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15Jul

Turning your SLP Stress into Something Good with Marisha Mets of SLPNow: SLP Stress Management Podcast

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Podcast Stress Management
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SLPNow

Do you ever feel like your SLP stress would magically go away if you could only have more resources at your fingertips, or a better way to organize your materials, or have some plans done for you?

I have heard this a lot and usually coach that no amount of planning an prepping will manage your stress or magically make it go away.

BUT this is not completely true.

While it doesn’t magically take away all of your stress, having a system that is created for making your day easier, and taking that burden off of you, can free up a lot of brain space, take off some of the pressure, and give you a way to manage your incredibly jam-packed caseload. And this CAN help you to manage your stress better – because it gives you the time and energy to do it and to make the first steps towards less stress as an SLP.

It doesn’t teach you how to manage the stress, but it does help to reduce the amount of stressors you are dealing with daily. And while these might show up in other ways, it also gives you space to put some of your stress management tools into practice.

In this episode of the SLP Stress Management Podcast, I chat with Marissa Mets of SLPNow about her journey through SLP Stress, her struggle with a massive caseload and how it led her to create the resource site and membership program, SLPNow. In this episode, Marisha shares the upside of her stress and how she used it to create something that would help her slowly come out the stress she was stuck in – and make it through a year with a TRIPLE DIGIT caseload!

Resources from this episode:

  • SLP Summit, a FREE online conference with practical, real-world CEU courses for SLPs (FYI I’ll be presenting!).
  • SLPNow, membership site
  • SLPNow podcast

You can tune in to this episode below, on your favorite app, or check out all episodes here: SLP Stress Management Podcast

As always, if you are ready to take a deep dive into managing your SLP Stress, make sure to check out the SLP Stress Management Online Course.

And for more SLP Stress Management resources, subscribe below to the SLP Toolbox, a free resource library created for SLPs by an SLP.

Much Love,

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24Aug

How to Survive Your First Year as an SLP

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Career Advice New SLP Reduce Stress
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First Year as an SLP Pinterest

There is nothing like finally finishing with graduate school, passing all of your exams (including the Praxis), getting your license and starting our very first job as an SLP. Your first year as an SLP is one full of firsts and thrills and wins, and can also be one that is surprisingly more challenging than graduate school ever was.

Here is the truth – starting your first year as an SLP is incredibly exciting and can be incredibly overwhelming.

  • You are finally out of your own, but still under supervision for your CFY.
  • You get to make the therapy and diagnostic calls.
  • You can make the schedule and see your students and clients when you want to (mostly).
  • You are an SLP (CF or CCC).

This is all incredibly powerful and can be liberating, but at times it can also leave you feeling like  you’ve been left alone in the wilderness with limited tools for survival. It can be hard to figure out how to survive our first year as an SLP. You may feel like you are a bit isolated, without your cohort of future SLPs by your side each day. It can also make you feel like you are inadequate or need to spend all of your time researching, prepping and planning. This alone can make that first year seem like sink or swim, and can set you up towards the road of chronic stress and burn out.

If you feel this way, in your first year or your 30th year, it is ok. We have ALL felt that way at some point in our SLP career. Luckily, there are a few things you can do in your first year, or starting where you are now, to help you survive and THRIVE from here on out as an SLP.

