Jim Maxwell, LPC, RYT
Love and trust in the space between what is said and
​what is heard can make all the difference.

​
Jim Maxwell,  LPC, RYT
512-454-1850  
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  • Blog --> Relating To Life

December 04th, 2020

12/4/2020

 
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The Importance of Trust -- Quote from movie "The Art of the Steal"

8/24/2020

 


“It takes a betrayal before you realize the real currency in the world ain’t money - it's trust. Because if you got no trust, then what do you got.”

August 16th, 2020

8/16/2020

 
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How to Cope with the Pandemic -- a very good article by Faith Starnes, LCSW

7/6/2020

 
What Can You Do During the Pandemic? Faith Starnes, LCSW
We are all in this together and it is helpful to keep the universality of it in mind. No one is exempt and we are learning as we go. The scope of what we are going through is so enormous that we cannot fully process it all. Some people have more complicated situations than others, but we are all in the throes of coping and adapting. This is new to all of us. We need sound and beneficial psychological and physiological understanding of what we are experiencing and solid and practical coping strategies to support our functioning.
If we start with the meta view, we recognize that we are mammals and a social species. We are being asked to live in such a way that is contradictory to our biology. That alone is going to set up psychological, physical and intellectual reactions that are complex, painful and most likely unwelcome. The first step of managing this effectively is simply to recognize this and know that living in opposition to our nature creates a mixture of feelings and reactions that may or may not be helping us cope. We gather our information and social connections through our senses and now the access to sensorial stimulation is blunted. The mind and body will go into high alert to try and sort this out and achieve some mastery over a situation in which there is no control. The mind and the body will search for experiences that diminish helplessness and isolation. What is left in its wake can be increased agitation, increased anxiety and hopelessness, increased frustration, worry and fear and diminished motivation. Depression and panic can be lurking in the background. That is the tough part and it can be a roller coaster.
The good news is that there are several things we can do to ameliorate this very difficult situation and restore ourselves to a healthier balance. We need not and in fact, should not wait for motivation to carry us. We need to rely on the desire to feel more like “ourselves” as the impetus to put some changes into our routines.
These are the elements of self care needed to do just that and they need to be practiced daily.
Many people are working harder and longer from home and this is an area of caution. Work is not going to take us out of social deprivation. It can help, but it can also be a distraction and it is not sustainable. The better solution is to work less and work smarter.
Good nutrition, hydration and sleep are essential. Our resilience is compromised and we need to have this foundation on which to build.

First thing in the morning, you need to take your psychological temperature. Literally, “How am I feeling?” Make a mental note and/or jot it down. On a scale of 1-10 what is my anxiety level, my agitation, my frustration, my sense of hope. The readings on your own state will help guide you through the day. Keep in mind that our emotional reserve tanks are very low and what previously sustained us no longer works. Renewal is more the key.
We need to get outside everyday. Remember that we are mammals and are not designed to live indoors for long periods of time. It will take its toll. We need natural light and a change of scenery. Take a drive; in town or in the country. You will be surprised how much a difference this makes. We need to be outside at least 30 minutes and if possible longer, everyday.
Everyday we need some kind of exercise for at least 20 minutes. It can be walking, riding a bicycle, running, swimming, dancing, yoga. The format is not as important as the actual movement. Again, we are working with biology and nature and not in opposition.
Everyday we need some form of intentional relaxation for at least 20 minutes. It can be meditation, yogic breathing, visualization, yoga, tai chi, qi gong. Again, the format is the not the important part.
Everyday we need some contact with someone outside our bubble or outside our solitude. It can be Facetime, Zoom, audio, text, visiting from your front door or from the street. Actual face to face contact while social distancing is restorative. Keep in mind none of these has the staying power they did before the pandemic. Ongoing repetition is necessary.
Everyday we need some intellectual/creative stimulation that is not work and again the format is not the important part. It can be board games, or dominoes or checkers or chess. It can be books and movies and conversation or Suduco or puzzles. It can be throwing pots or making cards or drawing or gardening or painting the bathroom.
Everyday we need to limit our exposure to the news. It should be limited to 30 minutes. We are curious and drawn to the latest story, but keep in mind that the news media is a for profit entity and in order to make more money they need a bit of sensationalism to keep their readers in tow. NPR & PBS also wants to keep their audience. Long exposure is usually an effort toward mastery over the geopolitical environment along with medical updates. The effect, however, is

