A list of things that help....

…..in challenging times.

Do you ever experience hitting some challenges, bumps in the road, stressful times and you forget to reach for the things you know will help. I do!

Part of a mindful approach to managing stress is to know our signs of stress well and when we begin to experience them start taking action to nip it in the bud. This means looking at our physical, emotional, cognitive and behavioural signs of stress so we recognise whats happening when we start to experience them.

A regular practice of meditation, exercise, time in nature etc means we will be better equipped for lives inevitable ups and downs AND sometimes we forget or circumstances means our usual self care practices are derailed or we simply don’t do them when life is good or ok. Dropping some of our practices may be one of our behavioural signs that actually its just what we need!

When a friend reached out to me the other day who was experiencing a stressful time she asked what she could do to help. My friend actually asked for one thing and I sent her a list with the suggestion to pick one or two.

Here is the list I sent…

  • Walk in nature by the river and take some deep breaths. There’s a lovely mantra by Thich Nhat Hann which you might try gently repeating in your mind as you walk “breathing in I calm my body breathing out I smile, dwelling in the present moment I know this is a wonderful moment”

  • Schedule your day and include scheduling some ‘worry time’ to think about the stressful things so if you start thinking about it before that time you can remind yourself you have some worry time scheduled for later.

  • Lie on your acupressure Shakti mat for a while, sometimes accessing the relaxation response through the body is what we need.

  • Use some EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) tapping and breathing deeply as you move to each point.

  • Set insight timer or something similar to remind you to stop for a few minutes and breath deeply at various points throughout the day.

  • A few sun salutations to move the energy.

  • If there is a giant to do list and you are in overwhelm just pick one thing, give it your full attention, enjoy ticking it off the list.

  • Lie in childs pose for a while or another lovely supported restorative yoga pose.

  • Seek out other people with regulated nervous systems and calm energy for co regulation.

  • Have a massage or relaxing treatment.

  • Pop nervous system soothing scents in a diffuser like camomile or lavender.

  • Have a bath with epsom salts.

  • Listen to a guided meditation, a body scan.

  • Talk it out with a trusted friend or therapist.

  • Watch something that makes you laugh.

  • Write it down, you don’t need to keep it but get it all out.

  • Put on your favourite dance music and dance it out.

You get the idea! What would your list look like? Keep this list somewhere obvious, pin it on the fridge, tuck it inside your diary.

Let me know what you would add to your list so I can perhaps add it to mine!

with love

Suzi