Self-care, Setting Boundaries and Finding Time to Take Care of You
The last few weeks I have been taking a step back, getting back to the basics and reconnecting with myself. This conscious internal check-in came to be based on a few (okay, a few too many) physical communication cues from my body.
Basically, 2020 is a dumpster fire of a year and I thought I had been handling it well until my body told me otherwise.
If you have been with me in this community for awhile you know I'm always talking about how your body will always communicate to you what it needs, all you ave to do is listen. Well, I decided to deeply listen and ended up realizing just how stressed out I have been. I'm talking stress dreams, a 3-day cheek spasm, moodiness, and more.
I prescribed myself a heavy dose of self-care and the need to set boundaries in order to protect my wellbeing and feel like me again.
Believe me, I know how hard this is to do, especially during a time when all you want to do is survive the day. But just surviving is not going to cut it. You still need to thrive and experience joy in life, even when it's impossible.
So, here are a few self-care and boundaries I have implemented the last few weeks, and may inspire you to do the same:
Daily 45-minute walks where I listen to a saved podcast episode I have been meaning to listen to. It's time to clear my head, spark creativity, be outside, in the moment and get fresh air.
I airplane mode my phone by 8:30pm each night to reduce screen time, signal to my body it is night time aka time to relax, and to be present with my husband.
I'm saying 'no' a lot more. I had always been a person to rush to answer someone or to not miss out on anything, but I was always running around and not getting to the things I wanted to get to. So now, it's a no for me.
I get dressed everyday. I'm talking outfit, styled hair and a quick 5-minute face. I got super lazy and was letting myself go. This simple act has done wonders.
I do 10-minutes of restorative yoga to activate my parasympathetic nervous system to help calm my stress and anxiety down. Check out Yoga Journal for some inspiration.
I have implemented an intentional nightly routine to go along with my intentional morning routine. My nightly routine is wash my face (and enjoy it like a spa treatment, hello serums), spray my bed with lavender, write down the must-do to do's for the next day, read and have my lights off by 10:30pm so I can wake-up at 7am feeling refreshed and ready to go.
Now if you are reading this and are thinking, 'I don't have time Kristen, you're nuts' it's time you set that excuse aside. Because you do have time! If it's important to you and if you are serious about your health and getting yourself to a better place, then you will find the time.
My advice, start with checking the screen time app on your phone and how much time you spend scrolling your social feeds. I'm thinking you can cut 10-minutes from there? :)
Have fun with it and do things that bring a smile to your face and feel good for you! Remember, health and wellbeing looks and is different for everyone.