Again, today’s been up and down. I was in tears this morning before work. I’d rather not say why, as it’s personal, and it’ll seem insignificant and ridiculous to most people.

Things at work were a little better in that I got to do a few new things today. First, and this is pretty silly, I got to also make something in activity centre today rather than watching the girls do their arty things. I made a little card in the shape of a bird using different paper, and I’m going to send my mom her first Mother’s Day card! (It was never a big thing in my family.) I thought she’d like it, as it’s made with cherry blossom patterns and neutral tones, and it’ll remind her of the things she loved in Japan.

We were supposed to take one girl out to the park with some of the patients from other wards, but she refused. She wasn’t in the most obliging mood today. Instead, I was given the opportunity to take my first independent step – my PE let me do an initial interview. Granted, this girl has been on the ward for six weeks already, but she’d always refused to do it before. When my PE suggested it, she warned that the girl probably wouldn’t want to do it, but the girl was actually really eager to! My PE simply sat and watched, letting me ask the questions and take the notes. It was a bit embarrassing, I’ll admit, but I’m rather glad I managed to do it, and my PE was happy with how I’d led the session.

I’m also quite proud of myself for going to the gym induction I signed up for and exercising for 45 minutes. I did a little bit of running and some upper limb exercises. The gym is quite limited in things to use, and I’m more used to using dumbells and Swiss balls, which they didn’t have. However, I made do with what there was, and I know I’ll be sore tomorrow. I was a bit disappointed that I’d lost some of the flexibility I had a couple years ago when I was in Japan working out twice a week with a personal trainer, so I’ll be aiming to get that back. I used to be able to touch my nose to my knee with one leg straightened at a time, and now I can just about touch my toe with my fingertips, so you can see how much I’ve lost. Hopefully, I can slowly build up my tolerance for running, the weight settings of the machines and my flexibility over the next 8.5 weeks.

Baby steps to better work, better physical health and better mental health. That’s the way forward.