Unedited Transcript
Rich Lombino Hey everyone, it's Rich Lombino, therapist and lawyer. Welcome and thanks for joining. In this podcast, I explored topics for maintaining good mental health, expanding your knowledge, developing insight and creating and sustaining behavior change with the goal of improving the quality of your personal and professional lives. Alright. Let's get started. Today's topic is promoting positive ITI in a negative environment. With me is Polly Jansen. Hey Polly, how you doing. Polly Good, how are you? Rich Yeah, yeah, pretty good. How about we start if you want to tell the listeners a little bit about yourself. Polly Sure. So I've been in the field of social work approximately 25 years. I am currently working for the State of Delaware as a clinical services administrator. I work in a community mental health program called the Promise program, and the division is the division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health. Polly And basically we work with adults with certain mental health diagnosis and we help get them connected with Community providers with the goal of helping them to stabilize in the community and keep them out of hospitals. Polly And then I have a staff of. Polly 8. Polly Care managers and they each have case loads of people that they see in the community and then they just make sure that they're getting the services that they need. Polly So prior to that I also worked in the youth field for many years I worked in. Polly Basically the the child welfare field in Philadelphia. Polly I work for the City of Philadelphia and I was a case worker. Polly I was a supervisor and I also worked in the staff Development Department into training. Polly So I did that for several years and I've also worked in foster care and residential work with youth, so that was my. Polly Pretty much my my work prior to what I'm doing now. Rich What do you think Drew you to the field of social work and and helping people in that way? Polly My father was a probation officer. Polly My parents were both teachers, so I guess I became interested in it through them at 1st and then I had. Polly Some friends in college who were in social work and I was. Polly Actually it came came into school as a journalism major and decided that wasn't for me and I was kind of trying to explore different. Polly Fields and I took a couple classes and it was a really good fit. Polly I decided I really liked it and. Polly Guess that the rest is history. Rich Yeah, 25 years later, that's great. Polly I know right time flies. 5. Rich And it's and it's rewarding. Rich Being in like a supervisory role as as well as in the past doing the direct service yourself. Polly Yes, definitely. Polly I think right now, it's just it's it's good to be able to educate people and kind of share the experiences that I've had. Polly And then just to see people really grow in their own careers. Polly So I really enjoyed that aspect of it. Rich Great great alright. Rich So how do we shift to the topic at hand here? Rich Promoting positive ITI in a negative environment which you suggested and I think it's great especially. Rich What we're dealing with a year in, so how would you you know, introduce the topic or or define it what we're talking? Polly About well, yeah, I think. Polly It's it's something that's really important. This, yeah, like you said, this year is been really traumatic for everyone. It's been taking a toll on everyone's mental health with the pandemic. Polly Socially, not being able to see your friends and family, you know not having your normal routine like you would. Polly Uh. Polly Kind of being. Polly Trapped in in your house for so long and you know a lot of people are working remotely, but other people have had a lot of other traumatic effects. Polly Loss of job. Polly Loss of income. Polly An an an then it just in general the political climate has been difficult for people this year, so I think it's just been a lot to handle and it's just really been hard to keep a positive outlook. Polly And it's something that's important to me because I feel like normally I'm I'm. Polly Pretty positive, pretty upbeat, but this year has been a struggle for me and I've kind of had to reevaluate the way that I look at my life and and how I approach. Polly Every day in my work and my relationships. Polly So so yeah, I just I just have a couple of points to make that that kind of have helped me through this that I wanted to share. Polly I think first of all, just checking in with yourself and your feelings. Polly You know it's it's been, it's been so so difficult. Polly A man and I think we don't really take time out to really allow ourselves to feel. Sometimes right, right? You know you don't want to sugarcoat your life. You don't want to say everything's OK and I can go on. You really want to check in like, how am I really feeling today? Polly Uh, even like scale one to 10. Polly Maybe today is really really down day, like I'm a I'm a 2 today. Polly But just kind of to give yourself a baseline to really, really be honest with yourself. Polly And then. Rich Yeah, and what how would you compare like the baseline as far as your usual baseline versus, you know how you feel in that particular day? Rich How could that be valuable if you're able to determine that? Polly Yeah, I think it. Polly It just kind of gives you perspective on you know what's really going on on. Polly You know if I'm normally at an 8 but today I'm gonna do what's what's going on, is it? Polly You know things would work and I just really. Polly In a bad space today, like I'm I'm bogged down. Polly With all this happening, I'm reading too many news headlines. Polly Maybe an it's just really affected my mood. Polly