Dear MDECOE and greater community,
This is the season of joy, and especially with all the adversity in our world, what better way to experience self-care than through finding joy right now? So what is joy and how do we find it? According to a Psychology Today interview with Pamela Ebstyne King, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Applied Developmental Science at the Thrive Center for Human Development at Fuller Theological Seminary, joy is “an enduring and underlying sense of something that is deeper than the emotion of happiness… In my study of joy, I have also noticed that joy is more complex than a feeling or an emotion. It is something one can practice, cultivate, or make a habit. Consequently, I suggest that joy is most fully understood as a virtue that involves our thoughts, feelings, and actions in response to what matters most in our lives. Thus, joy is an enduring, deep delight in what holds the most significance.” Dr Ebstyne King has identified three areas that can help with finding joy. They are
(1) growing in authenticity and living more into one’s strengths
(2) growing in depth of relationships and contributing to others
(3) living more aligned with one’s ethical and spiritual ideals.
To read more, please go to https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/hope-resilience/202007/what-is-joy-and-what-does-it-say-about-us
For a list of many self-care options, please see our College of Education self-care website for resources for faculty, staff, students, and the community:
https://www.csun.edu/eisner-education/self-care/articles-information-self-care
During this holiday season, may you all find joy!
Warmly,
Shari