Insomnie

Tiens, te revoilà toi ? Pourtant, ces dernières semaines, tu ne m'avais plus rendu visite. Je croyais être débarrassée de tes atteintes à mon sommeil et donc à ma santé.

Alors donc, qu'est-ce qui t'amène ? Profites-tu bêtement de mon gros rhume nez-qui-coule-non-stop ? Ou t'ai-je involontairement conviée à coups de chocolat tardif ? Et comment fais-tu, dis-moi, pour réveiller ma colère et remonter le ressort de mes ruminations malgré mes calmantes méditations ?

Allez, sois contente, je t'ai accordé de me lever et de te dédier cet article... Ouste maintenant, je ne veux plus que tu pourrisses mes nuits / ma vie. Trouve-toi une autre victime, moi je m'abandonne à Morphée.


Cécile

PS: Pendant de longs mois, avant et pendant mon interruption de travail, mes nuits ont été perturbées. Soit je n'arrivais pas à m'endormir, soit je me réveillais au milieu de la nuit pleine d'inquiétudes. Et pendant tout un temps il y a eu des cauchemars aussi...
Les insomnies sont un des symptômes de burn-out. Si elles persistent, demandez conseil à votre psy ou médecin généraliste pour rétablir votre sommeil - il est la clé de votre guérison.
Allez, au dodo !

Gratitude

During my depression 3 years ago, my therapist recommended writing down the good/beautiful things that had happened each day.

That was a very good tip - it allowed me te realize that even in my darkest hour, fine things do happen: someone holding the door for me; a flower in bloom; a cat purring on my lap...

In the beginning you may find few things to write down, but after a while you'll notice more positive things and be more receptive to life's beauty.

Then, practise being grateful for those moments. It is a powerful attitude change. Expressing gratitude is actually recognized as an anti-depressive tool by several authors. Practising gratitude is an excellent way to have a more positive outlook on life.

Thank you thus for reading this :-)

Cecile

A less full mind with Mindfulness

My mind never stops... This constant flow of thoughts and ruminations is exhausting, especially the distressing ones (and a lot of things stress me out since my burnout). So I finally decided to take a closer look at the Mindfulness thing that pops up everywhere.

I expected mindfulness to be the same as the state of "total awareness" that Deepak Chopra often mentions in his meditations... and apparantly I was right :-)
But the "meditations", which are the way to get to mindfulness, are much more accessible to the hasty modern (wo)man. They start very simply, by counting your steps or focusing on breathing for example, and their function is to divert your attention from non-helping thoughts.

Including these meditations in your daily life builds up your mental strength in order for you to be able to do the same in stressful situations, thus avoiding the "fight-or-flight" response that causes so much damage in the long term.

I've just started with 'mindfulness' meditations a few days ago and already had the occasion to successfully use them for relief in a stressful conversation. Try it out!

More info:
Two introductory videos: http://www.mindfulnet.org/page2.htm
Book "Mindfulness to go" by David Harp.

"Mindfulness voor elk moment" - David Harp (2012)

De ondertitel zegt veel: Doeltreffende meditatietechnieken voor korte rustpauzes in je drukke leven

Leer hoe je aan negatieve gedachten en stresserende situaties kan ontsnappen met behulp van korte meditaties die stapsgewijs en heel simpel ingeoefend worden.

Speciaal voor de "bezige bijtjes" die niet stil kunnen zitten en de burnouters die geen moeilijke lectuur aankunnen.

Uitlenen? Kijk hier (via bruno)

(Original title: "Mindfulness to go" - David Harp)

"To see that there is a way out of pain brings the first taste of freedom"

That's what Deepak Chopra says on day 18 (yes, I know, I'm running late) of the Expanding your Happiness 21-day meditation cycle. 

And that inspires me and motivates me - I'm hoping we can be examples of people recovering from a burnout (Ana has already got out, she started to work again) for you people perhaps going through one.

There's a happy life after burnout! We're like phoenixes rising from our ashes :D

The best to you, hoping our stories can inspire you!

Cecile