understanding (n.)

I have been down for the count for 7 days.
I have no idea what's going on in this body.  I do know it's not a baby.
That just makes it a bug without a purpose, as far as I'm concerned.
Also, because this weekend is the Coug's bye weekend, Shoes and I had planned to go back to Portland for the weekend and see friends we miss dearly and visit the city we kind of maybe wish we hadn't left.
That, of course, is no longer the plan.
Stupid stomach bug without a purpose.

I've yo yo'd in between home and work this past week.    I feel good in the mornings, by mid afternoon by stomach starts hurting and by late night I'm in severe pain with other symptoms.  I thought my supervisor yesterday was going to lose it when I kept telling her I had just one more thing to do before I went home.  (Really, my work boundaries are getting much better.  I have a few families in crisis right now, though, with little coverage options, which makes not being at work a  little difficult.)

I went to Urgent Care on Tuesday, because, even though I'm 36 and we've lived here for 2 years I'm slightly juvenile and irresponsible and still haven't established care with a PCP.  The doc on call said, "Eh, you're either pregnant or you have The Bug.  You're fine to go back to work."

Extremely helpful.

I'm tired of home.  Tired of my bed.  Tired of reading.  Tired of social media.  Tired of daytime TV.  (When I watch TV, I catch myself thinking things like, "What do you mean Jwoww and Snookie and Janelle and Kim K can have babies and I can't; That makes zero sense ...."   Then I have to remind myself that those thoughts help nobody and it doesn't matter who's having babies and who isn't.)

Tired of my stomach hurting.

Not tired of the Rosie snuggles.  She's been a steady, constant companion, often choosing to lay her 75lb dog fluff directly on me, or choosing to snuggle her dog nose into my neck.   Every time I'm really not feeling well she brings me her favorite stuffed octopus, which is extremely endearing and also disgusting because that octopus is really very extremely dirty.

Not tired of Shoes, who has gone out to buy Saltines and more Saltine and Gatorade and more Gatorade and lies down next to me and continually asks me what I need.  How did I get so lucky to have him, you guys?  I look at him and I remember just two years ago when all I could think was, "Our long distance is going to end soon and then we get to have a normal relationship where we see each other every day."  He's a good one.

So today I'm at home, orders of my outpatient clinic, who are alarmed by my pasty pallor.  (look guys, it's just a product of having no food energy for several days ...)  I'm going to crack open "Play Therapy With Children in Crisis" (which I really have been wanting to read.)  I'm going to start planning next Spring's garden (when else am I going to have this kind of time?)  Shoes and I are re-arranging / redecorating the bedrooms in our house to make symbolic / spiritual / metaphorical room for a child; I'll probably start looking for paint colors.

And just continue to believe that whatever this stupid bug is it's not serious and will leave soon.
(I did schedule a real appointment with a doctor for next Tuesday to talk about the stomach issues and to establish care with a PCP.  I am a grown up, in the end.  I'm just a grown up who's tired of Super Bug.)

Sigh.

Because I'm sick.  At home.  Probably not with Ebola, but oh man.  Whatever this is has a powerful punch.  Somewhere around 8:00 I rolled out of my bed and onto my couch and thought to myself, "This would be a good morning to try to watch The Shining all the way through."  (Don't ask - I'm blaming the fever.)  I haven't yet watched it entirely, despite many years of trying, because I am truly terrible with scary movies.

It didn't work.  Eyes shielded.  I can't stand the woman in the bathtub or the last portion of the movie where Danny is silent screaming constantly.  Also, in the book, didn't the head chef LIVE?  Why would you kill off that character??

Around 10:00 my best friend texted me pictures from the pumpkin patch with my goddaughter.  That made me a little sad that we live so far away and I can't be part of those things in person.

And around 11:00, the OB's office called to remind me that my first fertility appointment is this Tuesday.

All the thoughts about that.  That phone call lead me down a spiral of thinking about the path we've taken so far to start our family and how many things we do during the month to try to make this as successful as possible.

It has taken over our lives.

It's worth it, don't get me wrong, but good night.  It's a lot.

