Just had to document the wonderful week that I just experienced; attending a training course all week (out for 11hrs each day) whilst Ross worked half days and stayed home each afternoon with the kids. For me it was like a mini-holiday (although I missed the kids); for Ross I think it was exhausting. A great two-way exchange all the same.
Now, about the training: For me, it was a refresher course from a long time ago. When I worked with World Vision prior to kids coming along, one of my roles was as a Peer Support person. This basically means that, in addition to your role, you're trained up to get alongside colleagues who might have had to work at the scene of a disaster. It's assumed that, as a peer, you have been in similar situations and can therefor empathise more readily. There is a huge emphasis on the fact that the majority of people recover from traumatic situations very well 'without' any formal mental health intervention. Peers are trained to understand the wide range of responses people might have after working at a critical incident, what's been found to be useful when being with these people and what signs one could be showing that might require some follow up. The really interesting bit comes when you might have to work with a small or large group of people; the research behind which is fairly extensive albeit a tad controversial. In summary, the whole course was pretty thought provoking and I found it refreshing to be in a learning environment again.
After 3yrs being mostly at home with the kids, the opportunity to refresh my skills and meet a bunch of fantastic and interesting people was awesome. I met people from Lebanon, Albania, Armenia, Georgia, Bosnia, The Netherlands and the US. I can't forget sitting next to an American man who told me he had 11 kids, aged 1-17! All kids to the same wife and no twins. Zoo-wee-mama!
So now, one week later, I'm back in mother routine and appreciating being home when Sam, Angus and Jessie jump off the bus all a-chatter about the happenings of their day. They've adjusted pretty well to the cold early mornings since our lazy Christmas holiday and Anna is much easier with her more predictable schedule. Coming up to 1 year here next week so a few more reflections coming......See ya.
Now, about the training: For me, it was a refresher course from a long time ago. When I worked with World Vision prior to kids coming along, one of my roles was as a Peer Support person. This basically means that, in addition to your role, you're trained up to get alongside colleagues who might have had to work at the scene of a disaster. It's assumed that, as a peer, you have been in similar situations and can therefor empathise more readily. There is a huge emphasis on the fact that the majority of people recover from traumatic situations very well 'without' any formal mental health intervention. Peers are trained to understand the wide range of responses people might have after working at a critical incident, what's been found to be useful when being with these people and what signs one could be showing that might require some follow up. The really interesting bit comes when you might have to work with a small or large group of people; the research behind which is fairly extensive albeit a tad controversial. In summary, the whole course was pretty thought provoking and I found it refreshing to be in a learning environment again.
After 3yrs being mostly at home with the kids, the opportunity to refresh my skills and meet a bunch of fantastic and interesting people was awesome. I met people from Lebanon, Albania, Armenia, Georgia, Bosnia, The Netherlands and the US. I can't forget sitting next to an American man who told me he had 11 kids, aged 1-17! All kids to the same wife and no twins. Zoo-wee-mama!
So now, one week later, I'm back in mother routine and appreciating being home when Sam, Angus and Jessie jump off the bus all a-chatter about the happenings of their day. They've adjusted pretty well to the cold early mornings since our lazy Christmas holiday and Anna is much easier with her more predictable schedule. Coming up to 1 year here next week so a few more reflections coming......See ya.
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