February Reflections – How My New Job Is Going, Spontaneous Adventures and Life Update

In my first ‘reflections’ post of the year, I described January as a whirlwind. If January was a whirlwind, with everything up in the air and swirling around me a little chaotically, February was most certainly a cheetah: definitely continuing the fast-paced rush of the previous month, but with more direction than a tornado. Allow me to explain.

This was the month of settling into my new job as a healthcare assistant. In January, I was completely out of my depth: I had no previous experience in a role like this and every hour was filled with foreign experiences. At the end of each twelve and a half hour shift I’d be totally wiped out, and sometimes tearful. This month, I’ve felt a little more in control, I know what to do and how to do it most of the time; I’m also starting to understand the dynamics of the team I’m working in. Each shift feels like I’m heading for a clear goal now, rather than nervously running around in circles wondering what’s next. I also did my first ever night shift a couple of weeks ago. That came with a whole bucketful of lessons in itself.

February was also a month of writing. Note-taking and essays for university took up much of my time, but I managed to squeeze out fourteen posts on here and do some extra writing on the side too. For March I’d love to feel a little more organised in my approach to writing, especially allocating specific time to writing for fun.

In terms of blogging, I’ve really enjoyed getting deeper into mental health awareness throughout the last month. I have found it deeply rewarding discussing anxiety on here and getting such a warm rush of supportive comments and people opening up about their own struggles. This is something I feel passionate about and am looking forward to talking about more in the coming months. February saw the start of the Conversations With Anxiety series, and people seem to find these short instalments both funny and relatable – I’m so happy these are going down well!

I think one of the things I’ll remember the most from February 2018 though is rediscovering a childlike sense of adventure. Going on a mini escapade to a bit of the coast I’d hardly explored before was so much fun, as was sledging in the countryside (a post coming on that very soon!). I want to make time for more adventures like these: days that contain so much laughter I know I won’t forget them.

What the cheetah missed out on during it’s sprint to the 28th day though, was rest breaks. In particular, mental health activities like yoga and meditation. This is something I’d love to build back into my routine for the coming month. Yoga helped me a lot to transition into the new year and a new job, but somehow this activity got left behind as unnecessary baggage in the cheetah’s race. Yoga, or at least some kind of respite for the mind, is most certainly necessary. I will make this known in March.

The cheetah also didn’t find much time for pause and reflection. As you’ve probably noticed, it didn’t even make time for this monthly reflection to be posted in the month it’s actually describing. Oh well, perfectionism isn’t healthy, I’m not going to get too caught up on that. But I’d like to give more weight to moments of retrospective stillness, as this can help give me clarity when making future decisions.

On a more positive note, I managed to stick to daily bullet journalling for most of the month, and having created a couple of new spreads for March (again, coming soon in another post) I feel ready to take on the next 31 days. Organisation is something I love, but it’s also something I have to be mindful of in order to harness it in a helpful, non-obsessive way. This is something I think I’m getting better at over time.

So what’s in store for March? More work, more studying, more blogging, more writing, an attempt at keeping focussed and organised throughout the whole month, some decisions about uni for next year, a concert and hopefully a couple of spontaneous adventures! And of course, how could I not mention – it’s my birthday month! I’m starting to feel more and more like an adult these days, which has positives and negatives, but is probably a feeling I should be actively moving towards as I approach the grand old age of twenty. Eeek, I’m no longer going to be a teenager?! How is that allowed.

That’s a wrap for February then! I hope you all had a wonderful month and that March treats you well. Let me know how the past month was for you in the comments! ❤

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If you enjoyed this post, you may like:

You Don’t Have To Eat Oysters: An Open Letter to Myself About Making Decisions

January Reflections – My New Job, Uni Decisions and Mental Health Struggles

Starting My First Minimalist Bullet Journal

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