Hello and thank you for listening to Curious Cat! If you’ve been listening since Season 1, first off, THANK YOU! Hopefully you’ve noticed a pattern, I only cover topics that interest me, sometimes it’s a veiled excuse to buy three books on a subject I’d never heard of a week ago and obsess over it for a time. This week though I’m getting personal. Trigger warning for any sensitive listeners, because I want to share with you the ways I found to cope during the toughest year of my life to date. I hope by the conversation’s conclusion, I’ll have given you some effective and positive ways to work through YOUR toughest days. I care and want you to know you are not alone. You won’t find fakery here, only a pursuit of real solutions. 

Let me tell you about my toughest year – A time when Judge Judy and chardonnay weren’t adequate to get me through.

I’ve always enjoyed doing Legos, bright colorful pieces, simple instructions, cool final results! But in the days after my father was hospitalized, those plastic bricks became a lifeline of sorts.

This episode, I tell you the personal story of how Lego building helped my brain recover from difficult days. I researched manipulatives, or items that occupy our fingers, eyes and attention, so that the brain can get out or fight-or-flight-mode. It actually works!

If the upcoming holiday season has you feeling anxious and stress, maybe something as simple as a puzzle or building set might help you find peace and calm!
***********
Did you know you can LEGO-IZE any image? Here is the free site that does it. I used them to create the original art for this episode! (LINK)

Sources and Materials:
https://www.womansworld.com/posts/anxiety/jigsaw-puzzles-ease-anxiety

Study by NIH re: puzzlemaking and anxiety/depression recovery: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6174231/

https://www.wysevibes.com/how-jigsaw-puzzles-can-help-reduce-stress-and-anxiety/

https://psychcentral.com/anxiety/how-to-train-your-brain-to-alleviate-anxiety#neuroplasticity-and-anxiety

Show Links and Socials:
Art Director – Nora Hotes

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

Support Curious Cat, an independent, human-made podcast!

Anxious about AI? Take two minutes to contact your local politician and ask them to tap the brakes on this technology. Still worried? Contact one of the orgs below and get involved. 

But for today, hug your kid, cook food and really breathe in deep as it simmers, walk in nature, brush a cat, donate to the food bank, brew a cup of tea, or draw a five-minute portrait of your dog. 

***Is AI the Devil? on Substack!***

Hero Organizations:

80,000 Hours

Center for Humane Technologies

State of Surveillance, an organization that helps foster online privacy

Buy Curious Cat Podcast a Coffee!