore or pretend that everything is ok, when it is absolutely not. This kind of thinking is when you turn everything into a good thing, even if , deep down, you are upset and it is a really bad thing. It is a dismissal, rather than an acceptance “AND” gratitude for other pieces. 
    • Actual gratitude is not ignoring the hard things or turning them into something good (again, there is a difference here between toxic and seeing what you learned from something). It is saying that both things exist, even when they are off balance. There are good pieces, sometimes small and minute ones, alongside the tougher, harder parts of life. 
  • It ignores the negative
    • Nope. It acknowledges this part, but your brain is already doing that too. You already know that you are upset, having a hard time and noticing all the things that are going wrong. Gratitude simply says “Hey! Those things suck and these things are also happening. Let’s acknowledge them, too”. 
    • It’s not ignoring the negative, but embracing the other parts. These are the parts that sometimes get pushed aside when there are other, more vocal, louder parts that want you to focus on them. But they are equally, if not more so, important to your well-being and for a full picture and perspective. 
  • It dismisses your feelings
    • Not at all! You are allowed to (and should) feel all your feelings. There really are no “good” or “bad” feelings, and even saying negative vs positive can be misleading. Feelings are feelings. 
    • Noticing more of the things you are grateful for simply shines a light on the things you might be overlooking or dismissing (unintentionally) as “not as important”, because they don’t need to be solved or resolved or “fixed”. Gratitude practices help you to not dismiss, but instead acknowledge all of your feelings. 
  • It doesn’t really do anything
    • Sometimes it sure can feel that way when you’re working on stuff that is not tangible, or when results take awhile to show. Gratitude does do something though and, in fact, it does quite a lot. 
      • Brain: trains it to look at positive, reduces stress
      • Body: reduces stress and stress response in the body as well
      • Mindset and Outlook: builds resiliency, looks at the positive and not just the negative
  • BONUS Myth: It is super trendy
    • Ok, this one is pretty true, but trendy isn’t always a bad thing. Gratitude is really trendy right now, but it is because it works. With an increase in studies and resources, gratitude is easier than ever to learn about, access and understand the benefits of. 
    • You can ignore the trendiness of it, and stick to a tried and true gratitude practice. That way, once the trends die down, you can continue to stick to your Gratitude Practice. 

Here’s the thing, your brain is wired to keep you alive. It is about surviving, not thriving. This part has to be trained and taught. Your brain is going to look for the negative and the things that are going all wrong, and dwell on them, to keep you safe, to alert you and to get you to possibly problem solve or automatically react (think fight, flight, or freeze). It is there to stress you out. Over and over again. It is not the enemy, more like a well-intentioned, over protective friend that creates more chaos and stress in your life. 

You have to train your brain to look at the things that are positive, and from there, you will thrive. 

Now that you know what might have been holding you back, you can start to infuse more of it into your day. 

Need some help getting started? Make sure to check out the gratitude meditations and journal templates in the SLP Toolbox, by subscribing below, or grab the printable (digital with a PDF app) journal “Gratitude Action Plan” available in the SLP Stress Management Shop.

What myth have you heard about gratitude? Share in the comments below!

Much love, 

Jessi

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29May

5 Ways to Start Meditating Regularly

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Meditation Stress Management Yoga
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start meditating more regularly

When I first started practicing yoga, one of the things I heard people talk about was the “zen” moments they experienced from meditation. As someone who was feeling chronically, secretly stressed, like non-stop, and was “supposed to be” a happy, soon-to-be married with a solid career and big new house mid-twenty-something, I was very intrigued by this notion of “zen”. It was in fact what drew me to practicing yoga and kept me going, and showing up 10-30 minutes late, to a yoga class on Saturdays. There was this idea of finding some peace and some calm and breath, but I usually felt boredom, anxiety and the undercurrents of my stress still lingering. 

But then one day, my yoga practice changed, I went to a studio that pushed me and challenged me and showed me there was so much more to learn and do and grow within. I was in love. Eventually, I decided to sign up for yoga teacher training. 

I loved the physical practice. The creativity, the challenge, the breath. The physical practice was challenging, so much so that at times it wore me out. But it also gave me something to focus on, solely, for an hour at a time. An hour when I did not have a moment to do anything other than breathe and try not to fall over, nevermind think about my career and the stress that was growing and if I had made a huge mistake. I dove into the physical practice day in and day out.

