So, as stated here multiple times, my blog is to record how I’m thinking and feeling. It’s been two weeks now since I started my digital detox (and approximately 10 days without Facebook) and my mental health and energy levels weren’t that good for ages. I also haven’t been working the last two weeks, but I am pretty much not working for over a year now and when I was spending my free time scrolling through Facebook I used to feel awful.

I guess it’s good that I have this couple of weeks for myself, away from work, to really appreciate how much my wellbeing improved, but the fact that I haven’t been given any shifts worries me a bit. It looks like I have to look for another agency as mine seems to stop prioritising Swindon. And that’s the beauty of working for an agency – they don’t tell you those things, do they?

I’ve been given a shift for Sunday next week, near Bristol, where John lives, but only one, which is not nearly enough to live on.

I however must say that better mental health means for me being less creative and persistent with my writing. I spent quite a few hours today reading about how to make conversation with a stranger, and normally I’d post about that quite quickly, as a way of venting I guess, but with my mental health improving I need to almost force myself to write. Interesting, isn’t it?

A popular approach to make a conversation with a stranger is to start with a question, but as you may know, I have a problem with that. For example I found this advice that we should start with a statement about ourselves and from that move to a question about the over person, for example: ‘I like playing the piano, and you? Do you play any instrument?’ For me that seems like a really risky approach – most people don’t play any instrument so it’s almost like telling them that we’re better than them.

‘I’m a blogger. And you? Do you do any creative writing?’

Well, that possibly can be a good starter for a conversation for someone who knows how to modulate their tone of voice to sound friendly and non judgmental – which the article didn’t discuss at all. Moreover, those people can probably say whatever they want and they’ll still be considered a good company. But if one doesn’t get their tone of voice right, that approach can turn into a horrible disaster!

I also came accross a website by Georgie Nightingall, a founder of Trigger Conversation, a company focused on helping people to move on from small talk to, well… big talk I suppose? Have a look at what Georgie says – she claims she likes being weird when she talks to people. I hope not Boris Johnson weird!

https://www.georgienightingall.co.uk

I wonder whether that is something that could help us? Although neurotypical weird is probably different than autistic weird. Still, it’s good to find out that Georgie hates small talk, the same like me.