"You Charge Your Phone. Do You Charge Yourself?"
It all begins with an idea.
Summer Blog: On Recharging
As I pensively stare out into a giant park, finishing my third pastry of the very early morning, I can’t help but reflect on what recharging truly means.
For some, recharging means finally tackling that never-ending to-do list: cleaning, house projects, and appointments we’ve been putting off. For others, it’s spending as much time at the pool as our skin can handle and racking up as many pruney fingers as possible.
Some people recharge by stepping out of their comfort zone, whether it's trying a new restaurant, exploring a new trail, or venturing into a different part of the world.
Recharging can (and should) look different for everyone.
Time with friends. Time with family. And, equally important, though often forgotten, time with ourselves.
Recharging Around the World
I’ve been lucky enough to spend my summers traveling and watching people recharge in different places.
I’ve seen:
Laughter shared on patios, in bars, and walking through parks in the golden light of evening.
Quiet moments of journaling, where thoughts are sorted like courtroom debates and every inner argument is settled.
Books devoured in bed, entire shows binged, and takeout ordered three times a day with zero shame.
We’re so attached to our phones that they need to be recharged once or twice a day. Yet we often forget to do the same for ourselves.
Why Is Recharging Important?
As someone who hates sitting still, I ask myself this all the time.
I’ll say things like, “I don’t need rest. I just need to play more sports, take on more projects, hang out with more friends, and go to more concerts.”
I try to convince myself that staying busy means I’m energized. But here’s the truth:
Recharging often means facing the discomfort we work hard to avoid.
We live in a world that glorifies productivity. Everyone wants to be doing the most, showing off the best version of their life, and documenting it all online. But that mindset often comes at the cost of actual rest.
While I was in Denmark, I came across the idea of hygge. It's the concept of cozy contentment. Just relaxing, kicking back, and enjoying the moment.
At first, it feels strange. Like you're being lazy. Like you're not accomplishing enough.
But not letting yourself rest is like getting mad at your phone for not working when you haven’t plugged it in.
What Does Recharging Look Like for You?
There’s no single answer. And that’s the point.
Maybe it’s:
Baking alone with music playing in the background
Melting into the couch with your comfort show
Scrolling (not ideal, but let’s be real, sometimes it helps... in moderation)
Stepping into nature, far from sirens, traffic, and notifications
Laughing with your people until your stomach hurts
The answer is probably a mix of all these things.
So make time.
For yourself.
For your people.
If You’re Wrapping Up Summer or Just a Weekend
If you’re an educator and summer break is winding down, or if it’s simply Sunday night and the weekend is almost over, here’s your reminder to recharge.
Try one or two of these:
Sit outside with a cup of coffee or a book
Call a friend just to talk
Go for a walk without your phone
Do something small and pointless, just because it makes you smile
Let yourself rest
You’re human. You’re not a machine.
You don’t have to earn rest.
You just have to take it.
Why School Counselors are Vital for a Happy, Healthy School
It all begins with an idea.
February 1 through 5th, we celebrate National School Counselors Week. Whether your learning environment is remote, in person, or hybrid, there are many important social-emotional skills and tools counselors can provide to support the mental and emotional wellbeing of students.
What is a School Counselor and What Do They Do?
School counselors do a huge amount of work regarding social and mental health, working closely with families, communities, and students. They are available for daily check-ins, helping partner families with support and resources, and provide guidance for the future including help with college and helping students set positive and healthy goals.
School counselors practice in all areas of education and are an extremely important piece at each level.
Elementary school: A school counselor might be running social-emotional groups, teaching students about feelings and emotional regulation, and helping families get the resources they need, (food, clothing, help with utilities, and rent).
Middle school: Counselors are helping students navigate the academic and physical changes they are going through. How do I pick the best classes? What is happening to my body?! School Counselors have all the answers to the toughest questions. Middle school is a time of immense changes and counselors are there to support and guide students through a challenging time.
High school: During high school, students are growing from a brand new freshman to a senior, applying for college, heading to the workforce, or leaping into whatever life after school has for them. Counselors are heavily involved in the transition into independence and helping students manage all the stressors of getting older.
Here’s a YouTube video talking about CHANGE, which counselors are always helping with:
All in for Students
This year's National School Counselors Week theme is “All in for Students,” and it speaks to how involved counselors are in students' lives. Counselors spend their days helping students succeed in school and in life and they are always ALL IN for their students.
In a school year filled with negative news, protests, riots, sickness, death, and a never-ending tunnel with the light always seeming a bit out of reach, counselors provide the flashlight to help us make it out on the other side.
You may notice your students or children have been feeling isolated and sad, or nervous and frustrated. All of these feelings are normal right now and counselors can help navigate the negative and search for positives.
Changing our thinking and focusing on what is going well can be the first step. Maybe this isolation has given you time to practice something, or connect with old friends. Perhaps you realized there were some things you could cut out of your life that now save you money and stress. Even though it is hard to get out of our negative thought patterns, counselors are great at helping us see a different perspective.