  • Remember that you know more than you think, and you can always find the answers
    • One of the biggest things when you first start out is gaining and keeping confidence in yourself and your ability to do the work. You may have a supervisor that seems like they are able to know everything, but chances are they have either been around for a long time and have learned a lot along the way, or they know where to go to find the answers.
    • It is ok to not know everything. In grad school, you had to have all the answers for the exams. In the real world, if something is unfamiliar or you want to know more, you can go and research more about it. Look the latest news or articles, head to the ASHA Leader Live, rifle through your textbooks, ask another SLP (FB groups are great for this), take a CEU course, or even listen to a podcast.
  • Set up a schedule that works for YOU
    • You don’t have to follow the schedule you are taking over, or the one that is “typical” for everyone. Just like every standard therapy practice may not work for every patient/student, you may have different scheduling needs than the other SLP you work with.
    • Look at start times and end times, figure out when you need breaks, and take note of when you might need some downtime for paperwork (or to recharge after being “on” with your patients). Having clear times to start and end your day will help keep you from coming in early and staying late regularly, which often lead to much more stress. Breaks will help you to recharge, clear your head and feel more connected to your work in the long run, as well as help keep your efficiency and energy levels up.
  • Don’t be afraid to ask for help
    • This can be so hard to do, but is essential. If you aren’t sure of something, whether it is a treatment or therapy idea or you don;t know ow to figure out your caseload, it is ok to ask for help.
    • Reach out to your mangers or admin as needed, especially with scheduling and caseload management. Look to your CF supervisor for guidance in any and all aspects of the job. You can even reach out to your fellow CF’s and see how they are doing.
  • Keep it Simple
    • One of the biggest things that happens for people trying to survive the first year as an SLP is over-planning. This can be really fun, but can also be a HUGE time-sucker.  The truth is, your patients/clients/students don’t need a TON of complex activities. They will benefit from routine, from familiarity and from simplicity.
    • For planning, have a few go-to resources that you can use with a wide-range of students or clients, and can easily grab and use. Then, if there is time, you can plan more elaborate activities and build up from there.
    • Have a few seasonal themes you can use if you want to add in some fun, but keep it simple and reuse them.
  • Invest in Yourself
    • You have invested so much in your education. Remember to invest in yourself.
    • Take time each day, or most days, to do something good for you in the form of self-care.
    • Try a morning or evening routine to help you set your intentions for the day or to unwind after a long day.
    • Leave work at work and plan a “transition” at the end of the work day to help you switch your mindset from work to home.
  • Build Community
    • Isolation is one of the things that can make it really difficult to survive your first year as an SLP, and can set you up for years of feeling isolated. After being in grad school, with many other peers, not having anyone you know or even any other SLPs at your work can be difficult.
    • Try joining online groups, such as FB groups or follow SLPs on IG, to help feel like part of a community.
    • Plan meetings/outings with your grad school friends or new SLP friends.
    • Make friends and build rapport with other professionals at your work, such as OT, PT, teachers, etc.
    • All of these people will likely be going through similar struggles or will have been through them before. It helps to have people who really “get” what your day is like and can help you work through the stress.

Your first year as an SLP can be incredibly challenging, but can also set you up for an amazing, long, fulfilling career. Give these a try and see how they work for you, especially if you are already feeling overwhelmed. For even more on managing your stress as an SLP, make sure to check out these CEU/CMH webinars, and sign up for FREE stress management resources for SLPs in the SLP Toolbox below.

Much Love,

1741931346171517140715

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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,

1741931346171517140715

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24Apr

How to Improve Work-Life Balance as an SLP

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Burn Out Career Advice New SLP Reduce Stress Self Care
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SLP Work-Life Balance PinterestFinding work-life balance as an SLP can be one of the hardest parts of the job. As an SLP, you have loads of paperwork and admin tasks, are often paid per hour or client, and might feel like you can never quite catch up. It means you end up bringing work home with you most nights (and even on breaks), constantly think about all you have to do (even when you are with your family or alone at home), and might even feel guilt about not working on your time outside the office.

For me, at the height of my stress and burn out, I often felt like my mind was on work, instead of being present at home, and it would leave me exhausted, drained and with an overall feeling of dissatisfaction in my day.

If you are finding that you are struggling between getting your work done and enjoying your time out of the office, here are a few ways you can start to find more work-life balance as an SLP.

Leave work at work.

This seems simple enough, to physically leave your work at work, but it is far from simple. If you are bringing your work home with you, it is most likely because you don’t feel like you have enough time to get it all completed by the end of the day. This alone can make you feel anxious and off balance, but the thought of leaving it at work can heighten this feeling.

To help lessen this stress, try two practices:

  1. Look for holes in your schedule where you are able to plug in some work. These might be small gaps that you didn’t realize you had, or it could be places where you are filling gaps with things to take your mind off of work (but ultimately leave you more stressed) such as scrolling through emails, FB or IG.
  2. Figure out the “Must-do” item for your week (the big report or IEP meeting that is due) and only take this work home, setting up a specific time to focus and get it done. You can find a template for this in the SLP Toolbox.

Remember, the work will never be caught up. It is continuous and constantly playing catch up will only leave you more exhausted.

Find a transition between work and home.

A lot of exhaustion comes from mental fatigue caused by stress. This is often due to constantly thinking about work, even when you are at home and you have left your physical work at the office. If your brain is constantly drifting back towards the work that you want to finish, the meeting you need to schedule and specific moments form your day, you are likely to feel exhausted and drained by the end of the day, and as if you can’t think clearly. And when you can’t think clearly, you aren’t present at home and you aren’t efficient at work, and your stress grows.

To help give your brain a shift out of work mode and into work mode, try having a transition at the end of the work day, before you head home. This gives you a clear break i your day, so you can start to leave work at work, physically and mentally. It can be any type of activity that you enjoy and that gives you a little boost of self-care in your day.