From the charting to the 15 supplements a day to the teas to the massage therapy to the acupuncture to the eating pineapple cores to the over analyzing everything and falling down the awful hell that is Google to the limiting drinking wine to 5 specific days to the full 9 servings of fruits and vegetables a day to the keeping my feet warm always (one of my closest friends is Chinese and says I have to do this) to the fertility yoga to the daily foot soaks to open my meridians .... It doesn't really stop.

My acupuncturist fired me this week, you guys.  It was kind of a jolt to my ego and my first thought was, "Why would you fire me?  I'm like, the world's BEST PATIENT.  I DO ALL OF MY HOMEWORK!!!"  And that's basically what she said.  Actually, here's what she said:  Usually she asks fertility patients to do acupuncture and TCM for two months before trying to conceive, but she make an "exception" with me because we have been trying for awhile and charting for awhile.  Then she said, "You're doing everything right.  You need to rest in that and keep doing that and just go to your upcoming appt. with the OB.  If you want to keep coming in, we'll work on your shoulder and allergies."

So we have this upcoming appointment, and I'm nervous.  I'm nervous about what he's going to say.  Nervous about the testing.  Getting triggered from when I did this before with the Former Husband.   We're hoping for some answers and some direction in these upcoming weeks.

Also, I'm really hoping this fever goes away soon.
I'm also hoping the Cougs win tonight.
One of these things is more likely than the others.
I wish I could drink a glass of wine tonight.

... Maybe this second part should be titled, instead, "Why therapy might not be working...."

It's a sticky situation I'm about to describe.  And when I tell you this, please know that there's no judgment on part.  Things just are what they are.

Sometimes we think therapy is a good idea.  Sometimes we recognize our own distress and make that initial phone call to a counselor, complete our first session, and get started.   But therapy is a funny thing.  Therapy can be validating, affirming, life changing and challenging in all the best ways.

Therapy is also a lot of work.  We usually don't go to therapy because things are going swimmingly well.    There's discomfort.  Dis-ease.  Something isn't working.

And maybe for some people, the simple act of sitting down and talking to somebody helps.  Eases distressing thoughts and emotions.  Is enough.  That's not usually the case though.   Therapists have different views on this, but my own is that therapy is a place where we come to be validated (yes and absolutely), but it is also a place where we come to change.  Change takes work. We learn new skills.  New ways of being.  New thoughts and new ways of thinking.  New coping strategies.  Change requires we are vulnerable enough to talk about what is going well ... and what it is not.  Change requires practice during the week.  It requires therapeutic homework.  It requires being in an emotional place where you're ready to try something new ....

It is work.
(Good work, and it does work, but still work.)

I once had a very, very, very irate client tell me that this "Bullshit therapy isn't working at all."  (There were more choice words than that, but you get the idea.)  This client had come to three therapy sessions.

Change usually takes more time than three weeks, loves.

So we can say we need therapy, right?  We can make that call, come to counseling, and sit in the chair. But sometimes we're just not ready to do the work - sometimes for very understandable reasons.  (And there is no prescription for that.  That's up to clients and their providers.  It might work to keep going.  It also might work to break for awhile.  That's not my place to decide.)

Look.  A little bit of self disclosure and honesty here?  After the Big Divorce in 2007 I saw a counselor for about a year and a half.  And it helped some.  But I held back.  A lot.  I held back a lot because this counselor and I were part of the same faith community and I was having some very big faith doubts I didn't feel like I could be honest about.  It's not that counseling in that season of my life wasn't helpful, but it really was nowhere near as helpful as I could have made it.  (My own answer should have been to probably establish care with a different clinician.  I was afraid of hurting the counselor's feelings.  It wasn't a very healthy person / clinician relationship.)  All this to say, I've been there.  Counseling seemed like a good idea, but I wasn't as invested as would have been most helpful.

Also.

Your comments in the last post were lovely reminders that sometimes we need friends.  Sometimes we need people who are going to sit with us, laugh with us and cry with us.  Sometimes we don't need a professional's clinical tools .... we need somebody who, as Eliz! put it, has been where we've been.  I've been there, too.  The fluttery feeling of solidarity and recognition that happens when we find someone who really understands us ... is gold.  It's not that counselors cannot provide that, but counselors should probably not engage in high levels of self disclosure.  Right now, in this season, I am more replenished from talking to someone who has been through a divorce, or grad school, or fertility problems (my own examples.)

