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My 7 Cups Dream Journal

integrityblues April 19th, 2023
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Entry 1: The Boxes of Cats


It was a little strange but what I remember most is visiting a house that was in my old neighborhood that I’d recently moved from (it really wasn’t, so dream logic) but I came back to collect something I left or my mother left.


It was very sad and the people who were there now were sort of okay with me wandering around and looking. I kept noticing the signs that I’d once lived there (painted over places that still revealed chipped paint and stuff I recognized from my apartment).


Then I looked beneath a couch or table and found boxes full of kittens. Two boxes were full of meowing kittens in water that the new home owners had no idea were there, and one more box held a very dead cat that was an older one from a previous litter. All of the kittens were starving without their mother and I knew that it was the reason why the older one passed.


The new owners suddenly smelled the dead cat and I took it upon myself to get rid of it. When I came back an hour later all of the kittens were gone, and when I was walking past another house I could see all the kittens. They’d all grown up into adult cats!

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integrityblues OP June 22nd
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Of course. I really do hope you have a nice time doing whatever.

My day was long and hot and painful. Lots of sweeping and raking before it got too hot but it still sucked even at the lower temperatures. I ache all over now but I’m glad I finished the chore.

I made it back inside in time for my Zoom meeting. We discussed what I had done the week before and if I’d heard back from the recruiter who contacted me- I hadn’t so she told me to call them for a follow up. She was on mute while I made the call so she heard me talking on speaker with the woman who had apparently forgotten I had applied and at first couldn’t find any of my information. I was so frustrated that I didn’t notice my job developer had opened the chat to try and coach me through the bumps in the call. The recruiter finally found my files and my email and asked if I was available on Monday at 10 a.m. for the 10-15 minute phone interview. I agreed even though it wasn’t within my available times because I just want to get it over with. She sent me an email that was slightly apologetic and referenced the date and time for our future call, I answered it to make sure my appointment would be confirmed.

I thanked her and hung up so I could continue my Zoom. Since my job developer was on mute and my phone was on speaker she could hear both sides of the conversation and gave me a gentle critique about how I could have said it differently to sound better. I got teary because it was hard enough for me to even make the call, I just have such a hard time interacting with people!

We’ve scheduled our next Zoom for after my phone interview on Monday. I also have therapy on Wednesday at 10 a.m.

integrityblues OP June 24th
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I dreamt that I stepped outside. It was trash day and I noticed that someone across the street had found a snake. They picked it up and threw it away, but it was still alive and slithered out.

Somehow it ended up in my house but there was a new law passed that day that said I had to protect and keep the snake where it was found even if I didn’t want it in my house.

I’m not having a good morning. I had a call with my aunt and she decided to share that she believes I’m a high functioning autistic. I don’t need this sort of unasked for opinion as I’m preparing for a phone interview I’ve been stressed over all weekend.

I’m just too tired for any of this.

bestVase7265 June 28th
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I am so sorry that this message didn't appear in my feed until now. You don't deserve your aunt's comment and I can understand how stressed and overwhelming things feel right now. Sometimes the therapy stuff feels better a few days later.

You are going to make it through this. I have faith in you. Sending lots of good vibes your way. @integrityblues

integrityblues OP June 28th
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It’s fine.

Im just tired now. Im just glad I made it to Friday.

bestVase7265 June 29th
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Friday is excellent. On to the weekend. @integrityblues

integrityblues OP June 29th
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Yes. I had a decent morning and have spent the last couple of hours doing chores as I listen to an audiobook

bestVase7265 June 30th
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Glad to hear that you have had a good start to the week in that way. This week is going to be better than your last one.@integrityblues

integrityblues OP June 30th
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I hope so. I’m just so drained. I lost 4 lbs this week, which would be nice if it wasn’t also because I don’t have money for more food.

since I’ve been so depressed lately I’ve been laying in bed most of the morning and only get up to eat what I can scrape together for lunch and dinner.

I made some chicken yesterday, so if I get out of bed I can add that to an egg dish like an omelette. I don’t have onions or peppers but I’ll add some cheese to it. I doubt that I can make almond flour pancakes like I originally intended when I was planning yesterday (it’s just a little too much work and standing) but I could make some grilled cheese and soup for dinner.

