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4Sep

Infusing Mindfulness Into Your SLP Work and Life: SLP Stress Management Podcast

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Podcast Self Care Stress Management
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mindfulness into your SLP work and life


Mindfulness is a huge buzz word in the world right now. And for good reason – it is MUCH needed with all that is going on and continues to go on. Being an SLP, as you know, can often be incredibly stressful, and many of the students and patients that you see ma also be feeling stress of their own. Mindfulness can be an important tool towards alleviating some of this stress, in your life and in your work.

Mindfulness practices, such as meditation, have been shown to help reduce the reactions to stress and turn down the stress response in the brain. This means they are one of the main tools to helping you reduce AND manage your ongoing stress as an SLP.

Mindfulness has also been shown to help your students and adults to feel more calm and open to learning during therapy sessions. It can help them to feel more settled and grounded, so they can learn the strategies you are teaching and sharing with them as best they can. Basically, it can help take some of the stress out of the session.

mindfulness into your SLP work and life

In the latest episode of the SLP Stress Management Podcast, I talk with fellow SLP+Podcast host, Leigh Ann Porter to discuss all things mindfulness in and out of SLP life. Leigh Ann talks about her own experiences with mindfulness and why she began to use it, how she has used it in her daily life, how it has backfired and how it has. She shares what she tried, how it worked, and what changes she made to make it work even better. She also talk about how and why she started to incorporate it in to her work as an outpatient adult SLP.

You can tune in below or check out all the SLP Stress Management Podcast episodes here.

Leigh Ann earned her master’s in Communication Sciences from the University of Central Florida in 2013, and has enjoyed being an SLP ever since. While at UCF, Leigh Ann was part of a grant to prepare SLPs to work with English Language Learners, earning a graduate certificate of TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages).

Leigh Ann now resides in Kansas City where she divides her time working across outpatient, acute, and inpatient rehab settings. She has presented for ASHA CEUs to regional SLPs on topics such as how the respiratory system and cough influence dysphagia, a review of the literature on dysphagia exercises, and generating measurable dysphagia goals. For multidisciplinary continuing education with PTs and OTs, Leigh Ann has presented on topics such as Cognitive Retraining with an emphasis on memory strategies, and the SLP’s scope of practice & making appropriate patient referrals to the SLP. 

As host of the Speech Uncensored Podcast, Leigh enjoys interviewing colleagues to highlight the diversity in our field and share resources. The Speech Uncensored Podcast was born out of a desire to learn more and share that information. As a lifelong learner, Leigh Ann is passionate about disseminating useful resources and equipping SLPs to provide the highest quality of care. The scope of practice for SLPs is wide, varied, and nuanced. When given the right tools, we can confidently provide quality services to our patients.

Want more tools to help you infuse your day with mindfulness? Make sure to subscribe to the SLP Toolbox, a FREE resource library full of meditations, mindful movement audios and more, to help you manage your SLP stress, reduce burnout and find more balance (aka mindfulness) in your life. Subscribe below for access.

If you are looking for even more, make sure to check out the SLP Stress Management Course and Professional Development Courses.

Much Love,

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8Aug

Check Out or Check In?: Basic Mindfulness Meditation for SLPs

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Meditation Reduce Stress Stress Management
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basic mindfulness meditation for slps

One of the things I like to do when I am feeling stressed especially about my work as an SLP, is to find a million other tings to do or think about. That way, I don’t have to focus on the stressful thing at hand. And it works, for about 5 minutes, until it completely backfires and the stress comes at me full force.

Ever try this technique? It’s kind of the worst.

You might notice that when you are stressed, you also do things to check out – like binge watch your favorite show or movie or just ANY show, stay up way too late and guzzle all the caffeine you can the next day, or binge snacks or wine or whatever it might be. The idea is that you end up ignoring the stress, but then it hits you again a little stronger each time.

Instead, the way to really reduce and manage this stress is to face it head on. It sounds like this would be the more stressful approach, but it allows you to check in, or tune in, and see what it really going on for you. That way, even if it feels uncomfortable and more stressful in the movement, you can see what you need to work on, what you have to work with, and the changes you can start to create. It’s not easy, but it is usually necessary.

One way to do this is through a basic mindfulness meditation for SLPs.

