Hi readers, it’s all of us, Emily, Kerry, and William here, following up on our column from last week about grief.
Today we’re talking about taking pauses in our day. We, Emily, and Kerry, find that taking a pause can be helpful, especially when life sometimes feels like we are being thrown around on a rollercoaster.
Taking a pause when you’re being thrown around is not an easy thing to do, but if you can, it can make the whole experience so much better. So, even when life is crazy busy, if we can learn to embrace and manage it, we can stay happy and well.
When life is rumbling along, we have found there are times of the day when it’s more helpful to take a ‘moment’. For example, soon after we wake up, or after a busy day which can then help us unwind and relax for the evening.
We also believe it can be healthy to talk about our emotions. Where I, Emily, live, we use emotions wheel charts. Each of us have one stuck onto the doors of our own kitchen cupboards. The idea is that we turn the wheel, and point it at the direction of how we are feeling, so the others in the house, as well as our support workers, know ‘where we are at’, without us having to say so.
It’s then easy to know if someone else is feeling sad or upset, and to either be more gentle with them, or if they’re feeling energetic and happy, it’s ok to joke around. Talking to certain people can make me happy too. Of course, if our emotions chance frequently, then we need to keep updating it!
How do you manage your emotions? Why not take a pause and see how you feel?
The writers of the Our View column are supported in their editing by People First Dorset - a charity led and run by people with learning disabilities with support from staff