Is Your Tank Running on Empty?

In a world focused on trending self-care, making time for that care can feel overwhelming and hard to know where to start.

We are opening up May is Mental Health month talking about self-care, exploring the impact of grounding and sleep in your routines. We open with guest Terra Upham, Pawnee Mental Health’s Therapy Services Director, to talk about the importance of sleep and the routines you build around sleep. Vanessa Hager, Studio Manager & Instructor at Little Apple Pilates, joins in the conversation talking about yoga practices that you can take with you every day. 

Have questions, thoughts, or stories you want to share? We would love to hear from you! Shoot us an email at brightminds@pawnee.org

Your mental health matters. While this podcast is meant to foster connection, understanding, and hope, we know that some conversations may bring up difficult or emotional moments. If you need support, help is available and you don’t have to navigate it alone.

If you or someone you know is in crisis or experiencing emotional distress, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. Free, confidential support is available at any time.

To learn more about Pawnee Mental Health, visit us at https://www.pawnee.org

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:03

Welcome back. I'm Jonathan Say Paul.

SPEAKER_03 0:05

And I'm Michelle Malieu, and this is Bright Minds and Brighter Days Podcast.

SPEAKER_02 0:09

Where every episode our goal is to bring you real conversations that you can do. Hello, welcome back.

SPEAKER_03 0:14

Today we are going to be talking about self-care. And I personally know that self-care is very important. I am a 40-something-year-old lady and I love to chalk on my driveway. It's a way for me to reset myself, but I think a lot of people think that self-care has to be this huge elaborate ordeal that they have to set aside an hour and a half just to dedicate to self-care. And I think that we need to talk more about how to incorporate things throughout the day so that we're not waiting until the last minute at the end of the day to, okay, now I have to squeeze in something so that I can reset before I get going for tomorrow. I often tell people, you know, go take a walk. If you can in the middle of the day, if you take a rough phone call, go outside, take a walk, reset yourself, come back in, start over. Today we have Tara a Pam, and I'll go ahead and let her introduce her and tell her titles. But we will be talking about how sleep can impact not only youth but also adults, and then talk about some other self-care items. So go ahead and take it away, Tara.

SPEAKER_01 1:06

Thank you. As Michelle just indicated, my name is Tara. I am currently the Director of Therapy Services at Pawnee Mental Health. I have been with Pawnee for roughly 13 years now, and I have worn a lot of different hats throughout my time at Pawnee, working with youth within the youth community services, all to being a clinician as well as doing some yoga and mindfulness classes and groups with our community services. So I've worked with a plethora of individuals, and again, self-care is critical and important for kiddos as you know, as young as they can be, all the way up to, you know, the adults that we work with within our services.

SPEAKER_03 1:45

So I think starting with kids, what is some basic self-care things that you can do with kids or have kids do by themselves?

SPEAKER_01 1:53

I think, especially with kids, um screen time. Screen time is definitely critical. I think sometimes it it can be self-care for a lot of our kiddos, but I think it also can impact other areas of their life that really does tie into that holistic health. Um, so screen time can impact sleep. Um screen time can impact their ability to access that part of the brain that helps with impulse control and emotional regulation. And so simple things with just having, you know, dedicated time for screen time, ensuring screen time is, you know, turned off, you know, at least an hour before bedtime. Um, just simple changes in routines can really help kiddos overall feel healthy, but then also really help with their emotional regulation, help with some other areas that may be impacted by just the utilization of screens.

SPEAKER_03 2:43

Sounds like for adults too, right?

SPEAKER_01 2:45

Yes, definitely, definitely.

SPEAKER_02 2:47

I guess one thing that I was personally um you know interested in as far as it goes with the with sleep, because you know, you know, sometimes I'm a night owl, sometimes it's just hard for me to get to sleep. You know, I you know, I sometimes I run on four hours a night. Um I'm always trying to get better at this, but what would you say the difference between, you know, like sleep quality and sleep quantity?