So.  Where does that leave us?
Counseling can be amazing.  It truly can.  I wish I could go into detail about the almost spiritual moments that have happened in my office.   I've seen it work many, many, many times (and "working" by the client's definition.)  Sometimes it really doesn't ever take off.  And that can be ok, too.

I guess my ending for these last two posts would be this:
An admonishment in love to take care of yourself.
If you take care of yourself in therapy, then fantastic.  (I love being a therapist; it can be magical; I get it.)
And if there are other ways to take care of yourself, ok.  Do coffee with your friends.  Do yoga.  Do roller derby.  Do your poetry group.  Do Crossfit.  Do it.  But do something.

(Additionally, as I'm wrapping this up, as a community outpatient mental health provider, I'm having reminder thoughts that some of us are mandated to therapy through different court systems.   As a reminder to us all, I am not giving clinical advice to anybody in this moment; rather, I am exploring thoughts on therapeutic possibilities.   If you have a court order to attend therapy, take medication, etc, or are currently in care with a clinician and these things are part of your treatment recommendation, please follow through.   Please take care of yourself in these ways.)

Part 1.

Do you  guys hear this being thrown around?:

"They / he / she need therapy."
"They / he / she just need counseling."
"I hope they get him into counseling soon."

So.  Sometimes that's true.  Sometimes there are life events, or mood disorders, or family relationships, etc. that affect a person to the point that counseling - the opportunity to receive professional help in establishing new ways of thinking and new coping strategies (That's the abridged definition) - can be extremely helpful.  

Here's what's also true.  Sometimes hard things happen and people find ways to cope without needing therapy.  In the case of bereavement, for example, feelings of loss and grief might be extremely painful, but experiencing difficult emotions does not always mean you need counseling.  Sometimes allowing ourselves to experience painful emotions is the best thing we can do ... because we're allowing ourselves to feel and to move through it.  (Am I saying that nobody experiencing bereavement should seek out counseling?  Nope.  I'm just saying it's not always an automatic.)

I just got back from my hairstylist.  Good night sometimes she drives me crazy.  I was talking to her about how uninspired I am with my hair (this is a daily feeling for me), which somehow lead to me briefly mentioning that I was grumpy today.  Grumpy with my hair.  Grumpy that I have to drive 2.5 hours to a wedding reception tonight by myself as Shoes is in Utah for the away game.  Then she asked how "working on your family's little addition" was going and I simply stated I was grumpy about that too.

Well, I am.

Then she said, "Are you in therapy?"

Dear hearts.  Please do not ask people you don't really know very well this question.
It is RUDE.  And deeply personal.  (I also think we should let go of the stigma around seeking out mental health help.  But still.)

I stated I was not, and she said, "Well, I think you should be."
For what?
For being grumpy that my hair is alternatively a greasy / frizzy mess?  I think grumpiness is an appropriate response to that.
For being grumpy that I have to go to a wedding reception where I might not know anybody?
That's normal too.
And being grumpy that we're delayed in our family plans?  HA!  Grumpy is a MUCH preferred alternative to any number of things I could meet that with.

(Now, I should be in therapy because I'm a therapist, and it's standard practice for us to be so, but turns out I'm having a hard time finding a therapist who doesn't know me or my spouse's family in this tiny rural town....)

All this to say is that counseling is not always the answer, and sometimes we can find answers within us, or in our support systems, or our friends and family.   Or Jesus or God or Allah or Nature or Art or Yoga or Marathons or ....  (We know more than we think we know and can do better than we think we can do ...)

Sometimes counseling is most definitely the answer, but here's a little nugget about that as well.

Sitting in a counselor's chair / regularly attending therapy does not mean you're going to experience relief from negative symptoms or an increase in positive symptoms.

Why?

Well, that's Part 2 of this post, which is forthcoming ...

Sometimes when people are trying to start their family, it seems like everybody around them experiences the success they so ardently hope for.

Shoes and I have decided it's time for some sort of kid to  live in our house.  Actually, we decided this awhile ago, but with the old job, the changes this year, etc., it's only been in the past few months we've really been able to focus in on what this means.

Good Lord, what does this mean??

