Clinical Skills Confidence: Dear SLP…Love, Yourself
Dear SLP:
I know you are feeling tired, overworked, slightly crazed, and maybe a little disheartened. You sometimes feel that you start the day with a million things to accomplish. While you may accomplish a few tasks, different things are added or shifted and everything just piles up. Like the mountains of paperwork on your desk. Or the things in that corner that “you’ll get to when you have a free moment.”
You want the best for those on your caseload. You want to see them succeed and feel a sense of pride in themselves. But sometimes you feel that you aren’t doing enough.
You did not plan as thoroughly as you’d hoped for the week.
You couldn’t find the pin that you KNOW you pinned a few days ago for your craft of the week.
You forgot your planner at home, which leaves you feeling completely off.
You meant to print and laminate and cut all those awesome TpT activities.
You plan your sessions, only to have it not go the way you saw it going.
You show up at a classroom, only to find there was an activity that you can’t pull the students out of.
You forgot all that Medicaid billing and now it’s due tomorrow.
You have to go to meeting after meeting and some days, lunch just doesn’t happen.
It’s ok.
Stop for a minute and really think. You feel this way because YOU CARE. You push yourself to put in 120% every single day, so those days that you might only be able to give 98% feel like a failure. But it’s not.
Think about the times you showed up at a classroom and your students jumped up and said “yay, speech!”
Think about the times a parent told you how much his or her child LOVES speech.
Think about the first time a student achieved placement for the sound you’ve been working on forever.
Think about other therapists or teachers coming to ask your advice on something.
Think about the first time a student used their AAC device to request something.
Your job is hard. But you love it. Rest assured, you are making a difference, even if you sometimes don’t see it.
Love,
Yourself
Have been feeling this way since early Oct…thanks so much for these inspirational words!
I thought others might be feeling the same way especially this time of year!
thanks for this! This year has been one where I feel overwhelmed and this post hit home!
I’m glad Stacey, I know how you feel!
Yeah! Great post!
Thanks CC!
LOVE this!
Thanks Carrie!
LOVE this!
As a CF I feel this way everyday. Thank you for the post.
You’re welcome Becky!
OMG! I just posted on my blog about a student who is just not buying into any of my activities and I am jumping through hoops to find the one thing that will “snag” his interest. He is only one of 50 students and he is wearing me down. I need to read your post every morning until break when I can breathe and regroup. Thank you – nice to know others are in the boat.
I know how those students can make you feel! You’re definitely not alone! Thanks for commenting!
This is EXACTLY how i’ve felt this year. Counting down the minutes until Christmas break. It’s so nice to hear I am not alone!
This is exactly how I’ve been feeling! Counting down the minutes until Winter Break…. So nice to know I’m not alone!
Thank you, thank you, thank you. You’ve perfectly described my life lately! This is exactly what I needed to read today and it made me feel so much better.
Thank you for this! Definitely feeling discouraged lately.