But not so much with meditation. Sitting still to do “nothing” for even 5 minutes seemed like a waste of already precious and fleeting time. I would rather be sleeping or moving or prepping for the day ahead, or searching for a new job, than sitting to “clear my mind”. My mind was not clear and was increasingly getting more crowded as my stress and discontent with my work grew. 

During yoga teacher training, one of our homework practices was to meditate. We were instructed to sit for 5 minutes (set a timer) and count down from 75. If your mind wandered, start over again or make a mental note. I dreaded this practice and rarely did it. My mind wandered constantly. I felt as if I could count AND list out all the things I still had left to do in my day at the same time. It was not helping me feel “zen” or peaceful. It was not helping me with much of anything. At least, that is how I felt.

Eventually, when I quit being an SLP for nearly 5 years, I taught yoga and helped run yoga studios. I taught the physical practice for about 10-12 classes a week, wrote numerous articles and blog posts about it, ran workshops, and helped grow the community in the town I lived in. The practice I taught was more physically demanding, to help people get into their bodies and out of their heads. And I often talked about meditation, but rarely took a moment to fully include it in my teaching, or in my own practice. I understood the “idea” of it – that people felt really, really great after – but I didn’t understand why it was so great or what was really going on. 

After I came back into the SLP field, I started looking into resources to help with burnout and stress, and found meditation popping up time and time again. 

So I researched all the ways that it had been studied, and learned about how it helps reduce stress, affects the ways the brain responds to stress, and how it can help to build resilience to stress in your body and brain.

After that, it became more about “how the heck do I make this a reality” and less about, “what is this really doing”. I started practicing regularly, as much as I could, but often had difficulty sticking with it. 

I wanted to start meditating regularly, but there was a lot of things that made it more difficult:

  • Full time job
  • Other hobbies
  • The physical practice of yoga
  • Pressure and perfectionism
  • Time with family vs self-care time
  • Finding good practices
  • No job
  • Young kids
  • Young kids at home full time
  • Pandemic….

Eventually, I found a few things that worked for me and that helped me to incorporate meditation into my regular routine, or to get back to it more easily when I noticed I had gone astray. 

They were things like:

  • Having a conversation with my family about my mediation practice
  • Becoming aware of what I felt like when I was meditating regularly, and when I wasn’t
  • Figuring out which pocket of tie in my day worked best
  • Having some apps and site to use
  • Guidance – I did NOT like meditating on my own, “freestyle”. I wanted some support and structure. 

After doing this, and giving myself some compassion, permission and acceptance, I was able to incorporate a more consistent and regular meditation practice into my day, and start meditating regularly. It is not perfect, and meditation is never about being perfect, but it does allow me to meditate on most days, notice when I have been falling out of my habit, and easy ways to jump right back into it.

Here are 5 Ways to Start Meditating Regularly:

  1. Use an app: 
    • This makes it so much easier. Having an app or a site that you can access easily, and from nearly anywhere, means that you can meditate and take your practice with you, no matter where or when you need it.
    • Plus, it offers a very simple, structured spot for the meditation itself to be. You don’t have to come up with as much of a game plan, because it is already there for you, by clicking open your app or logging into a site. 
  2. Find a style you like:
    • It is important to actually like or look forward to the meditation practice. It doesn’t mean it won’t be challenging or should be easy, superficial self-care, but it does help to somewhat like the experience.
    • Look for a style that fits your style and personality, or what holds your attention the best.
    • Here are a few options: guided audio or self-guided, explanatory style or actual practice, mantra-focused or breath awareness, better sleep or stress relief, compassion or gratitude as the topic. 
  3. Set a realistic time of day (and stick to it):
    • If you are going to do it consistently, make it easy to be consistent. 
    • Find a time of day that is easy for you to sit down and meditate. Not a morning person? Maybe waking up 5 minutes earlier isn’t going to work for you. Evenings packed and stressful? Maybe you already have enough on your plate then. 
    • Choose a time of day that already has an opening or that you are craving this type of moment – quiet, peace, ease, breath. 
  4. Set a realistic time limit:
    • I recently read a book that was amazing and said to meditate for 20 minutes a day – not going to happen. My days, and your days, are already packed enough and 20 minutes seems like very precious and hard to come by time. 
    • Choose an amount of time that is realistic, and then, if you ever want, you can do more. If 1-5 minutes is ideal, that is perfect. 
    • It is better to have a time you can do, than to feel let down when you can’t do more or to give up because the time is too much of a commitment in your already packed day. 
  5. Accountability:
    • Find a way to stay connected and feel like you are part of a community, a member, or have someone that you are “in it” with – even if they are not actually doing it, but can respect and help you as you are in it. 
    • Join a community online or FB group, find an app that feels like a community, have an accountability partner, or text with a friend or have them text you.
    • You can also go about this solo, but hold yourself accountable. Set a reminder in your phone. Have your app ready to go when you wake up (if you meditate first thing). Mark it in your calendar, so it is part of your day already. 