increased anxiety, agitation, helplessness and hopelessness. Learn what you need to in order to keep yourself and your family safe and healthy and informed and then back away.
Remember what you are grateful for and make a physical and/or mental note. If you have a home and job, your are one of the lucky ones.
If you have a therapist, be sure you are scheduling your appointments at least every 2 weeks. Some people are a bit leery of Zoom therapy sessions. They are not as good as face to face. They are, however, extremely effective and a good place to say whatever you need without constrictions or censor. This definitely helps with lessening the negative and difficult feelings. If you don’t have a therapist, give the EAP a call and set something up. Everyone benefits from having someone to talk to privately.
Check your attitude. Fears can manifest as frustration and contempt. Thinking you have the right answer might make you feel better in the moment and give you a sense of control, but it is an illusion. Talk about your fears directly.
Stay on your side of the net. Don’t criticize. Instead say...I feel, I prefer. Give others plenty of space for irritability, tension, and fear.
Have some fun.
We have a ways to go before we are past this pandemic. We need to be intentional in managing this as a marathon. You can feel better. What you can gain mastery over is yourself and your own feelings. It takes effort and the results are totally worth it. We are powerless to control or manage the pandemic or the political environment . We need to take charge of what we can actually influence and that is our own internal landscape

July 06th, 2020

7/6/2020

 
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Tonight

3/19/2020

 
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September 1, 1939 by W.H. Auden

11/23/2019

 
September 1, 1939

I sit in one of the dives
On Fifty-second Street
Uncertain and afraid
As the clever hopes expire
Of a low dishonest decade:
Waves of anger and fear
Circulate over the bright 
And darkened lands of the earth,
Obsessing our private lives;
The unmentionable odour of death
Offends the September night.

Accurate scholarship can 
Unearth the whole offence
From Luther until now
That has driven a culture mad,
Find what occurred at Linz,
What huge imago made
A psychopathic god:
I and the public know
What all schoolchildren learn,
Those to whom evil is done
Do evil in return.

Exiled Thucydides knew
All that a speech can say
About Democracy,
And what dictators do,
The elderly rubbish they talk
To an apathetic grave;
Analysed all in his book,
The enlightenment driven away,
The habit-forming pain,
Mismanagement and grief:
We must suffer them all again.

Into this neutral air
Where blind skyscrapers use
Their full height to proclaim
The strength of Collective Man,
Each language pours its vain
Competitive excuse:
But who can live for long
In an euphoric dream;
Out of the mirror they stare,
Imperialism's face
And the international wrong.

Faces along the bar
Cling to their average day:
The lights must never go out,
The music must always play,
All the conventions conspire 
To make this fort assume
The furniture of home;
Lest we should see where we are,
Lost in a haunted wood,
Children afraid of the night
Who have never been happy or good.

The windiest militant trash
Important Persons shout
Is not so crude as our wish:
What mad Nijinsky wrote
About Diaghilev
Is true of the normal heart;
For the error bred in the bone
Of each woman and each man
Craves what it cannot have,
Not universal love
But to be loved alone.

From the conservative dark
Into the ethical life
The dense commuters come,
Repeating their morning vow;
"I will be true to the wife,
I'll concentrate more on my work,"
And helpless governors wake
To resume their compulsory game:
Who can release them now,
Who can reach the deaf,
Who can speak for the dumb?

All I have is a voice
To undo the folded lie,
The romantic lie in the brain
Of the sensual man-in-the-street
And the lie of Authority
Whose buildings grope the sky:
There is no such thing as the State
And no one exists alone;
Hunger allows no choice
To the citizen or the police;
We must love one another or die.
​

Defenceless under the night
Our world in stupor lies;
Yet, dotted everywhere,
Ironic points of light
Flash out wherever the Just
Exchange their messages:
May I, composed like them
Of Eros and of dust,
Beleaguered by the same
Negation and despair,
Show an affirming flame.

A Santa Fe Artist's Unique Philosophy of Life

12/1/2018

 

An artist note to self...

12/1/2018

 

June 02nd, 2018

6/2/2018

 
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