If you notice your child is struggling with getting organized, staying on task, or is experiencing sadness, anger, or anxiety, reach out to your school counselor for support.
In the words of Dr. Suess, “Be who you are and say what you feel, because in the end those who matter don’t mind and those who mind don’t matter.” Counselors give us an outlet to speak about our feelings and provide the safe space needed to grow.
A Counseling Tale
Throughout Covid-19, feelings have been all over the place. Some students are frustrated that they can’t see their friends, some are happy they get to sleep in, and some are nervous of what could happen next.
In August, I started a Mental Health Talk Show to help students understand these feelings were perfectly normal and everyone was feeling them. One episode was around the topic of anxiety and featured local Meteorologist Kylie Bearse. She talked about her anxiety, how she’s learned to cope, and some great strategies for handling overwhelming feelings.
The response from the students at my school was wonderful. So many who had been struggling with anxiety heard Kylie’s ideas and used them, taking them as a jumping-off point for their own coping skills. A few students came up to talk about how amazed they were that someone who experiences anxiety, just like them, was able to be on TV!
Mental health professionals in the school provide students many resources. Often times, those resources are simply connections with others who have faced the same sort of challenges, and have been able to overcome them.
Make sure to celebrate your school counselors, and all the important work they do, this week!
How to Maintain Mental Health While Distance Learning
It all begins with an idea.
The classroom full of laughter, joking and group time on the carpet has been replaced with news in the background, too many people in the house, and the voices of Zoom, FacetTime and Skype. The question that arises is how do we keep our mental health in a good place during such a time of uncertainty? Below are some ideas to help stay connected socially while we are physically distanced.
Staying Connected
While we are isolated in our homes, we still have the ability to connect with our peers, friends and co-workers through video calls like Facetime, Skype, and Zoom. While being on the playground isn’t a reality right now, card games, virtually seeing each other, and playing video games together are still possible. For children, being able to connect with their peers is going to be extremely important during this time, and thanks to the Internet they will be able to do this. You can brainstorm some topics and questions with your child that might help them connect with their friends over the phone. Ask things like, “What are five things you’ve been able to do during your time at home?” or, “Have you played any fun games with your family lately?”
For adults, carving out time to video call with friends will be important for your social and mental health as well. Being able to video call with friends, family members, and colleagues is a nice luxury to have in a time of isolation like this. You’re still able to have a Friday night happy hour, make a cheese board, and talk about your dish while connecting with friends. When we think about what our previous social time looked like, it is possible to recreate many of those things with our phone propped up or the camera on our laptop facing us.
Creating a Schedule
Even though the day doesn’t look like it used to right now, getting into a routine is still important. It is important to wake up when you normally would, take a shower, eat breakfast, and then start on pre-planned blocks you’ve created for yourself. Maybe a few days a week the dress code at home is pajamas and that’s ok, but make sure you have some structure around your day. A quick and easy schedule for students might look like this:
9 a.m. — Wake up, shower and eat breakfast
10 a.m. — Exercise (could be a walk or some dancing)
11 a.m. — Academics
12 p.m. — Lunch
12:30 p.m. — Chores
1 p.m.— Quiet Time (Puzzles, reading, relaxing)
2 p.m. — Academics
3 p.m. — Outside time
5 p.m. — Dinner
6- p.m. — Free time
The idea is to follow some sort of routine that adds structure and allows your children to get the most out of their day. The same structure can be used for parents — knowing that you still have a routine will help make your days more productive and keep you from spending the entire day watching TV shows.
Exercise
There is quite a bit of research on how positive exercise is for our mental health. Overcoming the hurdle to start exercise can be tough, but afterwards, we are always left feeling better. Exercise can be walking around your block, riding a bike, or doing a workout class on your phone or TV. Even though gyms are not open, there still many activities that can get our endorphins flowing and help us to stay healthy and happy.
Limit Your Intake of Social Media and News
Being at home and being so dependent on our devices for our connection to the outside world can be a wonderful tool, but there are adverse effects to relying too much on our technology. Balance will be crucial for parents and kids around their social media intake. The news is filled with upsetting numbers about the crisis. Trying to limit the amount of news you listen to as much as possible will open up more time to be productive.
Staying Positive
It is important to remember that this isn’t what we’re used to and it’s ok to feel angry, scared, mad, nervous or any range of feelings. We are all learning as we go and remembering to maintain healthy habits will assist in our ability to stay mentally healthy. Will there be some days where you just want to eat ice cream, wear pajamas, and not shower? Sure, but making sure we don’t make that a habit will be what keeps us happy and productive. Remembering that our friends and support are still just a phone call away is also important. If you or your child is feeling any negative feelings, have a list of people you can confide in.
Enjoy This Gift of Time
There is a lot of time in the day. The extra gifts of not commuting, not being in meetings, and getting to roll out of bed and right into your office should not be taken for granted.
Enjoy the ability to spend more time with your family, learn how to draw a cartoon character, or pick up an instrument.
There are so many things that we can try now that we are “stuck in our homes” and making the most of it will be something we look back on and will be grateful for.
You’ve got this!