I just have to make it through my Zoom meeting on Monday and my drs appointment on Friday…and in between those two I should get my SSDI on the third, successfully avoiding have to ask my aunt to help with food shopping. I’ll admit I’m still stung by her comments to me, but I’m going to have to shake it off soon.


integrityblues OP June 28th
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I don’t feel much better after going to therapy and talking out all this stuff.

integrityblues OP July 2nd
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Yesterday my mom called to tell me that my younger sister has been getting worse with her behavior and fighting. My sister fights with my mom every day now, that she threw a potato peeler at mom and said she’s responsible for my sister’s drug addiction and the last 33 years she’s been living my mothers life, that she wished our mother died instead of our dad.

It’s bad enough that the manager who lives in the next door apartment has heard all the fights and said my mom should get a restraining order so my sister can’t come back on the property.

In addition to all that my sister has been saying she wants to get rid of the dog, that she wants to die, and then she’ll flip and say that she wants her dog back and takes him away from whoever she left him with or our mom.

I got my mom to remove the key she hid so now my sister can’t just get in again. My mom also called and spoke to the police, asking for help to get my sister and all her stuff out of the house without her screaming about how she’s lost something and needs to get it herself. It’s bad enough that she broke her shopping cart and lost her tent.

I spoke to my mom after and as far as I know the police didn’t come because it wasn’t an emergency and my sister isn’t armed. When I was talking to her last night she was trying to decide to do laundry or go get food because she’d been waiting for hours. I told her to wait a little longer then go get the burger she wants, not to get my sister anything, and then get home to eat and rest. That if my sister showed up and reacted negatively to my mom saying to stay away, to just call the police, to not give my sister 200 dollars that she just wastes or gets stolen from her then blames my mom about.

she said she’d check in if anything happened.

Now I’m waiting for my aunt to tell me when she’s driving home from a nice couple days spending time with friends. We’ll talk about what I initially asked for a call about (just to clear the air and discuss why she believes I’m autistic and why I disagree) but also the news about my mom and sister that took over the conversation yesterday when she called me back yesterday.

I slept horribly and just don’t want to do anything right now. I already did my job development appointment yesterday and applied to the leads we discussed. My next appointment is on Friday after my primary care Dr appointment in the morning.

integrityblues OP July 3rd
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Had the call with my aunt and it didn’t go very well. She’s very firm in her belief that I’m autistic and I’m having trouble handling that, but that could very well be because I hate that I know what she thinks now. And it’s not anything negative but she was quick to squash my claim that what she believes is autism is just any of my other issues. She didn’t even know about my learning disability and now has to admit that I have a point, but also had to tell me about the patient who was tested by four of the best drs for autism, tested negative but still falls into the category for it, so she thinks she’s right.

Shes now made it clear that my reaction must mean she can’t share her opinions.

I’m going to have to work on accepting others opinions without letting it get to me, but I feel like trash still.

integrityblues OP July 3rd
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i dreamt that I found cats and kittens inside my bathroom. I had to pick them all up and remove them from the house because though I loved them they’d shown up like a pest infestation would.

bestVase7265 July 3rd
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I am so sorry for the struggles with your mom and sister. You are giving out awesome advice to your mom. Your sister needs to leave if she is going to be abusive. She wants to blame everyone but herself because that is what addicts do. Hopefully she can get her stuff soon and your mom can change the locks. A restraining order may eventually be helpful to your mom.

Remember to keep an eye out for you in all of this though. Don't let yourself get pulled in too far. Remind yourself to care for your own needs first. Are you eating okay? How about exercise? Are you reading some good books?

