Even as I posted yesterday, I realized that I had left something out.  With a title that focuses on coping, maybe I ought to actually explore to cope or what I am doing to try to cope.  Especially since today turned out to be rough, and I’ve been re-living the traumas of the last few years, and feeling some of how I felt back then.  It’s catching up with me a bit, afterall, but it still isn’t as bad as it was a year ago or even last Fall.  Rather than another list of hurts and traumas, today I think I will list some of the things I am doing to try to cope.

  • I did actually finish my master’s degree, and there was some thought that I put into the timing of it.  The extra time is a good thing right now.
  • I selected a job that gives me a chance to learn something that I am interested in, and also that I need for myself (DBT).
  • Signing up for classes just to keep me going and to spend time with people - exercise, bobbin lace, and going to the classes with someone (daughter, cousin) who shares those interests.
  • Working on friendships IRL, and online - trying to connect with people.
  • Finishing things - knitting projects, my degree, paperwork (hmm, maybe some of these things are still in progress, but I am working  on it).
  • Signed up for a free online self-esteem course, and working through it with a buddy so we can race each other and talk about it as we go, and keep each other on track.
  • Relaxation, meditation, and listening to a self-hypnosis program for self-esteem and confidence.
  • Music - both that that resonates with my mood, and some to distract and pull me out of it.
  • Continuing to practice and improve my own music skills (piano, violin, recorder, flute).
  • Reading a lot.
  • Chocolate, cocoa, warm herbal tea, hot baths, and my electric blanket and a cat on my lap.  Not necessarily all at the same time.