It is often not the meditation itself that keeps you from sticking to the practice (although it can be challenging at times too), but the idea of finding time to do it, how to do it, and what it will be, that keep you from diving in. With these new tools, you’ll be more likely to start and stick to your practice, gaining all the benefits that come with a long term meditation practice, as well as the ones that happen immediately. 

If you are looking for some resources, check out the SLP Toolbox, a free resource library full of tools to help SLPs, like you and me, manage and reduce stress.

And while you are at it, hit “play” on one of the many meditation audios and give it a try. You’ll have everything you need to get started and keep going.

You can access it by signing up below:

Need one more push to start meditating regularly? Download the “Self-Care tracker ” from the SLP Stress Management Shop, to keep printed out and in your office, on your nightstand, in your meditation corner, or download it to your phone or tablet, so you have these reminders to keep you going once you get started.

Much Love, 

Jessi

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21May

How Yoga Helps Me Work on My Perfectionism

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Mindful Movement Perfectionism Stress Management
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yoga helps me work on my perfectionism

Perfectionism is something that a LOT of SLPs deal with each day – sometimes as a result of being an SLP and going through the rigorous (often unrelenting) grad school process, and also, sometimes, it is what makes the field and training seem enticing. 

Perfectionism can seem like a great thing – always getting it done and doing it right, no room for nonsense or errors. It can seem powerful and strong, but it can also be really harmful. No mistakes allowed is not realistic. Constantly trying to do more and do better and do best is not sustainable. Always being strong and powerful, with no give and no flexibility, can cause you to break. Making an error or not knowing something leads to imposter syndrome and feeling like you are “not good enough”.

And all of these contribute to major stress, overwhelm and burnout.

I know, because I can relate and have dealt with this myself. 

My Mom recently told me, when I asked her what my biggest behavior challenge was growing up, “Nothing like that. We would just have to try to convince you to put down the [school] books and stop studying.”

Growing up, I was an overachiever without realizing it. I was really hard on myself for not getting the top scores on standardized tests, not winning the entire school spelling bee, not making it into the gifted program on the first try, or not being seen as cool enough by my peers. All of this and more before the age of 10. Ugh.

In later years, it became competitions with my best friend to see who could get the better grade or SAT score. And then, after a brief stint of having no expectations for myself in college, it kicked back up so I could get into my one choice of grad school. And when I got there, I realized, my perfectionism was not just an inner expectation, but an outer expectation from the school itself. But with juggling a LOT of life stuff at this point, my school work was not perfect (but it was absolutely great) and so I would forever feel the “not good enough”, “we expected more”, “ we thought you could do better” that followed me into my career as an SLP. 

And, unfortunately, after talking and working with 100s of SLPs about this, I know I am not alone. Perfectionism often drives us into our career choice, and serves us well early on, but it can also be the thing that leads straight into chronic stress, overwhelm, burnout and the feeling of not knowing, doing, or being good enough. 

yoga helps me work on my perfectionism

It took me a lot of time (5 years away from the field) to really work through this, and I still deal with it every day, at work and at home. I often have feelings of not being productive enough, not doing my share enough, and knowing I could have done more, if only. 

But there are also things that I know can help my work through my perfectionism, and my yoga practice has been #1 in helping me do this. Time after time, yoga helps me work on my perfectionism, among other things. I started practicing more and more as I went through grad school and into my career as an SLP, eventually training to teach yoga. When I feel stress and perfectionism creep in, it is my go to, and often something I had stopped doing in order to tighten up on being perfect in another area. 

My practice has been a true light for me. It started as a fun physical activity, and has become a foundation for how I live my life. 