Your aunt isn't a doctor and doesn't get to decide if you are autistic or not. Her reading something online doesn't make her an expert. Be firm and keep telling her that she doesn't need to bring it up any more because you heard her the first time. Then you can just ignore her ideas completely. She doesn't need to share her opinions on that issue any more. So if she is offended that you aren't taking her advice, that's on her. Protect yourself first. You don't deserve to feel like trash. You can also tell your aunt that is how you are feeling.

integrityblues OP July 3rd
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Thank you.

integrityblues OP July 4th
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I really haven’t been doing much for myself in all this. I get up once or twice to eat and refill my water, but I just lay in bed and play mobile games or listen to audiobooks. My aunt’s HBOMAX account is on the fritz so I’ve been doing Freevee, Pluto TV, and videos on YouTube. I’ve also been sleeping.

I’ve been getting small things done so I can cook meals since all I’ve had is frozen stuff that I need to cook in an oven, then getting back in bed, then going outside to do Friday chores. Not much exercise to be had, but I’d try and do a little walking. Not very far or very fast.

I’ve been so tired and avoiding going outside because I don’t want to see a cat who looks a lot like Lil Boy who’s been gone for over a month.

It’s true my aunt isn’t a dr. She’s a psychiatric nurse who works in a hospital and deals with many types of patients in her unit, including autistic people. The story I mentioned was something she witnessed herself.

I felt like trash because in addition to this autism stuff she’s labeling me with without considering how I feel about it, she’s also questioning my job development. How it’s supposed to work and why haven’t they or the DOR gotten me a job yet? I know I’ve described this to her before, but I did it again. I tried to describe what was supposed to be done: that it’s never about jobs being handed to us, we have to apply and follow up or work with job developers who assist us my working on our interviewing skills, how to search for jobs and what/where to look, as well as resume writing.

I gave her an example of how a job developer could, for example, go to a job fair and speak with recruiters and see if they’re hiring people with disabilities, if the jobs are there, and they’d trade information that could be given to me so I can apply for those jobs but it doesn’t mean I’ll get it just because they spoke- that it could be an issue with the bosses or owners of the companies.

Then I told her about the jobs I've just applied for at the beginning of the week and was told by my developer to really try and apply to one specific one because she thought that she might be able to reach out to the hiring manager or company to talk me up and suggest that they hire me and offer training. The DOR could probably offer to pay my salary for the first three months as incentive.

The only thing my aunt took away from this was that I hadn’t done anything to get it started.

I told her that I did my part already and emailed my developer about my progress and if I’d been told no right off the bat. That I’d have my next appointment with her after my drs appointment this Friday, but my aunt is adamant that I have to do more. I can’t make offers to hiring managers or talk myself up like the developer could, and that I’d already been denied for the damned position! That it was up to my job developer whether to pursue it and I’m not going to hound my job developer when I’ve already sent an email! I agreed that sure, maybe my job developer could talk them around but I’m so tired of trying really hard and getting nothing back for my efforts.

I was so stressed out and crying that I forced the conversation to a stop, caught my breath, and then said “now, I’d like to shift the conversation off this topic” I told a story my mom just told me about a time when my dad had the worst athlete’s foot ever, that the poor man was brought to tears and crying for my mom to get him his cream. Of course my mom also said that he kept blaming her for the whole situation, so it was kind of funny and kind of sad.

Then I tried to open the conversation to the purpose of the call in the first place, but we’ve already touched on that.

It took me all day after that call to try and be the bigger person and texted her that I was willing to agree to disagree on the subject of autism. That I loved her very much and didn’t want to make her feel like she couldn’t speak her mind, that I greatly value her opinions and thoughts…just not on the autism. That I wasn’t going to block her for this argument because I’m not my mother.

She replied that it was good to hear.

I apologize for the length of this reply. I tried condensing it but editing isn’t my strong suit.

integrityblues OP July 4th
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We found the community cat who was the darling of our block. My neighbor texted because he found the cat chilling beneath a car. I went out and sat on the curb near the car and tried to gently call the cat to me, sat and talked him, then finally asked my neighbor for some cat food to see if it would help.

The cat looks thinner but better groomed than usual, but he also didn’t want to approach me for pets and love, and he wasn’t meowing to me at all.

He avoided the food and eventually ran away from me.

I think he’s become feral in the month he’s been gone. I told my neighbor that we can try and build positive associations with food and water.

