Food for Thought



"Emotional labor," which is the effort we make to control and change our own emotions, is associated with stress, burnout, and even physical symptoms like an increase in cardiovascular disease.
~ Susan Cain (Author of Quiet)

Dare to Dream

Decluttering

I think I am now ready for love.:p I have done quite a fair bit of decluttering lately. And somehow decluttering of the physical environment seems to help me remove my emotional clutter layer by layer. 

Dare to Dream

My Thoughts

According to a colleague, writing is therapeutic. I agree absolutely. Writing helps me to release negative emotions and negative thoughts. It helps me to get unstuck. That's why I like writing, and in particular, writing songs. 

Dare to Dream

Social Work

I just read an article in the Straits Times (dated 6 Jul 2013), entitled The Price of Not Raising Social Workers' Pay. I like what the writer (Ms Ang Bee Lian) has written. Incidentally, the writer is the Chief Executive of the National Council of Social Service.

 

In the article, Ms Ang wrote about the 'personal risk many social workers undertake when they work in difficult situations where they intervene to protect vulnerable people...' This brought to my mind an incident that happened years ago when I visited a totally blind elderly client, who lived with a mentally ill son. During the visit, her son suddenly came out of the kitchen with a knife and aimed it at me. Fortunately, nothing happened. Another personal risk that social workers may face is the possibility of being raped. (I have heard about social workers being raped in Hong Kong.)

 

Besides personal risk, social workers may also face sexual harassment. Personally, I have experienced that on many occasions. :( It can be a mental torture. :(

 

I'd like to quote part of the last paragraph in the article:-

 

The question should not be whether we can afford to pay social workers a competitive wage, but whether we can afford not to, and leave social issues and social injustice to fester...

 

Dare to Dream

Letting Go of Friendships (Relationships)

I understand that it can be hard to let go of friendships (or for that matter, any relationships) that we have built over the years. However, if these friendships (or relationships) are emotionally draining to us or are unhealthy in other ways, then I believe we must make the wise choice of letting them go or setting a healthy boundary for the sake of our sanity and well-being.

Dare to Dream