Here are some (honest) ways yoga helps me work on my perfectionism:

  • My practice is rarely perfect
    • I’ve been teaching for 10 years, and practicing for about 5 more. But it does not mean it is always pretty or that every pose is perfect. In fact, a lot of the time the practice rarely is. 
    • I wobble. I fall. Some days I am strong and others I am weak. Somedays I am flexible and others I feel like I might snap. 
    • I have one pose I have been working on for almost 15 YEARS. And I finally feel like I am making some progress. That is a far cry from perfectionism and it feels damn good. 
  • It challenges me to try new things
    • I never would have tried some of the poses or stood on my head or known I could balance on my arms (sometimes) if my practice had never challenged me to do so. 
    • It helps me to jump into something that I may not be perfect at, to explore it as something new, and to know that, because it is new and a challenge, that it might take time (15 years or so) to achieve it – and then there is always more to do. 
  • It challenges me to grow and expand what I think I know – new ways of doing things
    • It is really easy to get stuck in thinking that my way of doing things is the best way (we all feel this way at times, sometimes pretty often). Yoga helps me see that there are a LOT of different ways to do something. YOu can do the same pose day after day and feel it differently or get to it a different way each time, and you end up with a totally different experience. You can go into a pose from so many different angles or poses and it changes it too. 
    • As a teacher, I get to see how each student and each class varies, and how things can work or backfire differently for each one. 
    • Yoga has helped me see there is no “perfect” way to do something, and that different approaches work at different times. 
  • Sit with the uncomfortable
    • Being perfect is often used to ward off any feelings and thoughts that are uncomfortable. If I (you) am (are) perfect, then there will be no bad feelings, no backlash, nothing uncomfortable to sit with. And of course, this backfires and creates a ton of uncomfortable feelings (like stress) and these continue to feed the control of perfectionism. 
    • Yoga helps me to sit with the uncomfortable, in my body and my thoughts. While taking a meditation, I sit with what shows up, which can sometimes be tension in my body or unkind thoughts. The practice teaches me to just breathe, sit with them, explore them, and remain less attached to them. 
    • During the physical practice, things are NOT always comfortable. But I am cued (by my teacher or myself) to stick with it, focus on breathing, and see what shows up, what shifts, and what I can learn from that discomfort (sharp shooting pains, always move out of the pose, FYI). 
  • There are days when I feel like I nailed it, and others when I think it went all wrong.
    • This is so true, especially for meditation. Some days I feel like I conquered the practice. I was perfect, went beyond what was asked and really enjoyed it. And other days I struggle with the basics, am asked to do something that I haven;t yet mastered (and am therefore far from perfect), or my mind wanders all the way through my guided meditation audio and I realized I heard nothing they dais beyond “take a seat”. 
    • These days are hard, but remind me that it is a practice. It is not meant to be perfect. And life is the same way. 
  • Some days are really, really, unpredictably difficult
    • After practicing, and doing physically demanding classes (and things like running), I expect (aha, perfectionism alert) that my class will be easy. But there are many, many times that a simple, basic class is unpredictably difficult. I feel tight, tired and stiff, my breath feels tuck instead of flowing, and my mind is anything but focused. 
    • It teaches me that, even with training and planning, things happen. Being human happens. Life happens. And we can either get mad at it, or go with it, learn from it and keep on moving. 
  • It is never ending and there is no “perfect”
    • Even with the poses that I have learned, or with a style I am familiar with, there is no perfect. It is a practice. It never ends. Once you learn a pose and can do it without difficulty, there are still ways to deepen, to do more and learn more and take it further. Forever and ever and ever. There is no real perfect, only the process. 

All of these things, and many more, I have grown and worked through with the help of my yoga practice. It remains, after many years, a constant (even when my practice looks very different over the years) in helping me work through perfectionism, and manage my stress and overwhelm overall. 

If you would like to try out a practice, to help you work through some perfectionism, make sure to sign up for the SLP Toolbox for FREE yoga practice audios. You can subscribe below. (Already a member? Click here to access).

You can also download the “Mindful Movement Weekly Planner” available in the SLP Stress Management Shop, to help you start your journey and see how it helps you when you are practicing regularly. The Planner includes a journal and printable planner pages (or use in a digital pdf app), guiding you through what types of yoga (mindful movement) you want to try and when. The planner part takes you through the week, from creating your plan, keeping track of what you are doing and when, and then reviewing how it went and what your next steps are.

It is now currently 50% off (along with the entire SLP Stress Management Shop) for Better Hearing and Speech Month.

Do you practice yoga? How has it helped you with perfectionism, or how do you imagine it might help you? Leave in the comments below!

