Coping means to invest own conscious effort, to solve personal and interpersonal problems, in order to try to master, minimize or tolerate stress and conflict. The psychological coping mechanisms are commonly termed coping strategies or coping skills.
My story begins the night before I moved away to college. I remember the stillness of the house, the wind streaming through the open window next to my bed, lying awake and grappling with the realization that everything would change in the morning. A soft knock echoed in the room, and my mom popped […]
“Give me a Brake!” Caitlin Hayes It was my first year on my own It had to be close to one hundred degrees outside, and my little 1994 Ford Taurus didn’t have A/C. I pulled into the Kirkwood parking lot and went to class. When I came out, my car wouldn’t start, so I called […]
We are a culture that CONSUMES We are great consumers of food, coffee, alcohol, information, clothes, cars, concerts – if there is a thing, and that thing is good, we consume as much of it as we can. Sometimes, this tendency is harmless; then again, sometimes, it’s a pretty big problem. One of the ways […]
Burnout is a common experience, particularly among high-achieving people. It can occur in tweens, teens, and adults. Often, burnout can occur as a result of employment roles, but also other care-giving roles, such as those of parents and helpers. What is burnout? Burnout is defined as a state of chronic, enduring stress. It is characterized […]
The Power of Kindness “What are you doing for the holidays?” my friend asked me as we were eating dinner together a few weeks Christmas. I explained that we going to see my spouse’s family out of town for a few days. “But I’m not sure how well I’m going to do with it,” I […]
Happy New Year from Hope Springs! As part of our office’s New Year Resolutions, we want to work on spreading a little more kindness in our community. This February, we are putting on a month-long effort to increase acts of kindness in the community. Here are a few things we wanted you to know: (1) […]
Dr. Burke had a television interview on CBS2/FOX28 on 11/18/16. You can find the interview here. It is entitled, “Helping others during the ‘season of giving’ helps you too.” Way to go Mollie!
“Having hope in the face of despair, doesn’t mean we’ve extinguished fear or whatever else we’re feeling. It means that we choose to go on in the face of it; we can feel discomfort while also being in touch with other parts of ourselves and our experiences. We don’t let despair, anger, whatever it is, define our entire world.”
…..Sharon Salzberg
For those of you who have not visited lately, there is a tree in the hallway outside our office. It’s not a real tree in the vegetative sense, but merely in the artistic sense. The tree is just a large sticker, and next to it, a sign asks, “What are your grateful for?” Simply take a post-it leaf or bird, write one small thing that you are thankful for, and put it on the tree.
We all could use some recognition for the things that we contribute, for our hard work, for our time. Get that process started by noticing and recognizing it in others.
The ulitmate success is not about not having bad days/weeks anymore. The victory is that you are kind to yourself and keep going.
Being grateful doesn’t mean finding good things to drown out the bad, or to somehow say that you’re not allowed to feel grumpy because you have things to be grateful for. Ultimately, it’s trying to remind ourselves that often we have both; that our lives are both wonderful and difficult, light and heavy, fun and frustrating. It’s taking on a practice that says maybe sometimes you get to be grumpy and grateful.
