Monday, October 9, 2017

Filing the Irks Away

Me: "I'm a slow processor."
Doesn't it look like a person? Ha.
Another: "I'd call it internal processing. You gather all the information you can and then process which can't always be done in the moment."

This was a brief section of a conversation I had today. She was right. Introverts process internally. I'm reflecting on the different ways I internally process because I was challenged to figure out which avenue of processing I would like to bring back into my life if I could. Ways I process:
  • Acting through a scenario
  • Writing
  • Silence
  • Talking through a situation
  • Visualization/Picturing an analogy that fits a situation
Like a race car on the track, again I return and it's being pointed out that I'm putting myself last in my professional and personal relationships. As my son mentioned more than once this weekend, "You keep waking up through the night because you are stressed."

True, my sweet warrior boy.

Further truth is that I'm not taking time to process, or as a mentor from about 9 years ago shared with me, "You are not taking time to file away the details of the day so your mind can rest." Will I ever learn? Ha.

Today during my talk with "Another," I did my mental filing in Picture Analogy. Me, the armadillo...trying to have a soft front, strong back [thanks to Brene' Brown]. My life, the balancing scale that has too much weight on one side. So today, it seems I brought back the Picture Analogy process.

Tonight, I need to go further...writing. When Another gave me this challenge, I didn't think I'd even have time to process my processes...ha, but here. If I work at it...or better yet, if I relax into it by taking time for myself, then the processing comes.
 
One interaction was brought to mind just now as I was searching for pictures. I answered the phone today at work and since I answer for both my office and the main college line I began answering the professional way I always do, "Thank you for calling [name of college], this is [my name]" but she cut me off before I even got out "the college of" and started talking over me. *irk!* Then she fumbled and said, "I didn't want you to have to go through your whole spiel," to which I responded fairly brash, "I'd rather say it than be interrupted."
 
Awkward moment. Which is unfortunate because I've been having a lot of those with coworkers lately. We are all so stressed and snowed under. Yet people's impoliteness really has been getting on my last nerve. See how I'm processing through writing...go me! Go ahead and send me a mental high-five...'cause I'm not being prideful, this is the stuff I'm needing to process for the my health and happiness. Okay...that situation is filed. :) If you are an extrovert, it might help to read some tips below and if you are introverted, it might help you to be reminded of those things that tend to send you to space so you can work through them and get grounded. As for me, this filing time is over...and I'm off to a warm bubble bath.