SPEAKER_01 3:10

Yes, that's a great question. Um I think you know, I kind of t touched on it a little bit, but I think again, sleep is just really important. It's not just rest, it's a time for our body to actually recover and process some of those emotions and process some of those stressors that happen during the day, you know, during the day. So if we don't have good quality sleep, that again carries over to the next day. And and that's the difference between kind of you know poor one night of sleep versus sleep deprivation. Sleep deprivation is kind of if you look at it as debt, it you're accruing debt, you know, from day to day to day, and that just builds up and builds up and builds up. So you can have eight hours of sleep, but if it's not quality sleep, you're really not allowing your body to reset. You're not allowing your body to process, you're not really getting that restful sleep, especially if you're carrying stress into bedtime. Cortisol wakes you up, you know, so that cortisol stuck in your body from stress can keep you awake at night, which again kind of goes back to self-care and the importance of kind of letting some of that cortisol and some of that stress out throughout the day, whether it is through movement, whether it's through exercise, doing something you enjoy, it's really important because those are the things that can keep you up at night. Um, so I hear that a lot. Well, I got eight hours of sleep, but if it wasn't restful sleep, so if you were waking up multiple times throughout the night, if you didn't fall asleep within probably 20 to 30 minutes, if you didn't really alternate from rim sleep to not rim sleep, you really didn't get that restful sleep. That's really needed to kind of reset your body for the next day.

SPEAKER_02 4:39

Maybe having screens on while you sleep.

SPEAKER_01 4:41

Yes, and that's the other importance is a sleep routine. Um it's really when I say kitchen, you know, we all probably associate kitchen with food, right? That's what we want when I say bedroom. You know, we want our body to associate our bedroom, especially our bed, with sleep. And what gets hard is when we start to do other activities when we're in bed, when we're starting to watch TV, when we're starting to be on screens, your body's now associating your bed with all these other things that kind of keeps your mind going and and your neurotransmitter spiring and really doesn't allow your body to shut down because it's really doesn't have that strong correlation of, oh, when I go to this bed, it's for sleep. And so it is really important to establish those sleep routines and really to try to keep any of those activities in bed to a minimal. So, you know, if you are gonna read, do it on the couch. If you are gonna do some screen time, not in your bed. Um and so just ensuring that routine is also consistent. Our brain likes predictability and also our melatonin is naturally released, and when our melatonin released, it kind of shuts our body down. But if our body and our brain never knows when we're gonna go to sleep because our schedule's every, you know, different every day, then it actually kind of keeps us on alert. It keeps our, you know, kind of alarm set, um, and it doesn't really allow us to shut down for that good quality sleep.

SPEAKER_03 5:58

I used to read on my phone and then I found that, oh, I like reading before bed because it calms me down and it helps. But then I realized this is a bright light, and it's taking me a lot longer after I read, you know, okay, I'm gonna be done after this chapter, and then I'm trying to shut my mind off, and then I still see the light after I close my eyes, and I'm like, so I've had to physically buy books so that I can read books and I do it in the living room, and then I'm like, okay, when I'm done, I'm done, because I'm not gonna bring in a little light or turn on a light. So I've had to do that. But how do other people, or how do you, I guess, how do you help people create a sleep habit? Like I know when with kids it's easy because they can't really talk, you know, at an infant stage, like and we just naturally put them down at certain times, and then as they get older, it's something that they follow, like with school, go to bed at this time, or we need to try and be in bed this time. But for adults that are running every different direction, how do we create those habits?

SPEAKER_01 6:47

Yeah, I I think that's um a really good question. And I think it really does come down to being intentional with it. It really comes down to having something outlined because I think for all of us, when our life gets busy and things get chaotic, the things we're used to is always gonna come back naturally, right? Um we're always gonna fall back to those things that we've always done. And so we have to have that plan in place when we're kind of not in a heightened state of stress or a heightened state of chaos. So that way when the time comes for us to get ready for bed, we already know we do X, Y, and Z. This is the time where we start that process. Um and we recognize as adults it may have to change a little bit from day to day. Um but really kind of the steps you take should be as similar as possible. So maybe the time might be a little bit different, but the steps you take. So the first thing you do to kind of tell your brain you're getting ready for bed maybe is brush your teeth. Or maybe you turn on the sound machine, or you know, again, those simple steps. It doesn't have to be like you said earlier about self-care, some hour and a half routine. It could just be a consistent, predictable 20-minute routine every evening so your brain starts to kind of be trained that, oh, when I start doing this, I can start to shut down, I can take my alarm off, I don't have to be on high alert, I can start to kind of release that natural sleep aid and and kind of get into that relaxed state.

