Wellbeing and relaxation
There is a lot more to being ‘healthy’ than just eating the right things and moving your body (though these are very important). You have got to look after your mental wellbeing – some people describe it as ‘nourishing the soul’. If you are the kind of person who is always busy, struggles to sleep well, is pretty stressed and takes very little time out for their own happiness, you really need to look at that. A good start (aside from a coaching programme!) is to create a little white space every day. That’s space you don’t fill with anything. Taking time out to follow a 10 minute guided meditation with Headspace, Calm or similar is a good place to begin and can have a dramatic impact in a short space of time.
It seems like sometimes you can be trusted to take care of yourself, and at other times you are right at the bottom of your list of priorities. One of the key pillars of health and a feeling of wellbeing is sleep. If you didn’t score that you nearly always sleep well, it’s worth having a mini sleep audit to see where you could tidy up your bedtime routine. Ideas for improving your sleep quality include going to bed at a similar time every night, avoiding stimulants like coffee and tea late in the day, having a phone curfew at least an hour before going to bed, avoiding watching TV in the bedroom, and reading a little to wind down.
Well done! To supercharge your feeling of wellbeing, take stock of exactly what you are doing for yourself. Think of all the things you are currently doing: the family, the job, and such like. If you don’t take care of you, who will do all that work? Self care is critically important because at the heart of it is an understanding that only you can make you happy. Start making a list of things you can do purely for your own enjoyment. Make sure that you spend at least 30 minutes each day (can be 2x 15 minutes) doing what’s on your list