Hi, my name is Ann-Marie. I’m a dental hygienist. I’m married and have two kids, Jacob, who is 2 years old and Amanda, who’s 5 years old. My husband, Ken, is a police officer. We also have a golden retriever, Hunter. You might say that our life is a little busy, what with juggling two full time jobs, two little people, and a dog.
Keeping up with the homework was kinda challenging because there’s already so many other things to do. I tried to keep one of those sheets in my pocket at work so I’d remember and do it between patients. I also left a few by my bedside in case, by the end of the day, I still hadn’t done one. Finding the examples wasn’t hard, but finding the time to do them was difficult.
Prior to reading this section, I actually thought I was being in the present moment. After all, isn’t worrying, thinking and planning, about cooking, cleaning, the kids, work, all part of the role? I have to admit that when I first tried being mindful, I really sucked at it. My thoughts were like a crazy puppy that was running all over the place.
Midway review
Half-way through already! Where does the time go? I’m certainly learning a thing or about this worry business. I still worry a fair bit, but now at least I have moments of calm, and I still try to have moments of tuning into what’s happening in the present moment. I notice when I do that, I enjoy what I’m doing more.
Definitely one of the most useful things that I’ve learned is to ask myself, what’s the likelihood of x happening. I’ve actually posted it in a few places where I tend to worry the most, like in the car while I’m driving and stuck in traffic, at home on the fridge, and on my binder at work. The worries still come, but at least I feel like I can do something about them a little more.
| My EDB | Possible Opposite Action |
| Call or text Paul (husband) multiple times a day. | Limit my calling/contacting him to twice a day, unless something really urgent comes up. |
| Call or text the daycare at least once a day (apparently, I’m the only mom who does this at the daycare). | Not call. |
The only one that really did much was the breathing through a straw….I was actually surprised because I hadn’t anticipated that any of these would really do much since I don’t experience panic attacks, per se.
Making the hierarchy was pretty tough because it seemed like it could go on forever. I even consulted my husband on this to get some input from him, which was helpful (he was the one who reminded me of my friends constantly wanting to do mom’s get-away, of which he’s been totally supportive).
Wow, this stuff is hard! I started at the first thing on my hierarchy – going to the park and not being “that mom” who doesn’t give her kids any space. It was really hard!! I guess I’ve been this way for too long. I have to say I almost reverted to my old ways, because sure enough, one of the kids fell and scraped his knee.
Where did the time go? It just seemed to fly by (as it always seems to these days). OK, the goals….
1 ) Not have my worry control me
