- Sep 24, 2018

Freeschoolin': Coping with Stress

What A Week!

Between a field trip I had been planning for months, running LARP games, a comic con, socializing with friends, harvest and home management, work and the full moon, it has been really easy to go from 0 to Stresstown.

How do we cope? Support The most vital tools we have are each other. We spend a lot of time bonding and nurturing respectful relationships with each other when things are joyful and calm so that when chaos rains, we don't drown. We are one another's life boats. Identify Triggers We are a family in healing from childhood trauma. When we know what sets our old, negative programming off, we can be prepared for triggers and put our focus on re-writing the past with new, positive truths. Energy Re-Charge Jaze, Hope, and myself, all have our own preferred ways to clear and replenish our depleted energy reserves when things are or have been stressful. Hope likes to draw, colour, create, sing, waterplay or roleplay with her toys. She also has a blanket piece she's kept since she was born as her "sucking spot" and sucks her thumb when she is stressed out. I turn to my arts and music, as well as epsom salt/baking soda baths, spending time with my animals, being in nature and more. Jaze is more inclined to defrag with a video game or a good book. *They also meditate when the urge arises, draw, sing, connect with our animals and more. *Jaze is Multiple Personalities.*

This week, we ran a free private L.A.S.T Productions game for our homeschool friends called, L.A.S.T. Friday. It's an escape the "killer" game where players must get the elements needed to escape the encounter alive in the time limit allotted. Everyone had a blast, new and returning players, and some friends even stayed for a campfire afterward. Such an amazing time!

Our annual field trip to Avalon Orchards with The Un/Homeschool Club was this week, and the first time I had organized it myself. It was a lot of work but definitely worth it. I don't think many people realize what goes into planning this kind of a thing; one doesn't do it for the glory! LOL! All had fun and it brought the community closer. I'm happy to do it again next year!

Right after the orchard, we ran a LARP in the Park for anyone interested. What a joyful time with incredible people. During any stress, players came together and helped one another out.

We went shopping afterwards too, so by the time we came home, we were ready to just chill and recharge our energy. Unfortunately, we came home to no power which means no running water. It ended up being out for over 24 hours. With a horse who drinks gallons a day and our dietary and financial restrictions, it's no easy task surviving even that long without power.

After a family meeting, we decided to go to the Comic Con we'd been planning on attending for months and found outside the box solutions to meet our needs. The food was getting warm in the fridge so we ate what was there instead of trying to make our ingredients fit into meals I had planned, we let go of our no sugar rule for some organic power bars and picked through the garden to see if there was anything still growing we could eat fresh. We had a blast at the Comic Con together; it was a really cool and FREE event that the Barrie Public Library puts on every year in downtown Barrie.