In mindfulness meditation practice, you take a few moments to just sit and observe how you are. No judgments, no changing, just seeing what is going on for you in that moment. From there, you become more aware of how you are in that moment, which helps you to see:

  • how you will show up in your day/the world with what you have going on
  • how the day/world may affect you
  • what you can do to better navigate your day and current circumstances (like avoiding a certain co-worker or getting to bed earlier or drinking more water or whatever it may be).

This simple practice can help you start to reap the benefits of meditation, such as turning down the stress response in your brain, and start to manage your stress with more awareness.

You can start by simply sitting for 5 minutes, breathing, and just seeing how the mind and body feel in that moment (without judging) or you can follow a guided meditation, such as the “Basic Mindfulness Meditation for SLPs” available in the SLP Toolbox, a FREE resource library full of stress management tools made for SLPs by an SLP.

You can sign up for access below:

If you are looking to go even further with reducing and managing your SLP Stress, including using meditation and learning exactly how it can help, be sure to check out the SLP Stress Management Course, now enrolling.

Much Love,

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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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22Jun

5 Stretches to Do Next to Your Desk: Mindful Movement for SLPs

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Mindful Movement Reduce Stress Self Care Teletherapy
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stretches for SLPs

Many SLPs went from working in schools or clinics or other in-person settings to providing services via teletherapy almost overnight. Some of the biggest hurtles were definitely trying to figure out how to hold sessions, schedule your students and clients, and what materials to use. But another thing you might not have realized would be a struggle is the potential lack of movement each day.

And with schools and clinics re-opening, but many going to partial status or keeping most sessions online, you might be faced with this lack of movement in your day for a little longer.

Working from home as an SLP can be amazing (by far my favorite setting), but it can also lead to a lot less movement. It can be really easy to end up stuck at your desk for the majority of your day. This lack of movement can cause tension and stiffness in your body, make it difficult to concentrate and focus after while, and can increase your overall stress. I have dealt with this first hand, even as a mind-body fitness and yoga teacher.

When I first started in teletherapy and working from home, this was the biggest surprise. I was so excited to build my schedule and add in more sessions, because I truly enjoyed the work and the connections with my students. After awhile though, it started to feel overwhelming and draining. I was so confused – why was I still feeling these symptoms and signs of stress and potential burnout, when I was actually loving the work? I realized that I was sitting for hours at a time, without even really shifting much in my seat, and my body and brain were not happy about it.

When you are already feeling stressed out by being an SLP and, right now, by all that is going on in the world, more stress from a lack of moving is not something you are looking for.

Getting up and moving, even for just s few stretches, can be a gamechanger.

Once I made it a point to get up and move during my day, I started to feel better.

  • I was less drained, physically and mentally
  • I had less tension in my body that would lead to headaches and backaches
  • I could focus better without the added tension
  • I felt more energized and excited to do the work

It wasn’t always something huge. Sometimes I would take my dogs out for 5 minutes, other times I would go for a walk. And some days, I would simply plop down on a yoga mat for a few quick stretches in between sessions.

If you are looking for something to do to get up and move, consider leaving a yoga mat off to the side, where you can hop on it and work out some tension. Use it in between sessions, if someone runs late or cancels, before/after your work day, or anytime you can.

For a short, guided yoga stretch practice that you can do right next to your desk, check out the downloadable audio “5 Stretches to Do Next to Your Desk” available in the SLP Toolbox. They are the perfect stretches for SLPs, who are short on time.

Not a member? You can subscribe below to this FREE stress management resource library full of meditations, mindful movement practices, and more, made for SLPs by an SLP.

If you are looking to learn more about SLP Stress Management, including a step-by-step system to help you manage stress, reduce burnout and find more balance in your life, check out the SLP Stress Management Online Course, enrolling now for a limited time!

Much Love,

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3Jun

5 Ways to Practice Self-Care as an SLP

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Reduce Stress Self Care
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self-care as an SLPLet’s be completely for a moment. Being an SLP is super awesome and rewarding, and at times super draining, stressful and downright exhausting. You most likely got into the field because you wanted to help people. From babies to kiddos to teenagers to adults to the elderly, there is something that you can offer them to help improve their daily life and help them thrive, communicate and, when needed, swallow and get nourishment. And the field only continues to grow as we learn more and our roles expand.

So, yeah, it can be rewarding. And, yeah, it can be stressful.