Its just so sad…the lil guy looks like he doesn’t even know me anymore, but I should be grateful that he’s alive.

integrityblues OP July 4th
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My mom told me that things have gotten worse with my sister. She harassed our mom yesterday then showed up again this morning causing trouble. I told her to ask her to get her stuff and leave, then call the police if she refused to go away after that.

Mom is going to file a report and get started on the work for a restraining order, but she has to do it all in person.

my mom finally mentioned another problem from her years and years of smoking- she gets these black spots on her fingers and toes that make her lose her nails with infection. She’s got a bad toe now. I looked it up. It’s gangrene when the digits turn black and it wouldn’t surprise me if she has to have one or more amputations later on since she’s not quitting smoking.


bestVase7265 July 5th
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Ok, it does sound like you continue to have a lot on your plate at the moment. I am sorry that the struggle is so hard. I know that it is hard to believe, but from an outsider's perspective you are handling things well.

Remember to begin with the core things - eat as healthy as you can, exercise as best you can or get outside, meditate or do other things to care for yourself like puzzles.

You didn't need to be "the better person" and apologize to your aunt or say that you just see things differently. She is not being kind at the moment. You are actually doing a great job with all of the job stuff. Trust your instincts, not hers. She is not inside of your head and cannot know what is best for you.

Your mom is giving you lots to worry about, but one issue at a time okay? Focus just on the immediate stuff in terms of getting your sister out of your mom's space. Talk about changing the lock. You can worry about the medical stuff after that.

I am glad you saw the cat again. Focus on that rather than worrying about the cat. You will help the cat become friendly again. Remember (as is true of all of this) that it is the long game that is most important. Lots of patience and you are going to get there. You are such a strong person. You can do this. @integrityblues

integrityblues OP July 5th
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Thanks. It’s all just been so hard.

bestVase7265 July 6th
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Hoping that today was a bit better. Any particularly okay moments? Remembering those helps too. Today mine was going to the library to pick up a new novel.@integrityblues

integrityblues OP July 6th
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Today was okay. I was very busy with a dr appointment- was prescribed a few things that aren’t covered by my insurance. But I gave some blood and urine for a lipid panel, Vitamin D check, and to see if I have a UTI or not.

my neighbor gave me a hand and dragged in the trash cans for me while I was stuck there.

Spoke with my mom and she’s basically refusing to do anything about my sister. She’s just going to not call the police or file a restraining order and leave it for anyone else to handle because she feels guilty.

Im so tired of her putting me on high alert then changing her mind.

the okay moment was finding out my lipid panel was very good for once.



bestVase7265 July 7th
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You actually had two good things in there - one the neighbor helping you with the trash cans and the other being the lipid panel. I am glad that your health is doing okay in that way.

I can understand your exhaustion with your mom. I think that she just wants you as a sounding board so that she can complain, but she struggles with actually doing anything because it causes conflict or pain which she avoids at all costs. That puts you in a really tough position. You have to try to create a way of letting it bounce off of you as much as possible. Maybe being in contact just a little less or choosing the format (if texts make you less anxious than calls for instance) to limit the damage might help.

But I am sending lots of strength and peace. My moment today was watching a great big rain storm outside. It really came down and it was peaceful listening to it fall from the eaves onto the landing in the back of the house. 

integrityblues OP July 7th
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Yes, I’m going to step back and mostly do texts until we have our two week call.

I got a message from the dr I saw yesterday: I have an infection and my Vitamin D was lower than expected so I’ll get antibiotics and a new Vitamin D prescription. Hopefully they’ll be covered by my insurance since a couple of the ones sent yesterday aren’t.

Your rain storm sounds nice.

bestVase7265 July 8th
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I bet that infection is also making you feel less able to handle things. I am glad that you are getting some antibiotics.

You are also handling your mom in a better way than you were before by limiting things a bit more to texts. That will help keep you out of the drama a bit.

Any good points for you today? Mine was making some honey oatmeal cookies for my husband's birthday that didn't stick to the pan. Oatmeal cookies are always dicey in that regard and I never cook the same recipe twice so I don't know how they will turn out.

integrityblues OP July 8th
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Hi. It was a long night and I didn’t want to get out of bed this morning. I laid around for a bit then stepped outside while it was still cool outside to do the sweeping. I was worn out after and took a break but as soon as I was rested enough I got a great deal of my laundry together so I could drag it to the laundromat. I got home but spent forever folding things up, putting them away, and remaking my bed before I took a long shower.

