Change is just around the corner

Change is just around the corner

by | Mar 3, 2023 | Belinda's Thoughts, Community, Friday's Inspiration, Self-Awareness

Change is just around the corner

Weā€™ve all got ā€˜em, the ā€œStill winter bluesā€. It’s not a coincidence that people tend to flock towards sunny destinations this time of year. We’re all hungry for a shot of vitamin D.

Iā€™ll be honest. This morning, I woke up on the wrong side of the bed and trudged to work like a grumpy bear. I wracked my brain trying to pinpoint the cause. My first client was also making his way out of hibernation. As I heard him speak of the effect of the winter weather on his mood, it clicked. My mood also was being affected by limited sunshine and the weather. This realization instantly made me feel better. Hearing his words prompted my mood to shift. Iā€™ve been cheerful and uplifted since.

With a little support and connection, meaningful change can happen quicker than you think.

The forecast is still calling for snow, but I know it wonā€™t weigh me down anymore and there are many positives just around the corner.

Jump start your spring, and sign up now for one of our many upcoming groups:

Date Night (final of the series) all are welcome – March 9th

Maintaining Health – March 17th

Overcoming Trauma and building Resiliency – Friday group: March 24, 31 & April 14, 21, 28; Wednesday group: March 29, April 5, 12, 26, May 3

Warm thoughts,

Belinda Seagram, Ph.D., R. Psych.
Executive Director, Landing Strong

Striving to be more

Striving to be more

by | Feb 24, 2023 | Belinda's Thoughts, Challenge, Courage, Friday's Inspiration, Growth

Striving to be more

Itā€™s easy to define ourselves in terms of our work.

Pushing hard, staying within a single lane, the temptation is strong to lose sight of the rich scenery and possibilities around us.

Last night my husband Joe came home beaming. Heā€™d had a great night of hockey, stating that it may have been ā€œhis best game everā€. The night before that, he spoke excitedly about having had a great evening of tennis. Tonight he has a bit part as an Oompa Loompa in The KES Junior schoolā€™s rendition of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Joe seems to have mastered the talent of being many things. Iā€™ve always been grateful that, come a zombie apocalypse, heā€™s on my team. At some deep level, he’s understood the importance of staying engaged in many diverse aspects of life, not simply driving in a single lane.

Getting and staying healthy is about diversifying our investments, not putting all of our eggs in one basket. Iā€™m particularly aware of that as I approach the latter half of my life. Over the past year Iā€™ve worked hard to deepen my interests, explore new hobbies, and challenge myself to discover things that might intimidate me. At the end of my life, I doubt Iā€™ll be asking myself if I worked enough. Rather, I expect Iā€™ll look to relationships, hoping I have been authentic, honest and trustworthy. Both inside and outside of my work, I never want to stop striving to be more.

Warm thoughts,

Belinda Seagram, Ph.D., R. Psych.
Executive Director, Landing Strong

The pile of paperwork sitting in the corner

The pile of paperwork sitting in the corner

by | Feb 17, 2023 | Balance, Belinda's Thoughts, Compassion, Friday's Inspiration, Plan

The pile of paperwork sitting in the corner

Itā€™s there, staring at me. I know you get it. We all have such piles.

Our heap of ā€œto dosā€ that weā€™ve not yet had the chance to get to.

Hereā€™s the interesting thing. The more anxious I become about it, the less likely I am to actually do it. The anxiety associated with the task takes on a life of its own.

When we avoid small things, they start to feel very big. If we can bring ourselves to respond to them in the moment, we take away their power. It may involve asking for help from others or leaning into challenging emotions. It doesnā€™t have to become a big weight to carry.

Feeling anxious about things doesnā€™t change them.

Leaning into them does.

Iā€™m dedicated to spending the next few days leaning into my areas of discomfort: taking a look at my piles and developing a strategy to address them. I want my exterior and interior worlds to be aligned.

