A few months ago, I read an article and listened to a podcast (by two different people) that said self care is more than just bath salts. I was totally nodding my head with them as I read and listened to that statement (not that there is anything wrong with bath salts!).
Maybe you have heard this: self care is making sure that you aren't pouring from an empty cup.
As a young mom with a new baby, I heard over and over again, "sleep when the baby sleeps". There is truth to that, but sleep isn't always the thing needed to feel refreshed.
Sometimes instead of sleeping when the baby is sleeping, you will want to open up your paints and paint a picture. Maybe it's knitting. Maybe you want to open up your blog and write a blog post on what is on your heart at the moment. Maybe it's pouring a cup of hot coffee and reading a few chapters in a book that you have been reading when you can.
I'm not in the newborn stage anymore. I am in the stage where my boys are always with me (there are currently three of us snuggled into my bed as I type and they listen to an audio book during rest time), homeschooling, running a business, plus everything else that comes along in our life right now - moving, soccer practices, getting ready for a wedding, etc. Life is BUSY.
I am still learning that it is necessary to stop. slow down. and take a minute to breath. The way I see it, self care is all about being preventive. No one wants to be flat out on their back, suffering from an illness. Stress does that. Stress WRECKS your body. Ask me how I know. (Been there. Done that. And don't want to do it again.)
When I know we are heading into a busy season (like right now), here are a few things that I do:
1. Cut out foods that aren't helping my body thrive. I'm talking about sugar and wheat mainly. I don't even let them get into our house so that I'm not tempted. Smoothies make for a great lunch and I can pack in lots of good things.
2. Take time to wash my face in the evenings, turn on the diffuser in our room with Lavender and Northern Lights Black Spruce, and read a little bit before falling asleep.
3. Exercise. I admit that I fell of the exercise train for a while, but I'm adding it back in to my day. It's a busy season, but those endorphins that come after I exercise, not to mention all the energy, makes taking the 20 minutes to exercise worth it.
4. Putting on my essential oils and turning on the diffuser daily. There are a few essential oil blends that are my "go to's" in busy seasons, especially.
• Stress Away - lime and vanilla
• Sacred Mountain - a blend of oils including, Balsam Canada, Cedarwood, Lavender and Ylang Ylang
• Lavender and Northern Lights Black Spruce - perfect for the evenings in the diffuser
• Joy, Orange and Peppermint - I call it my "happy blend", since these three are uplifting and smell amazing together.
The smell of essential oils calm and help me focus on what actually matters in my day.
5. Drinking a huge glass of warm water with a drop of lemon essential oil in the morning to reset my system before I drink coffee.
6. Going for a walk in the evenings as a family, before the craziness of putting the boys to bed.
7. Doing a huge brain dump onto to paper and writing everything down. Then it's not in my brain anymore and I am able to look at everything that needs to get done and organize it properly.
8. Keeping my room clean. Sounds crazy, but when our room is a mess, my brain feels like a mess. It's harder for me to sleep at night. Making sure the clothes are put away and surfaces are cleaned off every day, is actually part of my self care routine.
9. Letting other people help. This is a huge one for me, that I am still learning. I am the person that says "no problem! I got it!"...even when I don't "got it". When people offer, usually that means that they actually want to help. So I'm learning to let people help me. Whether that is dropping off a meal in a busy season, even though I could probably make it myself. Or taking my kids for an afternoon. Or offering to come help me pack and get my house ready for showings. If people are offering to help, let them. And don't feel guilty about it either.
Here are a few other ways to slow down and focus on taking care of yourself:
• Spending time in the early morning being quiet. Reading your Bible. Maybe this is the time when you read a few chapters of your favourite book. Drink your coffee without scrolling social media.
• Staying off of social media until a least a good part of the morning is finished (I'm still working on that one).
• Buy a bouquet of fresh flowers and put them on your kitchen table or beside your bed. I have been loving going to a local farm stand and getting beautiful tulips this spring. I have been using the excuse of needing fresh flowers for our showings, but fresh flowers are always good to have.
• Going out by yourself one evening a week or every other week - either out for a coffee with a friend, or to walk around your favourite thrift store or bookstore. This doesn't mean you have to buy anything - just walk around in silence.
(note: I don't like to put grocery shopping as part of this time, because it isn't my favourite, but maybe grocery shopping is part of your favourite times of the week!)
There are so many different ways to make sure you are taking care of yourself. Don't let it get to the point where you are so overcome that you can't even manage anymore. It's not fun; it's not good for you and it's not good for your family when you are over the top stressed.
Take care of yourself.