I’ve gotten nothing done for job development but did make sure to text with my aunt about maybe going shopping when she’s free in the next few weeks. So I’ve gotten lots of basic tasks, chores, and home affairs that I’ve been putting aside. I feel that my developer might be sympathetic.

oatmeal cookies are always good, I hope they come out nice for the birthday.

I guess another good thing for today is that the book I’ve had on hold for months finally came in. That and my best friend reached out and we’re going to have a nice talk tomorrow when my meeting is done.

bestVase7265 July 9th
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What a nice message! You really accomplished a great deal with all of those different chores. You should be quite proud of yourself. You can do the job development stuff tomorrow.

I am glad that you were able to get your book and that you will get to talk to your best friend. What book were you waiting for? I am currently reading a novel called "Mother, Daughter, Traitor, Spy". It is an interesting tale based on the real-life story of a mom and daughter who go undercover to discover Nazi plots in Los Angeles at the beginning of WW2. @integrityblues

integrityblues OP July 9th
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thanks. I was able to get my Target order, hit my local pharmacy on the way back for medicines (I got my antibiotic and a few others and was assured that my other medications weren’t going to be as expensive as my app suggested because my insurance hadn’t been applied yet), and was on time for my Zoom meeting.

She wasn’t upset about my lack of progress but firmly suggested that I call and make the follow up. We also discussed other leads off of Indeed so I could look at them and apply to the ones I thought might work. She hasn’t sent them yet, but I made sure to send her an email once I finally made the follow up call. The person was very nice, took my information, and assured me that the hiring manager would get back to me, it’s just that there were lots of applicants.

I spoke to my best friend between the meeting and the eventual follow up call. We talked about my troubles finding work, how I felt about my aunt calling me autistic and why it’s hard for me to trust them and rely on them for help, and the stuff with my mom.

I’m so tired but since my aunt tried calling during my call with my friend and hung up after I took too long switching between calls I said I’d talk with her later on.


bestVase7265 July 10th
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Another really great day for you. You followed through on multiple things - awesome! I was especially impressed with the job hunt things. I am actually glad that you didn't talk to your aunt. Taking a short break from her negativity was a good thing.

You are headed in a good direction. Maybe the mouse dream was your way of attacking some of those issues that have been bothering you (with a bit of outside help).

Did you have any real connected moments today? Mine was probably seeing a colleague that I hadn't seen in half a year. It was nice to chat. @integrityblues

integrityblues OP July 10th
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I tried my best, it’s all I can do so I’m trying to not put as much pressure on myself.

I eventually did speak to my aunt later that night. She called me back when I was listening to an audiobook and dozing off. Our conversation was basic, we spoke about the shopping trip I’d asked for and I agreed to send her a shopping list by this morning.

I did that today. I’ve been so off that I did ten minutes of dishes, a meditation exercise from an app my dr suggested, and finished one audiobook to start another.


integrityblues OP July 9th
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I dreamt that there was a mouse climbing the wall in my bathroom. I had to keep looking for things to knock it down with (my cane, a Swiffer, or a broom) but someone else popped up with a strange looking club and knocked it down and knocked it out.

integrityblues OP July 11th
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Today wasn’t the best day. It was the death anniversary of a much loved dog who belonged to a friend who also passed away years ago. They passed within a week of each other: first him from being put down after a large stroke and then her after a long fight with kidney disease and diabetes.

I spent most of the day handling another Zoom appointment. I have to look at one of the leads I wasn’t sent last week because of a technical issue, try and apply for the CalCareers contact letters I’ve gotten last night, then email my developer because we ran out of time and didn’t schedule the next appointment and she didn’t send me todays leads.

Then I went to the store while it was still cool outside and walked back after the clouds had cleared and the sun began beating down.