SPEAKER_02 8:06

And is there kind of like a like a timeline where you know these routines that you're kind of really getting yourself to get into, um how long does it take for them to kind of become habitual?

SPEAKER_01 8:17

Um it it does take some good time if you think about it, our everything we've done, you know, we're retraining our body. Um so there are, you know, a lot of different research out there sometimes that contradicts other research, but essentially they say, you know, doing the same thing consistently for at least six weeks. Um so it is, again, gonna put in some effort, you know, put in some hard work, um, just like anything else. But if we can be consistent with six weeks, then it's kind of hopefully kind of then ingrained where it just becomes more natural for you, and then you almost feel uneasy if you don't do that routine. Um so kind of the opposite.

SPEAKER_03 8:52

So as a parent, not suggesting because this is kind of what I do, but the last week of summer I'm like, okay, we better change bedtime because if you get school next week, a week is not cutting it, is it?

SPEAKER_01 9:03

No, probably not. And I and I know it's the same thing with weekends. Well, I'm gonna let them stay up later. I'm gonna let them sleep in. Um, and obviously a little bit of that is completely okay, but it you know, even those huge changes where okay, I'm gonna let them stay up till 11 because it's Saturday, but during the week, you know, bedtime's at eight, that again really messes with kind of your internal system and your regulatory system to do that week in and week out, and then to try to get back into routine because again, sleep is so important for those kiddos to be able to manage impulses and emotions and and pay attention. So a lot of times, you know, when I'm working with parents that have kids that are maybe restless or hyperactive, I really look at the whole picture. You know, what does their sleep health look like before we maybe go straight to like ADHD? Because it could just be a simple that they're not getting enough sleep, they're not getting enough rest, they're not in that REM sleep long enough, that is really impacting their ability to pay attention.

SPEAKER_03 9:56

Is that kind of a shock to parents when you bring that up? Because people probably don't think about sleep. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 10:00

It is, it is. But when you think about it, if you kind of ask yourself a question like, you know, think about the last time where you didn't get a lot of sleep, how were you the next day? Were you able to manage those stressors like you would when you got a restful night's sleep? You know, were you reactive versus you know, more proactive? You know, were you able to kind of access that part of the brain to really engage in decision making that was in healthy ways? Um so if you think about it, just even as adults, I can definitely know the days where I've gotten good sleep versus the days where I didn't get good sleep just by how I am able to cope with, you know, situations. So it's the same thing with kiddos, definitely.

SPEAKER_02 10:35

I did want to bring in our second guest. We have Vanessa Hager. Tell us a little bit about yourself and um let's keep the conversation going.

SPEAKER_00 10:44

Well, hi, my name's Vanessa, and I'm a one of the local yoga instructors here in town. I kind of got into yoga about eight years ago when it really just helped my depression and my anxiety, and that journey is just kind of taking me on all sorts of rides, eventually through yoga teacher training, and um the more I just share this practice with people, um, the more I just get to connect and just share things that they can take out of the room and into their everyday.

SPEAKER_02 11:12

You know, I I was really interested when um, you know, when I when I heard about your grounding techniques, you know, you know, I was like, what's grounding? Like that sounds so interesting. So what does grounding actually mean?

SPEAKER_00 11:23

Yeah, so that means just kind of coming back into your body in that present moment. Um and so the times that you find yourself in your head, maybe like you're in a conversation with someone, but your mind's like already thinking on to the next thing. Um, so that's a really good indication of just kind of like working on bringing yourself back to that moment and being okay with just being right here, right now. Sometimes it can show up as restlessness, it can show up as um anxiety. For me personally, sometimes I pick my nails, so sometimes that can that can show up there. And um yeah, just being able to recognize those things and find techniques that can work for you to bring yourself back to, I would say kind of like baseline.

SPEAKER_03 12:07

I do have a lot of people when I do trainings, that's kind of one of the first questions I open up with is tell me your name, tell me your role, then tell me one self-care activity you do. And I do have quite a few people that say that they like to ground themselves. Like they just like to go outside when it's nice, take their shoes off, stand in the grass and feel it, kind of close their eyes, put their face towards the sun and just feel it on them. And I'm like, interesting. And I've never heard that so commonly. And I was kind of shocked that yeah, everybody said it's just a good way to reset themselves before they go on to their next task. And I was like, wow.

