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Review: Chosen (2008, Brian Woods, UK)
Chosen tells the story of the three boys at an English public school in the 1960s and their life beyond that time. Director Brian Woods structured the film in three acts describing the three intereviewees’ arrival at the school, followed by their targeting, grooming and abuse. Finally the varied emotional, legal and practical aftermath for…
Link – Leaving No Kid Behind: The Need For More Child Psychiatrists
This seems like a huge problem… Given how few children and adolescents get the care they need, schools too often become the de facto front line for explosive children who might have behavioral problems for a host of complicated reasons, including the possible toxic combination of ADHD and trauma. Researchers have found that children who…
Sharing – How I Misunderstood the Meaning of Rest
I say this applies to all forms of self-care because we have a culture that tells us all the time that being productive and getting things done is the entire basis of our value as human beings. Naturally, we look at activities like resting, eating, and other forms of self-care as a necessary part of being productive, but we never see their value on their own. We’re resting because we worked hard during the week or because our bodies are exhausted and need a refresh before returning to it. We eat because we need the calories to burn. We meditate so that we can focus better on our work. We spend time with others to build relationships and extend our network. We read to seem interesting to others.
We never do things just because we want to.
Sharing – Acknowledging Limits – Helping Others
One of the things I immediately recommend to anyone asking about starting a blog like mine is to set your boundaries. If you don’t, you’ll burn out and be gone within 6 months. Decide what you will say, what you won’t, and how much time you’ll dedicate to writing for the blog and interacting with people online. Because if you don’t you’ll find yourself unable to cope and you’ll bail on it.
I’d say the same thing about anything. Yes, be with someone who needs support, but set your boundaries around it, and make sure you are still taking care of your own life. Because the only thing worse than someone not sitting and listening to a friend or loved one when they are struggling, is having some do it for a while, and then disappear. That doesn’t do anyone any good. We all need you to be well just as much as we need you to stick with relationships when someone is dealing with healing, or mental health issues.
Set your boundaries, and be willing to stick to them, lovingly. As Liz says in her piece, it’s not about you doing everything, it’s about you pointing them to a whole host of options for support. That is what being a good support system is all about.
