A little over a week ago, we had our Pedagogical Day, where we were offered different workshop groups – mostly in German. which included a three-part workshop. Since my German skills are still a work in progress, I naturally chose where the mindfulness and yoga sessions were in English. However, the resilience session was entirely in German – though thankfully, we could respond in English.
The first part of the workshop was about mindfulness, which sounded peaceful – until I had to reflect on my stress levels. The speaker asked us to rate our stress on a scale from 0 to 10, and let’s just say my number was high enough to qualify for its own emergency hotline. Then, we set a goal for where we wanted to be. Ideally, somewhere between “calm monk” and “not pulling my hair out.”
One particularly interesting topic was the vagus nerve. Unfortunately, I missed part of the explanation (blame my wandering mind), but from what I gathered, this nerve is like the body’s built-in stress regulator. If activated properly, it helps keep us from turning into stress-induced tornadoes. The speaker guided us through some exercises to stimulate the vagus nerve, like breathing techniques and movement exercises. (Still waiting for science to confirm if dramatically sighing at work counts.)
Then came my favourite part: finger-play exercises! No, not playing the piano – although that would have been cool, too. We did little coordination tricks designed to free our minds, such as:
The “L” and “V” exchange (which made my fingers feel like they were doing some secret handshake)
Drawing an “8” shape with one foot while circling an arm (aka, the ultimate test of multitasking)
Alternating between the pinky and thumb while touching each finger sequentially (which quickly exposed my coordination struggles)
Somehow, despite feeling like I was trying to outmanoeuvre myself, I actually enjoyed these exercises. They were fun and oddly relaxing—like a game for the brain!
We also learned about the 5 Fingers Method for stress management:
Thumb – Think of our strengths (A.K.A. “Hey, I do have some skills!”)
Index Finger – Look to nature for inspiration (Staring at a plant for wisdom is officially self-care.)
Middle Finger – Think of someone we want to do something with (Hopefully without needing to use the middle finger on them!)
Ring Finger – Think of someone we love and why (Cue the warm and fuzzy feelings.)
Pinky – Reflect on what we are grateful for (Family. Always family. (Or at least most of the time!)
Then, we got the breakdown of stress management strategies:
Release – Do things like deep breathing, sports, reading, or yoga. (Spoiler: Yoga is not my thing—more on that later.)
Cope – Listen to podcasts, journal, play music, take “me-time,” or plan fun activities. (Yes to all of these!)
Avoid – Plan ahead, manage time wisely, and set routines. (Sounds great in theor – now if only my to-do list would write itself.)
My personal addition: Adapt – Accept what you can’t change and adjust your mindset. Some things are simply beyond our control, and fighting them only drains our energy. Instead, shifting our perspective can make a huge difference – whether it’s dealing with unexpected changes, last-minute schedule shifts, or even just surviving a chaotic day!
Next came the yoga session. Now, I love the idea of yoga. The reality, however? My body was like, “What are you doing?!” While everyone else seemed to be gracefully flowing through the poses, I was having a crisis trying to touch my toes. Instead of feeling relaxed, I felt personally attacked by my own inflexibility. So, while I admire yogis, I’ll be sticking to stress relief methods that don’t make me question my life choices!
The final part of the day was all about resilience. When asked what resilience meant to us, I confidently answered, “Resilience for me means to keep moving forward – do not settle for anything less – keep on challenging yourself to give out the best in you.” The speaker looked at me like I had somehow peeked at her presentation notes and asked if I had read her slides in advance. (I hadn’t, but hey, great minds think alike!).
She then asked for an example of a time I had demonstrated resilience. So, I shared my story: Two years ago, I felt stuck and needed a challenge. I applied for a leadership position, but I wasn’t chosen. Instead of sulking (okay, maybe for a minute), I asked myself, “What’s next?” So, I pursued a master’s degree and successfully completed it in January. Then, I thought, “Maybe my German language skills need work?” and so I enrolled in a B2 German course – still on-going. Turns out, the speaker liked my story so much, she kept using it as an example throughout the session. By the end, I felt like the unofficial case study of the session!
By the end of the day, I had learned (or relearned) valuable lessons: stress management is a personal journey, resilience is about adapting, and yoga is – without a doubt – not for me and it took such a toll on me that I needed a whole extra Sunday to recover before even thinking about writing this blog!
A huge thanks to our supervisors and managers for organizing this day – it was a great mix of reflection, learning, and unexpected entertainment!