SPEAKER_00 12:37

And so a lot of uh I would say the clients or the like the demographic that I work with are college-age students, and so um I don't ever want to go into class and be like too hippie-dippy, but I'm like, hey, like what do you guys think about this? Like, would you be down to try it? Because it is different when you think about not necessarily in that moment like going outside and putting your feet in the dirt, but like you're sitting down on a mat or say you're sitting here in this chair, and you just get to close your eyes, and then I usually have them start from like their feet or anything that's touching the ground. So it'd be like um your feet and say like your bottom. And it's like, okay, like in my feet, I feel my socks. How do the socks feel on my feet? Or if they're in um in my class, most of the time they're barefoot. So it's like, hey, do you feel your mat? Like, how does it feel? Like, are you using a different mat today? And so kind of just bringing them back to what they feel or where they're at in that moment, no matter how much their mind wants to be w anywhere else, um, just because that's that's day-to-day, that's how we usually operate.

SPEAKER_02 13:39

Do you incorporate like any like breathing when you're teaching people this? Like any specific ways to breathe, such as like, you know, lower diaphragm breathing.

SPEAKER_00 13:48

Yes, and so one of my favorite things to do is because we as like humans just operate at such like a fast pace and we're just so used to go, go, go. So our body feels like that high pace, that tension is baseline. When in reality it's not that's not what we want. And so when I start them, I have them like inhale and really just bring their shoulders all the way up to their ears so they can like feel that tension, and then as they exhale, just letting those shoulders drop away. After that, starting to inhale through their nose and slowly exhale through their mouth. And so that kind of starts to regulate their breathing, kind of brings them back, it slows the body down, uh, starts to regulate the nervous system, and then from there going into grounding. I felt that that was the most effective, like just kind of like looking across a room and just seeing like those, like I can tell by like just the way they sink down into the mat, whether they're laying, whether they're sitting, um, going in that order was just a lot more relaxing for them.

SPEAKER_03 14:47

So this is technically something that we could build a habit into our sleep or into our sleep, like before we go to sleep, a way to kind of calm and relax ourselves before.

SPEAKER_00 14:55

Mm-hmm. And so like grounding, we uh when we need it, it's in those high-tense situations. And so I I always encourage people to practice those things when you're not feeling that way. Because then there's more of a chance that you'll use it when you feel that way. Um because this way you're training your mind and you're also like getting used to that feeling of ease in your body, and you know what that feels like and you're comfortable with it. And so whether you wake up in the morning and say, like, hey, I want to take five rounds of deep breaths, like breathing in through my nose, and then as I slowly exhale, letting that exhale be a little bit slower each time that I do it. Um so something as simple as that. And say, like maybe your lunch break, you do that again, and then in the evening right before bed. So it ties really into like your nighttime routine of just trying to wind down and bring your nervous system um back to its baseline.

SPEAKER_03 15:49

I love it.

SPEAKER_02 15:51

Are there are there any sort of grounding routines that are maybe specific for things like anxiety?

SPEAKER_00 15:58

Um, yes. And so with anxiety, uh the goal is to um regulate your nervous system and calm it down, right? And so you want to find things that are a little bit more relaxing as opposed to when you're feeling low energy or burnout, you need things that are more stimulating on that aspect. Um but on this one I would say like along with the breathing, if you're able to just looking around the room, just trying to find like a handful of things um that are say the color blue or the color red, or maybe that's too much for that. And so kind of coming back to that grounding, it's like, okay, I feel myself sitting on the seat, it's really comfy, I can feel the the shoulder rest beneath my elbow, like this cushion behind my back is really nice and comfy, and then like I'm kind of like out of my head and I'm back into where I'm at in this moment.

SPEAKER_02 16:52

I can see you nodding your head, Tara. Some of this actually sounds familiar from like some of the classes I remember taking with you. Um, you know, with like little flower yoga and stuff like that. From you you know, from your standpoint, does a lot of this seem like it kind of crosses over with with what you teach?

