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Why I Chose Critical Disability Studies
I am applying to a graduate program for critical disability studies. Why did I choose this field? To many, it’s an obscure and odd choice. Personally, I didn’t know that field existed prior to stumbling upon it randomly. When I found it, I knew. It was like a bolt of lightning struck. I got chills. This was exactly what I was looking for. So what is it? The field of critical disability studies is an interdisciplinary field. It involves everything from healthcare, sociology, psychology, and more. It’s looking at all aspects of disability. How those with disabilities are treated within culture and society. How the system often fails those with…
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Will I Get The Covid Vaccine
I have gotten this question a lot lately. The short answer is, I don’t know. My history of allergies is a tick in the no column. However, I’m also in a high risk category which puts a tick in the yes column. It’s difficult to say what the right choice would be. With anything covid related, no one really knows the long term effects. After a conversation with my doctor, it comes down to a risk/benefit analysis. Previous to a conversation with my Dysautonomia International group, I said no way. I didn’t want to risk another round of anaphylaxis. More emotional trauma and the risk of putting myself back medically…
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Why I’m Getting A Job
I’ve been adamant throughout the pandemic that I didn’t want to get a job. With my health, it seemed foolish to put myself in a direct line of fire. The reality is, I can survive without a job. I have the luxury of family support and student loans, but that only gets me so far. Dreaming of graduate school has put life into perspective for me. I will have to get a job. I will have to navigate working life and school. I’d rather work out the kinks of that when I have a soft place to land rather than when I’m away from home. I have a lot of…
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How to Establish Priorities
If you’re anything like me, your priorities are everything. Your goals and ambitions are your guiding light. So when it comes to making difficult choices, you evaluate your priorities. How does this align with the values in my life? That makes difficult decisions a little easier. As someone who is extremely indecisive, I like making choices easier. If you don’t know what your priorities are, that’s okay! Not all of us were taught how to prioritize. So let me give you a tutorial on how to establish priorities: Look at Your Behavior When we look at our behavior, we can identify what emotions or experiences led to our decision. If…
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The Future
My plans for the future have been completely uprooted by covid. At the start of 2020, I had every intention of applying to four or five programs in Canada for graduate school. During the fall, I made the extremely difficult decision to take a step back. My life has been turbulent in the past few years. It no longer made sense to challenge myself in that way. I still wanted to go to graduate school. Instead of applying to multiple programs, I decided to apply to only one. This choice came with a lot of heartache and grief. Now, the world is starting to look different once again. I am…
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How to Stay Creative in 2021
It’s a new year! Whoop Whoop! Although it’s a new year, I think we’re all still burnt out from 2020. I realize this week how significant creativity releases tension for me. This led me to the thought, “How do I stay creative in 2021?” After feeling so emotionally exhausted from 2020, how do I keep energy to be creative? Here’s what I am going to do: Utilize Coloring Books I have a few coloring books and I ABSOLUTELY love them. They are great for when I need to be creative but my brain is in overdrive. For me, once I get some of that energy out, I can start writing…
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Dealing With Bad News
My medical life has been relatively stable lately. It’s been an incredible change that I’m very grateful for. That being said, I have suffered a setback. Several weeks ago, I started having pretty intense shin pain. It would come and go varying on activity level. It masked itself as knee pain or other various complications of weak hips. Now, the pain has become daily. I brought it up to my surgeon, per the advice of my physical therapist and they’ve told me that I need to rest. That may seem like an easy answer to most people. If you’ve followed my journey for a while, you know that exercise is…
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How To Get Back Into Your Routine
If you read my article on Monday, you know I’m out of my routine. I thought for a while I was doing myself a favor by being loose with my schedule. Now, I see once again why I deserve my schedule. I deserve to sleep well. I deserve to eat well. I deserve to feel ready for my day. My schedule provides me with all of those things. It allows me to be the greatest version of myself. So here’s how I am getting back into my routine: Start Slow We’re running a marathon here, not a sprint. We have to start slow. I started by going to bed an…
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Falling Out Of My Routine
I’ve been doing my best to be less rigid about everything. When I went into quarantine, I knew that it would pose challenges for me. I’m naturally a social person and although I don’t go out often, the little interaction I had was important to me. Of course, I’m doing this in an effort to see my family for the holidays. It seemed like a small sacrifice in order for us to all be together. As I anticipated, quarantine has taken its toll. I have completely fallen out of my routine. I used to pride myself on my morning and night routines. Although I still follow them, I haven’t been…
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Merry Christmas!
I hope that you’re having an amazing day. Whether you are celebrating Christmas or the joy of a new day, I hope it is going very well. I am happy to be able to spend this day with my family after having quarantined for two weeks. It doesn’t look anything like it has in years past but that’s okay. I’m so grateful for the individuals I have around me. I feel incredibly blessed to have a warm place to stay and many hugs. Stay well! I hope your day is fabulous. I hope that it is filled with joy, positivity, and laughter. I hope you find peace, love, and happiness.