Much Love, 

Jessi

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11May

4 Ways to Practice More Gratitude

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Gratitude Journal Techniques for SLPs Stress Management
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practice more gratitude

It can be really easy to find yourself stuck in the mindset of “everything is not working”, or some other variation of it, like “everything is the worst”, “nothing is going right”, “this all sucks”, “why can’t anything go well”. When you start to think this way, your brain kind of feeds on it – unintentionally – which is why it is SO HARD to pull yourself out of this type of funk or shift your mindset. And, since it is really hard to do, without an easy tool to grab and help out, you are likely to continue in this spiral and way of thinking, until you end up stressed out, overwhelmed and burned out. 

When I am stressed out, I notice that the first thing that goes is the acknowledgement of anything that is going well, and instead, my sole focus is on all that is not working, and looking for more things that fit that puzzle and continue to stress me out more. It’s unintentional and automatic, and happens so easily. 

Negativity, such as stress and these negative thoughts, is viewed as a threat by your brain. Your brain has a mission – to keep you safe and out of the way of potential threats, even the non-life-threatening ones, like paperwork, piles of more paperwork, changing policies, impossible schedules, unruly kids (your own and other people’s), annoying coworkers, demanding bosses, and being stuck at home for 24/7/365+. Your brain sees these as a threat and starts to stand guard, which causes you to spiral into stress and negativity, and automatically look for more of these things. It is no wonder those thoughts of “everything is the worst” dominate your brain space. It is an attempt to keep you safe that absolutely backfires. 

The key to pulling yourself out of these thoughts and this spiral into stress is to have an easy to use tool that will help you see all the other pieces of your day – the non-stressful, enjoyable, even good parts that your brain is overlooking, due to the calming, pleasing, peaceful, non-threatening nature of them. 

The way to do this is to practice positivity (not the toxic kind) via gratitude.

Gratitude helps you to shift your thoughts to the things in your day, no matter how small, that are going well. It could be something really big, or something small. Here are a few examples of gratitude:

  • You get to socially distance with your best friend after a year apart and air hug.
  • You get to video call your mom.
  • The person ahead of you pays for your coffee.
  • Your kid listens when you ask them to clean up.
  • You get a reply back from an email that you weren’t expecting. 
  • You have a cancellations (but still get paid) and now have 30 minutes to do something for yourself. 
  • Your coffee was hot when you drank it. 
  • You had a really yummy lunch.
  • The sun came out. 
  • It snowed. 

There are a lot of things that could qualify for this list, but your brain may overlook a lot of them, especially the small ones that make up most of your days, unless you train it to look that way through reflecting via gratitude practices. 

Since this type of thing is much easier said than done, it helps to have a few ways to get you into a routine of gratitude.

Here are 4 Ways to Practice More Gratitude:

  • Journal
    • A gratitude or positivity journal is a great way to train your brain to notice some good things that have happened in your day and life. You can do this by writing down at least 3 things that would be considered positive, went well, you are grateful for, you are thankful for, or that are “working” for you. 
    • These are the opposite of what your brain usually focuses on, so they might otherwise be overlooked. There is nothing too big or too small to put in your journal. 
    • You can leave it a bullet point list, or elaborate as much as you’d like. 
  • Meditation
    • You can also use gratitude in your meditation practice. Take a seat and get settled. Take a few deep breaths to begin. Then start to think of 3 things that you are grateful for. 
    • If you want to take it further, think of 3 things, then 3 moments from your day, and then 3 people. 
    • If you want, follow it up with a Gratitude Journal Practice.
  • Recall 3 Things
    • You can also verbally recall or state 3 things you are grateful for, rather than writing them down or thinking of them. This adds a little bit of accountability to the practice and solidifies it, making it more real, than just thinking it. 
    • Try finding a person (your partner, kids, friend, family, etc) that you can either say these to or, in a pinch, send a text or voicemail to. And in return, they can send you theirs. 
    • You can also do this around the dinner table, when you head to bed, or when you are getting your kids to bed. 
  • Mental Note
    • Another way to do this, if you want to start slow, or are a little hesitant to meditate, write or share aloud, is to simply make a mental note of your gratitude. 
    • You can do this throughout your day, anytime you need a reminder or have something you are grateful for. 
    • You can also do this right when you go to bed or wake up, or even at the start or end of the work day. 
    • Just think of the things you’re grateful for, make a mental note, and you are finished. 

