You are in for a treat this week, kick off your shoes, sit back and read Clive’s tips on self care. Then, pick 3 and integrate them into your week. Everyone around you will benefit. Let us know how you get on.
Tips for Self-Care
Integrating self-care into our lives is a personal experience. Not everything works for everyone. There is no ‘good or bad’ or just one way to do it. The way to sustain self-care in our lives is often to start with something small and when that feels integrated try introducing one new thing at a time. Imagine you were building your own tool-kit of things that you can do for yourself. And remember self-care doesn’t only need to happen when we feel tired, unwell or burnt out. It can happen every day to maintain well-being and to help us thrive in all aspects of life.
Here is yoga for self-care video to support you and here are some other tips to help you along your way:
Breath awareness
If you find yourself stressed or overwhelmed at times during the day bring your awareness to your breath and invite yourself to connect with the present moment. Simply follow your breath in and out of your body (for as long as feels good). Every time you drift into thought return to your breath.
Connect with your body
Take time during the day to connect with your body. With eyes open or closed, notice the sensations around your body. This tends to make us feel more embodied rather than being completely in our thoughts. The more we connect with the experience of being in our body the more we can learn to support it whether it is through posture, movement, rest or nourishment. Try Clive’s Mindfulness Body Scan video.
Move
If you find you are sitting or lying down for long periods, set a reminder to move every now and then. It might be some stretching, or gentle movement, a small walk or something more active. This helps to keep the body agile and mobile and can reduce the accumulation of tension.
Create space
Whether it is at home or work, create a bit of space for yourself. You might write some thoughts down in a journal, read a book, take a walk in nature, partake in a favourite hobby or take some time to connect with your sensory experience. This can have a replenishing impact on our energy and can also help us to refocus and prioritise when we return to work and other tasks.
Unplug
Where possible take some time to disconnect from technology and social media. Perhaps wait a while in the morning before you ‘switch on’ and disconnect for a while before you go to bed and/or build in a little period throughout the day to disconnect online so you can connect more with yourself and your environment. You might find a short yoga routine.
Rest/ sleep
Rest and sleep are essential to help us function efficiently. If you have difficulty sleeping (and many people do), you might find creating a sleep routine and various mindfulness techniques helpful. If you don’t feel that you’re getting enough sleep, try to build in some periods of rest throughout the day. Take it easy on yourself.
Be still
Take some time to be still. Sit or lie down and invite yourself to slow down and breathe more fully. This switches us from ‘doing mode’ to ‘being mode’. This is not always easy but like anything usually the more we practice, the more it becomes familiar and the more we benefit.
Try new things
Mixing up routines can be energising as well as giving us a different perspective on ourselves and the world around us. You might try a different route to work, a new activity, or travelling somewhere new. Do things that you enjoy and are FUN.
Eat healthy and mindfully
Often we eat our meals while multitasking, which can reduce the impact of nourishing meal. Take time to enjoy and digest your meals. Make sure you eat enough to sustain your energy throughout the day and try to integrate a balanced diet.
Do a mini-declutter
Recycle a few things from your home that you don’t need/ use regularly. De-cluttering our physical space can also help to declutter our mind.
Express gratitude
Take time to connect with things/ people that you are grateful for in your life. This is a great practise particularly at the beginning of the day as it can start us off with a positive reference.
Acknowledge accomplishments
Take a moment at the end of the day to acknowledge things that have gone well or aspects of the day you have enjoyed. Perhaps jot it down and collect it for future reference.
It’s ok to put yourself first from time to time
Do things just because they make you happy. Nurture your soul. Sometimes we need to prioritise ourselves to give more to other aspects of our lives.
Ask for help
We all need help from time to time. Part of self-care is asking for support, delegating and letting other people help us. It might make us feel vulnerable but ultimately it can be very strengthening.
>>Here is Clive’s latest offering – a beautiful practice in self care>>
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