Maybe I'm struggling with some relationships, so I think you know, kind of looking at where you normally are and where, where you are on any given day can kind of help give you at least a perspective and then maybe give you a goal. Polly To say hey, what can I do to increase my number and maybe have a better number tomorrow? Rich Yeah, that's a really good point I. Uh-huh Rich I think it probably also could help with not having like catastrophic thinking like things have been going pretty well for two weeks and then you have a really bad day and it could. Polly Right? Rich It could be very easy to be like Oh my God, you know this is how it's going to be every day or you know, as opposed to well look, look at it more. Polly Uh-huh Rich What is your perspective? Rich If you just look at today as opposed to, well, how have I been feeling it mean that could kind of. Rich I think also kind of put things in better perspective so that that particular day you actually won't wind up feeling as bad as as your initial reaction. Polly Right, absolutely yeah. Polly And then kind of going along with that. Polly Like what you said, you know you don't want to think catastrophic LY like everything is going to go wrong. Polly From then on. Polly You know you want to try to stay president and focus on today, and that's something that's been really hard this year. Polly With all that's going on. Polly You know we're thinking about what's going to happen in the future. Polly You know what's going to happen tomorrow? Polly You know what other restrictions are there going to be or? Polly You know, every every day this year is has been something something else. Polly It seems like when you turn on the news. Polly So it's it's something that I really. Polly Struggled with myself like OK, I need to really try to focus on today. Polly What can I do today? Polly What decisions can I make today? Polly What can I you know, control with my with my attitudes with my behaviors. Polly What can I do today to really to really be present and avoid being overwhelmed? Right? Rich Right, well, that's I mean, that's all at best. Rich That's all we have control over is our own own thoughts and actions. Polly Right absolutely. Rich And when all of these. Rich Things are going on around us, you know, not not much. Rich Good news in the world. Rich Typically it focusing on the the external could really bring down your your internal. Uh-huh Polly Right absolutely. Rich OK. Polly And then kind of stemming from that. See. Polly I try to think of the positive things that are going on. Polly I have a friend on social media who posts. Polly Almost every couple weeks tell me something good and it basically is like tell me something good that happened to you today and so people will post things you know just really simple things like meeting exercise goals. Polly I got outside and walk today around my neighborhood. Polly I caught up with a friend, you know, even. Polly Via zoom. Polly I finished the house project or. Polly I got a package in the Mail that I was waiting on or something like that or or or. Polly I just got through the day and kept my sanity intact an. Polly I, I think it's really a good thing to focus you like it's not all doom and gloom. Polly You can focus on what what has happened in your life, what? Polly What is something positive that happened today? Polly So I really I really do appreciate that that he does that, and so I really try to take that to heart. Rich Yeah, that's really sweet. Polly Miller Rich 'cause it's. Rich It's not just him doing it himself for his own benefit. Rich It's, you know, putting it out into the world and you know we're so busy and professionally personally very easily kind of just gloss over that. Polly Yeah, absolutely. Rich Not even not even recognize that. Polly Right absolutely. Rich Yep, OK. Polly And then I think going along with that is just practicing gratitude. Polly You know it's not just thinking of things that you are thankful for, like your family or friends having shelter, employment, but just expressing gratitude to others just for the positive impact that they have. Polly You know, compliments positive feedback. Polly Just simple kindness is, I think, just really do mean the world to people. Polly Up Polly I have one example that I just. Polly I was blown away we have yeah Christmas decoration in our window it's a leg lamp from the Christmas story. Polly It's funny 'cause I I, it's hilarious. Polly We love it. Polly We've had it for years and we put in our front window every Christmas and we got this card in our door that someone some stranger left in our door randomly and just said I I look forward to your lamp in the window every year. Rich Yeah. Polly It just makes me happy an my husband and I love it and especially this year I just wanted to say thank you. Polly And somebody just did that. Polly You know, out of the blue and I just like this is the nicest thing and you know, it's a complete stranger. Wow. Polly They didn't sign their name. Polly You know they just wanted to say thank you and. Polly You know it's just simple. Polly Things like that are really, really makes a difference for people. Rich Right, and even yeah. Rich I mean, that's another example of like kind of just doing something that made you guys happy and then it has an effect on. Uh-huh Rich Probably not just that person, because yeah, I don't know who wouldn't crack up if I know. Rich And I know get inspired. Rich Rich Inspired. Rich They drove fast. Rich It's so it's so funny. Polly Yeah, so just just simple things that you don't even realize the impact that you can have on someone else. Rich Right right uh-huh, that's cool. Rich Thanks for sharing that. Rich For sharing that