For more gratitude practices, make sure to sign up below for the SLP Toolbox, where you’ll find gratitude meditations and journal templates, or purchase the “Gratitude Action Plan Guide” from the SLP Stress Management Shop.

practice more gratitude

Now that you have a few strategies to start practicing gratitude, it’s your turn to put it into action! Leave a comment below sharing which strategy you are going to start implementing, or already use, in your day. 

Much Love, 

Jessi

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30Apr

Top 4 Fitness Apps for SLPs

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Mindful Movement Self Care Stress Management
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fitness apps for slps

Top 4 Fitness Apps for SLPs

Stress can make you feel like both your body and brain are moving in slow motion. Your head is in a fog and you can’t think as clearly or swiftly as usual, and your body can feel sluggish, tired and overall lethargic. And both usually carry a bit of tension that builds right alongside the stress. 

One of the best things for reducing this stress and all that accompanies it, is also one of the most difficult things to do at times, and one of the things we tend to let go of when we are stressed – movement.

Moving is healthy for your body. You’ve probably been told to move by your doctor, coach or nutritionist and remember through the (dreaded) fitness tests back in elementary and middle school. Awful fitness test aside ( I failed nearly every year, but love to move now), movement is also great for reducing the tension you feel both mentally and physically from stress, as well as giving you a place to step away from stressful situations and reminders (aka your desk), and to drop in to your body and out of your head. It helps clear your mind, gives you back some focus, and builds up some energy. 

At least, when it is done mindfully and with a bit of enjoyment. The key is, actually doing it and finding easy ways to get started. 

Luckily, there are some really great apps and sites that can help you to get started moving more and reducing our stress, or to continue to build and vary your mindful movement practice. 

Here is why, in my opinion, these apps are these so great, especially for SLPs:

  • they are easy to use
  • not too expensive (In general. I know this depends on individual budgets)
  • have mindful movement practices for you to use
  • Are easy to access via app or bookmark

There are a lot more out there, even some that many of you suggested via an IG poll. Here is a list of the ones that I found to focus on mindful movement, some more reasonably priced (or come with a lot), and not affiliated with any particular gym or MLM (multi-level-marketing). 

*I have no affiliation with any of these, beyond my own personal experience, and of course, my own site (SLP Toolbox). 

Top 4 Fitness Apps (and sites) for SLPs:

  • Barre3
    • Main Reason:
      • Free Trial
      • Mindfulness is a priority
      • Movement blends multiple disciplines, as well as barre, to keep them creative and fun. 
    • What you get:
      • Mindful but challenging
      • A little more expensive (like paying for a studio), but has an in-person studio in many cities.
      • Also comes with recipes, lifestyle, monthly challenges, etc. 
  • EllenBarrett.com
    • Main Reason:
      • Free trial
      • Inexpensive and updated each month
      • Mindfulness is key
    • What you get:
      • Mindful movement in each workout
      • Fuses yoga, Pilates, barre, Tai Chi, walking, aerobics
      • New workout each month
      • Bonus videos some months
  • FitOn
    • Main Reason:
      • Free, but seems like you paid for it
    • What you get:
      • Tons of options
      • Tons of trainers
      • Lots of time lengths
  • YouTube
    • Main Reason:
      • It’s free, just with some ads at times
      • You can find so many things
      • Easy to access on your phone or tablet
    • What you get:
  • BONUS: SLP Toolbox: (My free resource library for SLPs)
    • Main Reason:
    • What You Get:
      • Mindful Movement and Meditation Audios, updated monthly

You can click on the names for each of these to head over and check them out. Sign up for access to a variety of Mindful Movement audios and more by clicking here: Free SLP Toolbox.

If you are looking to keep track of your mindful movement and create a game plan, make sure to check out the “Mindful Movement Weekly Planner” download/printable PDF, available in the SLP Stress Management Shop.

Do you have a favorite app or site you use? Share it in the comments below. 

Much Love, 

Jessi

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22Apr

How to Track Your Self-Care Practice

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Self Care Stress Management
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track your self-care practice

When I was in graduate school, I spent a lot of time (way too much, especially during class, I’ll admit) researching this newer movement about “going green”. I was fascinated by it and was so excited to learn more and revamp a lot of the things I was doing, eating, and cleaning with. It was my first time living alone and the first time I really went all in and had a strong opinion and stance on something. And I loved it. 

It became part of my lifestyle and something I wanted to bring into more aspects of my daily living and learning. 

