Self-care is a phrase you’ve all heard, perhaps to the point you cringe when you hear it. Lovely concept. Finding time just for yourself? We need to nourish our spirits, but we often get so busy we neglect the importance of honoring ourselves.
How I shifted a recent experience from negative to positive
Sunday, I had to make an early morning drive to retrieve my credit card I mistakenly left at a store the day before about 30 miles away. It was a chilly morning, with clouds in the sky, so I opened the car windows, played music, and enjoyed the ride. The result: I used mindfulness (yes, music is mindfulness) to turn a frustrating situation around.
When I returned home, I was refreshed, as if I had taken a few days off. The idea that I didn’t spend the time rumbling about how I had been so negligent and instead did something so simple was pure bliss.
Avoid this unconscious habit
The act of continuing to remind ourselves of mistakes, which all of us make, does nothing other than cement into our psyche negative emotions that trigger even more. It’s a cycle – much like a dog chasing its tail. Around and around. Yet the act of something so simple, lifting yourself up, does so much.
Yes, your days are full, especially with caregiving added to your other roles. However, repeated negativity from within anchors even more into the abyss of seemingly no return. It becomes an underlying, unconscious habit that repeats itself.
Finding a way to a more balanced life becomes imperative in caring for yourself and being more present for your loved one—time for a new plan; practice mindfulness. A simple way of allowing yourself to be in the present moment, reduce the ‘what if and if only,’ to simply – BE.
Mindfulness comes in many forms and evokes an overall sense of calm.
It can be as simple as a morning walk. A long bath with a cup of tea. Baking cookies that fill up your home with a sweet aroma.
Listening to music is an effortless way to reduce anxiety and relieve stress, creating a shift like magic.
It’s not something you must ‘do’ per se, like your other tasks. Your focus is on the mindfulness practice. Give it a whirl - try something just for you.
Hugs,
Cyndi Mariner
Breathing Spaces
