Holidays can be particularly difficult if you are disabled or living with a chronic illness. For many, it is a time of grief, anxiety, or the longing to be more involved than you know you can be. Today’s blog is all about some strategies and ideas to help you navigate the holiday season in a way that supports your physical and mental health.

We live in a world that places value on productivity. Hustle Culture. The Grind. Much of our passive entertainment contains messages about becoming more, becoming better, about how to turn your hobby into a profitable venture. Our workplaces are the same, and many of us struggle with overwhelming to-do lists and not enough hours in the day. Our health is paying the price. So today, I’m sharing some of the strategies that I use as a therapist in my own life to foster healthy living in a busy world.

A theme that comes up a lot during Social Work Month and Social Work Week is the impact of working in such a high-stress field and navigating what sometimes feels like impossibly high caseloads. So I’m going to share some boundaries I try to maintain in my practice to stave off the burnout. I’m not perfect, and these boundaries are hard work, but the effort to implement and maintain them are what truly counts.

Today I’m going to be sharing some self-care tips specifically for social workers. We are currently practicing in a time of incredible chaos, and many of the other social workers that I am lucky to call friends or colleagues are all expressing the same thing: burnout. And so now more than ever, it is important to take a step back and make sure that our self-care toolbox is as diverse and equipped as possible.

Family gatherings can often be a time of uncomfortable questions, and conversations that quickly turn into conflicts. By implementing firm, healthy boundaries, the goal is to change the dynamic and protect your mental health.