The Slump

Dun dun dun. Cue dramatic music because it’s THE SLUMP. It happens every year, maybe more than once. For me, it doesn’t hit at the same time every year. This year, I feel like it’s hit earlier than other years. It’s the time when you feel like you’re drowning in paperwork or progress reports or evaluations or all three. It’s akin to treading water. Evaluations have piled up and with all the meetings and such that are happening, I’m having a hard time finding time to test. Never mind write the report – that always happens at home on my own time because I rarely will have the opportunity to do it AT work.

Don’t forget the actual therapy though. That’s the real reason I love my job. I don’t love the paperwork. I don’t love the meetings, though I do love talking to parents about their child’s progress. It’s mainly the sheer amount of meetings we have to attend each year. But there needs to be time to plan adequately enough for the 55+ kids on your caseload. I recently posted this on my Facebook page, because I felt it explained what planning is like for us. We do make it work.

Back to the slump. It will inevitably hit. And when it does, you may have your own way to get through it. I try to prioritize and work through one task at a time. If I don’t have to bring my computer home with me during the week, I don’t. If I have evals to write, I try to do them Friday night so that I can still enjoy the majority of my weekend with my husband.

Never fear, it does end. As with most jobs, there are ups and downs. The good news is that it’s hit now for me, but Thanksgiving and then winter break are on the horizon. Which will give us some much needed time to recharge. Just keep plugging away and I promise, you’ll make it through to the other side. But you’re definitely not alone!

If you’ve hit the slump, what do you do to get through it?