exam. Rich Rich Yeah, yeah. Polly I think also just scheduling time to do the things that you enjoy, but also even trying new things. Polly You know, it's one thing we always say we should exercise more. Polly We want to work on our favorite hobby more, but it's always hard to really take that first step to actually do it and make time for it. Polly An I think sometimes for me. Polly You know, I kind of look at my week and I'm like, OK, let me make time on these days and I'm going to. Polly Go out for a run on these days or. Polly I had I. Polly Had some friends who they were kind of creative during the pandemic. Polly They one of them started an online exercise class and one of them was streaming live music and they would. Polly You know, put it out there that I'm going to do a class on this day and I'm going to stream my live music this day. Polly Can you please? Polly You know? Polly You know, during the live stream, and I'll be like, oh, OK, you know everybody's kind of zoomed out a little bit, you know, but I'm like let me let me try to do this and so I I participated in a couple of those things and they were really fun an and just. You know, being able to share that with somebody. You know something that was was completely new. Polly You know we we haven't done this before. Polly We're not. Polly You know, doing things on zoom, you know? Polly Before this though. Rich Oh no, no. Rich Yeah, no. Rich It's it's especially with creative people, you know. Rich Hey I need to get this creativity out in some way. Yeah. Rich You know if I can't I can't play in a bar brewery or whatever, or winery or just outside somewhere inside somewhere I gotta, I gotta figure something to get it out and bring joy to other. Uh-huh Polly People's lives, Yep, absolutely. Polly So yeah, it was. Polly It was really nice, neat, and it really kind of really just boosted people spirits, you know, just to see see that and you know just to try something new. Rich So you you planning anything you you or what? Polly Oh, not not especially. Polly But I have I one thing I did start doing again was I started playing the piano again. Polly I haven't done that for years and I'm like well I need an outlet 'cause you know it's kovid winter and. Polly You know I need something to do something fun, so that's something I started doing again an then playing with my husbands band mates and it's been a lot of fun. Oh wow. Polly So yeah, you know I'm like OK let me let me try to put myself out there and and you know, take a take a risk and try something. Polly They haven't done in awhile, so so yeah, it's it's. Polly It's definitely has helped, definitely. Polly Has helped with my my whole outlook and and my attitude. Polly So yeah, it's been fun. Rich Yeah, now I'm really happy for you reconnecting with an instrument. Polly Yeah. Rich This is really the time to do it and I thought I thought this story was just going to be like, hey, I have my upright piano or keyboard and my my place and I'm just playing but he took it to a whole another level. Rich Like no. Polly Right? Rich I'm going all in. Rich I'm jamming with the band and that's really cool. Polly Yeah. Polly Yeah, it's done well, it's fun. OK. Polly It's been fun, so Yep. Rich Right, so how do you want to sum things up here? Rich Or if there's anything else that you want to you want? Polly To yeah that was. Polly Those are kind of the main points and I just I just think that you know, kind of reminding ourselves, focusing on positive ITI is just important as we. Polly Continue to move forward. Polly I think we're seeing a lot of light at the end of the tunnel. Polly You know, with the with the pandemic we've got a lot of positive things coming with. Polly You know the vaccine being rolled out. Polly Uhm? Polly An it's you know good to see the numbers dropping everything but you know we're still in uncertain times and I think it's. Polly Just important to focus on the things that we can control. Polly You know our attitudes, our decisions are behaviors. Polly Just to help us avoid becoming overwhelmed and then also reaching out to friends, I think is really important. Polly You know you think you're dealing with this. Polly Obviously everybody is dealing with the same thing, but you often kind of get wrapped up in yourself in your own situation, and I think it's important to reach out to friends and family when you need to, because there are sharing the same feelings that you are. Polly And they can be a support to you even if you don't realize. Rich Right, no, that's a good point, because if we start feeling isolated, that's only going to exacerbate any negative feelings that you may have going on. Polly Yeah, absolutely. Rich Well, Polly, really appreciate you your time and positive iti sharing. Rich You know you're really positive person in general, so I think not just having knowledge on this topic but really being able to infuse that positive energy. Rich Obviously into this episode, but into into your life and the lives of those around you, which is. Rich Please keep that keep that going alright. Alright. Polly Thank you. Rich Alright, so take care. Polly Alright thanks you too. Rich Well, that's it for this podcast episode. Rich Please subscribe, rate and comment and share on social media and otherwise. Rich Is it rich lambino? Rich Dot com to learn more about my counseling practice. Rich See how to contact me? Rich Connect with me on social media and we might blogon E books to learn about other topics. Rich Most importantly, if you or someone you know we're looking for more support, I'm here for you. Rich Look forward to you joining me for other podcast episodes. Rich Take care and be well.
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