I have another job! I’ve contracted to Aceda, a local mental health organisation with a particular focus on eating disorders, anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive issues. I am tremendously excited about this, lying in bed at night with ideas for new recovery workshops, thoughts about possible groups, and cunning plans for re-organising the cutlery drawer in the work kitchen running through my brain… A whole new project to sink my teeth into! I’m in my element.
I’m also doing a major restructure of my schedule! My 2012 goal list has frankly been outstripped and overtaken. This has been the most incredible year, starting with a safe home of my own in January, and exploding into opportunities, friendships, and creative endeavours. I’m still trying to wrap my brain around how much my life has changed in such a short time. Finally work that I’ve been doing quietly in many different areas has all started to take off at once. It’s like standing in a fireworks factory that’s exploding. I adore it!
The challenge now is to prune what I can’t manage. This is heartbreakingly difficult. As a multiple, it is not in my nature to focus exclusively on one domain, however much I may wish to. It is essential for my mental health to be working on different goals and projects in different areas. Creating balance is a tremendous challenge! So, I am looking at all my goals and projects and setting aside those that don’t need my urgent attention. The self publishing project will be moved off to next year. Plans for the garden are being culled but not entirely discarded. I will not be working with my voice hearing group Sound Minds for this term, although I will keep up the campfire social nights. I will not be running the same-sex attracted young women’s group The Gap for this term either, although I plan to stop by whenever I can. I am maintaining two subjects in the art degree, and also maintaining the dissociation and/or multiplicity group Bridges. I will be adding in work at Aceda, and reorganising my housework and art homework days. I will be maintaining the volunteer work with Radio Adelaide, and shrink appointments. I will be adding in at least one evening a week spent down the beach with Zoe, standing with my feet in the water and the breeze blowing the stress out of my brain. I will be nailing down one night a week to be alone, allow any switches that need to happen, especially making time for young ones or unhappy ones, or time to make our own art (rather than art for the degree) or write. I will be making sure there’s time off; one gaming night a week with my sister, and space for socialising built in. I’m uncertain about maintaining or temporarily pruning back on facepainting, and about this blog. I’ll have to trial a few weeks of the new schedule and see how I’m keeping up and how everyone in my system is feeling.
I’m still dating my lovely girlfriend, which is wonderful, and not good for getting any sleep! It’s requiring higher levels of self control than I feel like possessing to hang up the phone at a reasonable time. We’re also reading Harry Potter to each other, taking turns with the chapters, which is pretty good stress reduction. 🙂
Stay tuned! Exciting things afoot. 🙂
Sarah K Reece 