Finishing Strong

Recently I have been struggling. Not with grades or my students or with my decision to complete the program. Rather, I have been struggling with self-care. This past week there were two major tests (the National Counselor Exam and our program's comprehensive exam) and in the next weeks prior to graduation I have visits/interviews, mock interviews with my peers, and all of the paperwork for the program due. Let's just say I got so overwhelmed today I had to take a nap.

In the past week I realized that the complete disarray of my room is a clear sign of stress but even more indicative is my lack of patience. While I usually have a high tolerance for statements I disagree with, this past week has resulted in me snapping at more of my peers than I care to admit.

So what is the point of all the above? Perhaps it's a little bit to get it off my chest but more likely it is to serve as transition for understanding what I am doing about it. As I've developed through this program, I realized that my passion lies in creating new things. I'll have to take a break from creating new events for at least a month (because April burnt me out on that), but that creation needs to be present in my life. Most recently I have been pondering what thank you and graduation gifts I could create. This means I get to test out varying techniques to personalize items through art. So far, the front-runner is mugs decorated with nail polish or sharpie art.

The main point is, in whatever you are doing, I hope you find passion. And when the passion is not there, I hope you find an outlet where you can come alive. This experience has taught me that the only way to finish strong is to take care of yourself.