  • There were TV shows devoted to green-living
  • Magazines and book being published
  • New products launching for cleaning (some obscure brands and some from household brands jumping in on the trend)
  • There were new ways of exercising (for me), that were more mindful
  • There were new grocery stores for me to explore and wander around
  • New products that were “eco-friendly” were popping up everywhere

Honestly, I really enjoyed this time and learning about so many new things, exploring and finding new products, and making shifts in my lifestyle. There were so many days and years where I felt like I talked about this a LOT and so much of what I was doing, thinking and reading was devoted to these “greener” practices. 

And then, one day, I felt like I had kind of lost it. I hadn’t explored a new store in awhile, found a new product to try, or been surprised to see a new product launched that I wanted to test out. I was a little dismayed and thought “I guess it’s not as important to me anymore”, and maybe, not to anyone else either. For a moment, I was really, really frustrated by that. 

How could I have gone so far in the opposite direction, to not be thinking about this ALL.THE.TIME. anymore. I mean, I dedicated a lot of my small, precious time in grad school (I also worked 5 days a week at a restaurant, serving and managing) to researching this, when I very well could have been studying a bit more (It’s ok. I got good grades and graduated. Just not “perfect”). 

And then I realized something:

  • I didn’t need lists of what foods to buy, because I had already learned it and the options were available pretty much everywhere I shopped.
  • I wasn’t exploring new stores, because I was frequenting the ones that worked best for me. And most places had a lot to offer.
  • Nope. I wasn’t testing out new products that popped up, because these were ABUNDANT and now widely available – not some obscure thing. 

Basically, I wasn’t constantly thinking about “going-green” anymore, because “going-green” was a lot more mainstream and it was a huge part of my daily life – without having to think about it constantly.

I had been practicing it for so long, that it was not just part of what I did automatically. It’s not nearly as fun as the exploring phase, but it is much deeper and more sustainable. It’s just part of life now. 

The same might be true for where you stand with your stress management and utilizing, learning, and exploring the tools and techniques, such as mindfulness, meditation, movement, journaling, and more. These things are more mainstream than ever, and could be viewed as trendy, or could be viewed as our culture finally catching up to what we all need, and realizing that not having these practices was creating more harm than good. 

Right now, you might feel immersed in it or even overwhelmed by it all. Or even feel that people are pushing it without actually offering help (like your boss or admin saying “remember self-care!”). There can be a lot to try, experiment with and to figure out what works for you and what doesn’t, and what really is just a trend. That can sometimes feel more stressful, or exciting, than you are looking for. 

But, one day, it will just be part of your routine – so much so, that you might not even realize you are using these on a daily basis. You’ll feel like you aren;t doing enough, or that you aren’t doing anything, because it is just part of who you are and how your day goes. Not stress-free, but more mindful and more aware, with tools to use when you need them and foundational practices built in. 

No matter where you are starting at now, here are a few things for you to reflect on, and see where you can go or how far you have already come: 

  • Awareness is the first step: If you are simply aware that you are feeling stressed or overwhelmed, and you can recognize the why or when, this is a huge step. 
  • Mindfulness is familiar vocabulary: The terms mindfulness, yoga, meditation, journal, self-care, stress management, etc are nothing new to you. You’ve been reading about them, listening to podcasts or courses on them, or trying them out. 
  • You’re stressed about your stress management: Yay! That can be hard, but it means you are working on it and on the right path (and, if you are feeling left out and alone, things like the SLP Stress Management Podcast or SLP Toolbox can help make it easier to figure out). 
  • Hearing about self-care from supervisor or admin makes you cringe, or cheer: Yay, again! Even if your reaction is an eyeroll, it means you know it is important, and are just overwhelmed at the thought of doing it. But you are still in that awareness place. 
  • You feel like you aren’t doing enough to try and look up new self-care routines, or you don’t talk about it as much or have it on your mind: It might make you feel guilty, or like you “aren’t doing enough” (imagine that, as an SLP, cue the sarcasm). It might mean that, if you are honestly avoiding facing your stress, but, most likely, if you have been working on this for a while, you are in it. You are doing things and incorporating them into your life without having to struggle or think about it constantly. It has been infused into your day and, even though stress might still be there, you are able to see it, see where you have stopped some of your practices, and get back into it with more ease and awareness. 

These might not feel like enough or like you have changed your world completely, but any small step or change can be a huge shift and can become part of your routine and day. Over time, these just become how you live your life. 

