All About The Presence of Water in a Psychologist’s Life
By Dr. Hedy Cyker
My first experience with the ocean was when I was 6 months old. I was in a cottage on the Cape with my parents and 3 siblings, and a hurricane hit—the sounds of crashing waves filling the room, the winds so fierce that the stairs to the beach disappeared, the fallen trees all around. Eventually, it subsided and my family kept coming back each summer. That was my first encounter with the power of water.
I was fortunate to continue to spend summers on the Cape in my teens and young adult years, and although I was never a great swimmer, sailor or water skier, I remember enjoying those activities when not working at the tennis courts, which was more my passion. And yet, I always gravitated back to the water. Every year on my birthday, I try to be near some form of water in one way or another—be it a walk near the lake or a drive to a nearby beach. Somehow, no matter what my mood or what is going on in my life, seeing blue waters makes everything seem okay.
As I have raised my two daughters, water has brought such joy to them as well. They grew up swimming in our Chicago apartment building’s pool, going to the lake, vacationing on beaches, and partaking in extraordinary school opportunities such as surfing, kayaking, and marine biology. And although competitive soccer, tennis, and city life took over, the water stands out as their happy place.
The great influence water has on our family’s wellbeing is a mystery, but somehow it elicits so many emotions. It can turn agitation to calmness, chaos to order, and unsettledness to contentment. Despite whatever is going on in our lives, water brings us moments of stillness that allows us to just be.
Even today, as our family spans across the country—with the oldest in New York and the younger one in Oregon—water continues to elate them, evoking energy and inner happiness. They will drive hours just to be near an ocean—to surf or sail or just watch the sunset. Even our two dogs’ happy place is in a body of water (except the bathtub). Now,as my husband and I think about the next chapter in our lives, our one requirement is that an ocean is nearby.
As a psychologist, I believe it is so important to seek a place that brings us solace, where we can get in touch with who we are and tune out the noise that can overwhelm us at times. For me it is the smell of the salty ocean air, the beauty in looking at the blue waters, and the sound of the water itself, even when quiet. If one has not found that peaceful place, some form of water is worth the try.
