Yesterday I was browsing the internet on the hunt for some inspiration.
I came across the social media profile of a doula based in Australia. She was sharing positive birth photos and stories. After crying at various videos of beautiful water births, I stumbled upon a photo of a card that said…
“You can do anything for a minute.”
I went on to read the post…
This lady shared a moving story of when she was bullied at school, and as a result, she suffered from severe anxiety. She recalled repeated to herself at the start of every day “You can do anything for one day. You can do anything for one day.” And this was how she got through it.
She then goes on to say she used a similar technique when in labour. This time chanting to herself “You can do anything for a minute. You can do anything for a minute.” She said decided on this particular mantra because the average contraction lasts for one minute.
Wait!
Hold on!
This stopped me in my tracks and really surprised me!
One minute? 60 seconds?
The multiple horror stories I’d been told over the past nine months regarding contractions had me believe these things go on for ages!
But one minute? Wow.
I COULD do that!
I guess it’s a prime example of how some things in life can feel a lot longer than they actually are.
Take meltdowns for example.
I can speak from experience when I say when your child is knee deep into a full on, vocal, public meltdown it can feel as though it’s been going on for hours. When in actual fact it actually lasted a mere 4 minutes.
But it’s how it makes you feel, isn’t it?…
The panic, the embarrassment, the pain, the guilt, the anxiety, the helplessness, the stress, the tension. You go through it all.
One thing I encourage the families I work with to do is collect some simple data when their child goes into meltdown…
Nothing too complex. Just the date it happened, where you were, what was happening before it happened and the length of time it lasted.
I always find that after timing a child’s meltdown it’s surprising how short it actually was in comparison to how it felt at the time.
Timing meltdowns is a good way of tracking your child’s progress and knowing what techniques are working for future reference.
How do you currently manage your child’s meltdowns?
What are your biggest challenges?
Drop me an email and I’d be happy to help you out where I can.
Speak with you soon until then,
Live every moment, Love beyond words and make a difference today
Emma Ottaway
The Ambitious Autism Ambassador