I’ve been resting for hours now and still feel awful.


bestVase7265 July 11th
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Sorry that you had a rough spell today with the anniversary. You may not have gotten far on the job stuff in terms of results, but you made a solid effort to do something. That counts a great deal.

So you said that you spent time after all of it resting but didn't feel better. What kinds of things do you do during a "rest"? Sometimes it is switching those up a bit to make the rest more relaxing.

I know for me that with summer I have a little more time in general. In theory that is good, but I have been spending too much time doing social media and panicking. Today I pulled back just a bit and it helped. @integrityblues

integrityblues OP July 11th
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That’s true.

The job development stuff is so frustrating. I took some time today to look at remote jobs too but didn’t have any luck which frustrated me more.

When I rested I tried laying down and focusing on other things. I tried listening to an audiobook and it helped but I was so worn out physically that I hurt. It was difficult to enjoy the book when I had to keep changing how I was laying down while taking medicine and using Bengay.

After several hours of that I ended up taking a much needed shower. While my hair was drying I opened up my laptop to look at the one lead from last time (it’s over two hours away so I’m not applying), then applied for all three of the CalCareers jobs I got contact letters about, and sent my job developer an email with links and notes for all of it but also added that I’d like to get the email for the leads we discussed that day as well as the date of our next Zoom.

I’ll be honest and say that I’ve also been worried about my mom but I’ve been trying to not get too involved. She called me the day before without a text and at first I thought something terrible had happened, but no she was just at the laundromat and wanted to chat between loads about how my sister’s dog was just so sad when she wouldn’t let him inside like she used to. That all she could do was buy him a bag of food so he wouldn’t go hungry, then went back in her apartment to cry.

bestVase7265 July 12th
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Ok, there is lots of good stuff hiding in there that may be a little hard for you to see right now.

One is that you did the job stuff anyway. It is frustrating but you are doing tons to try to make things happen. That is so much better than where you were six months or a year ago.

And you are taking breaks with audiobooks and showers (do take that shower more quickly next time to help your muscles) - those are great things to be doing in general though.

And your mom is okay. Her call panicked you but in general it sounds like she is hanging in there.

What moment today do you think was the best one? Mine was reconnecting to a podcast that I had in my bookmarks. I was getting ready to delete the link, but I am so glad that I didn't. It was Kate Bowler. I usually don't listen to podcasts, but I have decided to go back to season 1 and read through the transcripts from one of them per day as long as I can. They are very inspirational and supportive in talking about how ugly life can be sometimes and how we can survive it. When you need something uplifting, it might be worth giving it a try. She interviews all sorts of different people. https://katebowler.com/podcasts/

integrityblues OP July 13th
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I didn’t post anything from yesterday because I was just too worn out.

It was too warm and I worked too hard getting trash day chores done. I woke up with a bad headache and texted my mom several times asking if we could please have the call sooner but she never answered those. Turns out my mom was letting my homeless sister use her phone and was busy preparing for a weekend yard sale and loving my sister’s dog who she just let back into her place because she missed him and felt so sad when she had to tell him that he couldn’t come inside anymore a few days ago.

My mom and sister have already had a fight that drew the attention of the manager but my mom claims it’s ok. We had our call pretty late and she had to keep hanging up to go open the gate for my sister.

So I was in a pretty awful mood and hurting when we finally finished the call and I was already stressed that I couldn’t have the call sooner so I could just go to sleep.

I sort of just gave up on having an actual call with her because she’s just going to keep having to hang up before we’ve spoken for more than ten minutes. I made sure to schedule our next two week call, write the note on my calendar, and sent her the text with the date. I updated my aunts and my older sister about what little I learned.

Then I made a frozen lasagna.

integrityblues OP July 14th
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I got my travel funds and went out so I could cash it instead of having my overdraft suck it up like last month.

The ATMs weren’t working at my bank so I used my app to do a photo deposit of the check like ai had tried to avoid then walked to the nearby pharmacy to pick up the chewy tums I’d been needing all day because of my heartburn, then added the highest cash back offered that wouldn’t make me go over the specific amount I could use.

