Mindful OT Blog

  In my blog writing, I’ll be introducing the role of self-compassion for living with fatigue & pain, supporting mental & emotional wellbeing, and managing stress & burnout.  I’ll be outlining why I consider it to have a valuable role in supporting self-management & supporting those of us living with these kinds of health challenges, as well as for our own sense of wellbeing in general. Working in occupational therapy mental health and fatigue & pain services, I’ve found self-compassion to be an ever-present concept where I find myself weaving it into & through my sessions…..holding space, gently guiding, moving alongside, supporting people with slowly, gently building self-compassion into their lives….. Often starting with bringing a gentle curiosity to the notion of self-compassion, most people I start working with generally reflect on how they tend to show little kindness to themselves, often acknowledging feeling lazy when they have to take time...

  I’m writing this from a personal perspective, where I’ve had to manage a period of burnout following challenging life events. It was a slowish, steady journey of moving towards a place where the light shone through for me again. I became my own Occupational Therapist & Mindfulness Practitioner for a time, a holistic therapy for mental health, emotional and physical wellbeing. It was key for me to start by embracing the importance of validation - of actually recognising my signs of burnout and symptoms for what they were.   A bit about my experience of burnout When our lives turned upside down following a sudden family bereavement, I’d initially held a tenuous belief & hope that I’d be able to manage it all - that I’d somehow be able to support my grieving teenagers, deal with my own complex grief reaction, manage my recent new work role, look after my wellbeing as best I could, manage the range of other demands that were already beginning to feel overwhelmin...

  Introducing me – the ‘Occupational Therapist & Mindfulness Practitioner’ So, I began the initial steps of setting up my Mindful Occupational Therapy Practice around early spring of 2024, with my expertise in fatigue management, pain management, managing stress & burnout, managing mental & emotional wellbeing (following a long clinical career in the NHS). It’s been a slow process…..It’s now autumn 2024, and I’m wanting to share a bit about my personal story – the part it played in setting up my (online) Independent Practice, and the authenticity it’s given me in what I’m delivering. Here’s what my practice is all about………… .. It’s a creative integration of Occupational Therapy & Mindfulness, underpinned by my intention of supporting people to learn & understand more about themselves, their pain, their fatigue, their stress, the challenges for their mental health & emotional wellbeing.   By learning more about ourselves we can support a great...