For starters, there has been a name change... of sorts. After more than ten years as "hspnotes.blogspot.com," the HSP Notes web address is now simply "hspnotes.com."
What does this mean to you? Actually, not a whole lot-- either address will still find the site, but it might be a good idea to update your bookmarks with the new address. And if you add links to here from your own blog or web site, it's better to use the new address.
Other than that, HSP Notes is still... "HSP Notes." All the old content and archives (going back to 2002) are still here, as are all the resource links-- and they are pretty much in the same places as they used to be.
What is new is that I will be adding a number of free-standing pages to the site, now that it is no longer "just a blog." Since HSP Notes is basically a labor of love, I will be doing this in my copious (not!) spare time... so don't hold your breath!
Meanwhile, the holiday season is upon us! For some HSPs, this is a time of joy and celebration and family gatherings... but for many, it is a time of some stress and overwhelm, making them just want to run home and hide from all the noise and lights. I recently wrote an article about "Coping with the Holidays," and it includes a number of tips on how to manage overstimulation during a time of the year when there is a LOT going on:
HSP Living: Tips for Dealing with the Noise and Stress of the Holiday Season
For a number of years, I have been encouraged to write about HSPs and work. I have generally not said much about that topic (A) because of Barrie Jaeger's excellent book about HSP work
and (B) because it's a huge area that can't be dealt with in just "a few blog posts." However, a fellow HSP-- writing on an HSP message board on Facebook-- pointed out that it has been over seven years since Barrie Jaeger's book was published and "a lot has changed." That offered enough motivation to get me started on a series of articles about HSPs and the work experience-- part one was completed a few weeks ago:HSP Topics: Work and the Highly Sensitive Person, Part I
Several more installments are in the work, including how to discover your calling and turn it into paying work; HSPs and self-employment; HSPs and managing difficult people at work; How changing your work can change your life-- and vice-versa; Finding balance between idealism and the need to make money... and more.
If you have an "HSPs and work" related topic of interest, by all means leave a comment-- I might incorporate it into an upcoming article.
If you like what you find here, please share with others! Using the sharing buttons below helps spread awareness of the HSP trait.
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Ah ... I've found my old friend somewhere besides on Facebook which isn't designed for blogging.
ReplyDeleteMy stay-at-home-dad son-in-law is an HSP and takes his stay-at-home job seriously and keeps the household running smoothly and in order. This frees up my daughter who loves her teaching job and her travels for conferences, etc, without having to worry about her children or mama.
Good to find you in this format again.
Hello and happy new year to all the readers!
ReplyDeleteSince you're encouraging us to leave comments for your future blog:
A rather serious (for me!) problem I've faced at several work places, is the lighting in offices. As an HSP, I'm very peculiar about the lights, be it at home, at work, in shops, etc. Not all employers show understanding when you prefer all (or at least most) of the lights turned off. I actually enjoy darkness, and when I'm working on the PC, the light of the screen suffices me to see whatever I'm working on.
In my current job, I have been facing a series of problems with my boss, before I even knew I was an HSP. My workplace is right beneath a range of those yellowish spot lights - needless to say, I simply loathe them, because they are too bright, give a nasty contrast with my pc screen, are too impersonal, superfluous... simply put: I just can't stand them! There are neon lights in the room as well besides the spot lights.
Now, I understand that I'm not alone in this office, and I'm willing and wanting to compromise. In the beginning, I used to switch off the spot lights only to be met by stressful reactions by my boss: he wants all the lights on at all times! I was told that there have been many staff working in that office, and I'm the first and only one complaing that they give irritation etc. Surprise.
I suggested to move my seat and go near the window, where I would be on my own and far from the spot lights. That was not an option to him. Well, at least my boss was willing to compromise and remove two of the spot lights right above where I sit. It has helped just a little bit, but I still feel stressed about the lighting during most of my working hours. There's a job at stake here, so I'm suffering in the quiet now.
Now that I recently (3 months ago) discovered to be an HSP, shall I talk to my boss about it? I'm just afraid he would think that I'm "abnormal"... I still don't know if and how I should tell to others that I'm wired a bit differently then the vast mojority, in order for them to understand me better. It's a tricky decision: shall I tell or not tell?
Cheers,
Myriam