And being an SLP, it is quite possible that you will doubt how much you do, tell yourself it is not enough, and feel pushed to do more. It comes with the perfectionism we all face being in our field. 

If you are feeling this way, or you are in the beginning stages of creating some of these patterns, it can help to have some accountability, or to keep track of what you are doing. This gets it out of your head and onto paper (or a tablet), so you can really see what you are doing and living. And that it is always enough. Having a “Tracker” can help you not to be perfectly on track, but to see what you are already doing and how far you have really come. 

I use a daily tracker-style journal to help me, in a non-stressful or perfectionist way, see what habits I am doing, how I am really doing a lot more than I give myself credit for, and to see how these habits work (and when I stop doing them, how it shows up in my world). 

These can be found in journals or you can create your own, or you can use one of the “Self-Care Trackers” that I have available in my brand new digital product shop. These really are key to help you track your self-care practice

You can download the “Self-Care Tracker Journal” of your choice, available in the SLP Stress Management Shop, then get started with some stress management and self-care resources in the SLP Toolbox (for free).

  • Monthly Self-Care Tracker
    Printable and Digital PDF
  • Weekly Self-Care Tracker Journal
    Printable and Digital PDF
  • Self-Care Tracker Journal Bundle
    Printable and Digital PDF

They are available as Monthly, Weekly, or in a bundle with both. Each comes with a guided journal practice to help you get started figuring out your Self-Care practices that you are currently using or not, and what you would like to do, as well as two versions of each tracker page. These can be downloaded, printed out, or used in a digital pdf app. 

You can download the “Self-Care Tracker Journal” of your choice, available in the SLP Stress Management Shop, then get started with some stress management and self-care resources in the SLP Toolbox (for free).

You can also join the FREE SLP Toolbox, and get access to those Self-Care tools you’ll be tracking, by subscribing below.

How do you track your self-care practice? Share in the comments below!

Much Love,

Jessi

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1Apr

An SLPs Journey through Stress and Illness: Interview with SLP Leanna Vollintine

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Podcast Stress Management
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leanna vollintine

Have you ever wondered if the mental stress you felt would ever shift to physical stress?

There are times when stress can really build up and, mentally, you know that it is really difficult. You feel tension in your thoughts, you feel drained and depleted, you might want to cry or scream, and you feel absolutely stuck. And then you just stick with it. Unfortunately, this sounds all too familiar for most SLPs who are working through stress. When it manifests mentally and emotionally, it can often feel like it is not “real” enough to deal with, that it is embarrassing, that it is not worth (and you are not worth) figuring out  – easier to power through and control more, and that it will just go away and be better soon.

FYI – these are all related back to perfectionism, which runs HUGE in our field.

And, these can really backfire. When the stress you are mentally feeling starts to stick around and grow, but is ignored or pushed aside for later, it can start to show up and manifest in other ways – affecting your relationships, your outlook, or even your physical health (I am, obviously, not a medical doctor. Please do not take this as medical advice). 

When I was in burnout, it was when things started to shift to affecting my life outside of work, my relationships, and even my physical health, that led me to really feel like I had to “escape” and leave the field. 

Recently, I had the chance to sit down, virtually, and chat with a fellow SLP, Leanna Vollintine of SpeechWorks Therapy, who has experienced this mental to physical stress firsthand, and is now sharing her story with other SLPs, in order to help spread the awareness of how stress can show up and affect your overall health and wellbeing.

In this episode we talk about:

  • Leanna’s journey with stress as an SLP
  • The different settings and jobs she tried to reduce stress
  • How it started to show up in her physical health
  • What she did, and does now, to help reduce stress and support her overall wellbeing

Here is a little more about Leanna:

Leanna Vollintine is a pediatric SLP who has been in the field for 17 years.  In 2016, she started her own private practice, where she serves children in counties west of the DFW area in Texas.  Her passion is helping those she serves to be the best communicators they can be, and helping their families be advocates for their children.  Her motto is “whatever it takes”.

Follow her on Instagram: @speechworkstherapy

Check out here TpT Store: SpeechWorks Therapy

You can tune in to our episode here or in your favorite podcast app:

If you are looking for even more ways to manage your stress, both physical and mental, make sure to check out the SLP Toolbox, a FREE resource library with everything you need to ditch the stress and overwhelm of being an SLP.

Get free downloadable meditation audios, movement audios, journal pages and more. Sign up below for access:

Much Love,

Jessi

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