Self-Care Summer: Let Yourself Play!

by Mandy Goodwin, MSW  

     This summer, I decided to play. Every day began with whatever pen, paint brush, marker, or pencil I could reach. Some days, creativity felt natural and I rested in its easiness, but other days, I desperately searched for it. Yet, I welcomed either day, because I had the freedom to wonder and explore void of rules and expectations. There was no schedule. I was simply playing.

     Being a social worker is challenging. The job is an unpredictable, messy medium – it’s rebuilding broken pottery; it’s watching paint pour off a canvas; it’s connecting mismatched blocks. Each day, our job begs us to play. Of course, we have expectations, rules, and best practices, but with those, we engage our creativity to advocate and support. We stretch imaginations so they can harbor hope. We explore solutions. We inspire life beyond grief, pain, and barriers. We awe at strength and resilience.

     On the days I leave my office feeling weighted and drained, unimaginative and stuck, I know these are days I need to play. I need to dust off a board game, cook without a recipe, doodle in a notebook, or take a walk. I have discovered that occupying a space of unbridled curiosity not only shakes off my work-day woes, but teaches me to be a better social worker. When I am intentional about making these moments a part of my self-care routine, I am struck by how many positive qualities carry over into the work day. Play tempts the self to unleash courage, imagination, and creativity. Play mines the buried gem of child-like energy out of the heart of a tired adult.

 Mandy Goodwin, MSW, is a school social worker in Atlanta, Georgia.