Filofax Therapy

It's been almost two weeks, and I have to say using a Filofax planner has been a huge help.  I have been a little less anxious, and have gotten a lot more accomplished.  Here's how:


We use Conscious Discipline, a social emotional curriculum, with the birth- 5 year old children in my Head Start program.  A huge premise behind the logic is that adults often have to "lend" their frontal lobe problem solving abilities to children who may not be able to access their own at any given time.  My Filofax is my frontal lobe to borrow against.  Being a grieving mother, I am often stuck relentlessly in the emotional state of my brain.   What do you accomplish when stuck in this state?  Not a hell of a lot.


I think of my daughter, gone now nearly two years, all the time.  It makes it difficult to concentrate at times, or remember things that need to be done.  There have been days I am barely functioning.  My Filofax reminds me of what I need to do and when, even how.


Using a planner has helped in a couple different ways.  One, it has lowered my anxiety.  My Filofax is a place I can write down my obligations, and also dump out all my worries.  They are safe, captured on paper, and I am free to think about other things.


Secondly, my Filofax encourages me to keep trying every day.  If I don't complete everything on my to do list on a given day, my planner holds no judgment for me to transpose them to the next day, and give it another shot.  I can keep trying every day to have a good day, and stay healthy.  I often note down a happy moment which when read over the end of a week that has gone by helps me to feel a little more positive about life in general.


I keep my daughter's picture in my planner, and carry her with me everywhere.  She is a tremendous inspiration to me to  never, ever, ever give up.  I also keep pictures of everyday moments of joy, so when my negative thinking says life isn't worth living without my girl, I can calmly flip to the section of my Filofax that houses concrete proof to the contrary.


I so wish I would've had one of these for Cory, in fluorescent Barbie pink; she'd have loved it!