I donā€™t have to do it all. Just bite size pieces over the next week.

Perhaps you have a similar corner that youā€™d like to work on.

Join me.

Warm thoughts,

Belinda Seagram, Ph.D., R. Psych.
Executive Director, Landing Strong

I am the work

I am the work

by | Feb 10, 2023 | Belinda's Thoughts, Community, Friday's Inspiration, Growth, Plan, Recovery, Support

I am the work

People often speak about the discomfort they experience having to leave their jobs following injury. Theyā€™re eager to push through their symptoms, trying to get back to work as quickly as possible. The interesting thing is, pushing to speed up recovery often has the inadvertent consequence of slowing it down.

When it comes to recovery, you have to go slowly in order to progress quickly.

What does this mean?

Recovery isnā€™t a vacation as others might think. We all know itā€™s a period of time requiring intentional work.

Instead of asking yourself the question ā€œWhen can I go back to work?ā€ It might be more helpful to consider the following statements:

I am the work.
There is no other work.
Recovery is my mission.

Processing traumatic events is a part of being a first responder. If you donā€™t do it while youā€™re operational, youā€™ll likely be forced to take time off to deal with it later. Itā€™s like putting off paperwork. It never actually goes away.

The skill of emotional processing is a necessary component of health but is something that is not often awarded the time and space it needs.

This my friends, is the work.

Warm regards,

Belinda Seagram, Ph.D., R. Psych.
Executive Director, Landing Strong

Ticked off by the cold?

Ticked off by the cold?

by | Feb 3, 2023 | Belinda's Thoughts, Community, Friday's Inspiration, Outdoor Adventures, Wisdom

Ticked off by the cold?

Well, winter is finally upon us. Iā€™ll admit it, Iā€™ve been a bit smug up till now, enjoying balmy off-season Nova Scotia temperatures.

Well, those days are gone!

As we find ourselves plummeting into the low twenties, Iā€™m still smiling, in fact, even hoping it stays cold. Why you ask? Well, Iā€™ve found the glimmerā€¦the silver lining to this cold front.

True fact: Several consecutive days of sub -12 temperatures can harm tick populations. Intense temperature fluctuations during winter such as we’re having now do the most damage. The tick population has been exploding in recent years, primarily because of our warm winters. When it stays warm, they populate. This bout of extreme weather will give them a run for their money.

Please join me in the cold celebration dance, even as the cold blasts of air freeze smiles across our faces.

Where we focus our attention, and how we think about things, truly does impact the manner in which we experience the world. By making equal air time for the good news, we naturally nudge out the bad.

Warm thoughts,

Belinda Seagram, Ph.D., R. Psych.
Executive Director, Landing Strong

Kicking isolation to the curb

Kicking isolation to the curb

by | Jan 27, 2023 | Belinda's Thoughts, Community, Growth, Recovery, Support

Kicking isolation to the curb

We all know the darkness we deal with in our various lines of work. Intimate knowledge of trauma can separate us from others, at times, creating a divide from those who might not have shared experiences. Wanting to protect those we love from the details of the job, itā€™s easy to sit alone.

When in the job, people often face hard things together, working as team to overcome adversity. Following injury or end of service, the journey can become a lonely one. This loneliness can have devastating consequences.

Itā€™s often easy to connect over lighter aspects of life, but more rare to find authentic connection over the challenges. Finding a way to communicate such intimate thoughts and experiences to others is not easy.

Trauma is connected to such deep emotion that it draws us in. Anyone who has done a group program knows how fulfilling and rewarding it can be. Leaning in together, we see not just the darkness, but also the light. In some of the most difficult moments can shine moments of courage, truth and beauty.

Recovery is about finding a place, and community that we can call home. Being willing to sit in the discomfort, with others, long enough to understand and transform it.

We hope that you join us on this journey.Ā 

Warm regards,

Belinda Seagram, Ph.D., R. Psych.
Executive Director, Landing Strong