5/3/2023 0 Comments Midori travel journal![]() I came up with a plan for my system that I thought would work. Then, I reminded myself that the great thing about this system is that you can make it whatever you want it to be. Quickly, I became discouraged because they were really not my style and more about making it look nice rather than functionality. She told me exactly how she uses hers and immediately I went shopping.Īfter I went shopping, I decided to watch a bunch of YouTube videos with people showing off their Midori Traveler’s Notebooks. ![]() Then, my world was literally forever changed when my friend shows me exactly how she uses her Midori Traveler’s Notebook, which included awesome stickers instead of simple check marks. I’ve also tried electronic planners and organizers but they were easy for my brain to ignore and I didn’t get the same rewarding feeling I get when writing something down and physically marking something off as completed. It completely negated the other goal of spending less time on compulsive behaviors and spending more time taking care of myself. The result: I was constantly organizing and reorganizing my day planner that had a million sections but they were in all in one place so not really different sections, in order to get the right categorization. And while it would work for some things, it also caused anxiety in other areas because there was no separation. I’d use it for everything, including scheduling showers, eating, and sleep, to trick my brain into treating it as an appointment so that I wouldn’t get stuck in a task for 12 hours without doing things necessary for life, like eating, bathing, and sleeping. I used to live and die by my Franklin planner. With my Midori Traveler’s Notebooks, I’ve been able to take advantage of that part of my brain and turn it into giving myself rewards. The same goes for everything needing to be in an exact certain way. Living and dying by a schedule can lead to huge anxiety and internal meltdowns for simple things, like not being on time for an appointment-which actually means arriving 10 minutes early to be considered on-time. It also means OCD and everything must be in its right place and its own category. ![]() Having my autism spectrum brain means I live and die by a schedule. While the sources may be different, I have managed to find tools that work to reduce my anxiety regardless of the trigger. There are two sources for my anxiety: complex PTSD and I’m on the autism spectrum. It wasn’t until a friend showed me how she uses stickers as positive reinforcement that my brain exclaimed, “ I need this! This is the best thing, ever!” Three weeks into using my Midori Traveler’s Notebooks, my anxiety had been dramatically reduced, my overall mood is much better, and I’m falling asleep much faster at night knowing everything is done and not running lists upon lists through my head. I’m late to the world of the Midori Traveler’s Notebook. Deconstructed Midori Traveler’s Notebooks.
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