SPEAKER_01 17:09

Uh yes, definitely. Um I think there is such a correlation with like the physical health and and the movements through yoga in relation to mental health and grounding is a huge part in both areas and we utilize a lot of grounding with the consumers and the individuals we work with, especially with kiddos, you know, through a lot of the trainings. Um one of my best or one of my favorite groundings to do with kiddos um or even adults is the five, four, three, two, one, because anything that we can involve our senses with is very grounding, and also it really helps to kind of integrate the both sides of our brain and bring our nervous system back online, the parasympathetic nervous system that we want to be online. So when I say five, four, three, two, one, it's five things you can see, four things you can touch, three things you can hear, two things you can smell, and one thing you can taste. So just anything as simple as that, you know, could be really, really grounding for someone that may have, you know, a moment of distress or a moment of anxiety, or just our day-to-day where again we live in such a fast-paced environment that we just need to take a moment to bring ourselves to the here and now could be so powerful. And just allowing them to learn more about their body, what feels good, what doesn't feel good, how did I feel in this moment, how did I feel before and after this activity? Because a lot of times we don't take the time just to check in with ourselves and and check in really how are we feeling because we are just constantly moving from one task to another.

SPEAKER_02 18:37

Vanessa, are there any other factors that you know to for for our listeners to kind of keep in mind when it comes to their physical environment? Are there anything that you know might might get in the way that you need to kind of exclude yourself from uh when you want to, you know, say ground yourself?

SPEAKER_00 18:54

Yeah, um I would say one of the main things for a physical environment is our everyday living space. So where you spend the most time. Uh so our offices, maybe you're in a clinic, so you're just in a group setting, or your bedroom. And so I always encourage people like when your area is nice and like clean, I'm not talking about like sparkling clean, I'm just saying like organized, you know, where you can like look and you're able to find things, you don't have to shuffle through them. You don't look at your area and you're like, oh my gosh. Like you don't want that feeling. And so just being able to have that clean space um allows for your mind to also just be able to think a little bit clearer. And so I think physical environments do play a huge part in that. And um and maybe like if you if it is cluttered right now, that's okay. Like just taking maybe one weekend and you just spend like 10 minutes on it, like just working, and you'll start to notice like the more you declutter, the more you go through that journey, um your mind will just open up. Like you'll just start to feel at ease in your own space, whether it's at work, whether it's at home. Um yeah, that that plays a big part in it too.

SPEAKER_03 20:00

So we talked a lot about grounding and sleeping as our self-care for this episode. When I ask this question when I start my trainings, I get a lot of people say, Oh, I like to go get my hair done. I like to go get my nails done. But I'm like, okay, you should be doing self-care daily. Like these are things that you're waiting two to six weeks to get done. And I'm like, I always talk about your internal gas gauge, and I'm like, we can never stay at full because daily life happens. We know that. But I always challenge people to stay between full and half. So incorporating small things of self-care throughout the day, that way they can maintain that. And I'm like, if you're waiting that long, you are way beyond empty. We have a problem. Like, you're not taking care of yourself. So, what are some small things that people can do throughout the day besides sleep and grounding and yoga and stuff like that that you would like to talk about off the top of your head for self-care?

SPEAKER_01 20:44

Again, I think self-care is very different from everyone or for everyone. I think um, you know, I can give some suggestions, but someone might hear and go, that would not be relaxing for me. That would not be self-care, you know. So, you know, I first thing that came to mind is just, you know, get up from your office desk, you know, for five minutes and go walk around the block. Like to me, that is it helps me ground, but it's also self-care, just movement, physical exercise, getting out in in the beautiful weather. Um, but for someone else, going for a walk may not be something that's relaxing to them. And so I think it kind of goes back to you really have to be intentional, you really have to kind of recognize how your body feels before and after. Because I think we also get self-care confused a lot with things we're good at. And that's not self-care. You know, a lot of times people are like, Well, I went home and did X, Y, and Z, and then I asked them and I'm like, Well, uh, how did you feel after that? And and they didn't really feel a difference. And I'm like, Well, that's not self-care. Just because you're good at it, that doesn't mean it fills your bucket. So I think there's a big difference. We need to really ensure that we're engaging in things that are filling our bucket, that's kind of helping us feel grounded, giving us the capacity to handle those day to day stressors. But sometimes that doesn't necessarily correlate with the things we're good at. Um so I think kind of just recognizing that as well, it could correlate, but it doesn't have To correlate. And so I think sometimes I hear that a lot. Well, I went home and did all these things, but then when I really kind of dig and process, none of those things brought them joy. You know, none of those things kind of was a sense of fulfillment or you know, gave them that feel good. And so then we kind of have to reevaluate, well, then that wasn't really probably self-care.