There is a thing that happens in a profession like ours, one where you help people ALL DAY EVERYDAY. It often leads to chronic stress and burn out and can make you either continue to live feeling overwhelmed and stressed each day, or cause you to quit completely. You see, as a “Helping Professional”, and I dare to say even more so for SLPs with our vast role, you are giving to others to the point of exhaustion. There is often no break during your day, there are infinite tasks to do in addition to your therapy, and you constantly feel like you need to do more, learn more and be more for your clients/students/patients. So you do more, and you give more, until you don’t have a lot left to give. And yet you still try to give more. It’s like pouring from an empty cup and hoping for a few more drops to come out, or scraping the bottom of an empty barrel.

And all of this is for others. So it is no wonder that you are exhausted, stressed, and overwhelmed.

The thing you, well we as a whole, keep trying to do is push through and give more, and what you, we, really need is to take a pause and fill back up. Give some BACK to yourself, so you are not empty, depleted or drained. Restore and recharge, so you can not only give back to others, but also make it through each day OK and eventually thriving.

The biggest thing – make time for Self-Care as an SLP.

And by self-care, I am talking about taking time to restore, check in and take care of yourself. Not to check out, binge your favorite show and down a bottle of wine/bar of chocolate/tube of cookie dough, while denying you have to work in the morning (it happens to the best of us!). 

Self-Care is not just a trendy thing. It is in fact science backed, which is what we look for as SLPs. Studies show that true Self-Care activities can help you to be more present, enjoy your day, and decrease your overall stress AND the way stress affects you.

It’s not always easy or purely fun, because true Self-Care as an SLP is WORK, but is makes all the difference. And, eventually, it becomes a part of your day that you really can’t make it through without. It takes you from struggling to survive each day, to fully thriving each day.

Here are a few ways to Practice Self-Care as an SLP:

  • Take breaks during the day:
    • This can be super challenging, especially when you work from home (which you most likely are at this moment). Make sure to take some breaks, even short ones, to eat, stretch, move, pee, whatever it is you need to do. It gives your brain and body a chance to recharge, so you can show up more focused, engaged and ready.
  • Get some rest:
    • It sounds easier than it is. If you are working round the clock to get your paperwork and other “tasks” completed, or find yourself binge watching late into the night to avoid your stress, you might be lacking in rest. Or you might be feeling like your thoughts start spinning as soon as your head hits the pillow. Try to set a reminder or timer before you need to head to bed, so you have time to unwind first. Then, if your thoughts are spiraling, try a journal practice called “brain dump” to put all the thoughts down on paper and get them out of your head.
  • Try being mindful:
    • Mindfulness simply means being aware and checking on how you are doing. You could try giving yourself a moment to check in when you wake up to see how you feel that day. Then use that awareness of how you are today to be realistic of how you might show up, react and move through the day.
  • Get up and move
    • Easier said than done. It can be easy to slip into the habit of working, and then working just a little more, and then a little more, until you have spent the entire day sitting Most likely, it leaves your body stiff, your brain frazzled, and an overall feeling of sluggishness. Try moving, even to walk to get coffee or water, a few times a day. Go outside for a quick stretch. Get up and take 100 steps. Do a few laps around your house or office. Stretch at your desk. All of these can help you to feel better and maintain energy during your day .
    • (Check out some of the Mindful Movement downloadable audios in the SLP Toolbox).
  • Eat and hydrate
    • It something you need to do, but might be forgetting to really do this during the day. Make sure you take tome to stay hydrated throughout your day. Coffee is great, but too much can make you feel less than good. Also include some water to sip on, keeping you hydrated, feeling good, and helping your voice to stay steady. Have a water bottle on your desk an refill as needed.
    • Snacks are important too. They help your body and brain function and focus. Make time for snack breaks and a full lunch. If you need to, have healthy snacks at your desk that you can eat in between sessions to help you stay energized.

For Self-Care resources, made just for SLPs, make sure to sign up for the FREE SLP Toolbox below. You’ll get weekly updates and resources to help you manage and reduce stress that can lead to burn out.

 

You can also learn more about managing stress and practicing self-care as an SLP in the following CEU/CMH courses:

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,

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6Sep

Posted by: Jessi Andricks Categories: Reduce Stress
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SLP Stress and Overwhelm Pinterest (1)

For awhile now, I’ve been trying to figure out where exactly I fit in within my “chosen” career path. I have a degree and am certified as an Speech Language Pathologist, but my passions also sit with yoga, holistic health and nutrition. I also have a deep love of learning and teaching ways to reduce stress, decrease overwhelm and move through, or prevent, burn out, because I have been through it all. Needless to say, this is not the way I had planned for this blog to happen.

