When you are stuck, experiencing body symptomes or even diseases your body is saying NO. But NO to what? 

First it is always NO, you need to stop. Stop with ticking that to do list, helping everybody around you, answering to that family member that you know drains your energy or emotionally triggers you. It is time to take care of yourself. 

But which 3 things can you do, that you will actually benefit from? 

Well, you will need to develop daily practice that will help to release your emotional tensions and calm down your nervous system. When I heard at the beginning of my path, I need to develop a daily practice of 5 minute journaling, I was freaking out – I do not have time to do that, I have two small children, a job, a household to take care of and everything else I planned to do! 

Well, how much time does it takes you when you get ill, when you do not have motivation, sitting by the TV, scrolling social media?  I can assure you it is more than 5 minutes!

On the other side, maybe you already know self care is a must, but do you consistently do it? Heads up – we all face challenges. Taking care of ourselves is usually in contradiction with beliefs we carry. About core beliefs I will share with you in one of my next blogs. Establishing consistent self-care practice is also a way of getting to know yourself deeply. 

So, coming to what to do.

 

#1 – bodily movement: yoga, qi gong, tai chi, dancing, walk in the nature

Your body stores tensions from daily experiences and past emotional memories that are triggered. With body movement you will move your energy and tensions that they will get more soft or even dissolve. From my experience body movement needs high consistency in your life, put it in your morning routine. When overloaded with tasks make a shorter routine, rather to skip it. You can sign up for classes in your close environment to get some basic information on chosen body movement. I signed up for my first qi gong class 3 years ago and it has been with me ever since. 

#2 – meditation & breathing

Your mind is full of thoughts. And even more, our mind is design to support the worst case scenario thoughts. With daily meditation or breathing exercise you will clean up your mind. You can see this as releasing tension in your body. And the same as with your body, your thought flash from daily activities, past memories that you are conscious about, but also at the same time your unconscious mind triggers thought that you do not access. With meditation you will develop a habit of observing your mind and direct your mind to the direction you will choose. You can start with sitting in a quite setting daily for 10 minutes. Do nothing. Only observe. Only be. Set a timer, first couple of times it will seem to last forever. Feel your breath. 

Take as much time for meditation you can and then prolong the time. When you are able to meditate 20 minutes in the morning and 20 minutes in the evening, stay with this practice. I like to just sit and breath, from time to time do guided (pre-recorded) meditation or visualization. 

#3 – say NO

Say NO to experiences that overwhelm you. Say NO, when someone crosses your boundaries. Say NO when you are about to put other people’s needs before yours. Say NO to too much work. Say NO to family member and put your self-care first. Say NO, when you mean NO. Say NO, do not explain.  Say YES, when you mean and feel YES. 

Include all 3 elements of your self-care practice in your daily practice. Let me know how does it go for you?

Do you want to know more about benefits of self-care? That is the topic for next blog.