SPEAKER_03 22:19

Yeah. Vanessa, do you have anything you want to add to the self-care conversation?

SPEAKER_00 22:25

I would say, so one of the I would say one of the biggest things in my self-care journey over the last month was um getting myself off my feet was a really hard thing to do. So I was catching myself and I was doing things because they had to get done. But in reality, I was just like, I know this isn't self-care, but like these need to get done, and then I can have this. So not treating self-care as like a reward because I mean we need those things. Like just how we need to drink water and get sunlight. We're just like plants, but a little bit more complicated. And so we do need those different aspects. Um, and it's okay to slow down. But yeah, for me personally, it was laying on the floor and kicking my feet up the wall to take all the pressure off of my feet. That was my new self-care thing for the past month. Um because I mean we walk every single day, I mean, takes that impact, our feet take that impact, our pelvic floor takes that impact, and then you add in stress, you add in um the quality of sleep, or maybe you just didn't sleep at all. Um, and then you add in life and it's just it becomes a lot for the body. It does. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 23:26

I often talk about, you know, it's could be something as small as when you get in your car after work. Do you just turn the radio on all and blast it and just jam out as a way to completely let the day go so that you quit thinking about it, so then that way when you get home, work is gone and now you can focus on your family. Or is it, you know, some people are like, well, I'm the complete opposite. I want to drive in silence. Well, hey, do it. Whatever, you know, whatever helps you. But yeah, and I think it's something important. I mean, I talked to my kiddo who's 15 about self-care. I mean, there is no certain age just because you're working, you know, 40 hours a week or whatever that you have to start. I think we need to start doing it at a young age so that people get used to doing things. And I know at work that and I just talked about this at a training and they're gonna start it, but I know at work at one point in time we had a puzzle in our break room for people that just needed to get up and out and just go take a break and completely let their mind go. Like put some puzzle pieces in, focus on something else, and then restart your task that you were at. And so journaling, I hear that one a lot. People like to journal color. I mean, like I like to chalk, but I can't chalk in the winter. So, you know, finding ways to help do things every day that you can. So, yeah. What do you do, Jonathan? Um, I mean, you know, I want to start over on that one.

unknown 24:32

Yeah, because we have a little talk.

SPEAKER_03 24:34

Okay. Oh go ahead, chime in first.

SPEAKER_01 24:36

Yes. I was just gonna say the analogy that I use a lot, and I know Michelle, you have probably used this quite a bit also in your trainings, is the oxygen mask. Yeah. So if you think about when you're flying, what's the first thing they tell you? Hey, if the oxygen mask falls from the ceiling, put on yours first before you put on your child's oxygen mask or someone else that's with you. And it's the same thing with self-care. If again, we are not putting us first and taking care of our our emotional needs, our physical needs, we aren't gonna be the best per best mom, best coworker, best, you know, clinician, you know, best yoga instructor. You know, so I think kind of looking at it a little bit differently, because I hear a lot that self-care is selfish, you know, and I think self-care in general just has a really negative connotation after COVID and taking care of yourself and and things like that. But when you take a step back, it really does impact every aspect of your life. And so if we are not at our best, we can't be the best for the people around us. And so I that analogy of the oxygen mask always just stays with me that I need to take care of me, and it's not selfish because actually by taking care of me, I am gonna be a better mom or I am gonna be a better clinician. And so kind of looking at it from a different lens, I think sometimes um is helpful for individuals who maybe see that it's selfish or finds that it's selfish or has been told that it's selfish when in reality it's it's kind of the opposite.