My visions of a career at first were of working in a hospital, doing big and amazing things with my patients. I imagined drastically changing lives and improving health, The reality of it was not quite the same.

I was constantly feeling stressed and moving through different phases of being burnt out, lost and a little overwhelmed with my life. No other SLPs seemed to be feeling this, at least to me. I felt very alone, like I was the only one interested in more than just my work as an SLP. After feeling really overwhelmed, I decided to quit for awhile and focus on building a career as a yoga teach, health coach and writer.

These few years “off” were full of hustle, working for not much money and learning a ton about wellness, stress and myself.

After taking 4 years off, I decided to get back into the Speech Therapy field. I soon realized my whole perspective had changed. I could see how even small things can really make a difference in patients/clients/students lives. I understood that having balance between work and daily life was everything to me. And I finally realized that I was not alone in feeling overwhelmed and burn out. It seemed like every SLP I met or spoke with was feeling that way and ready to breakdown or quit.

So I decided to share my experience of working through burn out, put all of my different training together and create this site and blog as a resource. I wanted to share with you how I had finally figured it out and had balance in my life again.

I wanted to share with you how you could move away from these things, like I did, and become a much more balanced, less stressed, overwhelm-free Speech Therapist/Pathologist/Teacher. I wanted to show you how it could all be “perfect”.

But then life happened and I realized, that’s not possible.

Why? Because we are human, life is full of ups and downs, and I will never, ever be free from overwhelm and stress. And that’s ok.

Recently, my life has been full, but a bit chaotic. My husband and I moved to a new state, into a beautiful but outdated home. He started a new job that sent him to Europe for 2 weeks, while I was at our new home with visiting family and friends, trying to unpack, repair and remodel the new house, all with a toddler in the mix. And when August rolled around, I started back to work as well.

It has been beautiful at times and worth every moment, but it has also  been absolutely overwhelming.  I found myself feeling those old feelings of overwhelm, doubt and anxiety creeping in.

I felt a bit defeated. Here I was, trying to start a blog and resource for other people and SLP’s who were feeling this way, showing them that they could live this super amazing life, while I was feeling less than amazing myself. I questioned myself, thinking “Who am I to teach anyone anything about stress, when I am so stressed and anxious at the moment?” And that’s when it hit me. I was back in my former way of thinking (the way that made me quit being an SLP for 4+ years, swearing off the profession forever). I had spent years treating myself better, learning about my own needs and, finally, getting back into the field with a renewed passion for it. It didn’t mean that I was completely free of stress, overwhelm, anxiety or really tough days forever – that wouldn’t really be living or human of me – but it did mean that I could use tools that I had learned over the years to make it a little better and move through it. It meant I didn’t have to stay stuck.

So here is what I did:

  • I allowed myself to throw a fit. Then I got over it.
  • I took a few deep breaths and reminded myself “This too shall pass”.
  • I made a cup of tea.
  • I promised myself to go for a walk in the woods as soon as I could.
  • I made an effort to get more sleep that night.

The next day wasn’t perfect, but I could feel things were already turning back around. Instead of resenting the less than stellar evening I had, I looked at what I had learned from it. These simple, everyday experiences seemed like a set back at first, but then I realized, they were universal, not something I was going through alone. We all have days that feel like everything is falling apart. Sometimes it does and sometimes it gets better. The thing we need is to remember that it will pass, if we allow ourselves to move through it, and that we are not alone in it. There are thousands of other people in our field who feel absolutely lost and unsure, about their job or home life, each and every day.

Now, instead of bringing you a perfect blog, reflecting an “I’ve Made It!” lifestyle, I get to keep it real. I get to share with you how hard it was for me when I started out as an SLP and how I finally made it through (and how you might be able to make it through a little easier). I can share with you the struggles and triumphs of working in the field and balancing daily life. And I can share with you some things that help me, and that might help you in return.

I promise to never be perfect, but instead, be real, and be human.

If you are ready to start your journey towards learning from your stress and overwhelm, make sure to sign up for the SLP Toolbox for free resources.

 

 

Much Love,

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