I had 18 bucks left over so I put 15 on my Starbucks card and got a nice White Chocolate Mocha Ice Coffee. I drank that while I walked to the Carls Jr for dinner and wasted my cash on a grossly expensive burger with fries and a drink. After paying I was disgusted with myself and resolved to try harder and eat at home more often if fast food isn’t cheaper anymore.

I tried texting my mom asking her how her yard sale went. Then I stopped waiting for a reply because I don’t need to focus on her lack of response and what could be the cause.


bestVase7265 July 14th
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I couldn't have answered last night anyway so don't feel bad about not typing anything.

It sounds like it was a pretty intense day with your mom. I am sorry for that. All you could do at that point was what you were doing - listening. It allows your mom to know in her more rational moments that she has a daughter who will support her through the drama not cause additional drama. You are a valuable ally to have. But I am glad that you cared for yourself with some frozen lasagna and went to bed early. 

I know that you feel like you overindulged today, but the more that you beat yourself up over it the worse that you will feel. It becomes like doing a bad thing to yourself twice. So you forgive yourself, you ignore your mom's lack of texts, and you move forward with a good audio book or something like that. 

Can you think of a moment of peace today? Remember that it is always helpful to try to use that as a starting point. Mine was a good Racial Healing and Transformation discussion. It was a bit of an in depth moment of listening to one person's story and them listening to mine. It reminded me once again how important it is to support one another.

integrityblues OP July 14th
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Yes, that’s true. I’m just tired and stressed out about so many things going badly.

My moment of peace today was listening to a recording about Active Meditation on my Healthy Minds app. The dr I saw recently suggested I try it out in addition to doing my talk therapy. I washed some dishes while I listened because I needed an activity and dishes needed to be done. It lead to me doing another 15 minutes of dishes, so that was nice.

I’ve never been big on meditation but the app repeats the concept of it being less about emptying your mind and more about focusing on yourself, your body and breathing, or things related to the activity. Like with mine I got to focus on the scent of my dish soap, the sound of the warm water filling the sink, and the feeling of the sponge and silverware in my hands as I cleaned.

The recording also added guided steps about thinking of something you enjoy and a person you care about, what you love about them and so on. I chose visiting my aunt’s cat, Pepper. The cat is so nice to pet because their fur is so soft. I chose my best friend. We always have the best conversations about books and we care about each other so much, I’ve told her in the past that I love her as well as a sister.

bestVase7265 July 15th
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That is awesome. I often struggle with meditation too. I think that I am just not doing it right. But even the breathing and focusing on dish soap does help.

They say that any time you can spend (even 5 minutes) on the senses really can get you towards more healing. It does so with me too.

I also do a four count breathing - four counts in, hold four counts, release four counts. If I can't sleep it does help me get back to sleep.

My good moment today was a nice lunch with friends where I had a great piece of toast with salmon spread, egg, and avocado on it. Very tasty. @integrityblues

integrityblues OP July 15th
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That’s nice. I do a similar breathing exercise while I’m in an MRI and have to keep my breathing easy and even so they don’t have to retake the images of my brain and cervical spine. I always feel so bad when I’ve moved too much just by breathing.

After I’m done handling my Zoom job development appointment Monday morning and other stuff in the afternoon, I’ll light my friend’s yahrzeit candle at sunset. It’ll burn for at least a day, and when I’m away for therapy on Tuesday morning I’ll put the candle in my kitchen sink or on top of my stove, maybe inside an empty sauce pan or on a baking sheet so it’s nice and stable while I’m away.

I’m just so tired and sad even though I shouldn’t be sad really. I know that grief is complicated but all this stuff happening with my mom makes me miss my friend even more. She was steady and kind and would have never done this.

My mom called me last night with no warning just to tell me about stuff my homeless sister is doing while she’s over- that she’s started calling our mom a faker and questioning her symptoms and if she really needs help. I told her I didn’t want to beat a dead horse but if she really wants to not deal with being treated like that she has the power to tell her to leave. But my Mom won’t because the thought of my sister not having her place to go to makes her feel sad and guilty.

Ugh. I spoke to my best friend earlier and it helped a little bit.

Now I’m getting ready to rest and handle the aches and pains I still have from Fridays work.