Try one of these:

  • Take a coffee/tea break on your way home
  • Stretch or go for a walk when you finish up
  • Hit the gym
  • Listen to your favorite podcast
  • Read a blog, book or magazine

Set up a Morning or Evening Routine:

Start and stop your day a moment for yourself.

Another way to help you feel find a little more work-life balance as an SLP, is to have a time of day that is routine and just for you. Often the mornings and/or evenings become rushed and are all about getting to work or preparing to head to work the next day. In order to bring in more work-life balance as an SLP, you can set up a morning or evening routine to help you ease into or our o f your day.

It gives you a moment of mindfulness and self-care, which are key to reducing stress, and sets you up for a more balanced day – either by starting on a positive and being in tune with how you are that day, or allowing you to let the day go so you can feel more physically and mentally well-rested.

They only have to take about 5 to 10 minutes. Here are a few to try:

  • Morning Routine: try a practice to help you build up some energy
    • Exercise or yoga
    • Meditation for focus or intentions
    • Journaling about your intentions and goals for the day, or 3 moments of gratitude
    • Starting the day with quiet (SLPs talk a lot and are surrounded by noise most days)
    • Go for a morning walk
  • Evening Routine: try something to help you unwind and let go of the day
    • Warm bath
    • Stretching or gentle yoga
    • Evening walk after dinner
    • Journal about 3 positives from your day
    • Meditation for sleep
    • 5 minutes of silence and a cup of tea
    • Read a book or magazine

While these can seem like a lot of things to add to an already busy day, they are key to finding more work-life balance as an SLP. They will take time to set up initially, and you might fond that some resonate with you more than others. Once you get going, they will help to reduce your feeling of being drained, exhausted and depleted by improving your overall stress, increasing your mental focus and clarity, and leaving you with a bit more energy.

If you are looking for more guidance, make sure to head over to the SLP Toolbox to grab meditations, journal templates and checklists that will help you get started on finding more work-life balance as an SLP today.

For even more resources to manage stress and reduce burn out, check out these CEU/CMH webinars, available now:

Much Love,

1741931346171517140715

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19Mar

4 Ways to Find More Ease as an SLP

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Burn Out Career Advice Gratitude Journal Techniques for SLPs Meditation Reduce Stress Self Care
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SLP Ease PinterestAs an SLP, you are probably more familiar than you want to be with feeling stretched a little too thin on a daily basis. You are trained in so many different aspects of communication (and swallowing), you probably have a pretty varied caseload (that is most likely way too big or way too small), and you are constantly between direct and indirect therapy services. Plus, you have become a pro at multi-tasking all day, every day.  All of this has become part of your routine (or soon will be if you are a student or CF), and it can, honestly, be quite exhausting at times. Or most of the time.

There are reasons for that.

Sometimes you might feel like you are loaded down with more work than there is time in the day. Other times you might get a new student or patient and feel like you just don’t have the skills or knowledge to fully treat them. And there will be times that you just feel run down and tired (or perhaps even sick), and you just don’t have the mental energy to do your work, but you still show up and do it anyway.

There is a ton of paperwork. Productivity levels change constantly in all settings. Caseloads are often out of your control. Multi-tasking causes you to do mental jumping jacks all day. You are physically and mentally exhausted. Add all of this together and you might notice that your outlook on your work, career and even your daily life might have shifted for the negative.

Being stressed and feeling stuck can cause your brain to start to work in overdrive to protect you. This is a beautiful and wonderful system that can keep you safe when you are in danger. But when you aren’t in danger, and life is just constantly feeling stressful, it only sets you up for more stress and more exhaustion each day. It stops you from being able to find more ease as an SLP, and leaves you feeling more and more stressed each day.

When you are chronically feeling stressed, your brain starts to stay on “high alert” to look out for threats and stress around you. If you have a stressful job, or lots of work piling up, stress is everywhere and your brain is constantly seeing it, signaling to your body to release hormones and keeping you in a state of anxiety and stress, which can eventually lead to burn out in your body (adrenal system), your energy (mental and physical) and your job.

To help shift out of this mode, you can do a few practices that help you to find more ease as an SLP, even when your day and schedule haven’t changed one bit. These practices are designed to help you calm the signals in your body that alert your brain to stress (deep breathing), help you to find space in your thoughts (movement), finding positive moments in your day (gratitude journal) and reducing the amount of task switching each day (no more multi-tasking).

