Thought I’d do a blanket update since I’ve been mostly absent from streaming lately, and not all that active on social media either. Definitely have not been able to keep up with this blog! The TL;DR version is my streaming schedule will be exceptionally fluid for the foreseeable future.
Also, I’ll try to get that stream of Wylde Flowers up on Youtube soon, I know I’m behind on that.
For those who don’t know, work at the shelter is a LOT right now. More than usual, I mean. The bosses keep talking about “unprecedented” intake numbers and stay lengths. Coworkers who have been there for years are saying they have never seen it like this. It’s that way across the entire US, and especially in the South. Many shelters (not mine, thankfully) have had to revert to euthanizing for space in an attempt to keep up.
We’ve had a few spurts like this over the last year, but I think most of us were hoping it’d settle into something more “normal.” And I mean. It hasn’t. There’s a lot of theories as to why, many of them related to the pandemic, but the point is things are the way they are and this is the reality we are living in right now.
I spend a lot of my days having to tell people who are trying very hard to do the right thing that we can’t help them as quickly as they want/need help, because we don’t have the space or resources. 😦 That’s already hard, but of course not everyone is particularly kind in their response to that answer. Lots and lots of emotional and mental work, not to mention the physical aspects of caring for more animals than we usually have this late in the year.
Now, I’m not actually saying any of this to vent or complain. Shelter work is The Thing I Want To Do With My Life. And while a lot of these conversations aren’t fun, it feels good to do what I can to at least relay crappy news with compassion and care. I get to come home every day knowing that even if I can’t do Everything, I have at least Made A Difference. And if the current overflow of animals continues, shelters will find a way to work with the new normal – but it takes time, and often resources that aren’t immediately available.
What all this means for my streaming and general online presence is that I have to be very careful with my free time. Not that I don’t enjoy being online and streaming, because I do! But careful in a general sense not to burn out on anything.
Shelter work, unsurprisingly, is one of those jobs that puts you at high risk for burnout and compassion fatigue. I’m not there yet, but I’m watching it happen across different shelter groups I watch online. We’re human, and you get into this career to help animals and people after all. That takes a lot even when things are going well.
I don’t know that I’m at a point where I need to take an official break from streaming, but I do think I need to redo my schedule and also accept that any schedule is going to be a loose one for a while. As an introvert, sometimes what I need to recharge my batteries is time where I’m not being social and can just quietly vibe.
It’s important to me that I not risk burning out. And sometimes that means dialing back the part of my ADHD brain that thinks I can Do Everything All The Time And All At Once.
Unsure what the schedule will look like going forward, but I suspect I’ll usually have to at least cut the Tuesday evening stream. Having the first of my off days with as low stress and low expectations as possible is a helpful thing. And as much as I love streaming and hanging out with you folks, I’m realistic enough to know I have to take care of myself as well.
PS: As always, anything you can do for your local shelters is greatly appreciated. I know not everyone can foster, adopt, volunteer, or donate. But if there’s some small thing you can do, even just by sharing their posts, it matters and the people working there will appreciate it so much. ❤