SPEAKER_03 25:53

Yeah, when I bring that up in trainings about the oxygen mask, I always ask the groom, I'm like, okay, show of hands, how many of you have to take care of somebody else when you go home? Whether it be a significant other, a child, a dog, you know, whatever else, and the amount of hands that go up. And I'm like, how many have to take care of somebody at work? Whether it be a coworker, you know, or you know, take care of clients, and everybody's hands go up. And I'm like, okay, but you have to be able to put yourself first. And if you're not at your best person, you know, you could be giving wrong advice, potentially bad advice, if you're not in the correct headspace. So yeah, we talk a lot about the oxygen mask, and people kind of you see the light bulb and they're like, oh, never really thought about that. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 26:28

And it's funny because I always thought that analogy was, you know, that was specifically created for all the social workers on the plane. Um, but I mean, you know, for me, I mean, I I I have my own self-care, you know, kind of regiment that I do. I only do it, you know, three days a week. Um, you know, there for a while. I you know, I really got to the point where, you know, I felt like I was going in, starting my day, and I was putting in uh all my best during the day, but I was going home and I was just giving my family the rest. You know, and so you know, going through my own therapy with with my counselor, you know, he was like, hey, you know, pick three things that you enjoy doing. And and spend the spend, you know, three days a week that you're that that you're doing these things, whether it's reading a book, whether it's going for a walk, going for a drive, uh, you know, whatever it is. And so I've constantly, you know, I try to switch them up as often as I can, but I know a real a real big game changer that I learned from um somebody a while back was um reflection. I I always take myself out to dinner, you know, or or lunch, um, you know, at least once a month just for me. And I use that, you know, hour, hour and a half just to just to kind of reflect on the month. And that seems to kind of help put things in perspective for the next upcoming month.

SPEAKER_03 27:45

So if you're stuck on where to do self-care, check out our website and we will post a self-care activity that you can do because it has eight dimensions, and so it'll give you a big realm to choose from, and that way you know something you could should do daily, Jonathan, not every three days.

SPEAKER_02 28:00

All right. Well, we end every podcast with a question and uh which I'll ask you now, given given your experiences, um, what keeps you hopeful? You want to take that one, Tara?

SPEAKER_01 28:13

I mean, I think what makes me hopeful is just the fact that every day there's more and more to learn. Every day there's more and more information out there that I can use to support someone else or that I can use to help someone else, especially in my profession. Um, you know, I am constantly seeking, you know, resources or seeking trainings that I can utilize, you know, like I said, in my own practice to make me a better clinician and and to ensure I'm taking care of myself so I can take care of, you know, those around us. But I'm hopeful because, especially as it relates to mental health, you know, I feel like there is still stigma surrounding it, but I feel like it has come such a long ways and that we have more and more people seeking services. We have more and more people reaching out for what do I do? What what would help? You know, what are some things that I can do day to day like self-care? And so I'm hopeful that we are being able to provide this psychoeducation, you know, just as simple as this podcast, you know, being able to get this information out there that may just give somebody one little thing they can try today for them to feel better. Um so again, I think I'm just hopeful that we are continuing to learn, that we're continuing to bring these kind of opportunities, you know, these things through Pawnee, but also in the community, just to provide those individuals and connect them maybe to other supports and resources they weren't aware of.

SPEAKER_02 29:30

And Vanessa, what what keeps you hopeful?

SPEAKER_00 29:33

So many things. Oh my gosh. Um I I would say just getting to share like my yoga practice with people um weekly and just like just like observing on their bodies how at ease they feel when they leave. And so, and outside of that, I'm just like I hope that like within that time that they gain something that they can take outside of the room. Um perfect. Thank you both so much for being here.

SPEAKER_03 30:03

We appreciate it. Thank you for having us. Thank you. Some days feel lighter than others, and some days just feel heavy. Mental health isn't a straight path. It's messy, it's human, and it looks different for everyone. But even in the middle of all that, hope grows with each new day. May is mental health month, and we're having honest conversations about what to take care of when it comes to your mental health. The hard parts, the progress, and everything in between. Because more good days are possible together.

SPEAKER_02 30:36

Michelle and I would like you to know pain is temporary, but giving up is permanent, and you don't have to face it alone.

SPEAKER_03 30:43

If you or someone you know is in need of care, hope is available. For local listeners, you can call Pawnee's Crisis Hotline at 1-800-609-2002.

SPEAKER_02 30:55

For our national listeners, you can call or text the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988.

SPEAKER_03 31:01

Other mental health resources can also be located on our website, Pawnee.org.

SPEAKER_02 31:06

Follow us or subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.