Wellbeing

Reflection in times of Covid.|.divoC fo semit ni tcelfeR

Dear Preshil Community,

As I sit and reflect in the front yard of the majestic Arlington campus, listening to the crows caw and cars intermittently rumble down Barkers Road, the dappled light streams through the trees and warms my fingers on this chill April morn. I feel spoilt to be surrounded by such splendour, and yearn to be able to share it again with the children.

It’s a strange thing to be at a school without children. It reminds me of the Cat Stevens/Yusef Islam song – ‘Where do the children play’, melancholy and joyful, soothing yet unsettling, lost yet hopeful. It’s a strong paradoxical sensation that begins to take hold. The feelings elicit memories and each sound and sensation surrounding me seems to invite further and deeper reflection upon the current intense situation still unfolding, already having derailed the society we once knew.

I sometimes allow myself to think about the devastation that has already occurred in some countries, what is happening right now for others, and then for places like Sudan where my family is from, the devastation that is still to come. The hole I dig for myself when I let my mind go to these depths is not helpful as there is a limit we all must put in place for ourselves. Technology has allowed us to be everywhere else, and when we are there, we can’t be here in the now. Being here and now is the only place where we can truly take hold of the power we inherently possess, and while the world keeps spiralling through the universe, we must remind ourselves to focus on what we can do in this moment, rather than let the chitta-chatta of the mind that leads us into dramas we can do nothing about. Stepping back from this brink of potential depression (past) and anxiety (future), what we CAN do as individuals is focus on the literal things in our sphere of focus.

A wonderfully helpful technique used predominantly in trauma situations – of which we are all currently being exposed to in relative ways right now – is a "progressive sensorial regression". The adaptation I use is as follows:

How do you feel right now in your body, in your mind, in your emotions?

What are three things you can see 10 meters away, 3 meters away, 1 meter away – name these out loud to yourself – and can you see the end of your nose?.
What are 3 things you can hear 10 meters away, 3 meters away, 1 meter away – name these out loud to yourself – and can you hear your own heartbeat?
What are three things you can touch right now – name them out loud.
Take three deep breaths through your nose.

How do you feel right now in your body, in your mind, in your emotions? Hopefully better.

“I know we’ve come a long way…”

Research tells us that emotions, arising from the physical sensations that we interpret mentally and then associate on various spectrums, are best serving when they are expressed and released, when they are flowing. This provides the space for us to choose to move with composure and grace into whatever life has in store for us. But how can we begin such a journey? One way is through reflection. Reflection has been defined in many ways across various disciplines and the one that I enjoy the most is that of John Dewey who saw reflection as a means to moving from ‘uncertainty into harmony’ (in his seminal book How we think, 1933). Reflection is a skill that we can work toward mastering, and Dewey saw it as being distinct from other forms of thought such as belief, imagination and stream of consciousness. Through understanding what reflection is, we can learn to utilise it to help us, especially during these current times.

Developing a reflective practice is a brilliant way to provide yourself with a helpful structure that will give you the time and space to better understand your experiences in order to grow and learn. Of the many models that have been developed – Dewey, Kolb, Schon, Gibbs, or even the IB sanctioned inquiry model by Kath Murdoch – one I would highly recommend is that of Terry Borton (1970). For this model there are 3 simple questions which can be helpful to guide you through a reflective process. These are: What?, So What?, Now What? And are illustrated in practice in the table below:

Table 1. Highlighting Borton’s process of reflective thought as reimagined by Smith et al., 2012

Having a reflective protocol such as this model to follow can take the ambiguity or confusion out of the process. This will extend to the questions that you are asking yourself, and to what level you are prepared to go in order to seek answers and find your relative harmony.

In the context of wellbeing, psychologists generally revert to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs when working out how best to aid those who are in need of assistance. Utilising a simple question: What do I need right now? Can be all it takes to bring yourself back to a place where you can handle the ups and downs of an intense situation. These simple set of questions have been laid out by Dr Jacqueline Baulch which address the physiological and foundational aspects of the pyramid, and I recommend reading her article in more depth as it promotes reflection for wellbeing in a helpful and accessible way:

So, what do you need right now?

Do I need to eat?
Do I need to drink?
Do I need coffee (perhaps not one of Maslow’s official questions, but an important one nonetheless!)?
Do I need some quiet time?
Do I need to sleep?
Do I need to stretch or move my body?
Do I need a hug, a massage or some other comforting touch?
Do I need to cool myself down or warm myself up?
Do I need fresh air?
Do I need to tune into my breathing?

“we’re changing day to day…”

The sun is playing hide and seek with me right now in the front yard of Arlington and I’m having a hard time finding it; an even harder time attempting to enjoy the solace while losing the sensation in my fingers while typing. Knowing that this isn’t forever helps. Knowing that the sun will come out of the clouds again at some point, but not suffering needlessly until that happens, is something I might reflect on after I finish this article.

Some main points to take home on reflection in times of Covid are as follows:

Stop – we can’t reflect if we continually distract ourselves
Be aware of your environment – what do you need to surround yourself with in order to give yourself the best chance to be able to focus?
Be aware of any physiological needs - have a drink and snack ready
Take a few deep breaths – oxygen is your friend.
Have a structured set of questions to answer – use one of the models that are available online – Borton, Dewey or Murdoch - or simply have a list of questions in front of you that are going to work for you
have a specific book/notes folder – this is yours to personalise and know that it is reflection time
Have a specific time limit that you are comfortable with – 5-10 minutes to start with, or until your cuppa goes cold is a good rule to use
Find a trusted person to confer any realisations or ideas with – reflection is best operationalised through gaining additional