Well.  Honestly.  We're not really sure.  As of right now, we're going about this natural way, but when you're 36, the natural way reveals things about an aging female body.  Sometimes it reveals things that are slightly worrisome and come with all sorts of connotations.  In our case, we're still optimistic that things can be leveled out, and with the force of several supplements, we're moving forward.  (Many, many thanks to my dear friend B., who has termed this season in my life "reproductive misadventures."   I love that.  It makes it workable.  To me, that might mean that I read the map upside down and my luggage got lost in baggage claim, but there's still hope I can hitchhike back to down and the airline will contact me at some point.)

But there's still that question if it will work, right?  On top of the question, Shoes and I have always held adoption closely to our hearts.   We almost started the adoption process before trying to have our own; we've both had personal circumstances and jobs in which we've seen the ardent need for children to be placed with families who are in it for the long haul.

We're in it for the long haul.

Fostering, however, we're not interested in.  I realize that might sound calloused, but in this very, very small rural town, I would prefer to not have my community partners coming by my home at a moment's notice for 30 day face to face checks.  There's too much togetherness there, and I am far too opinionated.  Sometimes I agree with the Children's Administration.  Sometimes I bluntly and unapologetically don't.  But I have to have weekly meetings with those folks.  Shoes and I have agreed this is better left alone, for the sake of working relationships.

Kids.  We think we know what that means.  I think I know what that means.  Deep down, we know we have no idea what this means.  And we're ready for that, you know?  We had to come to a place where we were able to look that question dead in the eye and answer quietly, I don't know, but we stand in a place of faith and quiet confidence.

Also, when you get ready to have a family?  Holy moly, the free advice starts flowing like thick molasses.  I have heard Everything.  EVERY magic trick that GUARANTEES success.  And while I receive the advice in love (because I choose to believe that that was the spirit from which it was intended ...  MOST of the time), it becomes very overwhelming very quickly if left unchecked.

But don't worry, I'm checking it.  And letting go of worry.  And putting aside My Ultimate Plan.  One way or the other, it will happen, and Shoes and I will grow our family.  Rosie will have a human sibling.  We'll take family vacations to cheesy resorts.  We'll stay up all night with sick kids.  All of it.  

All the Everythings.

One full month at the new job.

I am no longer waking up at 4:00 in the morning, worrying about paperwork, clients and children at risk, or how much laundry is piling up downstairs.  I am not waking up at 6:00 in the morning on weekends out of a feeling of obligation, worried that I won't get everything done.  I am not bringing paperwork home with me (although that might be temporary and due to a lull in my caseload.)

I have responded to my first crisis call in the ER with this job.  I had backup.  I had a beautifully understanding ER doc and ER nurse.  I was paid appropriately for this wee-hours-of-the-morning-overtime.

And so now, in the past couple of weeks, I have noticed my attention starting to focus on non work related items.  I read a book.  For fun.  For fun, I read a book.  It had nothing to do with kids in distress, abuse or trauma.  It was lovely.  Shoes and I harvested a healthy crop of green beans and sat around the kitchen, munching on their crisp, earthy goodness, talking about how chunky Rosie is getting.  We have taken Rosie the Retriever swimming many times (as I no longer have to worry about being within cell phone range and, let's be honest, anything 5 minutes outside of town falls out of cell phone range.)

I signed up for yoga again.  And started exercising again.  And finally scheduled a facial for which I'd been given a gift card for AGES ago.

Also, we're going to Italy (I'm still good at non sequiturs, huh?), and it is one very lovely thing to look forward to and plan. Shoes' mom had 90 bajillion airline miles that had to be used; we're all going together.  This plan came together very quickly (so quickly it made me nervous - this planner likes to move slowly) and in a week we've booked the tickets, arranged for time off, applied for passports and arranged for Rosie's house-sitter (my MOM - who offered to come up from Central Oregon!).

I've also downloaded basic language learning software and have been plugging away nightly.  I'm not sure how useful knowing the plural forms for feminine and masculine nouns will be when I'm trying to order a glass of wine (unless I'm ordering several glasses of wine?), but it's fascinating none the less.

Today, I'm not sure what's on the docket.  Cleaning up the Rosie hair from the hardwood, no doubt.  Maybe building the compost bin.  The argula needs to be weeded as well.  Or maybe not.  Maybe I'll just watch movies all day.  I'm starting to feel like *I'm* finally in charge of my time off.