Day 7: Self Care for Sensitives
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Did you miss Day 6 of the course?   CLICK HERE TO READ DAY 6

Do you ever forget to take care of yourself?

I know. You’re busy, we all are and finding the time to take good care of yourself can be super hard (seriously, this day in age who has the time when you're putting everyone else's needs before your own). But if you don’t, it won’t be long before you’re run-down from exhaustion and operating at the mental capacity of fish in a bowl, where it’s hard to care about anything or anyone let alone yourself.

Don't worry, I've been there and can tell the tale just as i'm sure a lot of you can.
Not that many years a go I was a full time mother had been out of my chosen industry a number of years and the pressure was on to try and become the all rounder working mom.  But what to do?  So I went on an extensive hunt to find my purpose, where I fit or felt I belonged.  I ended up working for a women who completely took me for granted, using me at every turn and had me on tap pretty much 24/7!

I rarely took care of myself, and I was always focused on goals, achievements, and meeting the excessive expectations I had of myself not only as a mother, but as a creator and builder of businesses (my trouble was, it was always someone else's business I would slog away at instead of my own, not to mention punishing myself every time my narcissistic boss would tell me I hadn't done enough......truth was I was doing a million times more than any other boss I knew expected and went above and beyond to make sure she was happy). My high tolerance for discomfort meant I juggled all the balls I had in the air—but at the expense of being a well-rounded balanced human being.

So after falling sick with burn out one to many times and ending up with the usual case of (for a healer in my experience it's generally laryngitis or something to do with the throat chakra) something nasty that would force me to slow down and see me exhausted and with nothing left to give.
I began to take care of myself better, setting boundaries was a good one for me, one on one time with my children where I would not pick up my phone or look at the computer screen, find time to be alone and do nothing at all and got myself out doing exercise everyday with a long walk around the local reserve.
I got to know myself better and know what I needed—not just to function, but to blossom and thrive in all areas of my life.
But guess what?
Even though I took this time to find balance, things get busy and we don't always remember to uphold those promises of balance and self care that we make ourselves.

Self-Care and Self-Love is simply not a One-Time Deal 
The laryngitis and then vertigo were a harsh reminder that self-care isn’t something you do once and tick off your bucket list.
It’s the constant repetition of many tiny habits, which together nurture you and make sure you’re at the most balanced place you can be —emotionally, physically, and mentally.
The best way to do this is to implement baby-step self-care habits every day. 
To regularly include in your life a little bit of love, pampering and attention for your own body, mind, and soul.
The following ideas are Self-Love activities you can fit into a short amount of time, usually with little cost to whatever it is that you must get done.

Try just picking one and try and include it in your week, as it becomes habit add another if it feels right.  It's not self-ish to anyone else but yourself if you don't practice self-care.

• Start a gratitude notepad/diary. Document the great things people say about you to read later and how they made you feel.
• I love lying on the grass in summer and watching clouds, the shapes they make and if you have children too, it's a great opportunity to spend some quiet but amusing time with them.
• Allow the silly in you to come out.  Do a little dance, sing a little song. 5-10 mins of just playing can be so grounding and is sure to bring a smile.
• Spend time doing that one thing you've been trying to get done for ages.
• Get out of your comfort zone in some way.  It could be smiling or talking to a stranger, giving a few more hugs than you normally do.
• BE SELFISH - do one thing a day just for you, just because you can and it makes you feel good inside.
• Unplug from the world for awhile. Airplane mode is great for this on your devices.
• Get out into nature or a quick stroll by the sea
• Take a different route to work - it's amazing how different our worlds can be just by changing our routine ever so slightly. Mix it up, keep it healthy and fresh.
• De-clutter! I love this one, well who doesn't and dropping a big bag of old clothes off to a store that needs them....well that's service to the community at the same time.
• Do a de-clutter of your social media.  Do you really need some of those people on your friends lists that bring up negative talk or things you don't like...do you even really know half of them?
• Mini meditations are a great way to break up your day.  Head to the toilet at work, eat your lunch outside, before bed, in the shower, shake your booty with a dance mediation. One minute of awareness of your thoughts, feelings, and sensations; one minute of focused attention on breathing; and one minute of awareness of the body as a whole.
• Do a home spa for your gorgeous self, it doesn't have to be a retreat where you are pampered with hot mud baths and massages, it could be as simple as an at home pedicure or a nice hot bath.
• Check in with your emotions - how are you really feeling today?
• Take a nap
• Cuddle an animal - this is the best feeling in the world for both of you.
• Do a quick body scan and check in with how your body is feeling.  Is your jaw tight? Are your shoulders tense? Go from top to toe as your body will be giving you little clues as to how you are really doing....listen!
• Make the effort for one week to feed that gorgeous body of yours.  Maybe have breakfast if you don't normally or pack yourself some healthy snacks for the day.
  Don't forget to drink plenty of water and stay hydrated.
• Self-Nurture - So often we do this without realizing it, some stroke their eyebrow or cheek, some an arm, some moisturize their legs.  Self-love comes in many forms. Do what feels most comfortable to you.
• Get some sun and fresh air! Even if only for ten minutes it could make all the difference to your day.

It doesn't have to be a massive amount but with a little bit of self-care and focus on you every day that stagnant fog will begin to lift.  You'll feel more connected to your higher self/soul and the world around you.  You must keep yourself tuned up so as not to find yourself deep down in the dumps with possible physical and emotional issues galore.
Adding just a few of these Self-care/self-love ideas into your week will make all the difference to your state of mind and your ability to focus at the level that is needed from day to day.

Did you miss Day 8 of the course?   CLICK HERE TO READ DAY 8

In Good Health and Happiness,