Distraction Technique

So I’m trying to be better about writing my blog but no promises. Lately things have been super busy which is a good thing, but sometimes I forget to take time for me. I imagine a lot of people out there can relate, my problem is I truly enjoy what I do and so I don’t see it as work so much but it does keep me away from the other aspects of my life.  Today I’ll be honest, I’m not super inspired because I was up a good portion of the night with my dog Scout who is afraid of thunderstorms.  I understand why he’s afraid of thunderstorms.. they’re loud and that can be scary.. what I don’t understand is why he thinks keeping me awake is going to solve the problem. If I try to go to sleep during a storm he will just start pawing at me until I wake up. I’ve tried explaining to him me being awake has zero effect on the storm but he kind of looks at me like ” bitch please, if I’m going to be up you’re going to be up.” I apologize for the swearing but that’s just how he talks.  Granted, I’m pretty sure he’s picked it up from me. I’m kind of what I call a casual swearer,  meaning it just comes out in my sentences like an adjective.  Oftentimes I think a well placed cuss word can make a sentence funny.  When my sister’s kids were small they weren’t allowed to swear around us, however the exception was if they were swearing in order to make something funny they were allowed to.  I realize a lot of people may disagree with that parenting model but the way my sister and I saw it was if you forbid kids from swearing then it makes it a “thing”.  Something they’re not supposed to do and so they will do it when they are trying to act out or to impress their friends. However, if you allow it, it loses its appeal and they tend not to do it.  We had the same theory about sweets. I know a lot of parents don’t keep sweets in the house and limit the number of sweets that kids can have and then when their kids are allowed to have them they engorge themselves and run around like little crack babies.  We found if you allow them to eat sweets when they want-  within reason obviously-  then again it loses its appeal of being forbidden and oftentimesthey will choose an apple over a candy bar if they know they can have a candy bar whenever they want. Back to Scout-  I’ve never had a dog anxious like he is. I mean if he were a human he would need Ativan and counseling. He gets so worked up when there is a storm or fireworks he starts hyperventilating and shaking all over and while he wants me to be awake it doesn’t really seem to help much – I guess it’s the old misery loves company.  I did discover a secret trick many years ago however… It was 4th of July and I went to get myself a cup of ice cream and as I was spooning it out I realized Scout was sitting there wagging his tail. Scout loves ice cream. He loves ice cream so much he forgot to be afraid of the storm while his attention was focused on the ice cream. So now when it gets close to the 4th of July I stock up on fudgesicles – I realize dogs aren’t supposed to have chocolate but I only let him have one – and I get him the frozen fruit bars which I can’t think of their name right now but they’re delicious.  I do have to kind of limit how many I give him, but when he is incredibly worked up it helps. I realized that dogs and humans are a lot alike in that distraction can help when our mind is focused on something unpleasant. After my traumatic brain injury I had a lot of anxiety attacks, and over time I realized if I watched a funny video when one of these anxiety attacks started then the anxiety would disappear because I would be focused on laughing. I think our brains would rather focus on something pleasant than something unpleasant so when we are stressed or worried or anxious or sad, if we give our mind something happy or funny or positive to focus on it will naturally make the switch. I like to call it distraction technique, I don’t know if that’s what it’s actually called or if it even has a real name but I encourage you to try it the next time you’re having an unpleasant emotion, especially if it’s one that’s based in random anxiety or stress that you can’t do anything about. I recommend getting on YouTube and pull up a Key  and Peele  video, or some Family Feud bloopers… whatever It is that you find amusing, and see if it doesn’t help. That’s my advice for today so until next time – peace out.