In Chinese characters, the word crisis looks like this “危機”. There are two characters, danger and opportunity. So, a crisis is a dangerous opportunity.
At the end of the 3rd week after the COVID-19 pandemic sweeping through Massachusetts, I asked myself: what do I want to see myself at the end of this pandemic?
Moving into week 5 (4/13 to 4/17), I am tired from the training over the weekend and also surprised that I was able to sit through 7.5 hours on Saturday afternoon (4/11) and signed up another one for this coming weekend.
I tried to use the technique I learned from the weekend training (Flash Technique), and it was surprisingly well! I felt very encouraged to continue to do so.
Moving into the 4th week (4/6 to 4/10), I can feel a sense of ease on Wednesday and Thursday night and continue to feel anxiety on Tuesday and Friday when I saw clients in person.
I sprained my ankle last week. Yeah, I know, right? How can this happen?
The answer is: I was too occupied with everything going on. When I got a chance to go out for a run, I was thinking about everything I needed to do and moving my schedule and tasks around my head. So, I didn’t see the stones on the road and by the time I was on the ground, it was too late.
What’s your stress reaction that you are not aware but showing up somatic? In this coming week, pay attention to yourself about your stress reaction.
This week is chaotic. “Flexible” is the word I have been keeping in mind. I had to constant adjust my schedule and my work. This is not easy for me because I have always had a routine. Suddenly, my life is unpredictable and I am not sure what would happen next.
The first week (3/16-3/20) was chaotic for me.
Here are the channels I have tried and would like to share with you. Before I get into the details of why I like each channel, I want to answer this commonly asked question: how do you know which one you are going to do? My first criteria are “how much time do I have?” Most of the channels created the playlist based on the length of the program. I generally go into the playlist with the time I have. My second criteria are how I feel about my body at the moment. If I feel very sore, I might do a deep stretch. If I feel the need to have more exercise, I might go with a flow type of yoga. Most of the channels provide the playlist that group the similar type of yoga together.
Unable to recall the specifics outside the trauma events but remembering the trauma memory in details is one of the typical symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The traumatic event is like a movie running through the survivor’s head over and over again, and therefore, they remember the details of the specific traumatic events. In the meantime, it also means that “before and after” becomes a blur for the survivors. They generally unable to recall the details of the “before and after” events but only the critical segments because the brain is occupied by the replay of the traumatic events over and over again.
No matter what’s the reason we lie, the bottom line is: we lie to get out of trouble or to protect someone.
I am Dr. Grace Chen, a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist.
Heal Trauma, Change Pattern, Find Purpose and Fulfillment, Transform Life Path & Relationship
Copyright © 2024 Dr Grace Chen LMFT | All rights reserved.
