For most of us, when it comes to personal wellness we might find that it isn’t always easy to fit into our everyday lives, especially for those of us who really struggle to prioritise ourselves.
Yes- I’m talking about you.
It’s hard to try and take control of where your mind wanders off to at various points in the day. Often our inability to regain control of our thinking can leave us feeling defeated and drained. I mean if you really think about it, our brains never stop working- and I know for me, a day in my head, in my house, not doing much other than thinking, can leave me feeling more exhausted than a day on my feet running around like a crazy person. Especially if you struggle with anxiety, OCD, BPD, or any neurodivergent(cies).
Here’s the thing, I'm not coming at you from a place of authority, as I've said previously, I’m just your wellness guinea pig. If you're feeling a little bit skeptical about mindfulness as a concept then you’re not alone!
Before we continue, what do I mean by
‘mindfulness’, or to be
‘mindful’?
The Oxford dictionary defines mindful as:
‘1. conscious or aware of something.
"I arrived home for the summer, ever mindful of my obligations to my parents"..
‘2. focusing one's awareness on the present moment, especially as part of a therapeutic or meditative technique.
"tune in to your body and be mindful”…’
So in the next couple of articles, I’m going to include a mindfulness habit from my toolkit and let you know how I get on. What works for me, what I didn’t like as much, how I felt afterwards…remember, this is a lifestyle change not a temporary diet trend, so you won't see changes overnight, you’re essentially creating a new habit!
Using your daily commute as an opportunity to practice mindfulness:
- Focus on your breathing. By focusing on your breath, you can feel more centered and you can calm your busy and sometimes loud thoughts!
- Listen to a meditation podcast, or a wellbeing-centred podcast. Many will have guests that end up being basically free therapy sessions. Cheap is great but free is better! Am I right?! To name a few:
- The Mel Robbins Podcast
- The Wellness Process
- The Seeking Wellness With Tash Podcast
- Prologues Podcast
- Do a body scan. (I see you scrunching up your face! But hear me out). When we are on trains, buses, or in the car, we are still, but why are we so tense? Try relaxing your eyebrows and relaxing your jaw. Your tongue doesn't need to be sitting on the roof of your mouth and you don’t need to look so cross whilst you stare out of the window. And drop your shoulders a bit. Really take note of any tension or discomfort and try actively to relax those areas.
- Practice gratitude. Try and use this time just to think about the small joys in your day. It could be that you did pretty latte art in your morning coffee, maybe you got an early finish or your makeup stayed looking flawless all day, maybe your last meeting was cancelled so now you can do something you’ve been meaning to do. Maybe you love your bedspread and can’t wait to get tucked up in bed.. it can be anything!
- Absorb your surroundings. Try and really take it all in. Not just what you see but what you smell and hear. Especially with spring on our doorstep, this can be one of the most beautiful times of year, don’t miss it wishing it were warmer, cooler, less rainy… For me, walking up my street back home from the day and smelling everyone’s dinners cooking as dusk dapples along the leaves of nearby trees and rooftops sends a rush of serotonin through my body!
If you try even one of these, please let me know what you think and what podcasts you enjoy listening to.
Now, some positive news this month!
- A new free app has been created to help cyclists in London discover the city's green spaces.
- Wild campers have been granted access to previously Restricted areas- the launch of the ReWild Spaces scheme has enabled campers to explore sites that previously prohibited overnight stays. This is good news for visitors who can now also get involved in restoration and rewilding projects taking place on-site, thanks to the Rewilding Britain charity.
- A team of deaf and hard of hearing scientists and educators have created 400 British Sign Language signs related to environmental science. This will be key to opening up inclusive discussions about the climate emergency.
‘Replay’
is the new adventure playground created from entirely repurposed and reworked materials and doubles as an art installation that will be opening at the Southbank Centre in London this coming summer. Tubes from a bandage factory and a BAFTA red carpet are among some of the repurposed materials on this project.
That just about wraps it up from me.
Next time: Spring Equinox and Mindful Spending. If you’re a shopaholic, or like me, a dopamine shopper, you’re going to want to tune in for that.
Logging out,
Kaitlyn