Here are 4 ways to find more ease as an SLP, every day:

Gratitude Journal:

  • Helps you find some good in the day
  • Helps your brain to notice more good
  • Gives you a pause in the day
  • Write down 3 positive things from your day

Movement:

  • Clears your head
  • Blood and breath flowing
  • Energy lifts
  • Take 5-60 minutes to walk, stretch or move mindfully

Deep Breathing/Meditation:

  • Sends signal to bran and body to be calm
  • Decreases stress response
  • Gives you a break in your day
  • take 1-5 minutes to focus on your breath

Drop Multi-tasking:

  • More efficient work
  • More mental energy
  • Less strain on brain to constantly switching from task to task
  • Instead bulk like tasks together and check email at set times

When you incorporate one or all of these tings into your day, you’ll start to create new habit and patterns that help reduce stress, but also train your brain to be less affected by the stress that is around you each day. They teach you to manage stress better.

For more on stress management, make sure to check out the “SLP Toolbox” where you’ll find more strategies and tips to build ease in your day. You can sign up below for access.

Much Love,

1741931346171517140715

 

 

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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,

1741931346171517140715

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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

How SLPs Can Combat the Sunday Blues

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Burn Out Reduce Stress Self Care
Comments Off on How SLPs Can Combat the Sunday Blues

Sunday Blues Pinterest
The “Sunday Blues”. It’s a phrase that floats around many of the SLP fb groups, forums and pages. It is something we talk about with each other, but only if we are sure it is a “safe” place and others are probably feeling it to – otherwise we might be judged, seen as not good enough, or perhaps even told we aren’t cut out for the gig.

The “Sunday Blues” is a feeling that many SLPs get at the end of the weekend, right as they start to wind down and get into work mode again. Some feel it lurking throughout their weekend, ready to creep out at any moment. While others send their weekend feeling completely disconnected form the stress of work, only to have it hit them hard when they start to wind down the fun and turn their focus onto getting ready for the week ahead.

The Sunday Blues can hit any SLP, any day of the week, and it is usually a feeling, in the pit of your stomach, that starts to grow and grow until you get to bed, sometimes keeping you from sleeping at night and leaving you feeling exhausted come Monday morning. Just in time for a new week.

These feelings are a form of anxiety, that can build from a gnawing feeling in your belly to a full blown panic and anxiety attack. The first time you feel this, it can be alarming, because you may not know where or why it is happening. There are many SLPs you have started to feel this Sunday Blues feeling when they have seemed perfectly happy and content with their work.

The feeling usually starts to happen because there is an imbalance in your work and home life. It might not be something you are aware of, or it might seem like you aren’t doing anything different than the other professionals you know – taking work home for the evenings or weekend, prepping on the weekends, running errands all weekend, spending time with your family and friends, sleeping in late or staying up late, etc. All of these things can start to build, and can throw your life out of balance before you realize it.

The further anxiety and panic can come from something called “future-tripping”, where you keep looking ahead, to the impending week and all there is to do, which builds the stress around the week. These Sunday Blues can make the week ahead and the tasks that are involved seem much more stressful and time-consuming than they really will be. By looking too far ahead and thinking about “what could happen”, you start to create a build up of anxiety and stress that might not be needed.

To help combat the Sunday Blues, in both forms, there are a few things you can do:

  1. Make sure your weekends are replenishing you, and not depleting you more.
    1. If you are running errands, paying bills, chauffeuring kids around, etc, you are just doing more work (or a different kind) at home. Give yourself time to do something for you that isn’t a task or errand.
    2. Don’t bring work home. There will be times that you have to, but it should not be the norm. Leave work at work, and find time there to do paperwork, and consider, as hard as it is, to plan less so you have more time at work for other things.
  2. Create a Must-Do list for your weekend Self-Care (you can find one in the SLP Toolbox).
    1. 3 things that you will do (they can be small) to make sure you take time for yourself.
    2. Think of things like a cup of tea, read a book, go to yoga, take a walk, wake up 15 minute earlier than everyone else, etc.
  3. Prepare for the week, but only in small doses.
    1. Make sure you have clean clothes, food, etc, but you don’t have to spend your entire weekend doing chores and meal prepping.
    2. Have the basics ready, but also give yourself time to enjoy the weekend.
  4. If you start future-tripping, try a breathing and meditation practice to bring you back to the present moment.
    1. This will help you to bring yourself out of your head and into your body, in this moment, so you can take action (or rest) where needed.
    2. Try this video for more tips or this meditation.

If you are feeling the pressure of the week ahead, it doesn’t have to continue each week or get worse each day. Take some time to bring yourself out of the moment of stress, so you can take action, find more time for self-care, balance your work and weekend, and maybe take the next steps in your career life as needed.

If you are looking for more ways to reduce stress, here are a few other things to try:

You can also subscribe to the free “SLPToolbox” for even more resources and meditation practices.

Much Love,

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